Overcoming Roadblocks in Creating a

Next Generation Accounting PracticeA Special CPA.com Webinar

September 23, 2015

Introductions

Deneen Dias

Strategic Account Manager, CPA.com

6 years working with firms on ways to utilize cloud

technology to transform their client accounting practice

Helps hundreds of firms evaluate, implement, and

leverage technology to improve internal processes as

well as enhance their client relationship

Consults with firms on ways to add new revenue

streams from new services lines including Business

Process Outsourcing (BPO), and real time advisory

services

Brings 10 years of experience working with firms of all

sizes

Empowering CPA’s and businesses for the

Digital Age

CPA.com is a subsidiary of the AICPA

PRODUCTS & SERVICES

PARTNER SOLUTIONS

EDUCATION & RESOURCES

MEDIA CENTER

Dixie McCurley

Trusted CFO Solutions, Co-founder & Partner

Headquartered in Atlanta, GA (14 Staff)

Certified Intacct® BPO Partner & Bill.com

QuickBooks ProAdvisor, Member of Mindshop International

Nationally recognized thought leader in cloud-based accounting.

As a self-proclaimed “foodie”, Dixie spends her free time dining at the hundreds of restaurants Atlanta has to offer.

Introductions

Agenda

The Opportunity

Client Accounting Services

Firm Pain Points

Business Planning

Managing Change

Next Steps

Disruptive Technology has changed our LIVES

Consumer Market Is Well Ahead of Business Market Related To Leveraging Cloud Computing

BUT BUSINESS MARKET IS CATCHING UP!

Disruptive Technology has Changed the Taxi Business

9

Dr. James Canton Believes

Technology

is so disruptive for the

profession THAT…tax returns and compilations

will one day be FREE?

EVOVLING CLIENT NEEDS - What Clients Want

Top 3 for How SMBs Selected Accountant

o Expertise

o Responsiveness

o Proactive Strategic Advice

Top 3 for Services Desired Outside of Services

Already Received:

o Business planning

o Business strategy

o Create Dashboards to monitor business

*The Sleeter Group research published April 9th, 2014

http://www.sleeter.com/blog/2014/04/smbs-want-accountant-2014-update/

Why SMBs leave

accountants:

#1 Does not give

proactive advice,

only reactive

Client Accounting Services Outsourced accounting has undergone a great deal of change

over the years driven by:

o Demands of businesses

o Emergence of leading cloud technologies

1990

2000

Today

Today’s

opportunity

Cloud-based

Integrated

Paperless

Dashboards

Real-timeSmall businesses push

work back to firms to

focus more on their

business

Role of firms reduced

QuickBooks introduced

to small businesses

Firm Value Chain

Input DataAssemble & Verify

ReportAnalyze & Interpret

Advise & Consult

Higher Value

& Future Focus

Lower Value &

Historical Focus

Client Accounting ServicesWhat it’s Not:

o Bookkeeping

o Write Up

o After the fact reporting

Covers a variety of services, including:

o Financial Statement Preparation

o General Ledger/Trial Balance

o Cash Flow Management

o Payroll Preparation & Reporting

o Accounts Payable and Receivable

o Transaction Processing (BPO)

o Virtual CFO Services

o Controllership

o Business Advisory

Client Accounting

Services

• Firm typically has 25-200 clients

• Clients have $1 - 5 Million

annual revenue

Firms are charging value-add bundled retainer fees

for these services – $1,500 - $5,000 / mo.

Most Common Services:

• Financial Statement Preparation

• General Ledger/Trial Balance

• Payroll Reporting

• Cash Flow Management

• Payroll Preparation

• Transaction Processing (BPO)

• Virtual CFO Services

Majority of Outsourced Accounting

clients have between 5-25

employees

CPA Firm Client Accounting Services Profile

Making It Your Own

Opportunity to differentiate your services

Determining the services you want to offer

Clients you want to provide those services

for

Elevate your role as a trusted advisor

It’s easier to be different then better to

stand out!

Growth Opportunities

Opportunity to not only grow profits, but also grow the

relationships with your clients

Additional services that extend well beyond the periodic delivery of

reports and financial statements

Firms that offer outsourced accounting are providing services

throughout the year and building stronger and longer-term

relationships with clients

Accounting Services Today

The Opportunityo Ride the wave of demand for outsourcing

o Leverage cloud technology to achieve productivity

Challenges Firms Face

Resistance to change

Lack of understanding of the new client accounting services and

the need for it

Lack of proper resources and time

Implementing technology before putting together a business plan

and strategy

Accommodating needs of any client

Unsure how to position these services to clients

Managing Transitions

“Managing Transitions” by William Bridges

Common Objections from Firm Leadership

1. We already provide consulting services for clients – how is this different?

2. How can we make money at this when write-up has been such a loss

leader?

