Firms can use a value council to determine prices and KPIs to measure performance.
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TOPICS / FIRM PRACTICE MANAGEMENT
Firm operations
Q&A: What you need to ask clients before setting a price
Billing by the hour isn’t the only way to charge clients. But to implement a different approach, you’re going to need to ask these questions first.
Models of success?
An accounting firm experiment hypothesizes that “there will be multiple successful business models for accounting firms of the future.” Explore the experiment’s results and different visions for public accounting’s future—and examples of that future already becoming reality.
The importance of tax quality control
Quality control (QC) is of utmost importance when delivering professional services, including tax planning and compliance services.
Q&A: How can firms implement value pricing?
Value-pricing advocate Ron Baker recommends that firms use price-led costing and nominate a value council to set prices.
Q&A: Should you dump the billable hour?
A growing number of industry pricing experts are urging CPA firms to jettison the venerable billable hour and replace it with value pricing. In this Q&A session, value-pricing champion Ron Baker provides an in-depth look at the benefits of making the switch.
How health care data security rules may affect you
CPAs must properly secure any patient health care data that may come into their possession, to avoid potentially severe civil and criminal penalties.
2014 MAP Survey: Firms experience growth, stockpile cash
U.S. public accounting firms are socking away chunks of equity, according to the 2014 Management of an Accounting Practice (MAP) Survey from the AICPA Private Companies Practice Section (PCPS) and the Texas Society of CPAs (TSCPA).
How to price an owner’s interest in a CPA firm
Many accounting firms are facing a daunting challenge paying for partner retirements. Long-standing buyout agreements often aren’t calibrated for today’s demographic and market realities. This article shows how firms can assess and adjust the terms and types of buyout agreements to facilitate successful ownership transitions.
Buckle up: The importance of engagement letters
If your firm has never used engagement letters or perhaps has not implemented them consistently, where do you start? Here are some tips to help increase the efficiency and effectiveness of this critical tool.
2014 MAP survey: Firms experience growth, stock up on cash
U.S. accounting firms are storing up equity as they prepare for a number of financial challenges over the next few years. That’s one of the findings of the 2014 National Management of an Accounting Practice (MAP) Survey, released Monday by the AICPA Private Companies Practice Section (PCPS) and the Texas
Succession challenges for U.S. CPA firms to tackle
U.S. public accounting firms must tackle five challenges in their succession planning to fill the gaps left by Baby Boomer partners who have begun to retire, according to results from a Global Accounting Alliance survey.
Time’s up: The benefits and challenges of moving away from the billable hour
Transitioning away from a billable-hour model can improve margins and customer relations. But it also comes with plenty of challenges. Learn how one firm made the switch.
High-functioning firms
High-functioning firms have leadership teams that assess situations, develop strategies, and make and execute decisions with relative ease, speed, and success. Others, however, function with a drag that pulls against their momentum, causing the business of leading, managing, and executing to take longer and produce less-than-stellar results. High-functioning firms seem
Do’s and don’ts of due diligence
When is the best time to perform due diligence in the accounting firm merger process? What should each side look for? How should the parties respond to unexpected findings? Find out in the 12th and final installment of the series “CPA Firm Succession: Solidifying the Future.”
Managing risk in a CPA firm merger or acquisition
Firm leaders must weigh many considerations during the due-diligence, negotiation, and integration phases of a successful merger or acquisition.
The culture test
Ask managing partners for the top reason an accounting firm merger succeeded or failed, and the most popular answer you’ll hear is culture. Learn how firms can assess and adjust for cultural differences in a merger in the 11th installment of the series “CPA Firm Succession: Solidifying the Future.”
Managing change successfully
Leaders can foster success and overcome resistance with a well-thought-out strategy for implementing any transition and for communicating their plans.
How to maximize client retention after a merger
Client retention is essential to the success of an accounting firm merger. Find out how to minimize client turnover in the 10th installment of the series “CPA Firm Succession: Solidifying the Future.”
Managing owner transition through an owners’ agreement
The contract that establishes owners’ terms with a firm also can play a pivotal part in whether a succession plan will succeed. Find out the key succession-related elements to address in an owners’ agreement in the ninth installment of the series “CPA Firm Succession: Solidifying the Future.”
Features
SPONSORED REPORT
Preparing clients for new provisions next tax season
As the 2025 filing season approaches, H.R. 1 introduces significant tax reforms that CPAs must be prepared to navigate. These legislative changes represent some of the most comprehensive tax updates in recent years, affecting both individual and corporate taxpayers. This report provides in-depth analysis and guidance on H.R. 1.
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