7 secrets of successful change management
We have high expectations of technology: according to Deloitte research, 67% of CIOs expect IT to deliver increased efficiency and reduced costs and 70% expect it to deliver business process improvements.
The implementation of new software in your accountancy practice has to be the best it can be to achieve these challenging targets. Follow these seven best practices to give your next technology project its greatest chance of success. And be a change management champion.
1. Get early involvement
You can’t please everyone, but you can encourage a wider sense of ownership by involving your team as much as possible.
Even if final decisions are taken by senior managers and partners, look for ways your staff can make a genuine contribution to the process. Could they help frame the questions that need to be addressed? Or determine the criteria against which contenders will be measured? Or help set project priorities?
2. Spell out the benefits
Be specific and be personal so everyone understands what they, personally, will get out of the change. So what if the software makes it easier to prepare tax returns? What matters to most people is that their own working lives in December and January will be less fraught!
Even more general benefits to the practice will, ultimately, bring benefits to the staff, such as greater business stability, opportunities for more interesting and challenging work, and enhanced career prospects. It’s worth spelling these out.
3. Find a champion (or several)
Project managers can’t be everywhere at once! You need to enlist the help of some project champions.
Champions have to be fully behind the project. They need to really understand the advantages of the new software solution and the intended outcomes of the project. They work with stakeholders to keep them engaged and happy with the process, combatting the inevitable “project fatigue” that affects many projects, particularly longer ones.
4. Keep communicating!
Good project management relies on effective communication, not just at the launch and end of the project, but at every stage.
Rumours and negativity can spread quickly – regular, open and honest communication will help you to overcome these. Find milestones along the way that you can mark and celebrate, but be honest about any challenges and delays, too. This will help to avoid unexpected shocks later on.
5. Provide a range of training resources
Training is vital to project success. It’s not enough to simply launch a new software system, you have to make sure that people are using it, and using it efficiently.
These days it’s relatively easy to generate material in different formats to suit different learning styles: physical documents and printed guides; simple FAQs; pages on your intranet; demo data for those who learn best by using the software; classroom training; live, online webinars and recorded videos.
6. Evaluate the project
Many software projects aren’t evaluated until they’re finished, by which time it’s usually too late to change outcomes.
Instead, break the project down into manageable chunks and evaluate each phase as it’s completed. There are lots of ways of gathering evaluation data, formally and informally, from face-to-face debriefs, “lunch and learn” sessions, a quick email, a form on the firm’s intranet or an online survey.
7 . Don’t forget new starters!
Of course it’s important to train your current team, but don’t forget training for new staff so that everyone adopts best practice.
Make sure you build sufficient training into your induction programme, but remember that “training” doesn’t mean leaving someone alone in a room for a day and hoping they’ll emerge as a fully-fledged expert in the software. If you followed the suggestions in step 5 above, you’ll already have training material in a variety of formats to help different people learn in the way that suits them.
Greg Gillet is communications manager at Wolters Kluwer. The group will be at Accountex Summit North, Pod 35.
7 secrets of successful change management
Written by Greg Gillet of Wolters Kluwer: We have high expectations of technology: according to Deloitte research, 67% of CIOs expect IT to deliver increased efficiency and reduced costs and 70% expect it to deliver business process improvements.
The implementation of new software in your accountancy practice has to be the best it can be to achieve these challenging targets. Follow these seven best practices to give your next technology project its greatest chance of success.
1. Get early involvement
You can’t please everyone, but you can encourage a wider sense of ownership by involving your team as much as possible.
Even if final decisions are taken by senior managers and partners, look for ways your staff can make a genuine contribution to the process. Could they help frame the questions that need to be addressed? Or determine the criteria against which contenders will be measured? Or help set project priorities?
2. Spell out the benefits
Be specific and be personal so everyone understands what they, personally, will get out of the change. So what if the software makes it easier to prepare tax returns? What matters to most people is that their own working lives in December and January will be less fraught!
Even more general benefits to the practice will, ultimately, bring benefits to the staff, such as greater business stability, opportunities for more interesting and challenging work, and enhanced career prospects. It’s worth spelling these out.
3. Find a champion (or several)
Project managers can’t be everywhere at once! You need to enlist the help of some project champions.