3. If I am a tax or audit partner – why do I care about this?

4. As a firm we bill by the hour and on terms – how can we change from

that?

5. Everyone in the firm is already swamped. How can we possibly take this

on right now?

6. What are the key measures for success for this division?

7. Can we use staff from tax, audit and other departments for this?

8. How are we going to move to the cloud?

Common Objections from Firm Staff

1. I am already buried in work – how are you going to make room in my

schedule for this?

2. Already doing bookkeeping for clients – how is this different?

3. How will my performance be measured?

4. What is my training plan?

5. What is my path for advancement (partner path) in this new area?

6. What are the advantages to our firm doing this?

7. How will clients communicate with me?

8. How will I know if a client is going “out of scope?”

Common Client/Prospect Objections

1. Why would I use your services vs. hiring someone in- house?

2. If you are keeping all of my records, what happens if your firm closes or

something else happens, or if I decide to change firms?

3. How do I know my data is secure?

4. If remote, how will I reach my accountant?

5. Why do I have to pay you in advance each week (or month)?

6. What will I get from you every week, month, etc. as part of my services?

7. If my services with you are supposed to be “fixed fee,” why are you

asking me for an additional amount for “service orders?”

Where to Begin: Starts with a Business Plan

3 Key Strategic Decision Points

o Determine current and desired state of your client accounting service practice

o Identify technology investments appropriate to stages of transition underway

o Organize change management around specific business practice

transformations and technology deployments

Establish goals

Determine target clients - What vertical niche(s) will you focus on?

Pricing

Tools - What cloud technology aligns with your goals?

Assemble Your Team

Partner-in-Charge CAS Business Group

Business Development

Marketing/Sales, Finance,

Human Resources, Technology, etc.

Director of Client Accounting Services

Virtual CFO

Implementation & Client Support

Services (separate positions as

the firm grows)

Client Relations (Client Scheduling, Contract Maintenance, Client

Satisfaction)

Virtual Controller

Accounting Manager

Accounts Payable

Accounts Receivabl

ePayroll

Service Delivery Platform

Service delivery platform is a term used regularly in the “cloud-

computing” world

o Defined as the available technology components and/or solutions

that will be used in the client accounting service delivery model

For example: could include the following integrated business

solutions

o Intacct: Financials-on-demand

o Bill.com: cash flow and bill management

o Paychex: integrated payroll services

o XCM: workflow management

Position your firm’s capabilities, not the technology you use to

deliver your services!

What about Cloud Technology?

What technology matches your business

plan?

YOU PICK the tool you use to deliver

your services

Addressing Objections

Firm Leadership: Lead with the profit potential

Firm Staff: Lead with the benefits to helping them do their job and the ability to establish a stronger, longer-term relationship with clients

Clients/Prospects: Lead with the additional services that will help them grow their business

Firm Leadership

Lead with profit potential

Give a well organized presentation to firm

partners/stakeholders

o Educate on the new type of CAS services

o High-level overview of the business plan and strategy

Key points to highlight in presentation and discussions

o Easier to get a client in CAS then a new tax & audit client

o Need to stay relevant

o If you are not going to be responsive to your client wants,

someone else will be – other firms will take your business

Lead with the benefits: efficiency, productivity. The ability to be more of a partner with clients

Arrange a lunch & learn to present internally

Communicate value proposition

Key points to highlight in presentation and discussionso We have to stay ahead of the technology, clients are looking to us to help them

o Easier to work remotely

o Ability to service more clients

o More visibility into client information

o Changing their job for the better – more efficient

o Easier to recruit new graduates – entrenched in technology

Leading Change Within the Firm

Building the Value Culture

Our firm is different… For the growing, profitable client, we are the Trusted Advisor and the “in-the-trenches,” MVP on their team.

We will be a key contributor to their continued growth and long-term success, and we do not undervalue what this is worth!

We realize and accept that we are NOT the right fit for every client. We are always prepared and content to walk away from a prospect.

