Why Your Accountancy Firm Is Failing, And What To Do About It

Running an accountancy firm can be a lucrative gig. Once you reach a critical mass of clients, you can quickly become highly successful. 

Unfortunately, not all accountants reach this promised land. They imagine that after they set up their practice, they’ll earn more money and resolve all their problems, but that rarely happens. 

In this post, we take a look at why your accountancy firm is failing, and what you need to do about it. 

You’re Not Defining Your Workflow

Managing your internal workflows is essential for running a successful accountancy practice. The more you can set everything out in sequence, the more you’ll be able to get done during any given day. 

Unfortunately, many accounts are not doing this. They think that they have a handle on how they are spending their time, but when you actually explore what they’re doing, you soon discover otherwise. 

The solution is to use accounting practice management software. This makes it clear to the whole team what they should be doing and when. It also improves your ability to manage clients and set targets. 

You’re Not Using The Cloud

If you’re not using the cloud to manage your accountancy tools and clients, then why not? 

The cloud is important for several reasons. First, it lowers your costs. You don’t have to worry about in-house IT. Instead, you farm out the management of computer systems and networks to third-parties. 

Second, it allows members of your team to access software in any location, so you’re not necessarily chained to the office. Accountancy management software offers advanced features, such as the ability to automatically scan receipts. 

You’re Not Communicating Your Procedures

Some accountancy firms have good procedures in place, but they don’t communicate them effectively. When this happens, employees become confused and don’t know how to prioritize tasks or get things done. 

There are two ways that you should approach this issue. The first is to set out a vision for members of your team. Communicate with them about your mission and what your firm wants to achieve. This kind of instruction colors all of the actions that they take day to day, permitting them some room to be spontaneous in their pursuit of brand goals. 

The second is to create workflows that your team understands. For many accountancy firms, this will involve developing a list of priorities. 

You’re Not Improving All The Time

Accountancy firms can innovate just like any other. In fact, the ones that do, tend to pick up the majority of business. 

Unfortunately, these innovative accountancy firms are few and far between. Most don’t view themselves as being in an innovation-driven industry. Instead, they see their tasks as primarily clerical and not really amenable to process improvements. 

Get out of this mindset and think about what your clients really want from you. Work on your communication with them. Make sure that you send them regular emails updating them about their accounts. Don’t assume that they automatically know how the process works. The majority of them will not.