Champions have to be fully behind the project. They need to really understand the advantages of the new software solution and the intended outcomes of the project. They work with stakeholders to keep them engaged and happy with the process, combatting the inevitable “project fatigue” that affects many projects, particularly longer ones.
4. Keep communicating!
Good project management relies on effective communication, not just at the launch and end of the project, but at every stage.
Rumours and negativity can spread quickly – regular, open and honest communication will help you to overcome these. Find milestones along the way that you can mark and celebrate, but be honest about any challenges and delays, too. This will help to avoid unexpected shocks later on.
5. Provide a range of training resources
Training is vital to project success. It’s not enough to simply launch a new software system, you have to make sure that people are using it, and using it efficiently.
These days it’s relatively easy to generate material in different formats to suit different learning styles: physical documents and printed guides; simple FAQs; pages on your intranet; demo data for those who learn best by using the software; classroom training; live, online webinars and recorded videos.
6. Evaluate the project
Many software projects aren’t evaluated until they’re finished, by which time it’s usually too late to change outcomes.
Instead, break the project down into manageable chunks and evaluate each phase as it’s completed. There are lots of ways of gathering evaluation data, formally and informally, from face-to-face debriefs, “lunch and learn” sessions, a quick email, a form on the firm’s intranet or an online survey.
7 . Don’t forget new starters!
Of course it’s important to train your current team, but don’t forget training for new staff so that everyone adopts best practice.
Make sure you build sufficient training into your induction programme, but remember that “training” doesn’t mean leaving someone alone in a room for a day and hoping they’ll emerge as a fully-fledged expert in the software. If you followed the suggestions in step 5 above, you’ll already have training material in a variety of formats to help different people learn in the way that suits them.
Greg Gillet is communications manager at Wolters Kluwer. The group will be at Accountex Summit North, Pod 35.
Amanda Watts: 'I'm Marmite. People will either love or hate me!'
Amanda Watts, marketing consultant for accounting firms, is the first interviewee in series of articles where I talk to leading figures in accountancy and related industries. Amanda is the MD of TwentyTwo Agency. She’s a speaker, best-selling author and founder of the British Accounting Marketing Awards. @AmandaCWatts
Why marketing?
I could try and come up with a clever answer but quite honestly it is all I have ever wanted and could ever want from a profession. Looking at a business, I can immediately see what they need to change or enhance. I live and breathe it. The books I read, the businesses I run, the conversations I have. They all boil down to marketing. It is engrained in my core. I don't know why, I was born with it inside of me and am very grateful I was encouraged by my father to nurture it. On an intellectual level, I could say it is the combination of wanting to help people, the understanding I have of human behaviour and my ability to come up with ideas fast.
Why accountancy?
My father is a Tax Technician. He used to work for one of the big 4 but got made redundant when I was 15. He invested in a tax franchise that promised to help him with marketing his services. Did they do this? Nope, and the business didn't succeed. It was a trying time for the family and the stress for him and the rest of us was horrific. Roll on to a few years ago we were talking about the technology changes in the industry and I could see the stress he went through manifesting in accounting practices all over the world. My heart just said to me that I couldn't let this happen to the industry. I knew there was a way to leverage this technology and still be seen as vital and valued. It was a no-brainer… I had to help.
What got you into the business of marketing?
You might see a theme here. I would say my father encouraged me at all times. When I was younger I wanted to be a signer on stage (think Doris Day) but I could neither sing, nor act. Dad saw in me that I had a knack for business ideas and marketing so encouraged me to do business studies and accounting. He was right, I have never looked back and can still neither sing or act. But I have smashed this marketing malarkey.
A growth mindset accountant
What have accountants got to learn?
I don't believe accountants have to "learn" anything other than to understand that the changes in the industry can be approached from two angles. They can approach it from either a fixed mindset or a growth mindset. A fixed mindset accountant will bury their head in the sand and either think the industry is doomed, or that they can still only rely on word-of-mouth enquiries. A growth mindset accountant will know that times have changed and be open to the opportunities that are out there. This is the difficult part. Once a growth mindset has been embraced then it is just a matter of understanding how to speak to an ideal client and build a relationship with them using a combination of modern and traditional marketing.
And what can you teach them?
