today's features
accounting arc

return season is the new stress test | arc

e-commerce growth forces firms to rethink accruals, margins, and sustainability.

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accounting arc
with liz mason, byron patrick, and donny shimamoto
center for accounting transformation

build a 7-figure firm in just 4 hours a week!

holiday shopping has never been easier. with a few taps on a smartphone, consumers can buy gifts from bed, track deliveries in real time, and return unwanted items with minimal friction. but behind that convenience lies a complicated accounting reality—one that came into sharp focus during a recent episode of accounting arc.

more accounting arc: small firms may have the biggest advantage in 2026 | downgraded: what the doe said about accounting | savage: using your license as a megaphone |  baker: interpreting pricing psychology | don’t get fired by your own automation | what amazon doesn’t tell you | royalties, residuals, and reality checks | arc-slc | free speech is a right; respect is a responsibility | cash bags, casinos & audits: how first jobs shape us | gen z redefines careers | bootleggers, baptitsts & cpas: rethinking licensure

hosts donny shimamoto, cpa.citp, cgma; byron patrick, cpa.citp; and liz mason, cpa, examine the financial, operational, and environmental consequences of e-commerce returns, using the holiday season as a lens to explore broader shifts in consumer behavior and business sustainability.

industry research shows that nearly 25% of e-commerce purchases are returned after the holidays, compared with less than 9% of in-store retail purchases. for accounting teams, that disparity introduces volatility into revenue recognition, inventory valuation, and profitability forecasting—often at the worst possible time of year.

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outlook & analysis

outlook 2026: can tax & accounting payrolls keep surging to new highs?

record high: tax and accounting industry hits 1,163,600 jobs, an annualized growth rate of 2%, and a new all-time high.

by 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间 research

the full tax and accounting industry—which includes accounting, tax preparation, bookkeeping and payroll services—has hit a new record high with 1,163,600 jobs, representing an annualized growth rate of 2%, which is measurably stronger than the year-over-year 1.23% gain, according to new data examined by 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间. but a choppy economy and political volatility have accountants and observers alike wondering if the trends can continue in 2026

more staffing and pay trends

cpa offices managed to add 1,700 jobs over the past year, keeping the segment on a slow but positive trajectory. employment at offices of certified public accountants is holding steady at 544,300 positions, matching the month-before figure. the revision from the previous estimate of 544,600 marks a modest 0.06% downgrade. the year-over-year trend improved slightly to 0.3%, up from 0.2% in the prior report. read more →

special

outlook 2026: higher tax prices, rising strains, and a widening gap among firms

the 2026 filing season will have an increasingly uneven pricing structure.

busy season barometer: most tax practices remain clustered below $1,500 in typical annual client fees. a smaller, higher-priced tier is emerging, characterized by minimum fees, selective client retention, and a stronger willingness to raise rates. dig deeper, and the reality is even more nuanced.

by 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间

top-priced tax practices are driving typical annual client fees toward $3,000 and above this year, according to the 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间 busy season barometer survey, underscoring how rising costs are pressuring most firms even as a smaller group gains pricing power through scale, selectivity, and tighter engagement control.

join the busy season barometer survey. get the results. | more tax and pricing

one cpa respondent put it bluntly: “we are raising rates again this year. some clients will leave. that’s fine. we can’t keep doing $400 returns when staff wages keep rising.” another practitioner described a more selective approach: “we didn’t raise everyone equally. we raised prices where the work was painful and left simpler clients mostly alone.”

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marketing & sales

seven questions for making your practice better

older businesswoman pondering, seated by window

if you’re not the best, what are you?

by august aquila
max: maximize productivity, profitability and client retention

there is only one person who can make your practice better. that person is you if you are a sole practitioner. if you are a multipartner firm, then it’s up to all the partners and senior staff. let’s explore how you get your firm to the next level.

more by august j. aquila
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do you tolerate mediocrity? tolerating mediocrity is the death of many good firms. whenever and wherever you see it in your firm, stamp it out fast. here are some questions to ask yourself and your partners to see if you are hanging on to what’s comfortable rather than stretching yourself and your partners to truly excel.
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client service opportunities

blake and pryor: from a $550k tax bill to near $0 | big 4 transparency

integrated planning, not heroics, creates life-changing outcomes for clients.

this is a preview. the complete video episode, with commentary and transcript, is first available exclusively to pro members | go pro here
sponsored by the balanced millionaire: the advisor edition by dr. jackie meyer | see today’s special offer

