and 17 ways to repel one.
after more than 20 years as a business adviser to cpa firms, marc rosenberg has seen his share of cpa firm mergers. each one is a little like a romance. there are turn-ons and turn-offs. every deal is different, but rosenberg says there are 15 rules of attraction (and 17 for repulsion) that apply to all types of mergers: read more →
new strategic ally, or competitive threat?
practitioners are actively debating the effects and impact of h&r block and liberty jumping into the bookkeeping business, as detailed by 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间’ hitendra patil here.
“this is an opportunity to highlight quality,” says wesley middleton, head partner at middleton raines in houston. “the only person who has something to worry about are those that are only focused on price.”
not all practitioners agree in the discussion which began at 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间 and has spilled onto the 20,000-member 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间 linkedin group. read more →
becoming a ‘trusted advisor.’
by sandi smith leyva
the accountant’s accelerator
here’s a question: what portion of your revenues are derived from compliance work – e.g., tax preparation and irs representation; bookkeeping; quickbooks setup, cleanup and training; payroll; and audit work – versus value-added work, e.g., revenue improvement, business consulting, profit margin analysis and workflow improvement projects?
if you answered 100 percent compliance work and no value-added services, you’re not alone. there’s a lot of lip service about moving from compliance services to becoming a “trusted advisor.” there’s an equal amount of confusion in how to get started.
here are a few tips to help those of you who want to move in that direction. read more →
11 weekly self-assessment questions for successful professionals.
by august aquila
the effective partnership
when’s the last time you talked to your partners about the “mirror questions”? we all know that it’s easy to kid ourselves about how well we’re doing. but when we have to look ourselves in the mirror, well, it’s another story.
rather than giving the partners the questions they should answer, we suggested that they come up with their own self-assessment. specifically, we wanted them to devise questions they could ask themselves each week to evaluate how well they had performed. in the end, we came up with 11. read more →
what it means for independent tax and accounting firms.
by hitendra patil
pransform inc.
the accounting profession in the u.s. has been shaken up by announcements from liberty tax services and h&r block that they are entering into core bookkeeping and accounting services business.
more on the entrepreneur accountant: six steps for a better tax season • 8 seconds into the future: meet generation z • 5 reasons gen y will make or break your firm • 3 ways amazon’s new fire phone hints at the future of accounting • the 8 traits creating the firm of the future today • get more done, make more money: stop doing these 17 things • what shopping habits reveal about accounting clients • create your “not-to-do’s” list • irs bitcoin rule: 5 things accountants need to know • tax season tips: train your brain to focus • what the bitcoin phenomenon means for accountants • overcoming your clients’ worst fears • 5 tech tips for reigniting growth • a case study in using linkedin • accountants and six fundamental human needs • client satisfaction starts with ‘likeability’ • why accounting? your clients want to know • what’s next: predictive accounting
the news came as a surprise to many and i had a few discussions with some accounting professionals, especially smaller firms and some solo practitioners, on what they think of this new development. read more →
with four steps and a sample letter.
by marc rosenberg
cpa firm mergers
in all areas of mergers and acquisitions, it’s always much more difficult to find sellers than buyers. this is certainly true in the case of cpa firms. cpa firm merger consultants and brokers can do a great job finding buyers, but they are limited in their ability to dig up sellers. this is because the vast majority of all mergers and sales take place when buyers or sellers who “know each other” get together on their own without the help of a consultant.
one way to identify sellers is to conduct a snail mail solicitation. the steps in the process are: read more →
how some smart firms spent their summer vacations…
by hitendra patil
pransform inc.
a new busy season is fast approaching and vacation season is coming to an end. but some firms haven’t been taking time off. they’ve been assessing the lessons from the 2014 busy season to apply to 2015.
more on the entrepreneurial accountant: 8 seconds into the future: meet generation z • 5 reasons gen y will make or break your firm • 3 ways amazon’s new fire phone hints at the future of accounting • the 8 traits creating the firm of the future today • get more done, make more money: stop doing these 17 things • what shopping habits reveal about accounting clients • create your “not-to-do’s” list • irs bitcoin rule: 5 things accountants need to know • tax season tips: train your brain to focus • what the bitcoin phenomenon means for accountants • overcoming your clients’ worst fears • 5 tech tips for reigniting growth • a case study in using linkedin • accountants and six fundamental human needs • client satisfaction starts with ‘likeability’ • why accounting? your clients want to know • what’s next: predictive accounting
here are six of the things that the most innovative firms have been doing. and no, they aren’t what you might necessarily expect. read more →
strengthen your partnership and protect minority interests.
by auqust aquila
creating the effective partnership
with busy season just around the corner, it’s a good time now to tweak your firm’s financials and partner performance.
start by reviewing your billing rates, billing and collection policies, type of work partners are doing, how you reward performers and your leadership.
more august aquila on creating the effective partnership: three ways to run a firm: but only one is sustainable • eight key goal areas for partners • 5 must-do’s for every managing partner today • are bad clients driving you crazy? • 6 steps to handle staffing problems in a merger • new times call for new cpa firm metrics • 6 reasons why cpa firms fail in innovation • when the deal is done: a 24-point checklist for the morning after •
take the time to focus on what drives the bottom line. it’s time well spent. here are eight issues you shouldn’t miss: read more →
veteran buyers say that for every firm they merge with, they had discussions with 10 others.
by marc rosenberg
cpa firm mergers
firms that are serious about merging in smaller firms on a regular basis understand that conducting mergers is all about planting seeds.
a buyer has to have this attitude:
every day of every year, at least one firm decides to test the merger waters. if our efforts to identify sellers are made continuously throughout the year, every year, sooner or later, we will find at least one interested merger candidate and probably more than one. read more →
checklist: for every step in the merger negotiations, there’s a possible misstep.
by marc rosenberg
cpa firm mergers
it’s important to understand the flow of the entire merger process.
every merger has its unique aspects. it’s impossible to choreograph, from a to z, exactly how the process for all mergers will work. most steps occur in the same order from one deal to the next. but then, all mergers are different. your mileage may vary.
still, there are at least 21 steps that need to happen. and one can’t happen without the other. take a look…
your new clients, new staff, new partners.
by hitendra patil
pransform inc.
have you ever watched a 5-year-old play on a tablet? it’s effortless. to them, it’s second nature.
born in 1995 or later, generation z makes up 26 percent of the united states population and is responsible for yearly spending of $44 billion.
but they may already be impacting the future of the accounting business in four important ways: read more →
and 13 potential sticking points with conflicting agendas.
by marc rosenberg
cpa firm mergers
whether you’re looking to acquire a smaller firm, merge upward into a larger one or join forces with an equal, answering this basic question honestly and objectively is key to laying the groundwork for a successful merger. read more →
what do we want people to know, think or feel as a result of our internal communications efforts, and why? by bruce w. marcus the answers to these questions are the foundation for any communications activity, internal or external. they … continued