If an accountant has a fixed mindset I can teach them nothing. However, the growth mindset accountants I can clearly show them how to embrace technology and leverage it to be more visible instead of invisible, more vital instead of functional, and be valued instead of seen as a commodity. We do have a methodology that we use to "teach" them this called The Pioneering Practice. After 26 years in the business, I understand that it is always about building relationships first, then maximising sales. We just leverage marketing to do this.
Information overload
Does the idea of information overload concern you?
Absolutely. Overwhelmed is something that many practitioners feel when it comes to the M word. And I totally get this. It is important for a practice owner and their team to understand that there are three things they need to think about. Strategy - What is their goal for marketing (number of new clients, revenue/profit wanted). Tactics - How are they going to achieve this goal (social media, events, speaking etc). Tools - what tools are they going to use (Facebook, Twitter, Eventbrite, MailChimp). To stop the overwhelm practitioners need to only think about Strategy and Tactics… the tools are there to leverage the strategy and tactics. If you get stuck in tools you end up overwhelmed by the options.
What's on the horizon for you and the sector?
I truly believe that this is an exciting time for the majority of the profession. As I have said those with a fixed mindset may find they have to sell their practice, or may even start to shrink. The growth mindset practitioners have an exciting future in front of them. As for me, well every day I work on serving more and building relationships… There is a dearth of expert marketing professionals that specialise in helping accountants, so my future is about trying to share my expertise as much and as far as I can. I run my business in 90-day cycles, and look at 12-month goals. My focus at the moment is on The Pioneering Practice marketing implementation programme and having that as the "go-to" programmes for growth mindset accounting firms around the globe.
Playing catch-up
Do you think women are well-represented in the industry?
I think we are slowly playing catch up. It was only 100 years ago that we got the vote, and 50 years ago women didn't have professional training like they can have now. Diversity in the workplace is happening, it isn't happening overnight, but it is happening. Look at Accountex, run by the lovely Zoe. A lot of the practitioners I speak with are women. Give it time.
As an influential voice, what impact do you want to have on the profession this year?
I want to spread the message that there has never been a better time in history to create success as a firm. The ability to be visible, vital and valued is, dare I say, almost easy. I want to show accountants and their teams that the world is their oyster. I am Marmite, people will either love or hate me, but this is good. Those that love me will come to me for help. This will enable them to have success and I will have helped those firms make a bigger impact themselves… A ripple effect.
Early Days
Where did you grow up?
Croydon.
Were you any good at maths at school?
Ha-ha no I am a creative. Maths has never been my strong point. I love analysing numbers, but that is about as far as it goes.
Trivia/Miscellany
What's your favourite film? (you're allowed more than one)
Pillow Talk with Doris Day.
What's your favourite book? (you're allowed more than one)
Fiction: To Kill A Mockingbird. Non Fiction: The Compound Effect by Darren Hardy.
What's your favourite type of music?
I am a 50s/early 60s kinda gal. I love my record player and am rather old-fashioned when it comes to music.
What's your ideal day out?
If it's sunny: A trip to the seaside, throwing stones in the sea, eating chips on the beach and enjoying the sun on my face.
If it's rainy: Popping into London for a walk around the galleries, a meander around the streets and a lovely lunch at an Italian.
What's your ideal holiday?
Amalfi coast driving around the winding roads across the most beautiful part of the world. A holiday with the hubby and children, with lots of laughter, sun and exploring.
Is money the root of all evil?
Nope, it is an opportunity to help more people and make a bigger impact.
Do you support a football team?
Nope.
Do you have a heroine or hero?
My father is my hero. I have had a colourful life, all he has done is support and encourage me every step of the way. This coupled with the fact that he is always right and seems to be able to do everything in this world with ease, makes him my hero.
Amanda will be providing all the answers to your marketing questions in a monthly blog post that will launch on Accounting Insight on April 6. Whether you are wondering which social media platform you should be using, whether you should do PPC or Telesales, or want to understand how to run webinars Amanda can help. You ask, she will answer... Please email any questions you have for Amanda to Ian Moss … [email protected].
