you can’t land your next client without this
how can we expect any prospect to buy into us?
by martin bissett
winning your first client
special
nine smooth moves to build client satisfaction
which do you need to work on?
by bill penczak
client relationships have never been more vulnerable, as other firms, reeling from the covid crisis, will be knocking on your clients’ door with promises of better service, more services, and lower rates.
more: re-thinking today’s firm with five global leaders | 5 things your firm should do differently this summer | do you have the guts to beat the covid crisis? | how to inoculate your firm against covid competition | ‘found money’ delights clients | the three r’s for beating the corona crisis
exclusively for pro members. log in here or 2022世界杯足球排名 today.
now, more than ever, tax and accounting firms should examine how they can constantly improve the service and relevance to their clients, for today and into the new normal.
making partner: 15 steps to the buy-in
also: common practices, impact of ownership percentage and alternate buy-in methods.
by marc rosenberg
the rosenberg practice management library
let’s go over structuring a new partner buy-in step by step.
more: making partner: do the math | there are two kinds of accounting firms | how to get promoted to manager | the 17 rules for making partner at a cpa firm
we’ll start by calculating goodwill. and we’ll finish with signatures. read more →
top issues for millennial managing partners
bonus: six ways to prepare for the role.
by kristen rampe
the role of the managing partner
the next wave of cpa firm leaders is here, and millennials are already making the best of this role as leaders in smaller firms.
more: 44 hard-earned tips from new managing partners | partner compensation: a potent weapon | how long should it take to make partner? | the managing partner’s role in mergers | five ways to evaluate partners | manage partners with goal setting
to understand and share the perspective of this up-and-coming group, we interviewed eight millennials who are relatively new to the position of managing partner.
revenue for the firms averaged $2.3 million, with two equity partners and a total fte headcount of 15. some of their views on the role of the managing partner were traditional, while others were somewhat unconventional. this group is pioneering some interesting changes because they are less restrained by historical approaches.
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let’s get real: kill saly
gary cokins on predictive accounting and driver-based budgeting.
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with steven sacks
the new fundamentals
the main problem with the annual budget process as a fiscal exercise done by the accountants is that it is disconnected from the executive team strategy.
more steven sacks: would you buy your own services? | the future of the accounting profession | avoid last-minute deal making | business is about relationships | can a cpa firm be different in a changing market? | a rapidly changing business environment requires flexibility
more with gary cokins: the myths of performance management | gary cokins: the truth about activity-based costing
corporate finance expert gary cokins says the typical annual budget process allows too much room for bad habits, such as the use-it-or-lose-it mindset of allocated resources, as well as incorporating last year’s inefficiencies in processes into the current year.
five key take-aways:
- there is interest now in corporate performance management because executives are frustrated with strategy failure. they are good at formulating strategy, but meeting expected goals is a real problem.
- the way to get rid of spreadsheet budgeting is to view the amount of spending of any organization as the result of the confluence of two streams. the first is going to be repeatable work. it tends to be operational. the second is non-repeatable because it involves capital, risk management, and strategy projects.
- accounting must carefully identify and construct key performance indicators. but not every type of measurement is key.
- activity-based costing is just full absorption costing done correctly, without the “butter spreading” on spreadsheets of labor hours or units produced or sales dollars or full-time equivalent headcount or square feet. none of those reflect the unique consumption that the products or service lines actually consume.
- many people have heard about the balanced scorecard, but it’s just a feedback mechanism. the real intelligence is in the strategy map.
writing a reference? here’s how
stick to the facts.
by ed mendlowitz
the 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间 practice doctor
question: i have been asked to provide a reference for a former controller of a former client.
more: titles can make people happier | help! key staffer refuses to supervise people | get more done by saying no | are you marketing for 2022 yet? | but i am managing! | how are you spending the next five years?
exclusively for pro members. log in here or 2022世界杯足球排名 today.
should i do it?
