FREE DOWNLOAD: The Connected Accountant

connectedaccountantcvr.JPGSPECIAL REPORT: THE GROWING MOBILITY TREND

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This special report, “The Connected Accountant,” shows leaders at local accounting firms:
• the forces driving firms to adopt wireless connectivity and mobility strategies;
• when the right smartphone solution can make money for an accounting firm;
• how smartphones can improve productivity, client service, and client satisfaction;
• key criteria for choosing the best smartphone solution for the firm.

Bay Street Group estimates that the added productivity provided by a best-in-class smartphone solution could yield over $32,000 a year in increased realization for a partner at a small and medium-sized firm. The special report was sponsored by Research in Motion Ltd, maker of BlackBerry Business Solutions for Professional Services Firms.

Introduction

In an effort to improve client satisfaction, enhance productivity, and become more competitive, small and mid-sized accounting firms are rapidly adopting mobile technology strategies to meet the demands of today’s totally connected, always-on business environment. Their weapon of choice: the smartphone—the brainy, muscled-up successor to the traditional cellphone.

A series of studies by Bay Street Group LLC clearly show that local accounting firms are quickly adjusting to the new marketplace realities of:
• a workforce that requires flexibility, balance, and mobility,
• a client base that demands real-time answers and attention, and
• a competitive environment that rewards only leading-edge firms and punishes the rest.

In a nutshell, today’s professional must be on call—and on the ball—24/7, lest client satisfaction suffer, staff utilization wane or billable hours go unbilled.

The new breed of professional could be called “The Connected Accountant”—evolved to act and react instantaneously, at any time and from anywhere. The solution is total mobility, granting the practitioner instant access to whomever and whatever he or she needs. The new power provided by the right smartphone mobility solution can help a local firm, which represents the vast majority of practice units, compete on an even playing field with the Big 4 global behemoths.

Bay Street Group considered (1) the business imperatives of the accounting profession, (2) the needs and expectations of local firms themselves, and (3) the essential feature-set necessary for professional services firms to consider when developing a successful mobile strategy. The strategy is connectivity. The tactic is mobility. The tool is the smartphone.

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

ANALYSIS

  1. Executive Summary, Page 1
  2. Introduction, Page 1
  3. CPA “Mobile Productivity:” An Independent Study, Page 2
  4. Nature of the Accounting Profession, Page 2
  5. Key Factors Driving New Business at Accounting Firms , Page 3
  6. Connecting with Client Expectations, Page 4
  7. Mobility Is a Fact of Professional Life, Page 6
  8. Smartphone Purchasing Trends of the Accountant, Page 7
  9. Return-On-Investment: $32,928 in New Revenue, Page 9
  10. Smartphone Buyer’s Guide for the Accounting Professional, Page 11
  11. Conclusion: Making the Evaluation, Page 12

EXHIBITS

  1. ‘The Connected Accountant’ Special Report Demographics, Page 2
  2. Work Out-Of-Office, Hours Per Week, Page 4
  3. Clients vs. Accountants: Reasons Clients Dismiss Accounting Firms, Page 5
  4. Importance of Mobile Capabilities, Page 6
  5. Smartphone Advantages, Page 6
  6. Buying Plans, Owners of Small and Mid-Sized Accounting Firms, Page 7
  7. Small Firms Lead Smartphone Purchasing Plans, Page 7
  8. Important Criteria for Choosing a Smartphone/Multifunction Device, Page 8
  9. Illustrating ROI on 47 Minutes Additional Realization Per Day, Page 10

APPENDIX

  1. Statement , Page 13
  2. About Bay Street Group LLC, Page 14
  3. For More Information, Page 14

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