survey: merger? maybe
nearly half of firms say they’re thinking about it.
by randy johnston and brian tankersley
the accounting firm operations and technology survey
technology
deliver internal reports digitally
yes, even to the owners.
by roman h. kepczyk
improving firm efficiency means that the owners have to get on board. one of the more obvious opportunities is the delivery of the firm’s own financial reports. many firms still print a hard copy of the monthly financials and distribute them to each owner, many of whom physically store these documents in a binder or drawer in their office.
more: why daily t/e entry matters | the case for digital auditing | teach your clients to send info digitally | the 4 buckets of firm knowledge | internet bandwidth: how much is enough? | why you need windows 10 with automatic updates | laptops vs. desktops
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most firms consider these documents confidential and yet copies are distributed throughout the office, many of which are not secured. a better solution is to set up an “owner’s drawer” on the firm’s portal or document management system and post one copy of the monthly financial statements when they are ready.
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why daily t/e entry matters
how about better cash collection?
by roman h. kepczyk
studies done over the past two decades have clearly shown that there is a significant improvement in realization for firms that enter, release and post time and expenses on a daily basis. this process allows for daily or “hotel”-type billing that is sent out with the completion of each billable project.
more: the case for digital auditing | what your auditors need in the field | why you want a digital tax workflow system | why digital communications matter | the right tech tools for covid work-from-home | it’s 10 p.m. do you know where your backups are? | the best scanners to buy today
the next step in the evolution of time and billing systems provided real-time dashboards to report on firm activities and effectively allow firms to generate invoices. this can work only if all time and expenses for all personnel are captured within the system. while most firms have a daily time entry “policy,” the biggest abusers of the policy are often owners and managers, so it is about time for them to get on board and use the system.
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the case for digital auditing
it’s time for some outside help.
by roman h. kepczyk
traditional audit practices use the previous year’s audit programs and processes updated for the current year as their standard operating plan. eventually this can lead to a significant amount of “overauditing.” breaking this habit is difficult as every level of staff has been trained in the manual processes and falls back on them when deadlines approach.
more: what your auditors need in the field | the value of firm procedures manuals | retaining documents: how long and who decides? | the case for wireless broadband access | maximize your office 365 roi | how the cloud impacts server replacement
many firms have rightfully transitioned to digital “document container” applications such as caseware, wolterskluwer/cch engagement and thomson reuters engagement cs. not all of these firms have changed their approach to reviewing progress on the audit and the financial reporting on a computer screen in a digital format.
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what your auditors need in the field
twain compliance dictates some choices.
by roman h. kepczyk
the advent of today’s audit “document container” applications has transitioned every aspect of audit production into a digital format. the key to successfully using these engagement applications is to make sure your personnel have the optimal equipment with them to work digitally.
more: the value of firm procedures manuals | teach your clients to send info digitally | the 4 buckets of firm knowledge | internet bandwidth: how much is enough? | why you need windows 10 with automatic updates | laptops vs. desktops
this includes
- multiple monitors,
- image capture equipment and
- remote communications capabilities.
survey: business is still about taxes
the value of firm procedures manuals
where does the most potential benefit lie?
by roman h. kepczyk
every firm has accountants who are 10 percent, 20 percent or even 50 percent more productive in their departments than other personnel because they have simply “figured it out.”
more: teach your clients to send info digitally | why you want a digital tax workflow system | why digital communications matter | the right tech tools for covid work-from-home | it’s 10 p.m. do you know where your backups are? | the best scanners to buy today
unfortunately, when these people leave the firm, their unique knowledge of specific processes and shortcuts goes with them. it is the responsibility of firms to capture these individuals’ best practices so that that specific knowledge can be shared and accessed by all firm members both now and in the future. this can be accomplished by making a concerted effort to develop a best practices manual within each department.