Q&A: Steve Cox, IRIS Accountancy Solutions (2018)
Next up in our speaker Q&A series is Steve Cox, a technologist and accountant who looks at how technology can simplify the modern accounting world. Currently Chief Evangelist for IRIS Group, Steve has worked closely with customers, software companies and the government and is championing the digital transformation of UK SMEs and accountants.Read more
JustAccounts present their revolutionary Onboarding System
Unique to the payroll and accountancy platform market, a fast and efficient way to go to illustration to company formation in a few clicks.
In May 2018 JustAccounts (JA), the first white-labelled accountancy platform built specifically for contractor accountants, will be at Accountex, held at ExCeL London, for the third year in a row (stand 152).
JA will also be present at Accountex Summit North, held at Manchester Central on the 6th of March (Pod05).
This year, at Accountex, the JustAccounts team will focus on the revolutionary JA Onboarding System, which gives the accountant the ability to perform the whole client onboarding process without ever leaving the platform.
All the JA platforms let users:
● Create leads and illustrations
● Track referrals
● Progress onto creating a live client
● Incorporate the new company and set up a business bank account.
Finally, a contract can be created for the end client to sign directly from the dashboard.
The JustAccounts Onboarding System helps accountants to work faster, more precisely and efficiently.
To find out more about all the features of the JA Limited, Umbrella and CIS platforms, and about JA client services, visit pod05 at AccountEX Summit North // Stand 152 at AccountEX.
CONTACTS
Francesca Manca JustAccounts
www.justaccounts.com
[email protected]
[email protected]
01942 721 397
Next-generation OneApp platform arrives!
“We cannot become what we want to be by remaining what we are” – Max DePree
Written by Joel Oliver of MyFirmsApp: Research from App Annie in its 2017 Retrospective confirms that Apps have become an increasingly critical channel for virtually all consumer businesses. Mobile is undeniably the first screen, with downloads of Apps exceeding 175 billion in 2017 - a 60% rise since 2015 – and each user is spending nearly 1.5 months using Apps per year.
Yet we still get asked the question; ‘Will my client use an App?’ Our response is always: ‘It’s your clients that are driving the demand for easier engagement through Apps.’ There are no two ways about it; Apps offer accountants an opportunity to rebuild direct and effectively manage relationships by extending contact throughout the client journey.
Since 2013, MyFirmsApp has focused on the development of bespoke Apps and there are now 250,000 businesses relying on them for direct contact with their accountants. While bespoke Apps are right for many of our customers, there are some firms we speak to that tell us that they would like an App that is not quite so tailored and can be live faster
Development of a new platform
To give these firms more choice, we have invested heavily in the development of a new platform, which we believe, delivers the next generation of future proofed custom Apps for professional firms. Access to this platform gives the accountant a combination of content, tools, features and integration, with hundreds of variables, plus the option to upgrade to specific modules to customise the user experience.
The search mechanism for the OneApp platform works in a slightly different way to the bespoke Apps we build and instead of searching for the firm’s name, the client or prospect searches for ‘My Accountant’ in the App store. Once they download the app and open it up, they add their details so the accountant knows exactly who has downloaded the App and who is using it or they can share a QR code to make it even easier to locate.
Above all, the new platform makes it really easy to find the App in either the iOS App store or in Google Play and this is an important benefit as there are now more than 6 million Apps residing there. With the automatic capture of important data such as name, company, email and phone details, the accountant still has the option to link this data to existing CRM or email systems such as Hubspot, Mailchimp or Salesforce and in doing so, will help to streamline the marketing operation.
Quick links to chosen accounting program
The new OneApp platform provides firms with an App branded with their individual logo and in their own colour scheme and still gives clients quick links to their chosen accounting program and access to a host of useful tools including a mileage tracker and receipt manager. While making life easier for the client, an App control panel gives the accountant immediate access to user data to see exactly how the App is performing thanks to live, real time download statistics.
The landscape is changing at an extraordinary rate and, today, it’s even more important to have a proven solution that connects accountants with their clients and brings together all the individual components, Apps, logins and portals into a centralised place that’s easily recognisable in the firm’s brand.
We believe that giving accountants and bookkeepers more choice in which App they choose to employ is the natural next step. The opportunities are huge and the level of engagement made possible through an App can only result in more contact with customers, increased customer satisfaction and a higher lifetime value. The introduction of OneApp is a real game changer.
