Marchternity: Just Say ‘No’

Whether Marchternity continues depends entirely upon you.

More on Marchternity:
The Solution Is Community, by Liz Farr

By Seth Fineberg
At Large

After nearly three years of what many tax pros consider one of the longest tax seasons on record –- a.k.a. ‘Marchternity’ –- one would think this season would be different.

MORE FINEBERG: What Bogs Down Accountants | Your Classic Business Model Won’t Allow Growth

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To be sure, plenty of tax practitioners in late 2022 did indeed call the end of Marchternity and look forward to some sense of normalcy, as much of what caused the extended tax season in the first place appears to have subsided. So, do tax pros expect this season to be different?

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How Bullish Are You This Tax Season?

Tax pros see gains in clients, revenue, and profits.

ROSY SCENARIO: 75% forecast increases in revenue per client. More work, or higher fees, or both?

Join the 5-minute survey. Get the answers. Start here.

By CPA Trendlines Research

If the early results of the 2023 CPA Trendlines Busy Season Barometer are any indication, tax practitioners can look forward to a lucrative year.

MORE TAX SEASON ’23:Accountants’ Top Problems for Tax Season 2023Tax Season 2023: Better or Worse? | Tax: The Procedural Checklists Your Firm Needs  |  Stop Tax Return Review Shortcuts  |  Offers in Compromise Aren’t for Everyone  |  Trump’s Tax Returns: Read The Originals Here  |  SURVEY: Tax Software Favorite Keeps Crown

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Over 46 percent of respondents expect a five to ten percent expansion of clientele, and another 13 percent say theirs will swell by more than ten percent.

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Tax Pro E-filing Gains vs DIY

data chartRefund amounts are up by double digits.

By CPA Trendlines

Fewer returns are coming in than in 2021 but they’re being processed faster, according to the latest data available.

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Individual income tax returns received totaled 91.3 million as of the week ending April 1, down 2.1 percent from the same week the previous year, when the tax season began 19 days later and ended 29 days later. Processed returns were at 89.3 million, up 6.6 percent. That put the latest processing rate at 97.8 percent.
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Is Your Tax Workflow Digital Yet?

Pixelated blue text "workflow" on binary code backgroundMake sure it’s not just your admins using the tools.

By Roman H. Kepczyk

The most important aspect of transitioning the firm’s tax process to a digital environment is managing electronic files that are no longer physically viewable in assorted stacks around the office.

MORE ON TECH SPENDING: Be Strict About Document Retention | Document Management Requires Firm Standards | Why Unified Messaging Matters | Get in Front of Application Updates | Why You Need Offsite Backup
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Reader Sound-Off: Mandatory Saturdays Stir Controversy

Commenting on “mandatory Saturdays,” clockwise from top left: Stitely, Boress, Michel, Evarts

Is it work-life balance, or firm-employee balance?

Sound-Off: Does your firm mandate Saturdays?
Join the conversation here.

By Beth Bellor
CPA Trendlines

Tax season has yet to start and already tempers are flaring in the CPA Trendlines Comments section as practitioners debate requiring staffers to work on Saturdays during busy season.

MORE ON STAFFING: Making Flex Time Work in the Real World | Guidelines for Flexible Work Policies | Do Flexible Hours Help or Hurt Us? | SURVEY: 97% of Leading Firms Now Offer Flexible Work Arrangements | The 12 Reasons Your Staff Hates Your Firm | Staffing: What CPA Firms Are Learning the Hard Way

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In “How to Make Mandatory Saturdays a Thing of the Past,” CPA Trendlines contributor Jennifer Wilson says the “cool firms” are eliminating the age-old practice nd replacing it with flex-time, work-at-home, and results-oriented strategies. Still, she says, “I literally hear a gasp of surprise because it challenges one of the most fundamental elements of public accounting – tracking, measuring and valuing time.”

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10 Quick and Easy Tips for a Better Busy Season

Man working on a carYou may want to keep some of these going year round.
Another busy season is upon us. Are you feeling excited, anxious or dread?

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It’s probably a mix, but hopefully there’s more excitement than any other emotion since you will be helping so many more people during busy season than any other time of the year. Here are 10 easy-to-implement ideas to help your busy time go smoother than ever.

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Richard Berkowitz Drives Berkowitz Pollack Brant to ‘Warp Speed’

Berkowitz
Berkowitz

Workload compression is offset by expanding practice areas, client mix.

Berkowitz Pollack Brant logo

By CPA Trendlines Staff

“Changes in business, changes in laws and changes in regulatory environments are happening at warp speed,” warns Richard Berkowitz, managing partner of the Berkowitz Pollack Brant Advisors and Accountants firm in Miami.

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He ranks handling of the fast-paced flow of updated information regarding laws, regulations and related matters among the most prominent issues and opportunities facing his firm and other CPA practices around the country. His firm’s $56 million in revenue during 2015 rank it as the nation’s 68th largest accounting firm in the nation and Florida’s third largest.
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