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tell managers what ownership means
don’t assume they see the benefits.
by gary bolinger
not long ago, i was in a firm meeting with several partners and senior managers. the plan for the meeting was for me to provide an update on current and emerging issues facing the profession and firms. the issue of succession planning came up (as it frequently does). i had been scanning the room to attempt to determine who was really tuned in and who was just warming the chair they were sitting in.
more: clients: what accountants don’t understand | why accountants fail at consulting | advisory vs. low-value clients | what + who leads firms to better service | how accountants are profiting in disruption | ask the right question(s) | seven elements of engagement for cpas | true advisory work isn’t just consulting
a senior manager had caught my attention because he seemed intent on learning and understanding what was shaping his chosen profession. so, i took the opportunity to bluntly ask if he was interested in being an owner in the firm. i got a raised eyebrow from some of the partners. they obviously thought i was asking a question with a rather obvious answer. but …
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romeo, juliet, google and client accounting services
never tell them it’s “client accounting services.” here’s why.
by hitendra patil
client accounting services: the definitive success guide
i recently spoke with an experienced cpa who has been very keen to expand the firm’s client accounting services practice. i told her, “if your firm’s website and marketing material states you offer ‘client accounting services.’, you’d want to rewrite that content, like, immediately.”
more: why cas is great for revenue growth | survey: why some firms fall behind in cas | how cas makes firms better | cas: finding the why behind the why | how to lead clients into client accounting services | cas begins with a mindset
she was utterly puzzled and asked:
“but cas is vital for the future of accounting firms, and you wrote the profession’s first book on cas, so why are you now saying so?”
read more →
five tough questions for these tough times
do you have the courage to beat the covid crisis?
by bill penczak
in times like these, firms should be challenging themselves with the tough question, “what do we want to be, today and into the future?”
more: re-thinking today’s firm with five global leaders | 5 things your firm should do differently this summer | do you have the guts to beat the covid crisis? | how to inoculate your firm against covid competition | ‘found money’ delights clients | the three r’s for beating the corona crisis
if maintaining the status quo and “serving clients,” whatever that really means, are the only responses your partner and leadership teams can muster, then perhaps it’s time to evolve from being a lifestyle firm to being one with a vision and the guts to achieve it.
making partner: do the math
five times when ownership percentages shouldn’t come into play… and alternatives.
by marc rosenberg
the rosenberg practice management library
accepting a partnership invitation offers two terrific, lifetime benefits to new partners that, for most people, cannot possibly be matched in any other career pursuit.
more: there are two kinds of accounting firms | drive your profits with only four metrics | a crash course in the business of public accounting | how to get promoted to manager | how to create a path to partner | making partner: what managers need to know | the 17 rules for making partner at a cpa firm | who shouldn’t be a partner? | nine reasons people are promoted to partner | how to make partner?
if they don’t see this and agree with it, then perhaps it would be unwise for them to accept the partnership offer.
let’s do the math.
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closing the tax gap: more data, more compliance?
tax professionals should brace for a new wave of information reporting.
by 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间 research
here’s something the irs has discovered and many tax preparers can probably confirm: while roughly 99 percent of taxes due on wages are paid to the irs, compliance on less visible sources of income is estimated to be just 45 percent.
more: how charlatans, creeps, and ghosts plague the tax profession | grappling with the tax gap | wealthiest taxpayers cheat irs out of $400 billion a year | 173% increase in irs correspondence backlog | hunker down: the irs backlog isn’t going away anytime soon | the irs studebaker bomb | imagine irs ‘concierge’ service. just imagine. | irs has recruiting problems, too
yes, it seems that americans are more willing to pay what they owe when the irs knows they owe it.
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titles can make people happier
but some people will never be happy enough.
by ed mendlowitz
the 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间 practice doctor
question: my top staff person wants a better title than manager, or senior manager. any suggestions?
more: help! key staffer refuses to supervise people | 44 key attributes for assessing staffers | make cpe worth your while | what to do with a lousy client? | but i am managing! | how to run a practice in 90 pages | how improv can help accountants
answer: in larger firms, senior manager is one step below partner.
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why cas is great for revenue growth
six reasons you need it, no matter the size of your firm.
by hitendra patil
the definitive success guide to client accounting services
before we get to why firms can’t miss out on cas, we need to know why business owners buy accounting software, even when their core business is not accounting.
more: survey: why some firms fall behind in cas | how cas makes firms better | cas: finding the why behind the why | how to lead clients into client accounting services | cas begins with a mindset
in the years before the internet, accounting software was only desktop software. businesses used it to run their business processes – to issue checks, record income, and for some other processes. business owners predominantly did transactions processing, leaving the financial accounting – and compliance – to professional accountants.
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