Joel Oliver, CEO, MyFirmsApp . Exhibiting at Accountex North Pod 8.
How to avoid death by data protection!
They are the letters that concern anyone whose work, rest or play involves computers and information. Let's face it, that's most of us these days, especially in the field of accountancy (and I'm not talking about MTD!) They are G.D.P.R. And they are the general data protection regulations that come in play on 25 May 2018.
This area's anything but as dry and boring as it sounds. Controversy and confusion abound. So here's part one of Accounting Insight News's no-nonsense, hype-free guide through the GDPR maze: (But first a word of warning.... it's a guide, not legal gospel!)
The amount of digital info has increased rapidly and massively over the past 20 years. Existing rules governing how businesses and public organisations handle, process and generally look after this information were not up to the task in our new, more tech-drenched landscape.
Europe's new framework for data protection
So something had to give, rather like the guy who used to walk in front of the motorised vehicle waving a red flag to warn fellow road users. In a nutshell, the 1995 data protection directive (man with red flag) is being replaced by GDPR, Europe's new framework for data protection. We're entering the age of data brakes and traffic lights!
Oh, and, before we go down the Brexit road, the UK is introducing the data protection bill, which basically takes on board GDPR regardless of EU matters.
The regulations will be enforced in the UK by the Information Commissioner's Office, which is based in Cheshire and headed by Elizabeth Denham, who was appointed for a five-year term in 2016. Her job is to "increase the UK public's trust and confidence in what happens to their personal data".
Included in the GDPR legal package are:
- Fines for non-compliance with the regulations.
- Improved measures for data handling.
- Better rights for people wanting to get hold of the info that groups hold about them.
- Clear responsibility for organisations to obtain the consent of the people whose info they are using.
The nitty-gritty of GDPR
The ICO says that if you're presently subject to data protection laws then you'll also be subject to GDPR.
How you're affected by the law depends on whether you're a processor or controller of information. A "controller" decides how data is used, such as, say, for a marketing campaign or a sales pitch. The term "processor " covers everything else. That is you obtain, adapt and hold data on file or in the cloud but you don't call the shots.
Next up is personal and sensitive data. Personal means any info that can be used to ID a person, such as name or IP address. Sensitive means data that reveal things like sexual orientation, political views, medical history and the like.
As you would expect, most big data-driven companies are up to speed with GDPR. They've probably already complied with the requirement to employ a data protection officer, for instance.
But there are lots of smaller companies out there - accountants among them - that control and process a lot of personal and sensitive data. And they need to be smart. Simply, they need to make sure they know what data they have... on clients, for instance. They need to make sure they've got permission to use it in the way that they are. And they need to make sure its secure.
More GDPR legal stuff to be aware of...
Data breaches - destruction, loss, unauthorised disclosure - have to be reported to the ICO within three days of a hack. The breach has to be likely to affect people's rights or freedoms. So the conditions for reporting involve areas such as financial loss and confidentiality
Groups with 250-plus workers must set out why people's personal and sensitive info is being collected and processed.
And, in certain situations, firms must get consent to use a person's details. This process has to be explained clearly and there has to be a "positive opt-in" from the person being asked to do something.
GDPR gives people more power to get hold of information about themselves. And they won't have to pay for the privilege, as they do now. The business will also have to provide the details within a month. In most cases, people will have the right to an explanation of a decision that is made about them based on use of their data. They will also be able demand the deletion of personal info that is no longer required for the purpose it was collected.
Now for the really controversial bits of GDPR
In a word. Fines. If you don't process someone's data as per GDPR (and you get shopped or found out), then you could be fined. Heftily. The same goes for a data security breach going unreported.
The ICO has the power to dish out financial penalties of up to €10m or 2% of a firm's global turnover (whichever's bigger) for smaller offences. That figure goes up to €20m or 4% for more serious matters. That figure used to be £500,000.
Some words of wisdom and reassurance from the ICO
GDPR has resulted in a lot of scaremongering and the profiteers of doom have been out in good number. Denham has responded to some of the critics thus:
On fines: "This law is not about fines. It’s about putting the consumer and citizen first. We can’t lose sight of that. Focusing on big fines makes for great headlines, but thinking that GDPR is about crippling financial punishment misses the point. The ICO’s commitment to guiding, advising and educating organisations about how to comply with the law will not change under the GDPR. We have always preferred the carrot to the stick."