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build a 7-figure firm in just 4 hours a week!
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big 4 transparency
by dominic piscopo, cpa
for 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间

what happens when you fuse a cpa firm with a wealth advisory under one roof and design the operations from a blank page? in this two-guest episode of the big 4 transparency, host dominic piscopo sits down with owen pryor and steve blake, managing and senior managing advisors at evans may advisory, the sister firm to evans may wealth advisory. their premise is simple and radical: serve the client with unreasonable hospitality, align wealth and tax strategy, and deliver family-office convenience to high-net-worth families and growing owner-operated businesses. 

more dominic piscopo | more private equity | more pay & compensation

pryor and blake describe a system built on proactive data sharing (with client consents in place) so the firm, not the client, chases documents, coordinates advisors, and executes. the impact shows up in small, high-leverage wins (e-paying taxes and killing paper vouchers, physically banking clients’ mailed checks twice a week, fully recording receivables) and in headline outcomes (structuring a family-farm sale from an estimated $550,000 tax bill to near $0 through planning; spotting missed depreciation and back-catching via form 3115; introducing lesser-known international strategies like icdis where relevant). the result is relief for clients and measurable roi that converts conversations into scope. 

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2022年世界杯抽签

advisory opportunities expand as fica tip credit rules shift

advisory revenue strategies: navigating the new fica tip credit landscape with jody padar – register | learn more

webinar with jody padar, jan. 16 – register | learn more

by 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间

a major shift in the federal fica tip credit framework is opening new advisory revenue opportunities for accounting firms, as lawmakers and regulators move to redefine who qualifies for the long-standing payroll tax incentive.

cpe webinar: “advisory revenue strategies: navigating the new fica tip credit landscape.” with jody padar. jan. 16, noon et. 1 cpe. $49.50. register | learn more

those changes will be the focus of a jan. 16 webinar led by jody padar, cpa, titled “advisory revenue strategies: navigating the new fica tip credit landscape.” the one-hour session runs from 12 p.m. to 1 p.m. et.

read more →

mergers & acquisitions

negotiating a merger? remember these three factors

hand drawing a rainbow-colored 3

bonuses: smaller firm to larger, 25 questions to ask and 17 data points to request.

by marc rosenberg
cpa firm mergers: your complete guide

there are always three intangible factors that greatly influence the extent to which merger terms and issues are negotiable:

more by marc rosenberg
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1. negotiation ability of each firm. some people are “tough” negotiators, continuously trying to impose their will on the merger partner, while others are more malleable and tend to go along with whatever the other side wants.
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marketing & sales

why you might struggle with selling

businessman with head in hands

accountants need to reframe their thinking.

by martin bissett
business development on a budget

let’s take a look at the last 20-plus years of my experience and my research as to where new clients come from in an accounting practice. i don’t think there are going to be too many shocks here.

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

what i’ve found is that 82 percent of all new clients in a given year who come into an accounting firm come in from a referral source. this may be a bank or a lawyer or some other source, perhaps an existing client, who has recommended that a particular business meet with your firm and come on board as a client.
read more →

featured video

daiber: use succession as a growth strategy | the disruptors

firms that wait until a partner is ready to retire have already waited too long, plus 19 more key takeaways.

this is a preview. the complete 1-hour video episode, with commentary and transcript, is first available exclusively to pro members | go pro here
sponsored by the balanced millionaire: the advisor edition by dr. jackie meyer | see today’s special offer

subscribe to 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间 podcasts anywhere: apple, google/youtube, spotify, iheart, deezer, amazon music, audible, player fm, audacy, rss.
build a 7-figure firm in just 4 hours a week!

the disruptors
with liz farr

erin daiber, founder and ceo of well balanced accountants, keeps seeing the same issue in firm after firm. a partner announces their intention to retire within a year or two, and the firm suddenly realizes no one is ready to take over.  “firms are not starting that conversation soon enough,” daiber says.

more streaming:more streaming: cannon: busy season is self-inflicted | carroll: when one person can break the firm |  rampe: build a roadmap even when the road’s not there | chang: killing saly, one agent at a time | vanover: 5-star firms don’t bill by the hour | kless: profit is a result. flourishing is the purpose | whitman: build culture on ‘progress,’ not change | shein: no pe? no m&a? no problem | hood and weber: time to rise | proctor: turn dumb ideas into brilliant solutions | carter-gray: how 1 poor review strengthened the firm | hartman: upwork to “40 under 40” in 3 years |

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

“they’re not thinking about succession planning as a strategy,” she explains. instead of treating succession as an ongoing process, firms see it as simply the point in time when a partner exits the firm. according to daiber, succession planning should ideally begin with hiring decisions and culture building so that firms can be confident that they won’t lose clients or staff due to uncertainty about what might happen as partners get older.  

