Change Your Game 2014

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Many firms that invested time and money into operational improvements before tax season have still faced difficulties maintaining profitability. Complicating factors like inefficient back-end processes, fee pressure, legislative delays and competition from consumer tax prep software have sent firms in search of new ways to sustain and grow their firms. You’ll learn: • How to move past outdated ideas of productivity to achieve true sustainability as a firm • What you need to do to become an advisor to your clients rather than a technician • Why your firm's technology may be hindering your growth and profitability

Transcript of Change Your Game 2014

Change Your GameCCHGroup.com/ChangeYourGame

What Keeps You Up at Night?

55% 28.6% 25.3%

Top 3 Accounting Firm Challenges

Attracting new clients

Identifying opportunities for practice

improvement

Selecting the right

technology options

Attracting new clients is the single biggest challenge most accounting firms face

Source: NMGI Accounting Firm Operations and Technology Survey

Most Firms Plan to Improve Retention & Recruitment

… Have a strong client recruitment strategy

… Are taking steps to strengthen client retention rates

… Are establishing relationships with future generations within the client base

66%

81%

90%

Growth Strategi

es

Source: CCH® Leaders Now and Next Survey

Outdated technology conforms to outdated ideas of productivity.

Incremental change brings incremental growth.

You can’t grow simply by completing more tax returns faster.

Clien

t Ex

pecta

tions

Firm Capabilities

Most Firms Plan to Improve Retention & Recruitment, but …

One-fourth of clients surveyed say they'd leave their current CPA firm because it might not have the new or different services that the client needs.Source: Seven Keys to Successful CPA Firm

Management

4 Categories of Technology AdoptionPioneers are often firms seen as risk takers, willing to be the first to take action and recognizing there will be adoption pains with modern solutions.Pioneers

These firms see the opportunities provided by new technologies and are eager to adopt them based on the positive response of pioneers.

Early Adopters

Mainstream firms tend to be more risk averse. The solution must be clearly proven and commonplace.

Mainstream

Late adopters will wait until the solution has become perfected or until the previous solution is no longer available and they are forced to change.Late Adopters

Source: CCH® Leaders Now and Next Survey

It’s Clear: Pioneer Firms Excel

excel.

Revenue Increased over past

year

Profits increased over past

yearValue

increased over past 5

years

Source: CCH® Leaders Now and Next Survey

pioneer firms

Across key financial metrics,

Wide Differences in Emerging Technology Adoption

Missed opportunities for mainstream and late adopter

firms

of firms leverage the

cloud effectively

of firms leverage mobile

technology effectively Leverage

mobile technology effectively

Leverage the cloud effectively

54% 44%

Source: CCH® Leaders Now and Next Survey

Getting Ahead of Adoption Trends Provides Competitive Advantage

These technologies enable firms to operate in

distinctively different ways.

Source: CCH® Leaders Now and Next Survey

What is Your Firm’s Strategy to Win New Business?

Will your firm’s technology

HELP

or

HINDERyour growth efforts?

Simply Completing Returns Faster is Not Sustainable

Complicating Factors

• Inefficient back-end processes

• Fee pressure from clients• Competition from consumer

tax prep software• Legislative delays

Benefits

• Time saved per tax return

• Transfer of work from professional to administrative

• Scan-and-fill software

• Scanner• File server• Staff training

Firm’s paperless workflows mimic old inefficient processes.

Compressed tax season

means staff is just as busy as

ever.

Clients see tax preparation as a commodity and decide to

do it themselves.

Profitability remains low.

Results

Tax returns completed quickly

— A Technician

What Clients Want

Your professional expertise —An Advisor

What Clients Need

How Do You Change the Game in Your Favor?

Adopting a new perspective is the only way to sustain your business.

“Prospects are looking for more than just tax and accounting, they want help in running a better business. We’re re-training ourselves to be business advisors, not just tax advisors.”

Source: CPA Trendlines 2014 Tax Season Survey

A Fresh Start — How Old is Your Infrastructure?

Running old software on new computers is frustrating.

Newer software is more efficient and optimized for the way you do business today.

1990’s technology

C:\> Most professional

tax

software has been

around since

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DD DD OO OO SS

DDDDDD OOOOO SSSSS

Shared Data and Services

Multiple systems get the job done …

But a single system with multiple functions is better.

This doesn’t apply just to your smartphone.

Traditional desktop software can be

virtualized to run in the cloud.

But software that has been designed with common data and services in mind is

faster and more efficient.

True Cloud Platform

Open Integration

An open system is flexible and scalable to support your future needs.

