you don’t need it to make your choices, just someone savvy.
by jody padar
from success to significance: the radical cpa guide
as a radical cpa, you already know the cloud allows you to work anytime, anywhere. by adopting the cloud, you can connect to all your data via an internet browser or an app. you can work on almost any device.
more on radicalism: technology + transparency = transformation | true diversity means creating equity | 3 challenges in shifting to product management | how to develop productized services | dear midsized firms: yes, you can change
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it’s a pretty brilliant invention.
my firm uses the cch axcess suite and office 365 for tax work. this combination allows us to be server-free.
yes, you read right.
no. server. anywhere.
our clients use quickbooks online, xero or sage live. if you want to work with our firm you need to be using one of those products.
setting this requirement has allowed us to standardize our processes and streamline our work. as a result, it has created an exponential amount of capacity because everything is bank feed-driven. what does that mean? it means that our bank statement fetcher hubdoc allows us to connect directly to our customer accounts so we don’t have to bug them every time we need that access.
making it all look easy
let’s be honest, technology is not easy. yes, it makes our lives easier, but by itself it’s not easy. you must choose it. you must learn it. you must implement it. you must use it. and when your firm’s livelihood depends on it, it can make you bananas. add in that it’s always changing, and, well, it gets complicated.
how do you stay on top of it all?
r&d is required!
there needs to be some clarification here about technology and technology.
yes, that’s exactly what i said.
too many owners think of technology as it, as in, there’s a server in the back room and everyone needs to stay away from it. today’s technology mindset is different and the answers are at our fingertips.
you no longer need an it expert to solve your accounting it solution problems.
sorry, it people!
what you need within your firm is a superb researcher.
just like in tax, when you have an issue or question come up, you charge someone on the tax team to go see if they can find the answer. you already know that any answer from yesterday may not be the answer in two weeks because of tax law changes or court case rulings.
it’s the exact same idea applied to technology. you define the problem or the issue, and then you send a team member to the internet to look for solutions. you gather a few solutions, download some trials, or run a few demos. you read a few reviews. you connect with other cpas in forums such as linkedin and ask them if they’d use these products. you test them on your own firm. and then you decide. products are coming out so frequently that you can’t even wait for formal reviews.
every firm, no matter how small, should have this research and development (r&d) component. what i found is that firms that embrace technology have exponentially more capacity to embrace more technology. the easiest way to find out about new technologies is to talk to other cpas and other small business owners and learn what they are using. we also need to be constantly scanning our environment, both inside our industry and outside our industry, for new opportunities in technology. a good place to find new technologies is at technology trade shows within the industry or via online research. google, anyone?
r&d to me is using a new technology to see how it works, either on a customer or with your team. too often technology does not actually work the way you would think it should. yes, sometimes the process needs to change to work with the technology. however, often, what is sold does not match what is there (sorry vendors, just speaking the truth here). i believe the only way to refer products is to be able to use them firsthand.
if this technology is going to become part of multiple solutions that you sell to your customers, you roll it out once, then twice, and then yet again to see how it functions and if you like it. if you do great then you roll it out across your product line. if you don’t, you go and look for another solution to solve that problem.
if the technology is going to be specially implemented on one customer, be transparent with them. let them know that you haven’t used this solution before, but that you have implemented many other similar solutions and you will be able to troubleshoot your way through the implementation. this is where pricing comes into play, because you may not know the full scope, but i will talk more about that later, in the value chapter.
you’ll absolutely need technology to create your product. again, this gets to the mindset of what are we selling, and that’s a productized service.
at new vision, our technology spend is close to 15 to 20 percent. the cost of technology replaces labor. not a bad thing in the tough talent market.
talk about changes in technology with your customers.
technology brings about business transformation.
you’re an accountant – you’re not in the technology sales business. you are in the business solutions business, or what i like to call the business transformation business.
oh wait, you thought because you’re an accountant, you’re in the accounting business? this is changing. i would caution you that computers and robots will be doing all the accounting in the very near future. i’m not trying to scare you, but we need to evolve our business.
after all, the business we’re in is bigger than accounting. accounting is one piece of the entire pie. now that we have the cloud we can offer so much more: strategic planning, cfo outsourcing, consulting, tax planning, wealth management. we can create a platform that addresses all our customer’s financial needs with a variety of carefully chosen products that make it all feel easy.
when we’re with the customer, we typically don’t talk about technology. we talk about solving problems. but what i have found is that when i talk about solving problems, technology just naturally pops its head into the conversation. a great thing about technology is that it’s getting easier and more user-friendly. more people understand its power and capabilities. sometimes, if i run across an issue, i ask my teenage son to show me how to use it first.
name the tech-savvy person in your firm, charge them with technology r&d, and watch the innovation happen.
using technology means always learning.
you’ve finally finished implementing a new system. you finally get it. it took sweat. it took resources. it took teamwork to the 10th degree. you feel proud. your employees are high off the win. your customers think it’s cool. and then some new app or tool crosses your path and it’s shiny and new and you want to check it out! like as soon as possible!
isn’t that always the way?
when i was figuring this out, i was always asking, is there a way to make technology changes part of our firm culture? how can i embrace and own the fact that technology is always changing, and because i pride myself in being a tech junkie, how can i keep up and enjoy it?
news flash: we can no longer wait five years to update technology. and yes, i’m talking about computers. new technologies come out continuously, and they improve our process exponentially. therefore, we must make it part of our dna to be always looking, always challenging, and always thinking about our process and how our technology can make it faster.
it’s constant learning!