don’t let clients outgrow you

two men having coffee; one has an open laptop

it might not be too late to keep something going.

by ed mendlowitz
202 questions and answers: managing an accounting practice

question: i just suddenly lost my biggest client. they said they outgrew me. what could i have done to keep them?

more: what to do when a partner becomes disabled | do as little as possible | don’t blame the client for your location | who to hire when it’s time to grow | the top tip for reviewing tax returns | you can’t win with lowballing | yes, you have to share work papers | should you merge? here’s how to chart your path | hold staff accountable if you want them to listen to you | how to raise your rates | higher fees to start: ten ways to make your tax season better
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response: maybe nothing. and at this point it may not matter, but there are some things you can do to maybe get them back in the future and stop it from happening with another client.

losing any client is not pleasant, and losing a large client hurts. and when it is sudden it hurts even more.
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why now is the time for cpas to embrace wealth management

portrait of seth fineberg
fineberg
seth fineberg is an accounting industry consultant, content strategist, analyst and speaker. his current business is accountants forward. he has been a business editor and journalist for over 30 years, the vast majority of which has been spent overseeing the accounting profession’s evolution.

start with a conversation.

by seth fineberg
the holistic guide to wealth management.

today we are cresting the biggest waves of change that i’ve seen in my 20-plus years of covering the accounting profession. i’m talking about the need for cpas to go beyond simply being the trusted tax guy (or girl) for their clients and to help them manage all aspects of their wealth. this movement has been building for the better part of a decade, but only recently has it gone from “i’ll think about it” to “can i afford not to get on board?”

not to sound the alarm bells here, but cpas must soon choose between riding the financial planning wave or being swept under it.
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do you have the client accounting services mindset?

you’re the professional. ponder that a moment.

by hitendra patil
client accounting services: the definitive success guide

it was the 10th of may, 2012.

over dinner on that quiet mid-spring evening, at a classic traditional italian restaurant, i met the owner of one of my largest clients, only after about five years of providing services to his firm. his firm had chosen a particular niche industry to serve and only that. he was doing well – over $3.5 million in annual revenue, growing consistently, and employing 39 staff members. in any given week, two new clients were being onboarded via a very detailed process, moving clients’ accounting databases and processes into his firm.

more client accounting services articles
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he would not take on any new client unless the client handed over all of the accounting work responsibilities to the firm.

all or none.
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six tips for setting compensation

young woman holding giant dollar sign in modern office

plus 17 extraordinary benefits to consider offering.

by marc rosenberg
cpa firm staff: managing your #1 asset

“if you pick the right people and give them the opportunity to spread their wings and put compensation as a carrier behind it, you almost don’t have to manage them.” – jack welch

“pay your people the least possible and you’ll get from them the same.” – malcolm forbes

every cpa industry survey we’ve seen for decades shows that compensation is either no. 1 in importance to staff or close to it.

more: staff crave advancement and challenge | what leadership looks and feels at cpa firms | eleven things that good mentors do | give the recognition your staff needs | the importance of great bosses | how remote work is impacting accounting firms | make work flexibility work for everyone | why staff leave cpa firms … and how to stop them | how to solve the big disconnect in talent management | what relevance means for staffing in accounting | how accounting staffing has changed
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our feeling is that compensation is the ante to enter or stay in the game. put another way, according to jeremy wortman:

if college graduates are looking for their first job, or if a young person with a little experience is job hunting, compensation is huge. if a person has two offers, one for $60,000 and the other for $65,000, the higher offer will get the person almost every time. but if the offers are $500 apart and the person likes the firm offering the lower salary better, it’s likely that the lower-paying firm will get the nod.
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what to do when a partner becomes disabled

man seated at desk in front of empty chair

what does the partnership agreement say? oops …

by ed mendlowitz
202 questions and answers: managing an accounting practice

question: my partner has been out sick for the past 3½ months, and he has been continuing to get his draw. it looks like he will be out for some time more, but not sure how long.

more: do as little as possible | want to merge? here are 23 things to request | i’m just starting out; why join an association? | don’t blame the client for your location | realign partners with monthly meetings | i’m 76. should i slow down? how? | who to hire when it’s time to grow | hourly billing doesn’t cover the value; now what? | ask for what you’re worth | the top tip for reviewing tax returns | you have to start somewhere | two options for collecting past due fees | you can’t win with lowballing | nine reasons not to specialize | when board service gets tricky
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he does make some calls from home, but isn’t really doing any work. is there anything i can do?
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do others think you’re ready to be partner?

confident businesswoman seated at desk

three questions about your competence.

by martin bissett
passport to partnership

the passport to partnership study collated a number of responses in a conversational style.

more: competence is just the beginning | what rich accountants do | attract clients, don’t sell to them | how to attract clients | four reasons accountants struggle with selling | think of it as service, not selling | eight questions for personal preparation | perception, even your own, is reality | eight questions that target personal accountability | how to prepare for partnership | stop waiting for business to come to you | are you projecting confidence? | five questions to help forecast your firm growth | four key questions about leadership
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but two brief but succinct examples on the realities of how a firm assesses an individual’s “competence” for leadership are showcased really stood out:

  1. they need to explain technical data to me in a way that i know they understand.
  2. what kind of lifestyle does this person have outside of work? we’ll be looking at facebook, x and google to find out.

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mike maksymiw: be the leader you wish you had | the disruptors

if no one’s complaining that your fees are too high, your fees are too low. 

this is a preview. the complete 1-hour video episode, with commentary and transcript, is first available exclusively to pro members | go pro here
click to subscribe anywhere: applegoogle/youtubespotifyiheartdeezer, amazon music and audibleplayer fmaudacygaana (india)boomplay (africa), or rss

the disruptors
with liz farr

mike maksymiw, the leader of aprio firm alliance, hates charge hours as a primary performance metric. he even left a firm where he was a partner because of a dispute over charge hours. although he exceeded his revenue goals by a healthy margin, he was penalized because he got the work done in fewer hours.

join liz farr at the linkedin 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间 group | more liz farr | follow liz farr on the disruptors wherever you get your podcasts: applegoogle/youtubespotifyiheartdeezer, amazon music, audibleplayer fmaudacy, rss. | more podcasts and videos: terrell turner: build a solid business showing up as yourselfkelly mann: be the bull in the china shopalicia katz pollock: create a human-centric businessnancy mcclelland: be the one your clients ask first |alan whitman: stop accepting the status quo | sean duncan: discover your own genius | ingrid edstrom: true wealth is not financial | caleb jenkins: firm growth requires owners to shift roles |

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“the main thing i was supposed to do, i was doing,” he tells liz farr in this episode of the disruptors. and if he hadn’t been meeting his revenue goals, that deficit in hours would have been something to remedy.  “so i don’t want people to think there’s no place for these metrics. we need to put them in the right order that makes sense for running a business.”

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