management

how we killed the tax season client meeting

by

man working hard at office deskyep, there’s an app for that!

by frank stitely
the relentless cpa

what did dorothy and her friends fear in the wizard of oz? “lions and tigers and bears, oh my!” dorothy feared the wrong things if she’s a partner in a cpa firm. we don’t see much wildlife in our offices during tax season unless you count fast food delivery people and the occasional crazy client.

more: why your firm needs to attract more millenials | why millennials are the answer | calculating and cutting turnaround time | debunking the demise of the cpa firm | how many tax preparers do you need? | 3 tips for handling rookie tax preparers
goprocpa.comexclusively for pro members. log in here or 2022世界杯足球排名 today.

we should really fear the events that destroy our priorities and drain hours from productive work. meetings and phone calls and emails, oh my! let’s look at why these communication methods are so destructive from a practice management standpoint.
read more →

make your writing count

by

woman working at desktop computergood writing still takes time and careful consideration.

by steven e. sacks
the new fundamentals

every day we write something, whether it is a text, an email, a handwritten note (yes, they still exist), an article, speech, a report or something else. it takes practice and patience to become proficient. it does not matter what profession or field of endeavor in which you work. to be clear and concise is to respect the reader’s time and position.

more: 6 types of non-listeners | etiquette never goes out of style | make news, not noise | have a real-life conversation | exchanging knowledge has no downside | take that extra breath with email | effective communications in the age of covid | profit is not a mission
goprocpa.comexclusively for pro members. log in here or 2022世界杯足球排名 today.

if you advise businesses, besides the guidance you impart, your most valuable product can be a memo, letter or a report. your report is the only tangible product the client will receive in return for paying your fee. it serves as a historical record of the effort you put forth. it can mask or reveal the quality of the fact-finding or analysis you conducted simply based on how clearly you communicated your information.
read more →

try an accountability chart instead

by

blank organizational chartthen check to see whether the right people are in the right seats.

by jody grunden
building the virtual cfo firm in the cloud

“getting the right people on the bus, the wrong people off the bus, and the right people in the right seats – these are all crucial steps in the early stages of buildup…” – jim collins, “good to great”

more: give your leadership team time to lead | be more effective remotely with disc | protect client files from cyberthreats | get ready to launch virtual cfo services | riches in niches | marketing is about thought leadership | how to audit 401(k)s | 3 measures of the effectiveness of your team | how to profit with workflow apps
goprocpa.comexclusively for pro members. log in here or 2022世界杯足球排名 today.

when adam and i first started the company, we didn’t have much organizational structure. we didn’t need it. but as the company grew, it became necessary to develop an organizational structure. there’s a great quote by michael e. gerber in his book “the e-myth revisited” that says, “without the organization chart, confusion, discord and conflict become the order of the day.”
read more →

trust: one building block of success

by

businesspeople discussing chartsremote work and “rightsizing” make it more important than ever.

by steven e. sacks
the new fundamentals

people are so busy these days, juggling meetings, projects, conference calls, performance reviews and a whole slew of other responsibilities. each of these activities has a level of commitment attached to it. the person who is accountable for completing the tasks promises he or she will follow through. the other party who is requesting the deliverable expects that the promise will be kept.

more: 6 types of non-listeners | etiquette never goes out of style | make news, not noise | take that extra breath with email | effective communications in the age of covid | the new covid-19 workplace: are you prepared?
goprocpa.comexclusively for pro members. log in here or 2022世界杯足球排名 today.

how often have we become disappointed that others have failed in their commitments?

a lot.
read more →

6 types of non-listeners

by

woman on phone ignoring man across tableyou know the phrase: we hear but do we really listen?

by steven e. sacks
the new fundamentals

do you ever find yourself speaking to someone and notice that they are battling you and their iphone? a quick glance here, a one- or two-word text response there. unfortunately, it is the new normal – whether in business or in our personal lives.

more: etiquette never goes out of style | make your presentations memorable | have a real-life conversation | is your message open to interpretation? | trust is a key organizational ingredient | real influence vs. immediate gratification
goprocpa.comexclusively for pro members. log in here or 2022世界杯足球排名 today.

those of us who encountered different forms of technology tools and platforms during the second half of our careers still believe that effective interpersonal communication still counts for something. of course, in this era of uncivil discourse, speaking over one another has, too, become the new normal.
read more →

be more effective remotely with disc

by

overhead view of five people in a meetingbetter understanding = better communication.

by jody grunden
building the virtual cfo firm in the cloud

working in a remote environment can be great, and it can also have its challenges. communication is one of the biggest hurdles distributed companies have to overcome. to tackle this issue head on, summit cpa has implemented many initiatives.

more: do you have the right people? | hate billing? use a different method | use bots to your advantage | how to attract clients like a magnet | 6 steps for sales and conversion
goprocpa.comexclusively for pro members. log in here or 2022世界杯足球排名 today.

one of our favorites is the disc profiles. let me start off by telling you a little bit of the background on the disc profiles.
read more →

11 ways to keep the family business on track

by

//www.g005e.com/2020/09/28/when-family-and-business-combine/

mixing family and business can be hazardous.

