“Typically, lawyers are focused on what is right in front of them. They think if they do good work that's right in front of them, then good things will happen. And, sometimes they do, but you can enhance that if you focus on what the value drivers are for the business.” -John C. Scott

The finer details of this episode:

• The role of a CFO in growing law firms
•  Cash flow management and forecasting for law firms
•  Benefits of flat-fee billing vs. hourly billing

Episode resources:

• Summit CPA website – www.summitcpa.net
• Email us with questions – [email protected]
• John Scott, CPA | Tax Partner | Anders CPAs + Advisors

Episode Notes:

“Any business, whether it's startup, tech, any business across the board, should really have a strategy of diversification of the funds that they don't particularly need on a 90-day basis to a six-month basis. If they've got that cash flow, let's start to diversify the rest of those funds.” –Paul Rhea

The finer details of this episode:

• Risk vs. Reward: Diversifying funds for optimal returns
• Exploring strategies for diversifying excess cash
• Bank protection strategies for business owners
• Bank security and diversification strategies

Episode resources:

• Summit CPA website – summitcpa.net
• Email us with questions – [email protected]

“I've talked to a lot of firms who say that they can't take on new business between February and April. I think that's a mistake because that's when business owners are feeling the most pain around their financials, so that's when they most need help and want to talk to someone. But they'll often just turn off the marketing during those months. So, that's the best time to be connecting with potential clients because that's when they're feeling the need most acutely.” – Matthew Banker 

The finer details of this episode:

• The importance of understanding your customers and what they need
• Creating a clear and consistent message that resonates with your customers
• Viewing marketing as an investment and working with a knowledgeable marketing partner

Episode resources:

• Summit CPA website – www.summitcpa.net
• Email us with questions – [email protected]
• Marketing for Accounting Firms - Benchmark Growth Marketing

“Your mission should be bigger than you can do in your lifetime, but you should never lose sight of it as your North Star. Any decision that we make or any of the things that we’re doing, we ask the question, ‘Is this going to further the joy?’ The joy is interacting with your clients and really feeling like you're making a difference. I want to bring joy to both sides—accountants and clients. How can we make it more positive for both? We do so by finding solutions for our clients’ pain points.” – Kristen Keats

The finer details of this episode:

• Nearshore vs. offshore outsourcing
• Solving pain points for clients
• Solving staffing issues with Cadencia
• Helping accountants start their own firm through a franchising option

Episode resources:

• Summit CPA website – www.summitcpa.net
• Email us with questions – [email protected]
• Cadencia
• Breakaway Bookkeeping & Advising (breakawayba.com)
• Sherwood Tax & Accounting

“If an organization views human resources as the “HR police” that only values and enforces compliance, it's a disservice not only to HR as a discipline, but to each employee's experience of what work ought to be like.” – John Baldino

The finer details of this episode:

• Career mapping vs. one career map
• Human resources as a service, not a department
• Boomerang employees and adding skillsets for opportunities 

Episode resources:

• Summit CPA website – www.summitcpa.net
• Email us with questions – [email protected]
• Human Resources Outsourced, and more. - Humareso

“Ideally, we like to work with clients three to five years before they sell. A lot of times people come to me, and they say, ‘How much is my practice worth?’ I give them my understanding of that value. And if they don't like that value, then they've got time to work on that because sometimes owners need to get their practice in a better position so they could sell for a better price.” 

- Brandon Poe

The finer details of this episode:

• Pruning for growth 
• Getting your firm ready to sell 
• Understanding the benefits of a broker when planning your exit  

Episode resources:

• Summit CPA website – www.summitcpa.net
• Email us with questions – [email protected]
• Accounting Practice Sales – Buy or Sell | Poe Group Advisors

“GTD® doesn't deliver a solution; it delivers hope. How much people want to take advantage of that is up to them. GTD® and implementing these best practices—capture, clarify, organized, reflect, and engage—of how you get stuff under control in your life and work, they don't give you more time. They give you more room. What you do with that room is unique to you.” – David Allen

The finer details of this episode:

• Meeting management and setting boundaries for back-to-back meetings  

• The need for GTD® in a team environment—not just individually  

• The importance of setting and understanding what your priorities are  

Episode resources:

• Summit CPA website – summitcpa.net

• Email us with questions – [email protected]

• Getting Things Done® – https://gettingthingsdone.com/

“Divvy is a software company first. And then we found that we had to tie a card into it. It’s the web application; it's the mobile application; it's the Divvy Smart credit card. What's nice about this is that it's one integrated solution. You don't have to go find a card solution and then buy a software to lay over the top of it and vice versa. You don't need to find a software that you really like and then have to go find a card that might work into it.” – Zac Heniz

The finer details of this episode:

• How Divvy empowers both business owners and employees to manage spending
• Creating virtual and one-time-use cards to offer further security parameters 
• Spend and expense transactions with ease using Divvy  

Episode resources:

• Summit CPA website – www.summitcpa.net
• Email us with questions – [email protected]
• Divvy – https://getdivvy.com/

Episode Notes

“The top three things that people can do to build client relationships would be take a posture of people over profit, to follow through and follow up, and to remember going into those relationships that, it's not about you. Take yourself out of the equation first and understand your client's goals.” – Hannah Hood

The finer details of this episode:

• Understanding your personality and how to work with different personality types
• Establishing relationships built on trust and transparency 
• How to implement Hannah’s three tips to improve and build client relationships 

Episode resources:

• Summit CPA website – www.summitcpa.net
• Email us with questions – [email protected]

“We've designed a pretty flexible tool. It’s turnkey when you need it to be, like determining cashflow. We've got some really cool stuff in the pipeline right now from a development perspective and KPIs.” -Christian Wielage 

The finer details of this episode:

• How using a software planning tool like PlanGuru helps advisors/CFOs make sound business decisions
• Tools and resources offered by PlanGuru
• Why today’s firms need PlanGuru to stay relevant and offer real-time solutions 

Episode resources:

• Summit CPA website – www.summitcpa.net
• Email us with questions – [email protected]
• PlanGuru | Business Budgeting Software, Business Planning Software