CPA Trendlines Podcasts

Leveraging social media and other digital platforms allows firms to attract talent without relying on traditional job boards or recruiters.Gear Up for Growth.With Jean Caragher.For CPA Trendlines."You actually have to be a good firm,” Katie Thomas, CPA, founder and owner, Leaders Online LLC, replied when asked about the factors needed for an organic inbound recruitment strategy to work. Full show notes here | Gear Up for Growth spotlights the best strategies for smart and effective growth in today's competitive landscape. More Gear Up for Growth every Friday here.|  More Capstone Conversations with Jean Caragher every Monday | More Jean Caragher here | Get her best-selling handbook, The 90-Day Marketing Plan for CPA Firms, here | More The CPA Trendlines broadcast channel “And that may seem obvious, but if you are doing the things that people aren't attracted to, no, it doesn't matter how great your marketing team is, they can't make you stand out if you don't have leading ideas and leading thoughts of things that you're doing to change the firm or change the profession and have people actually want to come work with you.” Thomas was a guest on Gear Up for Growth, a new show hosted by Jean Caragher, president of Capstone Marketing, and powered by CPA Trendlines. Thomas' recruitment strategy focuses on getting more accountants to stay in the profession and realize there are firms doing things differently. Thomas’ solution is an organic inbound recruitment strategy that leverages social media and other digital platforms. “This approach is built around the 4C method: choosing the right platform, connecting with talent, starting conversations, and creating content that showcases a firm’s unique culture,” explains Thomas. It allows firms to attract talent without relying on traditional job boards or recruiters.More highlights here

How will proposed tax reforms impact businesses and tax professionals in the 2024 election cycle?Accounting ARCWith Liz Mason, Byron Patrick, and Donny ShimamotoCenter for Accounting TransformationThe 2024 election is poised to bring significant changes to tax policy, and the accounting profession is bracing for the potential impact.SHOW NOTES here | MORE Accounting ARC: Leadership for the Future: Stakeholders, Sustainability, and Strategic Vision | In-Person Conferences Still Essential | Non-Accountants in Accounting: A Game-Changer for the Profession | Rubik Yeriazarian: Smaller Firms Offer Big Opportunities for Rapid Skill Development in Forensic Accounting | Accounting ARC | AI Will Steal Your Job. And That’s a Good Thing | Accounting ARC | The Right Kind of Lazy: Innovative Approaches to Streamlining Workflows | Accounting ARC  As political candidates propose tax reforms, tax professionals must be prepared to understand and communicate the implications of these changes to their clients. The latest episode of Accounting ARC highlights the challenges and responsibilities that accountants face in navigating the intersection of politics and tax policy.

Beyond its ethical implications, CSR can bring tangible financial gains.Know-How KornerWith Donny Shimamoto  Center for Accounting TransformationIn this episode of Know-How Korner, we interview Jeff Joireman, a professor of marketing at Washington State University, about his groundbreaking research on corporate social responsibility.COMPLETE SHOW NOTES here | MORE Donny ShimamotoDiscover how CSR influences consumer behavior and what it means for businesses today. Tune in to uncover insights that could transform your approach to marketing! #knowhowkorner #CSR #transformaccounting

Stop following SALY. Think about what you are trying to accomplish. Plus 17 key takeaways.The DisruptorsWith Liz Farr Kelly Mann wants firms to stop relying on SALY – same as last year – for everything: “Everything is same as last year, the way we give bonuses to people, the way we split partner compensation, the way we monitor hours, the way we prepare a work paper, the way we plan an audit,” she says.17 MORE TAKEAWAYS: More Kelly Mann Disruptor Notes MORE: Disruptors MORE CPA TRENDLINES PODCASTS and VIDEOS:  Alicia Katz Pollock: Create a Human-Centric Business | Nancy McClelland: Be the One Your Clients Ask First | Alan Whitman: Stop Accepting the Status Quo | The Disruptors | Sean Duncan: Discover Your Own Genius | Ingrid Edstrom: True Wealth Is Not Financial | Chris Hervochon: Be the Leader You Want to Work For | Caleb Jenkins: Firm Growth Requires Owners to Shift Roles |Ira Rosenbloom: Don't Merge for the Money | Adam Lean: Get Out of the Accountant's Trap | Geraldine Carter: Charging More is Better for Your Clients | Vimal Bava: When Working Smarter, Not Harder, Is the Only Option |SEE THEM ALL here.When she started in audit, Mann was told to “try not to be such a bull in a china shop.”  She saw many opportunities for improvement by departing from SALY, but leadership told her, “Don't have crazy ideas, don't mix everything up, because change is hard and change disrupts.”After hearing that for 10 years, she quit to start her audit firm. She reached out to tech companies in the audit space in search of software to make her work easier but found nothing. However, several tech firms were interested in tapping into her vision. This led to an epiphany: “If all they want my vision, I want to own my vision.”  So she Googled “How to Start Up a Software Company,” and AuditMiner was born.

