november2021 - 10

FEATURE
Modernizing Outdated Areas of Your Firm
- What to Know By Shahram Zarshenas
GIVEN THE RAPID speed at which companies are
evolving, you may feel pressured to overhaul your
practice and modernize it. Fortunately, it's not as
complicated as it looks, thanks to CPA firm management
solutions that are all available online. By going
paperless, using project management for accountants,
and looking for novel ways to handle your
clients and staff, you'll be on the way to improving
your processes and increasing your efficiency.
Modernizing your firm holds
many benefits. For instance, when
your clients have a consistently
positive experience with your firm,
it's more likely they'll return and
continue paying for your services.
They'll even share the top-notch
service they received from you and
recommend you to their network,
expanding your client base even
more. As the goal of modernizing
is to optimize your processes and
improve efficiency, your team and
clients alike will benefit.
Here's what you need to know
about modernizing outdated areas
of your firm:
OPTIMIZING CLIENT
COMMUNICATION
You've likely had to wait on your
client to send you necessary documents
at some point, consisting of
seemingly endless emails, phone
calls, and hours spent looking for
papers that you've put away. As a
result, you'll have to hit the pause
button on your client's case each
time you require more information
from them, particularly when their
schedule doesn't correspond to your
office hours.
Fortunately, using software
designed specifically for CPA CRM or
customer relationship management
can do wonders for this aspect. You
can securely send each other notes,
requests,
files, and questions,
which means you won't risk having
unanswered emails in your inbox.
Using CRM software also comes
with increased client transparency
since your clients can track their
case's progress even when you aren't
constantly communicating updates.
Additionally, with better proactive
firm management technologies and
processes, you can also increase
your cash flow by offering online
payment through the portal, ensuring
punctual payments.
IMPROVING
DOCUMENTATION
STORAGE
Every accounting firm is familiar
with wrangling dozens of tabs and
multiple programs running at once
on the computer. You probably
have drawers full to the brim with
paper clips and staplers, and your
file cabinets are bursting to the
seams with copies upon copies of
documents. Not only is this a storage
nightmare, but it's also expensive,
as you'll keep having to purchase
10 NOVEMBER 2021 ■ www.CPAPracticeAdvisor.com
paper to maintain your document
storage system.
Luckily, modernizing this area
will not only cut costs but improve
efficiency. Going paperless is another
benefit of using CPA firm management
to store your documents on the
cloud, which means you don't have
to dive through stacks of paper to
find the information you need. You
can access this data any time, anywhere,
as long as you and your team
have a strong Internet connection.
Since the cloud updates real-time,
you don't have to worry about sifting
through many versions of the
same document; the latest version
is always the one you'll access.
ENHANCING CLIENT
INFORMATION
MANAGEMENT
As someone running an accounting
firm, you deal with a large amount
of client
information.
It can be
incredibly overwhelming at such
high volumes, especially when you
have to contact clients constantly to
get their information. Fortunately,
modernizing your firm involves
improving this process and making
it more efficient.
For example, you can use a
digital client organizer or a survey,
which takes the tedious work out
of collecting their information. You
won't risk irritating your client by
asking redundant or irrelevant questions,
and you'll have only the most
important data you need. With CPA
firm management solutions, you can
also maintain a current contact list
containing only accurate and up-todate
information about your clients.
CONCLUSION
Upgrading your firm's technology
stack will produce enormous benefits
for your staff and clients. Apart
from eliminating some expenses,
thereby increasing your savings,
you'll also be processing requests
more expeditiously. By modernizing
your firm, you'll be well on the way
to becoming the most competitive
practice in your area. ■
As the CEO of Financial Cents, Shahram
Zarshenas spends his time
helping accountants get
visibility across their firm to
prevent things from falling
through the cracks. Prior to
Financial Cents, he founded an investment
banking firm that helped software
companies scale and exit their business.
http://www.CPAPracticeAdvisor.com
november2021

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