…and what the successful ones do differently.
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it’s not just the numbers
with penny breslin and damien greathead
for 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间
client accounting services (cas) has moved well beyond bookkeeping. for firms serious about advisory, cas is now a fundamentally different operating model, one that demands new roles, new systems, and a far higher level of internal transparency than traditional tax or audit practices ever required.
in this episode of it’s not just the numbers, damien greathead and penny breslin draw on more than two decades of shared experience to unpack what actually makes a modern cas practice work in the real world. their discussion goes beyond theory and into the structural, cultural, and operational decisions firms must confront if they want cas to be scalable, profitable, and sustainable .
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traditional accounting firms are built around specialization and hierarchy: junior and senior accountants, bookkeepers, managers, and partners, each working essentially in isolation on their own client list. that structure works for compliance, but it breaks down in a cas environment.
“cas requires the team to approach the client holistically,” breslin explains. “you can’t have people operating in silos. everyone needs to understand the client’s goals, not just their individual task.”
the most successful cas firms start by identifying which team members actually want to be part of that vision. cas is not for everyone, and forcing reluctant staff into advisory work rarely ends well. once buy-in is established, firms must then ensure that everyone, from administrators to bookkeepers to partners, has visibility into the client relationship, the scope of the engagement, and the desired outcomes.
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that visibility enables consistent handoffs, fewer dropped balls, and a cohesive client experience rather than fragmentation.
transparency emerges as one of the most important and underestimated principles in building a cas team.
greathead shares an example of a firm that eliminated individual inboxes in favor of a centralized client communication system. clients still emailed their usual contacts, but behind the scenes, all correspondence flowed into a shared ticketing environment.
the results were eye-opening.
first, firm leadership gained immediate visibility into how clients were interacting with staff. in some cases, this surfaced inappropriate or abusive behavior that had previously gone unnoticed. with facts in hand, partners could step in, reset expectations—or disengage entirely.
second, it allowed client questions to be triaged to the right person the first time. administrative queries went to the admin. technology questions went to client success. accounting issues went to the accountants. partners were no longer the default bottleneck for every inbound request.
most importantly, patterns emerged. repeated client questions, recurring scope issues, and systemic workflow breakdowns became visible in ways that siloed email never allows.
“when everything is transparent, you can finally see where things are working—and where they aren’t,” breslin notes.
one of the strongest themes in the discussion is the critical role of administration in a cas practice. too many firms treat admin as a necessary expense rather than a strategic function.
in a cas model, administration is not about answering phones; it is about orchestration.
a strong administrator or operations manager acts as the firm’s quarterback: balancing workloads, enforcing priorities, tracking “waiting on client” items, and protecting accountants from spending their days chasing documents. when this role is missing—or underpowered—firms see predictable results: missed deadlines, frustrated staff, and overstressed partners.
“accountants don’t like chasing paperwork,” breslin says bluntly. “if you make them do it, they’ll procrastinate. give that job to someone who’s good at it.”
importantly, this role requires a different skill set than accounting. firms often promote bookkeepers into admin roles, only to watch them get pulled back into technical work. the most effective operations leaders are process-driven, comfortable setting boundaries, and empowered to say no—sometimes even to partners.
at the partner level, the cas role is clear: advising the client. but advisory cannot happen without space: mental, emotional, and calendar space.
breslin emphasizes the importance of deliberately blocking time to think about clients, not just meet with them. some firms schedule monthly advisory calls. others have found greater success meeting quarterly, while using monthly blocks of partner time to analyze trends, review communications, and prepare insights in advance.
the shift is subtle but powerful. instead of reactive meetings driven by management reports, partners arrive with perspective and context on the business, the industry, and emerging risks or opportunities.
that preparation signals value. clients feel heard, understood, and supported—and fee resistance tends to evaporate as a result.
“you can’t advise if you’re drowning in task work,” breslin says. “your team exists so you don’t have to do everything.”
technology, and increasingly ai, plays a critical role in enabling this model, but only when implemented thoughtfully. practice management systems, workflow tools, and automation platforms only deliver value when everyone in the firm is included.
greathead cautions against penny-pinching on software licenses by excluding administrators or junior staff. “the transparency you think you’re buying disappears the moment part of the team is outside the system.”
when fully implemented, these platforms provide a real-time view of capacity, scope, and bottlenecks. they also create the foundation for ai-enabled insights—automated summaries of client communication, trend analysis across engagements, and early warnings about scope creep.
but technology does not replace judgment. cas firms still need people who understand context, nuance, and client psychology.
not every client is ready—and that’s okay
a final, important reminder: cas is not for every client.
greathead estimates that roughly 20% of most firm client bases are ready for true advisory services today. those clients will value, and pay for, the depth of engagement cas provides. others are at different stages of their business lifecycle, and forcing them into an advisory model creates friction rather than value.
the goal is not universal adoption. the goal is intentional design: building a cas capability that serves the right clients, with the right team, using the right systems.
as breslin puts it, “give yourself the grace of space.” cas is a long-term shift, not a switch to flip overnight.
9 key takeaways
- cas is a fundamentally different operating model, not an extension of bookkeeping. it requires new roles, shared visibility, and firm-wide coordination that traditional compliance structures can’t support.
- silos kill advisory. cas teams must understand the whole client relationship, not just their individual tasks, to deliver consistent value.
- transparency isn’t cultural—it’s structural. shared communication systems expose workflow bottlenecks, scope creep, and client behavior patterns that email silos hide.
- administration is a strategic function, not overhead. strong operations leadership protects accountants from low-value work and keeps the firm moving forward.
- partners can’t advise if they’re buried in tasks. cas firms must intentionally create time and mental space for partners to think, prepare, and lead client conversations.
- technology only works when everyone is included. excluding administrators or junior staff from systems destroys visibility and undermines the very efficiencies firms seek.
- ai amplifies insight—but it doesn’t replace judgment. cas still depends on people who understand context, nuance, and client psychology.
- cas is not for every client, and forcing it creates friction. the goal is intentional design: serving the right clients with the right team and systems.
- successful cas firms give themselves “the grace of space.” advisory capability is built deliberately over time, not flipped on overnight.