Capstone ConversationsWith Jean CaragherFor CPA TrendlinesAccording to Korby Boswell, Adams Brown's senior marketing and growth manager, successful accounting firm marketing lies in effective project management, smart content marketing, and producing solid sales leads.Full episode note here | More Capstone Conversations here | Follow Jean Caragher on CPA Trendlines here. | Get her best-selling handbook, The 90-Day Marketing Plan for CPA Firms, here | Catch Jean Caragher every Friday with Gear Up for Growth here |In this episode of Capstone Conversations with Jean Caragher, Boswell delivers three pieces of advice for CPA firm managing partners.

Balancing growth, profits, culture, and staff retention.Gear Up for Growth. With Jean Caragher. For CPA Trendlines. “Probably no surprise, the greatest challenge to growth in this industry is attracting and retaining talent,” said Kristin Murray, managing partner of Weinstein Spira. “Without that, there is no growth, and given the landscape of our industry right now, that's everybody's biggest challenge. If it's not, I'd be amazed.”Gear Up for Growth spotlights the best strategies for smart and efffective growth in today's competitive landscape. More Gear Up for Growth every Friday here.|  More Capstone Conversations with Jean Caragher every Monday | More Jean Caragher here | Get her best-selling handbook, The 90-Day Marketing Plan for CPA Firms, here | More The CPA Trendlines broadcast channel  “Kristin was the person in her firm who stuck her neck out and took the risk back when she was a tax partner leading the HR and culture initiatives for the firm,”  says Jennifer Wilson, partner and co-founder of Convergence Coaching.Differentiating Weinstein Spira’s environment to appeal to candidates is a key strategy. “One of the things that we've done on the tax side is to implement these positions called tax preparation coordinators,” explains Murray. “These individuals aren't necessarily accounting-degreed but are skilled with computers and organization. They handle preliminary tax preparation tasks, easing the workload of the accounting staff."Additionally, Weinstein Spira has created client service rep roles to manage client communications, removing administrative burdens from senior accountants. This change allows their more experienced staff to focus on complex tasks, increasing productivity.Wilson says Murray "had the guts to say, ‘Hey, guys, we have to be more flexible. We can't have standing office hours and force people to stay through dinner and come in on Saturdays.’ So, she abolished all of that."More highlights:– The six big themes from the National Pipeline Advisory Group and what firms need to do with this information.– Why Weinstein Spira has succeeded in providing time and resources for the firm’s CPA candidates to prepare for the CPA exam.– The real story behind Weinstein Spira’s Fun Brigade.– How Weinstein Spira’s efforts have impacted the firm’s employee retention.More about Kristin Murray: Kristin Murray has served as Weinstein Spira’s managing shareholder since 2018. Her clients include manufacturing, real estate, professional services companies, owner-managed businesses, and high-net-worth individuals. Weinstein Spira is a member of AGN International. She can be reached at km@weinsteinspira.com.More about Jennifer Wilson: Jennifer Wilson is a co-founder and partner with ConvergenceCoaching, LLC, a national consulting firm for CPAs. She has been named to Accounting Today’s Top 10 and Top 100 Most Influential People in Accounting list, IPA's Top 10 Most Recommended Consultants and CPA Practice Advisor's Top 25 Thought Leaders and the Most Powerful Women in Accounting lists. She can be reached at jen@convergencecoaching.com. More Jennifer Wilson at CPA Trendlines here.