Don’t Spread Your Staff Too Thin

The most successful CAS firms do not share staff from other

departments (tax, audit, etc.).

Your CAS team members need to be experts in this area,

ESPECIALLY if you will be providing CFO services

Your team will be working with clients 12 months out of the year –

your clients will suffer if your CAS staff is also responsible for tax

return preparations and audits

Develop an Internal Advisory Board

Involve staff at every level of the CAS department

o Gain constructive feedback and ideas from every angle

Meet weekly during the early stages of the transition. Monthly

meetings are then recommended to keep communication active

o Provides valuable insight as to employee morale, client feedback, etc.

o Invite guest speakers from 3rd party vendor companies, professionals in

human resourcing, marketing, technology, etc., to continue bringing new

ideas and energy to the group.

Rotate your committee membership

o Have new potential members “apply” for a position on the Committee

and complete an interview process for selection.

Clients/Prospects

Lead with additional services and benefits to clients

o Business intelligence

o Real-time visibility

o Dashboards

Key points to highlight in presentations and discussions

o More secure

o What can they do with the information – answer clients bigger

questions

o Right people, right information, at the right time, to make the right

business decisions

Selling the Value

It is not easy to BECOME a client of our firm.

It IS AWESOME to BE a client of our firm.

Build Value with a Strategic Prospect-to-Client ProcessQualification of prospect / analysis of existing client opportunities

Ongoing ServicesPhase 4 Monthly recurring virtual accounting and Controller/CFO services

(Firms are charging $1500-$10,000+ monthly fees for this)

Short Term CFO/Tech ConsultingPhase 3

Data File Clean-Up, Staff Training, Management Report Package Preparation, Process Implementation (CFO)

Client Needs AssessmentPhase 2 Initial Client Needs Assessment (firms are charging between $2,000-6,500+

for this). May be accompanied by financial clean-up and/or other services

Prospect QualificationPhase 1 Prospect Questionnaire

Learn how at the Client Accounting Workshop!

Easing Clients into the ChangesNew Client Welcome Kit (even for existing clients being

migrated) that describes:

• Overview of the solutions being implemented for the client and

their purpose

• Implementation Process (including interaction with client to

establish users and permissions, processing schedule, etc.)

• Training Schedule

• Ongoing reporting cycle and weekly/monthly meeting schedule

• Accessing support (when to contact us vs. the solution provider,

how to enter or call in support and/or “change order” requests”)

Roadmap for Profitably Moving Your Client Advisory Services Practice to the Cloud

Our workshop provides a step-by-step roadmap for the successful start-

up of or transition to a value-priced, standardized outsourced accounting

and advisory services practice using cloud-based technology solutions

Get started on your business plan

2 days dedicated to work on this important part of the process

Learn all the key ingredients for success:

o How to staff for success

o How to package and price your services

o How to engage clients

o Marketing

Other Workshop Topics

Engagement letter templates and service level agreements

Key cloud based solution case studies to build the model

Key performance indicators (KPI’s) success factors

Rich virtual toolbox of templates and documents to complement

Collaborative engaged exercises to enhance learning

Small facilitated group to enable shared learning amongst

participants!

Assessments - $10,000

Implementations - $10,000 - 25,000

Monthly Services - $7,500 – 10,000

Now, fit clients to our services

Say “No” a lot, if not a good fit

Profitability = 30-35%

Assessments - $2,500

Implementations - $2,500

Monthly Services - $2,500

Started with 2 clients

Would fit our services to clients

Say “yes” a lot, even if not a good

fit

Profitability = 10-15%

Trusted CFO Solutions: Then & Now

TCFOS OCT 2011: TCFOS 2015:

Putting it together

What Past Attendees Had to Say

“The best thing about the workshop was that I came away thinking: we can do this! The facilitators showed us how it can be done through real-life examples, including explaining potential obstacles and how to overcome them.”- Barbara Ostrander, CPA Vanacore, DeBenedictus, DiGovanni & Weddell LLP

“I was truly blown away by the difference in the mindset of how to make this type of practice work, and I’m holding on tight to that and so excited to start implementing it here.”- Claire Joyce , MSA, CPA, Postlethwaite & Netterville

Roadmap for Profitably Moving Your Client Advisory Services Practice to the Cloud

Dallas, TX : 10/28 – 10/29*Save $300 when you register by 9/30

San Mateo, CA: 1/19 – 1/20*Save $300 when you register by 12/22

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