portrait of matt rampe
matt rampe

by matt rampe
rampe consulting

thinking of going into business with a family member? or maybe you already made the plunge? that’s what i did recently after many years happily employed by non-family members.

more: listening: how a conversation works | client accounting services: the definitive guide | building a high-net-worth practice during covid-19 | 14 better uses for timesheet data |  why you need windows 10 with automatic updates

 goprocpa.comexclusively for pro members. log in here or 2022世界杯足球排名 today.

for years i have assisted family-owned businesses as a professional service provider, and i’ve seen up close the many ways in which families can become dysfunctional around money and business. somehow that still didn’t stop me from recently joining my wife, kristen rampe, in our business, rampe consulting, where we help small and midsized accounting firms with practice management and leadership development.
read more →

14 better uses for timesheet data

by

woman reading paper document at office desk in front of computerif you just pay people and move on, you’re missing critical information.

by ed mendlowitz

question: i keep timesheets for billing purposes but am not clear how i can use them to better manage my practice. how can i do this?

more: tossing timesheets is just the start | how’s your overhead? | 9 must-haves for firm growth | collect more by clearing up billing | envision your future, then plan for it | 5 ways to build teamwork
goprocpa.comexclusively for pro members. log in here or 2022世界杯足球排名 today.

answer: analyzing time records is a very effective practice management tool and is an essential part of most professional services organizations. some people contend that timesheets should not be used because they should not be the basis of any pricing, with fees solely based on the value to the client.

read more →

tossing timesheets is just the start

by

pen ready to fill in blank timesheetrecommended: two books to read.

by ed mendlowitz

question: i’ve read that many firms are no longer using timesheets. how do you feel about that?

more: how’s your overhead? | 9 must-haves for firm growth | collect more by clearing up billing | envision your future, then plan for it | 5 ways to build teamwork
goprocpa.comexclusively for pro members. log in here or 2022世界杯足球排名 today.

answer: there is a growing group of firms that no longer use timesheets.

read more →

make news, not noise

by

how to convince journalists to share your message.

“either write something worth reading or do something worth writing about.” – benjamin franklin

by steven e. sacks
the new fundamentals

we are constantly frustrated by how much email enters our inbox daily.

more: have a real-life conversation | exchanging knowledge has no downside | political correctness or just common courtesy? | syncing up for the covid era | profit is not a mission | confronting leadership: not such a bad thing | new opportunities for a ‘new normal’ | is trust elusive?
goprocpa.comexclusively for pro members. log in here or 2022世界杯足球排名 today.

but think about reporters and editors; they will receive hundreds of news releases every day.

read more →

the fool in the room

by

which employee is most valuable? you might be surprised.

by frank stitely
the relentless cpa

we have been heavily in the numbers so far. let’s take a break from that to discuss a factor that, while not heavily numeric, plays a big factor in managing wip – employee productivity. because capacity is the denominator in the lean six sigma equation, and employee productivity is a big factor in capacity, employee productivity becomes a big factor in determining turnaround time.

more: calculating and cutting turnaround time | there are no easy answers | how to thrive as a 21st-century firm | farm-aid for accountants? | whittle down wip | the tax practice traffic cop | how to coach your staff | how to create good managers
goprocpa.comexclusively for pro members. log in here or 2022世界杯足球排名 today.

first, let’s dismiss from the room all the consultants, who tell us that time tracking and productivity metrics don’t matter. for the most part, these consultants have never managed or owned cpa firms. rarely have they worked in firms for any length of time.
read more →

exchanging knowledge has no downside

by

portrait of investment advisor businesswoman sitting at office in front of computer and consulting with young professional man.welcome to the business version of “sharing is caring.”

by steven e. sacks
the new fundamentals

some people believe that knowledge is power, and the more of it they hoard the more power accrues to them. regardless of what level you are in your organization, the more open communication you encourage, the better you and your company will perform.

more: take that extra breath with email | is your message open to interpretation? | why proper communication is critical | how to create effective internal communications | how to select your firm’s board | trust is a key organizational ingredient | real influence vs. immediate gratification | 4 ways to boost job satisfaction | retention starts with the hiring interview
goprocpa.comexclusively for pro members. log in here or 2022世界杯足球排名 today.

i have found in many work environments that what results from the perceived “power trip” someone derives from keeping things “close to the vest” is more backbiting and a greater misalignment of strategies.
read more →

calculating and cutting turnaround time

by

time is money : clock hands on $100 billsalso known as the laziness equation.

by frank stitely
the relentless cpa

one of the funniest parts of launching clarity practice management has been watching my business partner, peter daniel, learn about the business acumen of cpas and accountants. peter and i founded clarity as a collaboration between a cpa firm client (peter) and a cpa firm (me.). he knew what he wanted from a client perspective, and i knew what we wanted as a cpa firm.

more: there are no easy answers | the 3 biggest tech failures of accounting firms | 7 steps to effective project management | wip-ing clients into shape | maximize your role as visionary | the land mines in tax returns | give your people the resources they need
goprocpa.comexclusively for pro members. log in here or 2022世界杯足球排名 today.

peter owns a software development company and believes in the rational decision-making model for businesses. the rational decision-making model is totally irrelevant to the way most cpas and accountants run their practices. for instance, consider this interchange between peter and a practitioner at our clarity booth during a trade show.
read more →