surveys & research

updated: accountants critical of competitor price-cutting

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the average firm may be trimming billing rate increases. but 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间 readers aren’t average.

cpa firm price increases slowed to a month-to-month increase of 0.4 percent in november, down from a 3.1 percent in september, and a fraction of the year-ago 1.9 percent hike. the picture in tax prep is even dimmer, with month-to-month slowdowns and year-to-year declines.

 

lohrey
ayster: not afraid to raise rates

by 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间 research

heading into tax season, cpa firms may be facing new pricing pressures, even as wages and consumer prices increase at record rates, according to a 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间 study of new government economic data.

what are today’s best pricing strategies?
join the survey. get the answers

to be sure, many 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间 members responding to our survey are resisting the pressures, and plan on pushing ahead with price increases.

more surveys & research: sales & use tax costs are higher than anyone thought | are you under-pricing your client accounting services? | survey: nobody loves the wayfair decision | survey: worries for small business clients | busy season forecast: more chaos | salt: the small business disaster waiting to happen

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while inflation is pushing prices up at record rates in major sectors of the u.s. economy, cpa firms appear to be trimming their billing rate increases, slicing 0.2 percent off the average price from october to november, according to 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间 research.

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private equity at the gates

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the pandemic has accelerated our progress toward the future that was already in the offing.

by terry putney

the pandemic is changing where firms work. and it’s a huge issue.

more: 12 shifts to ensure firm success | how to reinvent the firm for the covid age | why it’s time for an acquisition | three ways the accounting profession has changed | ramping up for the year ahead
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office space is being downsized dramatically. long-term office leases that must be assumed by an acquiring firm are becoming a deal killer in many m&a deals. we are seeing a significant increase in the number of firms that are going almost completely virtual. read more →

five steps to building advisory work

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both the who and the how.
hand watering small plant in pot shaped like upward arrow

by bill penczak

the nirvana (in the esoteric sense, not the kurt cobain context) for cpa firms is to provide “higher value” work for their clients, which traditionally means guiding them with process improvement, predictive analytics on business drivers, or taking proactive measures to reduce risk or tax burden.

more: the six essential kpis for managing partners | the great resignation: five reasons accountants are quitting | five global cpa leaders: four survival strategies | planning for success in 2021 | do you have the guts to beat the covid crisis?
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it is a career builder for your staff and a noble aspiration for the industry.

but while i have heard managing partners talk about the notion of higher value work, when pressed, they are often at a loss as to what that work would be, and more importantly, whether their mid-level and junior-level staffers (or even partners) have the true skill set to move into the major leagues.

the burden of meeting compliance deadlines weighs heavily on most staff, and they are weary from deadline pressures of clients’ immediate needs to consider much else.

perhaps this is the opportunity to help chart your best and brightest to the next level, not only for fear of losing them to industry or another firm, but because as a firm leader, it’s the right thing to do.
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your firm’s cas team: who and how many

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you may need to boost their human skillsets.

by hitendra patil
accountaneur: the entrepreneurial accountant

“we do not have the staffing for client accounting services.”

non-cas firms cite this as the topmost reason for not being able to offer cas. nothing could be further from the truth.

more: two tech approaches to cas | when to start building your cas tech stack | your firm needs a cas champion | your top six cas questions
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experience of firms that offer cas, including that of small firms with fewer than five staff members, proves beyond doubt that you do not need more staff to start offering cas. even solo practitioners provide cas. the only thing you need to begin your cas journey is to be ruthless, relentless and fearless to leverage newer and cloud technologies. automation, integration and even artificial intelligence make it easier, faster and cheaper to perform some repetitive, time-consuming work of accounting firms.
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sales & use tax costs are higher than anyone thought

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sales tax return activity represents the greatest proportion of total costs, followed by consumer use tax. among all businesses surveyed, the total calculated cost (hours spent multiplied by cost per hour) is $14,811 per month. esb average, $11,968.smb average, $17,672 (48% increase over esb segment.)

 

ripe opportunity for accountants to take over clients’ costly recurring non-revenue-generating back-office drudgery.

by 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间

midsize businesses spend 163 hours per month on tax compliance – costing more than $17,000, according to new research released by avalara, the sales tax automation company. additional findings break down what tax requirements businesses spend the most time and money on.

tax and accounting firms will be most interested in data related to clients’ recurring and significant spending on non-revenue-generating tasks, in tandem with the potential for human error and resulting impacts on compliance.

