Today's Technology for Tomorrow's Firm.
Issue link: https://cpapracticeadvisor.epubxp.com/i/146073
SUCCESSFUL SMALL BUSINESS CONSULTING — Change Leadership Does real-time. Tis is a key philosophical difference from the old desktop software world because it allows accountants to reclaim "control" of the general ledger, while at the same time providing a much higher level of service to their clients. 6. MANAGEMENT DASHBOARDS WITH REAL TIME, ACTIONABLE INFORMATION Managers should not live in the accounting sofware. Tey should have a full management dashboard available via the web that provides access to real-time information about their company's operations and fnancial performance. Tis new frm you're creating would have a web-based real-time view of the relevant KPIs that management should use to make informed decisions about the business. 7. CRM WITH A 365-DEGREE VIEW OF EVERY CUSTOMER AND VENDOR RELATIONSHIP CRM should be at the core of your new frm. Te CRM should be accessible by all members of the staf, and it should contain all relevant contact information, purchasing history, documents (or links to documents), email conversations, and projects for each customer. You want to be able to look at your CRM and instantly see all relevant activities for any client. You also want to be able to search, sort, and tag records in the CRM so that you can group your customers according to how you plan your marketing eforts. 8. COLLABORATION TOOLS In your new frm, you want to have a system whereby you can provide workplaces for your team members to participate in projects. Team members may be inside or outside your frm, and you want to be able to control access and workfow between the various stages of each project. So that's your vision for your frm, if you were lucky enough to start all over. But the reality for most of us, is that we won't start from scratch, so we need to build a bridge, or a road map from today's systems to our new frm that matches the vision. To build a roadmap, start with the vision and work backwards. Then chunkify and make a schedule. What must happen today vs. tomorrow, next month, next year, and so on. As you make your plan, keep in mind that you cannot stop the world while you reengineer all your processes and convert your systems. Imagine you're driving a bus at 60 MPH while simultaneously changing the tires and adding wings. It seems impossible, but the alternative is to continue down a road full of potholes that leads nowhere, and ends in the not-too-distant future. Ask yourself this question: How can I remain efcient and proftable in serving today's desktop technology clients, while simultaneously implementing new technologies, processes, and business models to serve tomorrow's clients who will insist on working with me in the online world? Here are some steps you can begin taking today to implement the vision. Tink about your frm and also about your client's businesses as you go through this list. You don't have to do it all at once, but start today, measure your progress, and communicate your vision to your staf. Involve your entire team to build the vision so they have a stake in the success. If you lead, they'll follow, but they need to understand WHY these changes will beneft the frm: 1. If you're still addicted to using Windows applications, get them hosted by a reputable hosting com- 2. 3. 4. 5. pany. See my article on this topic at: www.sleeter.com/blog/2013/02/ moving-to-hosted-virtual-servers. Tis step will help you achieve many of the benefts of the cloud without having to convert data or retrain your employees. But it's only the frst step in completing your vision. Go Paperless Now. Purchase scanners and scan all paper as it comes into the ofce. You don't have to scan everything from the fle cabinets, but at least you should stop contributing more paper to the fle cabinets. See Randy Johnston's site www.totallypaperless.com for product recommendations and reviews. Beef up your Internet access. If you don't have redundant Internet access, and/or high-bandwidth connections, many of the pieces of your vision cannot succeed. Embark on a project to enhance your office Internet connectivity to the fastest and most reliable provider in your area. You need at least 30 megabits per second (Mbps) download speed and 5 Mbps upload speed for every 10 users in your office. More is always better, especially if you plan to use VOIP phones and video conferencing. Consider re-arranging your ofce space to provide more common-area and meeting areas, as opposed to smaller ofces. Te goal is to increase collaboration between staf members when they are in the ofce. Individual work can be done away from the ofce, while the ofce environment should foster collaborative activities among the staf. Focus on Security and Fraud Prevention. Stop sending QuickBooks data fles (not even the Accountant's Copy) back and forth between client and accountant. Every time we make copies of the QuickBooks fle, we're taking another risk with our client's data. Stop storing customer credit cards in QuickBooks fles and local databases. Remove all paper check writing systems. Implement www.bill. com for managing all cash transactions. This single decision could completely eliminate the huge risk your frm takes by handling paper checks. 6. Implement zero-entry systems everywhere possible. If you have a web store, implement systems to connect the web store to the back end accounting system so there is no human data entry needed. Check out www.Itduzzit.com, www.zapier.com, www.onesaas.com. Implement electronic invoicing and urge all vendors to submit bills to you electronically. Implement scan and populate systems for tax. Implement CRM that captures email trafc into each customer record. Implement connections between CRM and web stores as well as back end accounting. www. Zoho.com CRM is an affordable, web-based solution that provides deep functionality for small business. 7. Implement project tracking systems. Microsof OneNote is a great system for keeping track of policies and procedures in a team environment. For more robust project management, consider an online project management system such as Zoho Projects htp://projects.Zoho. com. You can decide how to prioritize the steps above, but they should give you a good list of actions to begin taking today so that you can move closer to your vision, and so you can move closer to providing clients with services they will demand from you in the future. Te one thing I can promise you about the future that you cannot prevent it from happening. Your success will depend how well you "lead" your frm and your clients towards the inevitable changes that are changing virtually everything about how businesses operate. August 2013 • www.CPAPracticeAdvisor.com 21