Today's Technology for Tomorrow's Firm.
Issue link: https://cpapracticeadvisor.epubxp.com/i/80319
Have you embraced cloud computing? How are you helping professionals move to the cloud? Brian Fox CPA, MBA — 39 Founder, Confirmation.com Nashville, Tennessee Absolutely! And with the recent launch of our new iPhone mobile app we continue to be on the leading edge of auditing solutions by providing our customers with fantastic mobile capabilities. When we started Confirmation.com more than ten years ago, we began and have always of- fered our service in the cloud. How is cloud computing changing the accounting profession, and how con- cerned are you with the security issues related to cloud computing? Cloud computing is now becoming mobile computing. Instant access to real-time information in the palm of your hand is becoming the standard and we have po- sitioned Confirmation.com to take advan- tage of that shift to mobile devices. We have always believed in the cloud as the ultimate delivery platform and you have to operate in the cloud in order to provide your clients with a truly great mobile user experience. How mobile are you regarding your work? How have mobile devices and apps impacted your productivity and work-life balance? I travel a lot and being connected through technology is what allows me to stay productive. There is some give and take related to work-life balance. It's great that I can be connected to the office and be able to go to my children's basketball games, but that also means I'm available on vacation just about anywhere in the world – which is both a good thing and a bad thing! What ONE piece of technology could you absolutely not live without? My iPhone without a doubt. I now take it on trips instead of my laptop because I have instant access to so much infor- mation including my email. I can get my boarding pass and show my phone at the airport security gate, I can change my hotel reservation while in the taxi, or book a rental car while in the terminal. It's really incredible how much functionality is avail- able in the single piece of technology that fits in my pocket. NOT including your current employer, what company do you most admire and why? TOMS. Blake Mycoskie is a fraternity brother of mine from SMU and he has done an incredible job of proving his "One for One" business model which is a unique blend of a private-philanthropic Website: www.Confirmation.com Twitter: www.twitter.com/BrianFoxCPA Education: MBA from Vanderbilt University's Owen School of Business; BA from Southern Methodist Univer- sity Cox School of Business Professional Associations/Memberships: AICPA, Tennessee Society of CPAs, Association of Certified Fraud Examiners 8 | 2012 CPA Practice Advisor 40 Under 40 BACK TO PAGE 4 business venture where when one person buys, one person is helped. What sports team/championship event do you absolutely refuse to miss? I always watch the NCAA College Wres- tling tournament as well as the Ironman Triathlon. I'm so drawn in to both of those because of the stories of people who participate in those events. To hear the stories of tremendous obstacles these ath- letes overcame to achieve what they are able to achieve is nothing short of amaz- ing. The guy with one leg who won the NCCA in his weight class, or the woman who overcame cancer two years ago and is now completing the Ironman, these are truly great portraits of the American will to succeed and they are an inspiration to me as I put context around my life. How many monitors do you have on your desk? Two computer monitors plus my iPad and my iPhone – so four really.