CPA_Practice_Advisor_November_2020 - 25

FEATURE
COVID-19's Impact on Small Businesses:

How Accounting Firms Can Help

By Jodi Chavez

THE GLOBAL ECONOMY continues to sputter, and small
businesses have been hit especially hard by liquidity
challenges and sharp decreases in revenue and demand
across the board. You can see all of that reflected in the
fact that over a quarter of small businesses either already
have or plan to lay off up to five employees, for example.
Clearly, in that context,
accounting and finance professionals have an unusual mandate
in their client engagements this
quarter. Here's some advice on how
to continue contributing value, no
matter what comes next.

RECOGNIZE HOW YOUR
CLIENT'S BUSINESS
LANDSCAPE HAS
CHANGED
The negative fallout from COVID19 hasn't been uniform for small
businesses, so it's critical to be
attuned to the specific nuances
of your clients' needs - and the
environments they're operating
in - with a significant degree of
granularity before they come to
you. By doing your due diligence,
you can be far more proactive in the
solutions you bring to the table. And
a recent large-scale study from the
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS), drawing
on insights from 5,800 small businesses to understand the impact of
COVID-19 on outlooks and expectations, may be a good place to start.
A few key takeaways for accounting
and finance professionals:
* Significant layoffs and furloughs,
mandator y business closures,
changes to compensation plans:
Small businesses have already
weathered all these and more,
and they've almost certainly
put contingency plans in place

as well. The point is, your small
business clients are resilient and
adaptable - less than two percent
permanently closed on account of
the crisis, according to the PNAS
study - and you'll need to be in
your approach, too.
* There's no consensus on how long
this is going to last. Months? Years?
Small business owners hold widely
varying beliefs about the likely
duration of the crisis, so don't come
to the table with one-size-fits-all
accounting and finance plans.
* While the vast majority of small
businesses continue to operate,
they're nonetheless fragile across
the board. Of small businesses in
the PNAS study with more than
$10,000 in monthly expenses, for
example, most reported only having
two weeks of cash on hand. Shoring
up liquidity to support business
continuity is going to be a critical
priority.
* Small businesses owners are
eager to seek assistance through
the CARES Act, but many foresee
bureaucratic roadblocks obstructing
their path. You'll cement long-term
partnerships if you can help expedite that process and effectively cut
through red tape.

BRING THESE 3 KEY
SKILLS TO CLIENT CONVERSATIONS
Leaders always rise to the occasion
during moments of crisis - but the

qualities that matter right now, and
the qualities that mattered during,
say, the The Blitz in London, are not
one and the same. Namely, traits
like honesty, transparency and
ethical leadership are what will
lend you credibility with your small
business clients, not stoicism and a
stiff upper lip. So it's time to polish
up your soft skills, and from where
I sit, none are more important than
the following right now:
* Adaptability: Show your clients
that you aren't immune to COVID19-related disruption. Be up-front
about some of the ways that you've
had to adapt your practice, for
example, emphasizing the positive
outcomes you've managed to
achieve while navigating ongoing
changes.
* Problem-solving: The majority of
small business owners think it's
going to be another six months
to one year before the economy
rebounds, so let's be honest, many of
your clients will be struggling with

NOVEMBER 2020 ■

accounting and finance challenges
of one kind or another. Start by
addressing their most immediate
pain points and work backward
from there.
* Communication: These are stressful
times for everyone. When meeting
with clients, don't let technology be
a barrier to communication. Dealing
with your clients' emotions by
actively listening and demonstrating empathy may count just as
much as the solutions you're able
to put in place.
Hopefully, you can leverage
these strategies to steer your
upcoming client engagements. If
you do, you should be well positioned for success. ■
Jodi Chavez is group
president at Randstad,
where she oversees field
organization and provides
strategic direction for
Randstad Life Sciences,
Randstad Professionals
and Tatum.

www.CPAPracticeAdvisor.com

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