How AI Will Kill the Billable Hour in CPA Firms | Ron Baker

Is the billable hour finally dead? While many in the accounting profession expected the competition for talent to end timesheets, the rise of artificial intelligence (AI) is delivering the final blow. If your firm is still pricing based on time and effort rather than value and outcomes, you are risking your margins in an AI-driven world.

In this exclusive fireside chat from the Growing Your Firm Summit, host David Cristello sits down with Ron Baker, founder of the VeraSage Institute, author of 8 best-selling books, and co-host of The Soul of Enterprise podcast.

Ron breaks down the core psychology of value pricing, why firms must transition from selling "services" to guiding "transformations," and how subscription models create predictable recurring revenue.

In this episode, we explore:

• The Death of the Billable Hour: Why AI makes pricing by the hour obsolete—and what firms must do to adapt.

• Value is a Feeling, Not a Number: The psychological factors behind pricing and why nobody should price themselves.

• Fixed Pricing vs. Value Pricing: Understanding the key differences and why fixed pricing based on hourly estimates is just the starting point.

• The Concierge Firm Model: How to eliminate "scope creep" by staying in your lane and offering white-glove, subscription-based packages.

• AI Beyond Efficiency: Why treating AI like a co-collaborator to create value—rather than just a tool to save time—is the key to future firm growth.

• Ditching Timesheets: What to measure instead of hours to track performance, accountability, and project success.

Bonus Segment: Jetpack Workflow Capacity Management Demo

Starting at 33:40, David Cristello gives an exclusive first look at Jetpack Workflow Version 2's Capacity Management View.

Learn how operations managers and firm managers responsible for workflow can:

• Gain full visibility into future team workloads across weeks and years.

• Prevent staff burnout by identifying over-capacity team members instantly.

• Filter capacity by role, industry expertise, and client packages.

• Make one-off or recurring project reassignments with drag-and-drop ease.

Featured Guest: Ron Baker