the joys of firing bad clients | gear up for growth

demand for tax services has emboldened cpas to fire clients and to be deliberate about the clients they choose to work with. two practitioners share their strategies for accepting new clients through structured intake forms and firing clients who are not a good fit for their firms on gear up for growth, a new show hosted by jean caragher, president, capstone marketing, and powered by 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间. 

what started it for sbs cpa group was firing a large client. “it just took firing 7% of our client base,” says mike sylvester, managing partner, “and realizing that our revenue went up, our staff was happier, our profit went up, and realizing that in this environment, you can easily replace them.”

“i think 10 percent of your clients give you 90 percent of your problems,” says sylvester, “and i think when you conclude that you can replace them and that it’s more profitable, it’s easier and easier to do. and i’m excited.”

“it’s important to become more selective in onboarding the new clients and being particular and specific about the type of client you’d like to work with and bring into your firm,” says ryan pulice, managing member of the pulice group. 

“when the processes move as designed, and everyone is dealing with clients that are nice and professional to work with, it creates a better atmosphere,” pulice says. “the staff are happier, which leads to improved results overall, and less inefficiencies in the office.”

other highlights include:

• the importance of maintaining a client base that aligns with firm values;

• the turning point to be willing to fire clients;

• the role the new client intake form plays in client acceptance;

• the criteria used to accept and fire clients; and

• getting the staff involved in the process to fire clients.

more about mike sylvester, mba, cpa/abv

after serving for nearly six years in the united states navy and nine years in industrial roles, mike sylvester joined sbs cpa group in 2004 and became managing partner in 2006. mike specializes in preparing complicated tax returns, tax planning, and tax advisory services for high-net-worth individuals and businesses.

he earned a bachelor’s in business with a specialty in accounting from indiana university in 2006 and a master of business administration from indiana purdue fort wayne in 2011.

more about ryan d. pulice, cpa, ctp

ryan d. pulice is a cpa and a certified tax planner with over 17 years of tax and accounting experience. he graduated from the west virginia university with a master of professional accountancy. his expertise is in real estate and small business accounting and tax.