Accounting Firm Operations and Technology Survey, Author at CPA Trendlines

Pandemic? What Pandemic?

How some firms are flourishing in the new normal.

The Accounting Firm Operations and Technology Survey

One of the benefits of an annual report such as the Accounting Firm Operations and Technology Survey is the opportunity to see not only the current sentiments but those from years before. Sometimes, though, new issues arise and are momentous to warrant inclusion via a new question … as when COVID-19 crashed onto the scene.

MORE: M&A Looms Large for 30% of Firms | Today’s Top 3 Tech Problems: Security, Client Onboarding and Workflow | Today’s Top 3 Management Problems: Staffing, Workflow and Tech
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Of those working at home for the first time, by far the largest group fell into large firms of 51 to 100 employees, where 93.3 percent were new to remote work. Medium and extra-large flanked them in those results, at 51.9 percent and 47.1 percent respectively. See table: READ MORE →

CHARTS & GRAPHS

M&A Looms Large for 30% of Firms

Most solos are happy as they are.

The Accounting Firm Operations and Technology Survey

Mergers and acquisitions for growth are on the minds of 30% of accounting firms, whether within the next year or further out. However, 56% have no such inclination and say a flat “no” to the prospect.

MORE: Today’s Top 3 Tech Problems: Security, Client Onboarding and Workflow | Today’s Top 3 Problems: Staffing, Workflow and Tech
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For some firms, of course, these activities are options to be acquired. Medium firms (11-50) top that interest at 9.6%, while 5.1% of small firms and 3.1% of solos are investigating their options, in the table below.

CHARTS & GRAPHS

Today’s Top 3 Tech Problems: Security, Client Onboarding and Workflow

Process automation and tech strategy make the list.

The Accounting Firm Operations and Technology Survey

Security and risk management top the list of technology issues challenging accountants, but they’ve dropped over the past year. Meanwhile, there’s growing concern over business process consistency and cost reduction.

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Firm size plays a role. The largest firms register uniform business processes and integration challenges as their roughest points, while those rank at the low end for solos, who fret more over security and risk management.

Both ends call out application updates more than those in the middle, and training worries mid-size firms more than anyone else.

CHARTS & GRAPHS

Today’s Top 3 Problems: Staffing, Workflow and Tech

Cybersecurity, competing for clients and lagging profits make the list.

The Accounting Firm Operations and Technology Survey

Recruiting and retention may lead the list of issues accountants are facing. But problems in managing workflow have almost doubled in the last year.

And, while firms of all sizes share many of the same problems, there are stark differences through the spectrum of solo operators to the largest firms. For instance, about two-thirds of firms with 11 to 100 employees rate staffing as their chief concern, but larger firms aren’t having nearly as much trouble. The mid-size firms are leading in solving the workflow dilemmas, while the largest and smallest firms at opposite ends of the spectrum are having considerably more trouble.

CHARTS & GRAPHS

SURVEY: The Top 1040 Scanning App

And how many firms don’t use any at all?

By Randy Johnston and Brian Tankersley
The Accounting Firm Operations and Technology Survey

CHARTS & GRAPHS

SURVEY: Office 365 Dominates Accounting Offices

Google snags 2 percent.

By Randy Johnston and Brian Tankersley
The Accounting Firm Operations and Technology Survey

MORE: SURVEY: Are Scanners Out of Date? | Zoom Tops Teams for Now | How Old Is Your Desktop PC? | Accountants’ Favorite Anti-Virus Apps | Records Management Tops Email Challenges | 57% Handle Social Media Internally | Merger? Maybe
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CHARTS & GRAPHS

SURVEY: Are Scanners Out of Date?

Few firms use only personal scanners.

By Randy Johnston and Brian Tankersley
The Accounting Firm Operations and Technology Survey

Firms appear to be reducing their reliance on scanners as digitalization takes over.

MORE: SURVEY: Zoom Tops Teams for Now | Time to Buy a New Laptop? | Your Favorite Desktop PC | 51% of Accountants Don’t Use Tablets | 78% Use Outside Email Servers
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CHARTS & GRAPHS

SURVEY: Zoom Tops Teams for Now

… but “None of the Above” beats them all.

By Randy Johnston and Brian Tankersley
The Accounting Firm Operations and Technology Survey

…………………………………..

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Accounting Firm Operations and Technology Survey

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Randy Johnston, Chairman and CEO, Network Management Group Inc., Brian Tankersley, Principal of Tankersley Consulting, and Leslie Garrett, PhD, CEO of Insight Research Group, are the principal authors of the Annual Accounting Firm Operations and Technology Survey Report.

Published by CPA Trendlines, available in softcover and in ebook formats, here:

Accounting Firm Operations and Technology Survey

The report provides easy to understand bar charts and tables featuring three consecutive years of data which highlights trends in the profession. The survey results book also provides tables where survey respondents are segmented by size of firm, making it easy for accounting and tax professionals to benchmark their firm against others of the same size.

Randy Johnston has been an entrepreneur, technologist, and teacher for most of his career. He has helped start and run many businesses and currently owns both Network Management Group Inc. and part of K2 Enterprises. Randy is not afraid to tackle a business management problem or to get his hands dirty answering a low-level technical question. He is best known for his early and on-going expertise in networks, accounting software, paperless, and CPA firm technology. His expertise has grown to touch virtually every technology in the marketplace. He is particularly well known for his Technology Update overview presentation. He helps businesses with strategic technology planning, accounting software selection, document management selection and planning, and business continuity planning.

Brian Tankersley, CPA, CITP, CGMA is a consultant, author, and speaker who specializes in accounting technology issues. Tankersley has spoken in 47 US states, and three Canadian provinces, and writes for major accounting press outlets including CPA Practice Advisor and AccountingWeb. He is also a faculty member for Yaeger CPA Review.

Leslie Garrett, PhD, is the CEO and founder of Insight Research Group, a company dedicated to delivering powerful industry-precise surveys and research data analysis. Leslie serves Edge Marketing, Inc. as a marketing executive and industry analyst with expertise in marketing, public relations, search engine optimization, lead generation, and management. She is instrumental in leading Edge’s corporate consulting and Search Engine Optimization website analytics services, and has experience serving in the accounting and legal industries. Prior to joining Edge, Leslie served as an executive in marketing and management positions in industry and taught marketing and management at the University of Saint Thomas in Saint Paul, Minnesota and at Saint Cloud State University in Saint Cloud, Minnesota.

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