On consent: "For processing to be lawful under the GDPR, you need to identify a lawful basis before you start. Local authorities processing council tax information, banks sharing data for fraud protection purposes, insurance companies processing claims information. Each one of these examples uses a different lawful basis for processing personal information that isn’t consent. The new law provides five other ways of processing data that may be more appropriate than consent."
On GDPR in general: "GDPR is an evolutionary process for organisations – 25 May is the date the legislation takes effect but no business stands still. You will be expected to continue to identify and address emerging privacy and security risks in the weeks, months and years beyond May 2018. That said, there will be no ‘grace’ period – there has been two years to prepare and we will be regulating from this date."
Another thing is certain. We will be returning to this topic.
MyFirmsApp appoints Mike Page as Head of Product Management
MyFirmsApp, the number one custom App platform in the world for accountants in practice, has today announced that it has appointed the highly experienced, Mike Page as Head of Product Management and Customer Experience strategy. This newly created role is part of a strategic plan to constantly develop and improve the product and its' value to customers and the growing end user community. As App stacks and App Add on Communities grow, the role of MyFirmsApp as the leading App integrator for accountants will become increasing critical. The role itself extends to overseeing the development of the App platform and achieving the goal of putting an App in every accounting firm in the world
Mike Page is a qualified accountant (FCCA) and brings a wealth of knowledge and understanding of the accountancy software market to MyFirmsApp as it continues its’ successful transformation into a world leading, digital-first App brand. He had a proven ability in the definition, management and implementation of a diverse range of strategic projects in demanding environments and has held a number of positions with leading accountancy software companies including Advanced, Iris and Sage, where he was Head of Commercial, Small Business and before that, Product Manager for the Accountants Division
Joel Oliver, CEO, MyFirmsApp said: “We are all delighted that Mike has joined us at such an important stage of the company’s growth and development plans. He has exactly the right attributes to help us achieve even greater success and his unique blend of business and technical knowledge will prove invaluable both in terms of product management and also in the support of the customer experience to ensure we deliver a first class service and retain clients for life.”
The company announced earlier this month that it has invested heavily in the development of a new platform that delivers the next generation of future proofed custom Apps for professional firms. The OneApp platform delivers a unique combination of content, tools, features and integration, with hundreds of variables, plus the option to upgrade to specific modules to customise the user experience.
“The introduction of OneApp gives accountants and their clients access to the worlds most advanced App platform with even more features, tools, tax data and content,” comments Mike Page.
“We have worked closely with Apple to bring to market a solution that works with its’ strict new rules and regulations and provides accountants and bookkeepers with more flexibility and more choice in which App they choose to employ. The opportunities are huge and the level of engagement made possible through an App can only result in more contact with customers, increased customer satisfaction and a higher lifetime value.”
###
See the new OneApp platform in action on stand 8 at Accountex North; a new event that will take place at Manchester Central on 6 March 2018.
MyFirmsApp gives accountancy firms an affordable branded presence in the mobile world on the devices of their clients and staff. The App platform provides a suite of compliant and approved tax tools, calculators, mileage and income trackers, receipt management, finance news, calendars and push notifications that make direct communication easier. Integration with popular Accounting software ensures accountants are giving their clients the tools they need to succeed in an increasingly digital landscape.
MyFirmsApp operates the largest global custom App platform in the world for Accountants in practice providing the only compliant UK solution that’s used by over 250,000 businesses: www.myfirmsapp.co.uk
Tactics for hiring and educating accountants of the future
In the first part of this article, business development expert Rob Brown and Australian accountancy thought leader Trent McLaren. discussed how accountants need to focus on winning new business. Now, in the second part of the interview, they turn their attention to hiring and training.
Rob, who will be a keynote speaker at Accountex 2018, asked Trent: "Do you think there should be any change in the hiring policy for accounting firms, if they want to grow? Because we know that there are technically good accountants all over the place. But accountants who have that stuff, plus the ability to win work, they're gold, aren't they?"
Trent, who's the head of accounting at Practice Ignition, says: "Well, they are gold. I think there's a real shift. I know, we're talking about it a lot in Australia, but we find a lot of graduates coming out of university aren't equipped to use all the technology that we're talking about."