 

pro-member benefit:
get the complete deck with all the survey findings and analysis below.

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want to be a partner? meet these 17 expectations

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//www.g005e.com/2021/03/23/17-basic-expectations-of-partners/plus four super basics.

by marc rosenberg
the rosenberg practice management library

we’ve all heard the names given to various generations of people over the past century. the lost generation. the greatest (wwii) generation. the silent generation. baby boomers. gen x. millennials. gen z. though i don’t know of any studies on this, i’m quite sure that every generation of cpa firm ownership has complained – bitterly – about the younger generation.

more: five reasons not to make someone a partner | yes, you need another partner | what prospective partners should ask their firm | making partner: 15 steps to the buy-in | drive your profits with only four metrics
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baby boomers and gen xers love to complain that today’s staff don’t want to be partners. they cite this as a major reason why it’s so difficult to bring in new partners.
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clients who prefer obscurity

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//www.g005e.com/?p=77973referrals are your best way to gain the trust and business of the super-rich.

by anthony glomski and russ alan prince
your $5-million high-net-worth practice

client-focused business development is fundamental. the everyone wins process is effective at every level of wealth. as we said, the everyone wins process is not only business-enhancing, it’s life-enhancing. so, if you are interested in working with the super-rich and with single-family offices, mastering the everyone wins process will serve you well.

more: four steps of stress testing | the smart way to handle financial products | three types of family offices for the wealthy | virtual workshops guide clients through covid | thought leadership is more precious than ever
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on the other hand, you will need to make modifications to how you operate, including what you can deliver to these cohorts when it comes to your high-net-worth practice. an obvious example is that a single-family office will turn to you for all that most high-net-worth practices can deliver. this is extremely rare.
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two tech approaches to cas

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smiling businesswoman working at deskand one fundamental requirement.

by hitendra patil
the definitive success guide to client accounting services

client accounting services essentially requires an ability for your firm to be able to best serve the needs of all your clients.

more: when to start building your cas tech stack | stop derailing cas | lower your costs by 75% with cas | cas drives up demand for virtual cfos | turn client wants into needs | a job description for client accounting services
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in other words, your firm’s technology stack, services, processes and pricing packages need to cater to businesses of different sizes, turnovers, as well as various levels of tech-savviness of the business owners and their employees. in yet other words, your firm should have the ability to do part of the accounting work or all the work your clients offload to your firm.
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rewarding partners for seniority: pros and cons

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stressed person looking at graph.what best serves the firm?

by kristen rampe

in our work with cpa firms on partner compensation, we have asked countless partners what they think about various performance criteria and whether or not they should factor into a partner’s allocation of income. some examples of the performance criteria include firm management, business development, client service and billable hours. another criterion we ask about is seniority or tenure.

more: what if founders don’t want to buy each other out? | when cpa partner votes go wrong | when managing partners can’t | covid-19, adversity and innovation | is mandatory retirement a best practice?
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some partners respond to our questionnaire indicating that seniority or tenure should be a factor in income allocation. many partners believe it has no place. so, who’s right?
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four steps of stress testing

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check the bottom line.

by anthony glomski and russ alan prince
your $5-million high-net-worth practice

the everyone wins process is at the center of how you can maximize wealthy client relationships. most often, this is a function of aligning interests. the process is also core to generating new business from these clients and other professionals. the ability to add value often plays a significant role in being referred by other professionals to their best clients.

more: the smart way to handle financial products | three types of family offices for the wealthy | four ways to leverage your referral network | four qualities of the wealthy | it’s all about your wealthy clients
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at the same time, there are many different ways to frame your conversations based on the self-interests of the wealthy to optimize their financial worlds and accelerate results. stress testing is one of those ways.
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beyond bookkeeping: five value-add service areas

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smiling woman meeting with man in officebe an investment, not an expense.

by sandi leyva

every business needs to do some level of bookkeeping for a couple of reasons:

1) various government agencies require reporting and payments based on the company’s results.

2) the owner needs a certain amount of information to manage their business and keep it profitable.

more: beyond quickbooks: wowing your clients | five ways to get better clients | 11 kinds of wealth | 11 ways to boost billings and impress clients | how clients get underserved and accountants get underpaid
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many business owners hire us grudgingly for compliance work because they have to. and they consider what they pay us as an overhead expense that is a required cost.

but what if we could turn that perception around?
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