walking the walk with a radical cpa

broken chainget real. get up from your desk. go for a ‘gemba’ walk.

by tom hood
the radical cpa

i remember sending a video intro to jody padar’s first meeting of ic opportunities where i read a quote from the february 2012 edition of fast company magazine in which the editor, robert safian, intro­duced the concept of “generation flux” and it reminded me of jody and her tribe:

tom hood
hood

“in our hyper-networked, mobile, social, global world, the rules and plans of yesterday are increasingly under pressure; the enterprises and individuals that will thrive will be those willing to adapt and iterate, in a disciplined, unsen­timental way… generation flux is a term that describes all of this — the chaotic business era that we have moved into — as well as the people who are poised to thrive in this environment.”

so what is a “gemba walk,” you might be thinking? read more →

emerging breed of cpa rewrites the rules of the profession, smashes old business models

pisano
pisano

‘generation flux’ embraces adaptability, flexibility, openness, decisiveness.

by gretchen pisano
the radical cpa

with a lifelong commitment to con­tinuous learning, cpas are some of the most willing learners you’ll ever come across.

today’s new generation of cpa embraces adaptability and flexibility, an openness to learning from anywhere, decisiveness tempered by the knowledge that business life today can shift radically.

read more →

social business: how new communication tools are revolutionizing the accounting profession

william r. pirolli, cpa/cff/pfs, cgma email vcard bill is a partner with over 30 years of experience in public accounting. bill was formerly managing principal for the accounting firm of pirolli, deller & conaty.
pirolli

and yet, the heart of the cpa business remains a constant.

by william r. pirolli, cpa, cff, pfs, cgma
the radical cpa: new rules for the future-ready firm

at the heart of our profession are people… connecting with people. the human connection to the information we deal with is what makes our profession so personal and rewarding. it should always be at the heart of what we do.

the ways we connect have changed dramatically over time. while we all still use the telephone, fax, face-to-face meetings and the occasional written note, the invasion of facebook, linkedin, twitter, skype, youtube, instagram, cloud-based services and that smartphone or tablet you might be reading this on all serve to make our communications and services immediate, exponential and virtually limitless. read more →

automating bank deposits offers instant roi

businessman carrying piggy bank up rocky hill at nightmanual processing takes 130 hours a year but 63% of firms have found a better way.

by roman h. kepczyk
quantum of paperless

one of the easiest processes to convert to paperless with an immediate roi is the firm’s system for depositing client checks. manually receiving and physically going to the bank to deposit checks can be time-consuming and subject to too many errors.

the manual procedure requires firms

  • open mail on a daily basis,
  • make copies to file in a binder,
  • complete deposit slips and then
  • send a person physically to the bank,

which can easily take a half hour every day, five days per week, 52 weeks per year.

read more →

tech tools for today’s properly equipped field audit teams

accountant searching for lawsthe right monitors, scanners and web tools.

by roman h. kepczyk
quantum of paperless

the advent of today’s audit “document container” applications has transitioned every aspect of audit production into a digital format.

more on tech spending: accounting firms run on more than checklists alone | going paperless means convincing clients first | how to cut tax prep costs with scanners | making digital tax process easier is all about the workflow | why firms need document retention standards | is your network drive a disaster waiting to happen? | intranet is the best place for firm knowledge | digital fax has benefits you may be ignoring | wireless is hot, and here’s how to handle it | how safe is your internet lifeline? | new tech tools for the 24/7 accounting firm

the key to successfully using these engagement applications is to make sure your personnel have the optimal equipment with them to work digitally. this includes:

  • monitors,
  • scanners and
  • internet connections.

read more →

going paperless means training clients, too

stock image of businessman pushing a giant stack of documents isolated on white backgroundand putting a fail-safe system in place.

by roman h. kepczyk
quantum of paperless

one of the most critical steps in transitioning a firm to a “paperless” environment is capturing information in a digital format at its “root” source as that information enters the firm.

more on tech spending: how to cut tax prep costs with scanners | making digital tax process easier is all about the workflow | why firms need document retention standards | digital fax has benefits you may be ignoring | wireless is hot, and here’s how to handle it | how safe is your internet lifeline? | new tech tools for the 24/7 accounting firm | how to choose the right backup system | where laptops rule at cpa firms today | step 1 in building the paperless firm: scanners

at the base level, this means having clients provide you information in a digital format — which can be done via email, digital fax or through a portal — rather than with a physical document.  while email is currently the most prevalent tool utilized by clients, it is anticipated the security concerns will help clients transition toward portals.

read more →

making digital tax process easier is all about the workflow

process touch screen showing workflow design4 ways the new breed of workflow application can simplify your tax season.

by roman h. kepczyk
quantum of paperless

the most important aspect of transitioning the firm’s tax process to a digital environment is managing electronic files that are no longer physically viewable in assorted stacks around the office. this requires a digital tax workflow system that lets everyone know the status of every return and easily connects that person to digital copies of the return and the source documents. under traditional manual tax systems, firms utilized due date tracking databases that identified when a return was due, but not what information was missing, or the preparation, review or extension status.

read more →

intranet is the best place for firm knowledge

computer tech lock istock_000011879042smallintranets are the best way to capture and centralize firm knowledge.

by roman h. kepczyk
quantum of paperless

firm knowledge and information is usually stored in one of four “buckets.”

  1. the most obvious is within the accounting applications themselves where tax, audit and accounting programs store client files in a format that can only be accessed with that program. files are usually indexed and accessed in designated directories so there is not much the firm can do about moving these files. read more →

digital fax has benefits you may be ignoring

fax machine in office on table closeup on a background of office cabinet3 ways to maximize your system.

by roman h. kepczyk
quantum of paperless

accounting firms striving to capture all data in a digital format need to go beyond paper and include fax and voicemail systems as well.

at leading firms today, 66 percent of firms have a digital fax system that integrates with email for digital delivery, 37 percent are using video calling, and 27 percent use instant messaging.

kepczyk
kepczyk

more on tech spending: wireless is hot, and here’s how to handle it | how safe is your internet lifeline? | new tech tools for the 24/7 accounting firm | the single best defense against computer viruses | when to adopt microsoft’s new office apps | what windows 8 means for how accountants will work in the future | how to choose the right backup system | how to know it’s time to scrap your old server | where laptops rule at cpa firms today | step 1 in building the paperless firm: scanners | how many computer monitors do you need?

traditional inbound faxes are usually printed from a fax machine and then hand delivered to the recipient’s desk. in some cases this image is actually re-scanned and emailed to the recipient. while this is a step toward digital delivery, today’s digital fax systems deliver a digital image to the recipient via email so they can access them within their email.

to maximize your systems, consider: read more →

wireless is hot, and here’s how to handle it

novatel wireless mifi 4510l

what you need to know to go from wi-fi to mi-fi.

by roman h. kepczyk
quantum of paperless

one of the revolutions in remote connectivity is happening within your cellphone, as digital cellular providers have beefed up and expanded their networks to provide reliable internet access to remote devices.

about 94 percent of firms utilize smartphones for access to email, calendar and contacts, and 33 percent provide tablets or netbooks to senior management, according to the association for accounting administration.

kepczyk
kepczyk

more on tech spending: how safe is your internet lifeline? | new tech tools for the 24/7 accounting firm | the single best defense against computer viruses | when to adopt microsoft’s new office apps | what windows 8 means for how accountants will work in the future | how to choose the right backup system | how to know it’s time to scrap your old server | where laptops rule at cpa firms today | step 1 in building the paperless firm: scanners | how many computer monitors do you need?

the first step is to determine which telecom provider is the best in your firm’s area of operations. consider: read more →