VIRTUAL CFO

What’s the ROI on That Shiny New Thing?

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Innovate for the right reasons.

By Jody Grunden
Building the Virtual CFO Firm in the Cloud

Depending on your age, you may or may not remember Lotus 1-2-3. It was a hugely popular spreadsheet program back in the ’80s and early ’90s that was eventually taken over by Excel. If we had been “married” to Lotus 1-2-3 at that time, we may have gone out of business because we wouldn’t have been able to react fast enough.

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This is the world of technology today. We have to operate under the mindset that what we’re currently using may or may not be around in five years.
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Five Questions to Ask about New Tech Tools

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Businessman looking at question mark sketch on the wall
Be sure to loop in the people who will use them.

By Jody Grunden
Building the Virtual CFO Firm in the Cloud

Whether you purchase a one-time software license or pay for a tool on a subscription basis, the cost of software can add up quickly. It’s necessary to conduct a thorough analysis of any new software program before you decide to buy it, and you need to constantly evaluate the effectiveness of the tools you’re using.

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We have learned that we want to be sure we’re getting the most out of our software, that our tools remain the right fit for our needs and that they are cost-effective.
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The CAS Bottleneck No One Talks About | It’s Not Just the Numbers

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Poor onboarding frustrates clients, burns out staff, and kills profitability.

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It’s Not Just the Numbers
With Penny Breslin and Damien Greathead
For CPA Trendlines

Winning the client is exciting—but in Client Accounting Services (CAS), that’s just the opening act. The real work, and the real success, depends on what happens immediately after a prospect says “yes.”

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MORE Advisory & Consulting
BUY “It’s Not Just the Numbers”

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In this episode of It’s Not Just the Numbers, hosts Penny Breslin and Damien Greathead make the case that onboarding is one of the most overlooked, underdeveloped, and business-critical functions in CAS firms today.

“Too many firms have no clue what actually happens when a client walks in the door,” Breslin says. “You sold the work, but what happens next? What experience does the client have? And what does your team do first?”

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Creative Perks Your Remote Employees Will Appreciate

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remote worker at computer types on phone with dog nearby

Stipends for tech and education? Why not?

By Jody Grunden
Building the Virtual CFO Firm in the Cloud

In addition to the more traditional benefits, we also offer a few creative perks that I think our employees really appreciate, including an education stipend and a technology stipend.

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Education Stipend

We believe that continuing education keeps our team members sharp and ahead of the game. One of our core values is “curiosity” because we want our employees to always be thinking about how we can improve our services, become more efficient and do things better. We want people to think outside the box because we’re not a typical accounting firm, nor do we ever want to be one.
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Traditional Benefits to Offer Remote Employees

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woman sitting outside with laptop and smartphone

Being stingy could cost their loyalty.

By Jody Grunden
Building the Virtual CFO Firm in the Cloud

Traditional benefits often include things that many brick-and-mortar office workers take for granted such as paid time off, health insurance and a retirement plan.

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Why do I say these are taken for granted? Well, some distributed companies may hire independent contractors to cut down on their expenses when it comes to “frivolous” things like this, but we believe in building a great place to work, and to us that means offering the kind of benefits that make employees feel secure and cared for.
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Retention Doesn’t Mean Keeping Everyone Forever

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It’s OK if some people don’t work out.

By Jody Grunden
Building the Virtual CFO Firm in the Cloud

There’s a common misnomer when it comes to retention and keeping people on the team. Retention doesn’t mean keeping every single person on your team forever.

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Not only do you want to get the right people on the bus, but you also want to get those people into the right seats. We want Summit CPA to be a great place to work, and we want great people to be working here. However, we realize it may not be the right place for every person.
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Ten Questions for Potential New Hires

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Young businesswoman speaking with client

Plus four considerations before you start screening.

By Jody Grunden
Building the Virtual CFO Firm in the Cloud

Before our firm became a distributed company with a remote workforce, our hiring was naturally limited to a small geographical location – Fort Wayne, Indiana.

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When we really started to grow, we knew we needed to bring in more senior-level accountants to be able to handle the clients we were bringing in at such a rapid pace.

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Virtual Accounting Firms Have Hidden Costs

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Happy business professionals giving high five hand slap

Save by combining a retreat with CPE.

By Jody Grunden
Building the Virtual CFO Firm in the Cloud

With a brick-and-mortar company, there are a number of standard costs that you would expect to have, such as rent or mortgage, utilities, building repairs, furniture, technology, etc. The total amount of these kinds of costs typically falls in the range of 3-4 percent of the company’s annualized revenue. That amount can be pretty significant for a lot of companies.

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Some business owners may think they can save the company all of that money by going remote, but I personally believe that’s a terrible idea. While it’s true that a distributed company doesn’t have the costs that come with having a physical space, the very nature of a remote work environment results in a completely different and unique set of needs that should be considered in the company’s annual budget.
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Make Your Leadership Team Meetings More Effective

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four people on each side of a videoconference

Three steps to use.

By Jody Grunden
Building the Virtual CFO Firm in the Cloud

Doing the DiSC Assessment with our team, we learned that some people love meetings and some people despise them. The “D” (Dominance) personality on the DiSC scale tends to be direct, very results-oriented and less collaborative in meetings. The “I” (Influence) personality enjoys meetings because they provide an opportunity for social engagement and collaboration.

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The “S” (Steadiness) personality may not feel comfortable speaking up in meetings unless they are called upon. The “C” (Conscientiousness) personality may need to rally more energy within themselves for meetings because they tend to value working independently over collaboration. Knowing the personalities of your leadership team members will help you run more effective meetings.
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Make Your Leadership Team Meetings More Effective

By

four people on each side of a videoconference

Three steps to use.

By Jody Grunden
Building the Virtual CFO Firm in the Cloud

Doing the DiSC Assessment with our team, we learned that some people love meetings and some people despise them. The “D” (Dominance) personality on the DiSC scale tends to be direct, very results-oriented and less collaborative in meetings. The “I” (Influence) personality enjoys meetings because they provide an opportunity for social engagement and collaboration.

MORE by Jody Grunden
GoProCPA.comExclusively for PRO Members. Log in here or upgrade to PRO today.

The “S” (Steadiness) personality may not feel comfortable speaking up in meetings unless they are called upon. The “C” (Conscientiousness) personality may need to rally more energy within themselves for meetings because they tend to value working independently over collaboration. Knowing the personalities of your leadership team members will help you run more effective meetings.
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