Seven management tasks to adopt.
By Ed Mendlowitz
How to Review Tax Returns: The Field-Tested Update
Reviewers are the team leaders of tax season. There are many people involved in the process, but an aware reviewer can and should be the team leader.
MORE: What Makes an Excellent Tax Return Reviewer | ‘Quick and Dirty’ Tax Review | Three Ways to Improve Tax Returns | Don’t Use Eyes, Use Brain | Three Types of Tax Return Reviews | Tax Review Procedures Are Your Quality Control | How to Turn Tax Returns into New Business
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Every return passes through the review department. Some reviewers, like some staff and even some partners, do what they are supposed to do, and they do it well and with pride, but they do not step over the boundary of what they perceive their job is to do. The leaders step forward and assume responsibility!
Many reviewers get stuck in a slot and remain there. Nothing wrong with that and maybe the use of the word “stuck” is not appropriate. Maybe I should have said “placed.” Many reviewers get placed in a slot and remain there. Sounds better. Now, nothing is wrong with that if that is what the reviewer and the firm want as long as skill and quality levels don’t deteriorate, and they grow with changing situations. With the latter being adhered to, reviewing becomes a safe, secure and essential job.
However, if the reviewer wants to advance then it is up to the reviewer to do something about it and be proactive in managing his or her career. From the firm’s standpoint, having smart, alert reviewers who are happy in their positions is a great thing for the firm. There is no pressure for advancement other than regular raises and a key position is filled by a reliable person fully conversant with firm systems and procedures.
For the reviewer who wants to advance, they need to become a manager of more than the review work they do – they need to
- coordinate and integrate procedures with the administrative part of the firm;
- have regular dialogues with the software providers;
- be on top of new programs and methods such as implementing use of smart scanners, client portals or paperless procedures (which are now all old news, but you get the idea what I mean) or lean processes;
- do more training;
- probably conduct pre-tax season and tax update courses;
- run a post-tax season assessment; and
- be “in the face” of everyone involved in any way with tax preparation.
Not easy, but the boundaries need to be extended … by the reviewer. It can start very easily with the administrative personnel.
Administrative Procedures
The reviewers should be involved with the admin people and one of them should step up to take on a leadership role.
Without coordination with the admin department the complete returns just won’t get sent to the clients. Admin schedules need to be in sync with the workflow. For instance, the admin people who usually go home on Saturdays at 1 p.m. need to stay the last two Saturdays before April 15 to make sure everything that could be processed and go out, gets out – especially if a 4 p.m. pickup can be arranged with FedEx or UPS. Even without a pickup, emails and portals can be used until the last return that could be processed, is.
I give this responsibility for oversight and decision making to either the manager-by-wandering-arounder or one of the reviewers. A reviewer who wants to grow should try to take over this responsibility. Further, the reviewers should make sure all admin procedures are followed such as filing to the paperless file cabinet, so if a partner gets a call the next day (yes – some partners do take calls from certain clients on a Sunday) or early Monday, the return can be accessed.
Leaders who want reviewers to advance will push, but in most firms I’ve consulted with, the leaders are content with the reviewers as they are. It is the reviewers who need to p-u-s-h!