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teach your clients to send info digitally
email is comfortable, but not always secure.
by roman h. kepczyk
one of the most critical steps in transitioning a firm to a paperless environment is capturing information in a digital format at its root source as that information enters the firm.
at the base level, this means having clients provide you information in a digital format, which can be done via email, digital fax or through a portal rather than with a physical document. while email is currently the most prevalent tool utilized by clients, it is anticipated the security concerns will help clients transition toward portals.
email has been the most frequent tool used as most clients are comfortable attaching a spreadsheet or document and sending it to the firm. this method allows the digital file to be easily accessed and saved into the firm’s file storage applications. read more →
optimize your scanning procedures
bonus: specific tool suggestions.
by roman h. kepczyk
for the next few years it is anticipated that accounting firm clients will continue to deliver a significant amount of their organizers and supporting tax documents to the firm in a physical format. to utilize this information in a paperless environment, it must be effectively scanned and managed at the lowest possible cost.
more: why you want a digital tax workflow system | retaining documents: how long and who decides? | the case for wireless broadband access | maximize your office 365 roi | how the cloud impacts server replacement | capturing documents at the source
early paperless adopters scanned the tax return and the supporting documents at the back end of the process when a return was complete. this is still usually the first step when firms transition from a completely manual environment.
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why you want a digital tax workflow system
workflow fails when admins are the only ones updating status.
by roman h. kepczyk
the most important aspect of transitioning the firm’s tax process to a digital environment is managing electronic files that are no longer physically viewable in assorted stacks around the office. this requires a digital tax workflow system that lets everyone know the status of every return and easily connects that person to digital copies of the return and the source documents.
more: retaining documents: how long and who decides? | the 4 buckets of firm knowledge | internet bandwidth: how much is enough? | why you need windows 10 with automatic updates | laptops vs. desktops
under traditional manual tax systems, firms utilized due date tracking databases that identified when a return was due, but not what information was missing, or the preparation, review or extension status, which was often recorded manually on a physical routing sheet.
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retaining documents: how long and who decides?
repeat as necessary: you don’t have to keep everything.
by roman h. kepczyk
quantum of paperless: technology guide & checklist
managing digital files is in many ways similar to managing paper files in that the firm must have standards for who can create a document, add to or edit a document, file it, and eventually purge the file. unfortunately, as digital files are on the network and “out of sight,” many firms are not really aware of what files are stored, the most current versions and whether or not they should be deleted.
more: the 4 buckets of firm knowledge | why digital communications matter | the right tech tools for covid work-from-home | it’s 10 p.m. do you know where your backups are?
as firms transition to the “less paper” environment, it is recommended that they implement a digital document retention policy and make users accountable for adhering to this policy.
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document management? automate it
solutions for firms of all sizes.
by roman h. kepczyk
quantum of paperless: technology guide & checklist
the network drive in most firms is not very well organized and requires the most cleanup. this happens because it is usually managed with microsoft windows explorer, which allows almost anyone to create or access a file anywhere on the drive.
more: the 4 buckets of firm knowledge | why digital communications matter | the right tech tools for covid work-from-home | it’s 10 p.m. do you know where your backups are?
unfortunately, there is seldom a firm standard that is adhered to, allowing users to create files with any naming convention they want and store it anywhere they choose. the result can be files that are hard to find and slow to search across the network.
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the 4 buckets of firm knowledge
power bi is gaining on excel for dashboards.
by roman h. kepczyk
quantum of paperless: technology guide & checklist
firm knowledge and information is usually stored in one of four “buckets.” the most obvious is within the accounting applications themselves where tax, audit and accounting programs store client files in a format that can only be accessed with that program. files are usually indexed and accessed in designated directories so there is not much the firm can do about moving these files.
more: why digital communications matter | the case for wireless broadband access | maximize your office 365 roi | how the cloud impacts server replacement | capturing documents at the source
the second bucket for more advanced firms is a document management application where final documents can be archived in alignment with a comprehensive document retention plan and easily searched. the 2019 cpafma survey pointed to 30 percent of firms utilizing their document management application for intranet purposes.
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