Today's Technology for Tomorrow's Firm.
Issue link: https://cpapracticeadvisor.epubxp.com/i/40356
Byron K. Patrick, CPA.CITP, MCSE 2003, CCA — 34 CoFounder/CEO — Simplified Innovations Inc Baltimore, Maryland Blog URL: http://goapps.us/blog Twitter ID: twitter.com/Byron_cpa Education: BS in Accounting from Salisbury State University Professional Associations/Memberships: Maryland Association of CPAs (MACPA) Board of Directors, Executive Committee, Secretary/Treasurer, Technology Committee, Past Chair and cofounder of the New/ Young Professional Network, Tomorrow's CPA Speaker & Instructor; AICPA, Information Technology Executive Committee for 2009-2011, CPA Ambassador & Virtual Grass Roots Committee; Boomer Knowledge Network – Contributor Hobbies: Coaching Women's Lacrosse; Occasional round of golf; Spending time with my daughters What are some ways your firm/business has gone "paperless" and/or "green" in the last two years? I detest paper, in every possible way. I eliminate it. We don't send paper invoices; all invoices are sent elec- tronically to our clients. In addition, we utilize SharePoint for our knowledge management, which eliminates the need to print paper. Finally, our technical infrastructure is 100% virtualized, which allows us to reduce our power consumption by nearly 80% of a non-virtualized network. Do you embrace cloud computing? Absolutely! Cloud Computing is just a different delivery model for technology. It is leading to significant innovation and tools that we have never seen before. The flexibility of having your data and apps available no matter what system you are using to access them is great! Like our clients, all of our data and applications are accessed using Citrix XenApp, so the Cloud enables us to work from anywhere we can get to the internet. How is cloud computing changing the accounting profession, and how concerned are you with the security issues related to cloud computing? The expansion of high-speed internet along with virtualiza- tion has created huge opportunities for small businesses to compete in an extremely competitive economy. People need to be careful to not get overwhelmed by "Cloud Computing." It's really just another delivery platform for technology. Like everything, there is risk; however, there are security risks to the alternatives of Cloud Computing, as well. As a consumer, you have to weigh those risks and perform your due diligence in your vendor selection. The bigger risks lie with the vendors that are not addressing them. And with the right vendors, the risks are very low. Do you foresee the majority of firms still implementing servers for the majority of their computing in their offices five years from now or do you think they will be outsourcing this component to vendors who specialize in this area? There are many firms already doing it today, and within five years all firms will have hit their hardware renewal cycle and should be seriously considering outsourcing their infrastructure needs. There should not be a firm with fewer than 100 people owning and managing servers five years from now. NOT including your current employer, what company do you most admire and why? In past years, I said Disney & Google. This year, I say Chick-fil-A. Walk into any Chick-fil-A in the country, and you will find it to be clean and filled with staff that is happy to be there and assisting customers. There is a culture of pride and teamwork in every location I have ever been to. You can't visit Chick-fil-A and have a bad experience. They know how to do it right and keep their customers coming back for more, all while having fun. What ONE piece of technology could you absolutely not live without? The internet. With internet, I can connect to everything I need. There is no one single device that enables me if I have internet. PC, Mac, smartphone, tablet or Chrome Book … give me internet, and I am connected to everything I need. Are you using social networking (such as Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook, Google+) as a marketing tool for your business … or do you use such sites for personal use only? Have you gained any clients or seen other demonstrable benefits from the use of social net- working? Yes, I am active in each one of these platforms. Twitter and LinkedIn are used primarily for professional purposes, and Facebook is more personal with some professional overlap. I'm still evaluating Google+ to see where it fits into the mix. My use of social networking has absolutely contributed to our ability to gain new clients. It provides more opportunities for people I never would have interacted with to know who I am and what our company is doing. What pitfalls or what unwritten rules of social net- working etiquette exist, which are frequently missed by others in the profession? The biggest unwritten rule I see as an issue is lack of understanding how to use social networking and segregate the personal from the professional world. For example, many people treat LinkedIn like Twitter, they link to people that they don't know simply because they have seen their name or have seen them speak. However, the value of LinkedIn is lost if it becomes filled with contacts that you do not actually know. Twitter is designed for connecting with people you do not know and sharing information, LinkedIn is for creating networks of people that you do know for professional purposes. Facebook — you have to define your own purpose for it and stick to it. What sports team/championship event do you absolutely refuse to miss? Anything my daughters are participating in, College Men's and Woman's Lacrosse, Super Bowl, X-Games and the Olympics. What are some of your favorite books, movies, music, websites, and TV shows? Books: I don't read as much as I would like to, but Jim Collins' "Good to Great" I re-read at least once a year. I read the Percy Jackson series with my daughters and really enjoy it. Movies: Brat Pack flicks, Top Gun, Fight Club, Matrix Trilogy and Underworld Trilogy. Music: Pearl Jam, Jack Johnson, Dirty Heads, Eminem, Mumford & Sons, many more… Websites: YouTube, jrdeputyaccountant.com, cpasuc- cess.com & NetFlix. TV: Dexter, Survivor, Shameless & Weeds Cell phone: iPhone What is your favorite smartphone or tablet app? Business wise, it is the Citrix Receiver app. It has gotten me out of a lot of jams. For fun, Words with Friends and Pandora. How many monitors do you have on your desk? Two — my laptop monitor and a 27-inch LED. I love my LED. Other than SMS on your cell phone, what is your favorite way to IM with your friends and family? Personally, I don't like IM. I use Microsoft Live Messenger for my business; however, I find all other uses of IM to be too disruptive. People can get ahold of me via phone, SMS, Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter and email. If none of those work I'm probably avoiding you. 13 Back to Contents Page 3