The Essence of CPA Firm Profitability

What Mickey Mouse can teach accountants about accounting.

by Marc Rosenberg, CPA
Author of The Rosenberg MAP Survey

It has been said that organizations should never have profitability as a goal. Why? Because profitability should be the result of an organization’s efforts, not its goal. Profitability is a measure of success in accomplishing core business goals. The Disney Corporation probably says it best in their mission statement, which is short and sweet, but very powerful: “Our mission is to make millions happy.”

Disney super-pleases parents by creating hundreds of quality movies and lovable characters children grow up with and adore, and by creating theme parks that tap into our fantasies and imagination. They create the Disney magic by operating their entertainment facilities with fastidious devotion to efficiency and cleanliness, and fanatical attention to the tiniest details, and by countless other efforts. Disney’s customers not only pay for their access to Disney, but they do so with a smile on their face, and they keep coming back for more. At Disney, the philosophy is clear: Create and maintain a world-class organization that satisfies the customers’ needs, and the profits will come as a result.

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The same theme is true with CPA firm profitability. To be truly profitable, firms need to achieve successfully business goals other than profitability. Then, and only then, will firms be profitable.