when succession planning fails, firms lose key employees before they even reach partnership consideration. “we’re losing them much sooner than that, which creates a big hole in the pipeline,” daiber notes. she identifies an inability to have difficult conversations as the root cause, particularly when dealing with founders who view the firm as their legacy. 

read more →

busy season management

outlook 2026: tax prep prices surge and diverge

experience, complexity, and scarcity redefine the market

volume and consulting drive growth: of the 48% of firms reporting advances, 78% credit more business and 54% credit higher-grade services. source: natp

by 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间

tax preparation is getting markedly more expensive in 2026, and not in the slow, incremental way many firms have long assumed they can explain away.

in a widely used pricing model, the national association of tax professionals reports the average base charge for a form 1040 with schedules is $236, up from a 2024 average of $162 reported in the same study series. that’s a 45.7% nominal increase in two years for the profession’s signature product, before a single schedule, state filing, or complexity premium is added.

join the busy season barometer survey. get the results.

more tax and pricing

the u.s. tax preparation market is not merely more expensive.  it is increasingly stratified, with pricing that clearly distinguishes between complex professional work and the lower tiers of retail and do-it-yourself alternatives.

across multiple independent pricing measures, certified public accountants and credentialed tax professionals command fees that are substantially higher than the base costs advertised by major retail chains, software platforms, and dwindling government-sponsored free filing options. the result is a world of tax preparation pricing that reflects not only the complexity of engagement but also client expectations, risk management, service delivery models, and clear segmentation of value. read more →

featured video

pogosian: what advisors miss in risk management | the concierge cpa

a former irs agent breaks down the red flags, revenue thresholds, and compliance work that advisors can’t ignore.

this is a preview. the complete video episode, with commentary and transcript, is first available exclusively to pro members | go pro here
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the concierge cpa
with jackie meyer
for 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间

the concierge cpa hosts a deep dive into captive insurance planning this week, as host dr. jackie meyer, cpa, and guest vardan pogosian, cpa, unpack both the risk-management foundations and tax-planning implications of small captive insurance companies. the episode clarifies a strategy that many tax professionals find complex or intimidating, with actionable guidance on identifying suitable clients and avoiding compliance risks.

more jackie meyer

captive insurance — typically formed under internal revenue code section 831(b) — allows businesses to establish their own insurance company to cover risks that may be difficult or costly to insure through commercial carriers. under the provision, small qualifying captives can elect alternative tax treatment, in which premiums paid into the captive are tax-deductible to the operating business but not immediately recognized as income by the captive. tax is generally deferred until the captive is dissolved, at which point capital gains tax applies.

read more →

special

ai can be your ally or your competitor

portrait of davyde wachell
wachell
 davyde “day” wachell is the co-founder and ceo of responsive ai. he studied ai in the symsys program at stanford and film at columbia. their innovative thinking drives the company’s success by bridging technology and the arts, leading to a culture of creativity and out-of-the-box thinking.

six steps to using it to grow and protect revenue.

by davyde wachell
the holistic guide to wealth management

“there are decades where nothing happens; and there are weeks where decades happen.” – vladimir ilyich lenin

lenin’s quip resonates deeply with any seasoned advice professional. black friday, 9/11, the great recession and covid-19 kept us on our toes when it came to the markets and our clients. big outlier events that disrupt “business as usual” can arise at any moment. these moments can change the lives of our clients, and as a result, the growth and stability of our businesses. our clients can lose their trust in us in the blink of an eye if we haven’t positioned those clients correctly, or if we do not respond effectively to changes in the market.

more rory henry and the holistic guide to wealth management
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how we prepare our business for the unexpected determines our ability to respond to outlier events. how we respond to those events determines how we perform under pressure. staying competitive isn’t about performing well when the sun is shining; it’s about executing and gaining clarity in the fog of war.
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client accounting services

why most cas practices stall | it’s not just the numbers

…and what the successful ones do differently.

this is a preview. the complete 1-hour video episode, with commentary and transcript, is first available exclusively to pro members | go pro here
sponsored by the balanced millionaire: the advisor edition by dr. jackie meyer | see today’s special offer

subscribe to 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间 podcasts anywhere: apple, google/youtube, spotify, iheart, deezer, amazon music, audible, player fm, audacy, rss.
build a 7-figure firm in just 4 hours a week!

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 . 

more penny breslin and damien greathead | more advisory & consulting | buy “it’s not just the numbers”

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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.” 

read more →