why you should strive for utopia.
by jody padar
the radical cpa
in a traditional firm, the partner is the center of everything – from technical knowledge to relationship management to operations.
more on radicalism: the radical road to (business) transformation | transitioning to a radical firm: bringing a legacy customer along | the four factors for fixed pricing | target content to consumers, not industry | social + strategy = success | make the cloud work for you | 5 ways to capitalize on trends
exclusively for pro members. log in here or 2022世界杯足球排名 today.
and, it’s not a pretty sight.
everything stems from the partner and, depending on the size of the firm, there may not even be one true managing partner. however, under this model, what happens when something happens to that partner?
sure, team members and other partners step in and pick up the pieces, but the firm may not be viable for an extended period. i would argue (and often do) that if technology is at the core of your practice, your firm has a much better opportunity for success if you should find yourself in this circumstance.
i’ve always believed this to be true, but this past tax season, my firm worked when i needed it to.
the last week in march, i ended up having urgent surgery. i was told before surgery i would be out for four to six weeks. i was never worried about my firm or cash flow because we have the people, technology and systems in place for my firm to run, well, on autopilot.
could you say that about your firm? would you consider your firm a viable business?
my firm runs with upfront package pricing so hours and bills didn’t need my review for us to get paid. we use cch axcess so i could see every tax return moving through my office, right from my bed. i set up my firm so i do very little billable work and, as a result, my team didn’t miss a beat with customer interactions and getting the work done. having all those elements in place allowed my firm to run independently of its owner for a while so i could recover.
does the above freak you out?
are you ready to get started on a transformational journey to running a firm completely differently than the firm in which you grew up? are you ready to hear from other firm owners about the successes they have had in their transformations?
are you ready to put in your time and money to invest today in your current firm? can you give up some of your cash dividends and reinvest them as part of your fiduciary duty to the firm you started or joined years ago? the current tax law suggests that most likely, much of your current income is going to taxes. is your retirement and your family’s legacy worth the reinvestment?
would you like to create a utopian firm that will live into the future?
why utopian?
to make sure we’re all working from the same definition, let’s look at how merriam-webster defines the term:
definition of utopian from merriam-webster
1: of, relating to, or having the characteristics of a utopia; especially: having impossibly ideal conditions especially of social organization
2: proposing or advocating impractically ideal social and political schemes: utopian idealists
3: impossibly ideal: visionary recognized the utopian nature of his hopes – c.s. kilby
4: believing in, advocating, or having the characteristics of utopian socialism: utopian doctrines, utopian novels
a utopian firm beats any “firm of the future” because it includes a feeling of contentment and happiness. this is something i believe most, if not all, firms of the past – and even today – lack or lost somewhere along the way.
an ideal firm’s conditions are created by growth, technology, innovation and happiness. talent stays for the long term, fewer hours are worked and firms are still profitable. utopian is unique to each culture. see why i like the term?
unfortunately, we probably won’t see unicorns or rainbows along the way, but we will see a new attitude of innovation and engagement taking over.
let’s get started. transformation is on its way.