“The CCH Axcess platform is going to be the way of the future in the accounting business, not just in the United States and Canada, but worldwide, and we’re really looking forward to a partnership with CCH to bring these products across the globe.”— WSG Systems, New York, New York;

Wolters Kluwer, CCH Open Integration Platform Vendor

The Way ForwardCCH Axcess™ Tax Represents the heart of a streamlined, digital tax process — supporting ease of tax preparation with thousands of automatically calculating forms and schedules for federal, state, county and city entities; robust diagnostics; and a state-of-the-art electronic filing system.

CCH Axcess™ Document Offers a feature-rich document management solution to electronically organize and store client source documents, achieving a true digital work environment.

CCH Axcess™ Portal Provides a secure online space where clients have 24/7 access to their financial documents and the ability to collaborate with firm staff in real-time, at any time.

CCH Axcess™ Practice Provides a full-scale practice management system to monitor staff time, produce invoices and handle all aspects of managing firm operations with ease.

CCH Axcess™ Workstream Offers a full-featured project management solution designed to streamline administrative tasks, such as tracking due dates, identifying key milestones and monitoring project status.

A System Greater than the Sum of its Parts• Diagnostics identify issues before they become

problems. Customizable correspondence strengthens firm branding.

• Be more responsive by accessing your clients’ files quickly from anywhere, with document metadata and full-text search.

• Add value and gain competitive advantage by letting clients access their complete library of financial documents.

• Identify where your firm is most profitable so you know where to focus your energy.

• Keep track of projects so your firm always appears

organized and timely, even in the chaos of tax season.

DocumentManageme

nt

Tax Compliance

Client Portals

Time and Billing

Project Manageme

nt

Dashboards: Insight into Your Firm’s Activities

Partners consult a dashboard to ensure everything is running smoothly; identify red flags before problems arise.

Staff can monitor their own performance on dashboards, improving accountability.

Improved Data Management = Improved Responsiveness

A single, integrated database holds complete, accurate information about all of the firm’s clients.

Mobility: Add Value Anytime, Anywhere

Develop more meaningful client relationships by carrying client information with you wherever you go.

Hundreds of Happy Customers

CCH Axcess™ adoption has entered the mainstream stage.

Source: CCH® Leaders Now and Next Survey

“CCH Axcess allowed us to continue our quest to be Web-based, paperless, digital and connected. It’s been the backbone of our practice. We’re very satisfied and very pleased with our decision, and I would highly recommend the adoption of the CCH Axcess full product line.”

— Sachetta & Callahan, Lynnfield, Massachusetts

“We’re very satisfied with CCH Axcess. It’s just a great way to go. It’s very, very user friendly on the integration, and I can’t outgrow it. I would recommend it to any firm.”

— Northwest CPA Group, PLL, Richland, Washington

“Once you use CCH Axcess Tax, Document, Portal, Workstream and Practice together and see the synergy that they create, you are not going to look back. CCH Axcess has streamlined our workflow so much over the past two and a half years; I cannot imagine running the practice without it.”

— Krueger & Associates, P.A., Tampa, Florida

“I love the CCH Axcess program. It’s very easy to navigate and very user friendly. To me, it’s the Cadillac — it’s the best of the best.”

— Toni Anne Rocker, CPA, PLLC, Raleigh, North Carolina

Why Did You Choose CCH Axcess?

“We looked at the way that the CCH Axcess products integrate with one another, and you can't really do that with a mixture of products from different platforms or even different companies. So it made sense to us to get everything from one platform … and CCH Axcess was just the natural way to go.”

Are You Satisfied with CCH Axcess?

“I'm impressed with CCH's attitude towards the products, towards us as customers. I feel that they want our feedback, they want us to succeed. They are working on their products to make them as good as they can be. You can't ask for any more than that.”

What Impact has CCH Axcess Had on Your Staff?

“We’re able to work from anywhere at anytime. It gives the employees flexibility. They can work at home. If there’s a snowstorm, we can keep working.”

Tell Us About Your Migration to CCH Axcess …

“The CCH Axcess implementation team took really good care of us. Planning for implementation, preparing us, working through some data conversion, all the way through to our end user training, and then follow-up for a period of time after training to make sure that our questions were answered …”

Expand on CCH Axcess with Complementary Solutions

Collect, organize and preserve the internal knowledge of your firm’s subject matter experts.

Streamline your tax workflow with automated trial balance and comprehensive file management.

Build your firm’s brand with a professional website and dynamic content.

Prepare and scan client source documents — the first step of a successful workflow.

CCH® KnowledgeConnect™

ProSystem fx® EngagementCCH® Site Builder

ProSystem fx® Scan

CCH Axcess Information

CCHGroup.com/ChangeYourGame800-739-9998

2014-0069-12