it’s about spreading change.
by kayleigh padar
from success to significance: the radical cpa guide
jason ackerman and bernard ackerman run the firm bna cpa together as a dynamic family duo. based in rock hill, sc, the firm consists of 20 employees and is modernized, offering flexible schedules to its employees and choosing value pricing over timesheets.
more on radicalism: tips from a veteran product manager | transitioning to radical: how carl famiglietti did it | how to develop productized services | firm product management is the way to the future | 10 steps to start innovating | the value of new ideas
exclusively for pro members. log in here or 2022世界杯足球排名 today.
“my dad has always had a progressive mindset,” said jason ackerman. “he has always had the mindset that anybody can contribute to the team and he really focuses on the team culture.”
their change process involves one leader, bernie, guiding the rest of the team toward a vision of change. there is no group of partners that needs to be convinced every time an adjustment is made. jason finds that this model means change can happen more quickly.
“change happens, i think, by somebody in the firm who sees the change and they work on it and then they show other people and it kind of spreads. that’s been our model,” jason said.
despite this form of leadership, employees still have a say in what changes around the office. “we’re still run by consensus, we really are,” bernie said.
the first step that the team took to modernize was transitioning to value pricing. value pricing involves customers paying for work priced up front rather than by time spent.
another aspect of the firm that is modern is the way employees work within the firm. employees are thrust into the heart of the firm straight away, and expected to learn through experience. “when you start here, first day, you’re working, you’ll have direct contact with the clients,” jason said. “there’s no seven-year waiting, like ‘i’m going to draft an email and forward it to my manager.’”
along with this immediate inclusion, employees receive an array of benefits. employees don’t need to keep track of hours worked and are able to work from home whenever they choose.
“it’s empowering. you have to empower your staff, and they have to feel like they have skin in the game and they’re responsible for their clients,” jason said.
they also have almost unlimited off days, as long as the work they are assigned is completed on time. “people come to interview with us and they’re amazed because it’s just so different from everybody else around us,” jason said.
the ackermans are confident this system works because there has been no employee turnover or complaints. clients seem to enjoy this system as well and find that it suits their needs.
“a couple of them (customers) said, ‘why hadn’t you been doing this 10 years ago?’” bernie said.
the firm has changed for the better since these new implementations were added. “we’re a lot more nimble than we were. we can react quicker than we could before because of the technology. we definitely are more on top of our clients than we were because of technology,” bernie said.
this pair would encourage other firms to modernize their practices as well. specifically, they believe new firms should focus on client relationships more than the product being sold.
“firms are going away from the relationship focus. they’re going to, ‘how many tax returns can we run through our tax return factory and i don’t ever want to talk to a client and meet with them.’ we’re going the exact opposite way,” jason said.
without this relationship, jason believes that traditional accounting practices have little value.
“if you don’t have the customer relationship, then they’re just going to go turbotax. eventually the systems are going to be sophisticated enough to where they’re going to be able to do their tax returns themselves, so you have to have that relationship and you have to prove your value,” jason said.
but how is it possible for a firm like this to exist? the ackermans utilize multiple forms of technology in order to keep things running smoothly. for example, the software karbon has been essential to managing everything that is going on in the firm.
“karbon is how i manage. i have karbon probably opened up on three different screens all the time looking at where everything is. that was really wonderful for me this tax season,” bernie said.
as for the two ackermans of the firm, they spend most of their saved time interacting with clients and continuing to reinvent their firm. change is now just part of their dna. they are excited about their future.