Leadership beyond control means empowering others to succeed and, of course, eating last.Accounting ARCWith Byron Patrick and Donny ShimamotoCenter for Accounting TransformationThis episode of Accounting ARC offers a candid discussion on leadership with Byron Patrick, CEO and founder of VERIFYiQ, and vice president of Client Success at The B3 Method Institute.SHOW NOTES here | MORE Accounting ARC: In-Person Conferences Still Essential | Non-Accountants in Accounting: A Game-Changer for the Profession | Rubik Yeriazarian: Smaller Firms Offer Big Opportunities for Rapid Skill Development in Forensic Accounting | Accounting ARC | AI Will Steal Your Job. And That’s a Good Thing | Accounting ARC | The Right Kind of Lazy: Innovative Approaches to Streamlining Workflows | Accounting ARC Alongside host Donny Shimamoto, founder of IntrapriseTechKnowlogies and the Center for Accounting Transformation, Patrick challenges traditional notions of leading a company. "People think you don’t answer to anyone, but that’s not true," he says, explaining that CEOs must remain accountable to the organization’s owners and the company’s future. Leadership, when done well, is about service.

The DisruptorsWith Liz FarrAlicia Katz Pollock proves that you don’t need an accounting degree or formal bookkeeping training to be a hugely helpful resource for the QuickBooks community.SHOW NOTES here | MORE PODCASTS and VIDEOS:  Nancy McClelland: Be the One Your Clients Ask First |Alan Whitman: Stop Accepting the Status Quo | Sean Duncan: Discover Your Own Genius | Ingrid Edstrom: True Wealth Is Not Financial | Caleb Jenkins: Firm Growth Requires Owners to Shift Roles | Chris Hervochon: Be the Leader You Want to Work For | Ira Rosenbloom: Don’t Merge for the Money | Adam Lean: Get Out of the Accountant’s Trap |Pollock started teaching computers and Microsoft products and used QuickBooks in her own business. Then, people started asking her to teach them QuickBooks. She ran her QuickBooks set-up and methodology past a few bookkeepers, who told her, “Alicia, you have a knack for this.” So she dove in to learn as much as she could and is today one of the go-to experts for QuickBooks.

Capstone ConversationsBy Jean CaragherFor CPA TrendlinesThe greatest challenge in marketing CPA firms is understanding the role of technology and how different generations of clients and prospects want to engage, Joe Kovacs, marketing and biz dev director at Councilor, Buchanan & Mitchell, tells Jean Caragher in this episode of Capstone Conversations.Show notes here | Follow Jean Caragher on CPA Trendlines here. | Get her best-selling handbook, The 90-Day Marketing Plan for CPA Firms, here | Catch Jean Caragher’s other show, Gear Up for Growth, on Fridays here. | And browse all the shows in the CPA Trendlines broadcast network here“We need to stay current, not just in knowing the technology, but how consumers are using it and making decisions,” Kovacs says. “Especially since the pandemic, the digital brand experience has become essential. Understanding that digital brand experience is essential. “It’s a never-ending challenge. It’s exciting but also a little terrifying sometimes.”Four more takeaways: The biggest changes in accounting marketing over the past 10 years have been the increasing importance of digital branding, communication, and client engagement through social media and emerging technologies like AI. Key skills for successful accounting marketers include self-regulation, a sense of humor, and building a strong peer network through organizations like AIM. Joe’s top priority is ensuring CBM, a 100-year-old firm, maintains its brand value and is seen as a trusted partner to clients in a consolidating industry. He advises accounting marketers to embrace their professionalism and leadership potential within their firms, even if it means taking initiative without always asking permission.

Gear Up for GrowthWith Jean CaragherFor CPA TrendlinesDemand for tax services emboldens CPAs to fire clients and deliberate about the clients they choose to work with. Two practitioners share their strategies for accepting new clients through structured intake forms and firing clients who are not a good fit for their firms in this episode of Gear Up for Growth, with Jean Caragher, president of Capstone Marketing, and powered by CPA Trendlines Research. “It just took firing 7 percent of our client base,” says Mike Sylvester, managing partner, SBS CPAs, “and realizing that our revenue went up, our staff was happier, our profit went up, and realizing that in this environment, you can easily replace them.”More CPA Trendlines podcasts here | More Jean Caragher here“I think 10% of your clients give you 90 percent of your problems,” says Sylvester, “when you come to the conclusion that you can replace them and that it's more profitable, it's easier and easier to do. And I'm excited.” “It’s important to become more selective in onboarding the new clients and being particular and specific about the type of client you'd like to work with and bring into your firm,” says Ryan Pulice, managing member of the Pulice Group.  “When the processes move as designed, and everyone deals with nice and professional clients, it creates a better atmosphere,” Pulice says. “The staff are happier, which leads to improved results overall, and less inefficiencies in the office.” Five more takeaways:  Building a client base that aligns with firm values.  The breaking point for firing a client.  The new client intake form helps filter client acceptance.  Key criteria used to evaluate clients.  Involving staff in the process.