Today's Technology for Tomorrow's Firm.
Issue link: https://cpapracticeadvisor.epubxp.com/i/160971
BRIDGING THE GAP By Jim Boomer, CPA.CITP The Benefts and Challenges of Cloud Accounting A ccounting frms across the country are looking to the cloud to transform their client accounting services. They are looking to move from simply transactional bookkeeping services to higher value advisory services more in line with the CFO function. And it is technology that is driving this newfound interest in a service that has ofen been viewed as a lowproft, necessary evil in most frms. Ofering a collaborative environment with access to real-time data, cloud accounting platforms are allowing CPAs to take a more proactive approach in positioning themselves as trusted business advisors. We are still in the early adopter stage of this movement and the interest level is further down the adoption curve than the execution. However, those firms that are already successfully implementing their strategies are recognizing tremendous opportunity – beyond what many of them expected when they began their journey. We've seen this frst-hand with our clients in Te Producer Circle, a community of early adopting frms willing to network with peers, access expertise and develop new services. Benefts of Cloud Accounting Jim Boomer is a shareholder and the CIO for Boomer Consulting, Inc. He is the director of the Boomer Technology Circles™ and an expert on managing technology within an accounting frm. He also serves as a strategic planning and technology consultant and frm adviser in the areas of performance and risk management. In addition, Jim is leading a new program, Te Producer Circle, in collaboration with CPA2BIZ and the AICPA. 20 • Earn greater profts – Firms are fnding the higher value CFO and planning services ofered by cloud accounting carry a much higher proft margin than even the core services like audit and tax. Leveraging the real-time transactional information as a foundation, they are identifying opportunities to provide advisory services that clients truly value and for which they are willing to pay. • Make yourself indispensable – Transactional services are simply a part of doing business and business owners don't place a lot of value in them. However, when they have a partner that uses that information to provide direction and advice, the client begins September 2013 • www.CPAPracticeAdvisor.com to view that partner as an integral part of running their business. One they can't do without! • Ensure clean data – One of the biggest headaches in audit and tax is the initial prep required to ensure the data is clean. Te root cause of this pain is the fact that the CPA is usually brought in afer-the-fact and charged with fxing the client's mistakes. In a collaborative, real-time environment the accountant can ensure that data is clean on a real-time basis. Tis streamlines the work required on the core service lines. • Reduce technology headaches – In the traditional model of desktop accounting sofware, CPAs across the country have been struggling with managing multiple sofware versions and the licensing models that are less than favorable to the CPA frm. In the cloud, the accountant and client are on the platform and avoid the version/ licensing headaches. Challenges of Cloud Accounting • Identifying a champion – Identifying the leader within the firm that will champion this project is a hurdle many frms are fnding difcult to overcome. Finding a leader with the influence within the frm and access to resources is an important frst step. • Shifing the mindset – Many of the higher-value advisory services I've previously mentioned can jeopardize independence for the frm. Shifing from an assurance to an advisory mindset can be challenging for many frms. However, most are fnding that the advisory services provide much more opportunities than the traditional audit work. To overcome this, several frms are seting up separate entities or referring the audit work to other CPA frms. • Building the team – To do this and do IN THE CLOUD it right, dedicated resources are required. Many firms are struggling because they've assigned this as almost a second job to their team-members. It's a chicken and the egg situation where frms want proof before fully commiting resources to this endeavor. Yet it's hard to prove without the dedicated resources required. • Managing change – Implementing change is always hard and making this switch – in sofware, mindset, process, etc. – is no different. Education and efective communication are essential to successfully navigating the change efort. A strong leader as the champion makes all the diference. Cloud accounting is transformational to our profession in the services we provide and the way we collaborate with clients. Regardless of whether you are just geting started or you've already built out a successful practice, there is still a huge opportunity and growing demand in the marketplace. Tis is a global movement and is frequently changing. You don't have to take the journey alone though as there is an abundance of information available – blogs, articles and training. Tere are also peer communities that can harness the wisdom of the crowd, hold you accountable and fast-track your progress. Take advantage of these resources to make sure your frm is knowledgeable and ready to capitalize on the opportunity.