Can Small Firms Survive?
Source: Accounting Today
August Aquila outlines reasons small firms are endangered, and what they can do about it.
Factors that militate against them:- They can’t find staff to continue growing.
- Baby boomer partners are or will be retiring at a rapid rate.
- It is difficult to keep up with technology and regulations.
- They don’t have consultative and collaborative relationships with their clients.
- Join local associations run by larger firms. The larger firms provide assistance in training, staffing, and management.
- Provide more consulting to clients, focusing on helping them find the resources to deal with problems.
- Outsource.
- Sell the practice.
- Don’t wait until it is too late to implement these solutions. Planning should start at least three to five years before retirement of principal partners.
Kellogg & Andelson, a California firm founded in 1939, has developed a totally new business model:
- It has become completely paperless.
- It now outsources 60 percent of its work.
- It maintains a high-quality, but smaller, work force.
- It implemented standardized methods for work products, quality control, and work flow.
- Client communications are now handled by non CPAs.
- The people in charge of clients—senior people—serve a much larger client base, with higher profits and better client retention.
From Accounting Today, June 16, 2008, SourceMedia Inc., One State Street Plaza, 27th Floor, New York, NY 10004, 800-221-1809.
Measuring CPA Leadership Effectiveness |
Full Service Real Estate Investment and Mortgage Finance. |