Accountants

The latest technology revolution isn’t just under way, it’s about to get bigger.

Hot on the heels of the “consumerization” of IT is a new uprising, one poised to forever change how we use technology at work. Known as “Bring Your Own Device,” or BYOD, it promises to provide the workforce with increased flexibility and mobility while possibly lowering costs for IT departments.

The consumerization-of-IT revolution took place after technology devices marketed for personal use—most notably, smartphones and tablets—began being released and adopted faster than corporate IT groups could test, deploy and support them. People bought these devices in droves and brought them—iPhone and Android, iPad and Kindle Fire—to the office. Read more

Thank you to William Shakespeare for the above title (sorry I just couldn’t help myself). In an earlier post on the The Pulse I banged on about the importance of asking questions when meeting and discussing issues with clients and pitching for new business. Now we visit the other side of the communication coin – listening.

Listening is perhaps the most important skill any accountant or professional adviser can bring to a discussion with a client, potential client, staff member, government department, supplier and so on. When you listen … really listen … to the other party some quite amazing things begin to happen. Here are just three to think about: Read more

In my day job helping accounting firms attract and retain talented partners and staff, I’m often asked what things separate good professionals from great professionals. Leaving technical and relationship building skills to one side, invariably it is the “small things” that really make a difference. One small thing – believe it or not – is voice mail.

Accountants, like other professions, need to communicate with their clients, prospects, government departments, suppliers and a host of others. Naturally enough, the telephone is a common method of communication. When you use the telephone you can’t avoid the inevitable … voice mail. Read more

One of my favourite maxims is  – “If you want a better answer … ask a better question.”  I love it so much it appears in the header graphic of my own blog . If you don’t believe me, just look up whatdoclientsreallywant.com.

Clients are impressed by accountants and advisers that ask questions they weren’t expecting or that they haven’t been asked before. It shows preparedness on the part of the questioner that he/she has invested time and effort in understanding the clients business and circumstances.

One of the best questions one can ask is “why?” If asked in the right way, the question of “why” can uncover a treasure trove of insights. There is a school of thought that claims that asking “why” at least 3 times in the one meeting or conversation can uncover the root cause or motivation behind any aspect of business activity undertaken by people both internal and external to an organisation. Read more

I’ve worked in and around the Accounting profession for more years than I care to remember.  With my headhunting hat on I usually work at the Partner and Director level, across both big and small accounting firms.  Amongst other topics of conversation, the subject of “those darn Gen Y staff” comes up on a regular basis.  To remove any confusion – Gen Y refers (at least in my mind) to those people born between 1980 to 2000.

I’m sure you’ve heard the usual traits attached to Gen Y: self-absorbed, sense of entitlement, lack of loyalty, poor worth ethic and more.  You get the idea. Read more

I’m assuming, if you’re reading this article, that you’re an accountant or at least working in the industry in some capacity.  Let me ask you a question … “As an accountant what is the most important thing you do for your clients?”  Over the years I’ve been given any number of responses to this question.

Some say, “Keep my clients safe & compliant”.

Others say,  “Make their lives easier”.

While many say, “Get them a big tax refund”.

However, the most common response I receive to this fundamental question is, “to add value”. Read more

One of the great challenges for firm leaders is to be able to delegate effectively. It is critical that they do so. Most often capacity shortages are highest for the senior people in the practice. Delegation is enabled by good processes and training. Well documented processes enable less experienced team members to follow the documented steps which are supplemented by checklists and other tools to assist them in completing the work. Great training programs equip team members to take on more challenging work. These things should enable delegation and often they do, but it is also the case that delegation still doesn’t occur. Read more

Many readers would be aware that Smithink 2020 recently conducted the inaugural Leaders and Laggards Technology Survey of accounting firms. One interesting finding was the number of firms that had a presence on social networking sites. 37% of firms surveyed had a Facebook page, 26% participated in Twitter and 56% had a LinkedIn profile. 53% of firms did not block access to Facebook.

At our recent ATSA 2011 (Accountants Technology Showcase Australia) Conference in Melbourne I was surprised by the number of participants who were carrying iPads. During the event hundreds of tweets were submitted to Twitter. Read more

With the recent passing of Steve Jobs it made me think. What could accountants learn from this man? Here was a man who managed to create a brand where people bought the products and they weren’t even sure why – they were just the “must have” product. Here was a man who came to the helm of a dying company and transformed it in the powerhouse it is today. Here was a man who reinvented the music industry, the movie industry and of course the IT industry. Shame he didn’t focus his attention on the accounting industry!

So what can we learn from this man? Read more

Do you want your website to be a client acquisition weapon? Click here!

Did that get your attention? Did you want to click? Were you engaged? If I had just rattled on about the need to build a better website to engage with clients and prospects would you have been as engaged?

Unfortunately in this information overloaded world 10 seconds is about all you have from the time someone hits your website to the time they’ll exit unless they’re engaged. Read more