What should we be teaching?
Trent sees this as a potential problem. "None of the universities and education systems have quite caught on," he says. "Who knows what they should be teaching? Because there's nearly, what, 1,000 different accounting applications in the market. How does an education system know which ones it should be teaching?"
"So there's a whole big shift that needs to happen, just from educating grads coming in." He reckons accountants with coding skills and any type of IT wizardry will be hot preoperty. "Those people are fantastic," he says.
"Some of the best progressive firms I've seen have got a dedicated developer that works in-house, in the accounting firm. They will actually build the integrations from their cloud accounting software, into the applications they use during the day. It could be a point of sale, might be the website or whatever. tThey're helping their clients accurately get that data into their accounting system seamlessly, without having to import and export."
The non-financial matrix
"So, not only the tracking all of the financials accurately, more efficiently, automatically, they're also then starting to help them track any other type of number, the non-financial matrix that they should be tracking, to help them with their conversions of sales, and all those types of wonderful things."
Rob says: "I thought you were going to say, 'Plus the technical skills, they need the people skills', but you've gone the other way and said, 'We need technically good accountants that are also pretty good geeks'."
Trent adds: "Yeah. I would lean to it, because it's pretty easy to find to people that are ... I think it's relatively easy to find people who can speak well with clients. So if I wanted to set up a client facing team, or account managing team, or whatever, they're my communicators, but the people that are going to be extremely important to me are the ones that can seamlessly optimise all the work that's going on in those client falls with the technology, and that's the biggest gap.
"If you go to all the firms and say, 'Okay, who's responsible for all the tech going on in here?', you're pointing to Bob, who's been around for 20 years, who still loves his server in the back of the office, running on desktop practice management, Sage, or Iris, or whatever it may be. You don't wait till Bob retires, before you're actually how you progress anything technology-wise in your firm...
"So, get an IT-based developer that has a background in accounting, or whatever it may be, into your firm, and ask them to do the same task, whatever it is, and they will find an extremely creative way of getting that data into your ledger."
Watch out for Part 3 of this fascinating conversation between Rob and Trent. Coming soon!.
If you would like to listen to the full conversation click here. Or watch a video of the exchange here.
Trent McLaren: Shall the geek inherit the earth?
What does the accountant of the future look like? Work winner? Tech specialist? Accounting genius? Selling machine?
This question and other ideas were the focus of a recent exchange between UK business development expert and Accountex 2018 speaker Rob Brown and Australian accountancy thought leader Trent McLaren.
The good news is that Rob has shared the interview with me. And the even better news is that I'm going to share some of the highlights of their conversation with you...
Thoughts on business development
One of the first questions Rob had for Trent, who is head of accounting at Practice Ignition, was about his thoughts on business development.
Trent says: "Business development, for me, is, what are you generating? What are you generating for sales?
"Marketing, for me, is, what is your brand, and what are you communicating to the market about who you are? It's your messaging and your communications.
"Business development incorporates more of your strategy to generate sales, in which, obviously, marketing plays a key role, because it's the communication part of that, and then, sales is just a process."
Bringing in new clients
Back to Rob... "What would you say to accountants who say, 'Well, business development, growing stuff, bringing on new clients is great, but I don't have the time for that. I'm too busy servicing my existing client base.'?"
"I think if you're servicing your existing client base, then look for other revenue opportunities with your existing client base. You're always going to be busy, and that's never going to change, whether that's to your own detriment, or whatever it may be," Trent replies.
One of the difficulties, of course, is the transfer of skills needed to take on the brake new world for accountants. As Trent observes: "You're dealing with accountants that generally are the more introverted, that like working with numbers.
Experts at communicating
"They're not experts at communicating with clients as effectively or as efficiently as more of an extroverted salesperson type of person.
"So therein there kind of lies a challenge, because you think, 'OK, I want to talk to them about their compliance. I want to talk to them about what we've done, and the opportunities we've got there, but now, I need to see, what else can we do to help offer them other services?'
Ands how does this happen? "I think there has be a coaching phase. There has to be a new skill reset come into play, at this point, and people, accountants, will need to learn how to do other things, outside of what they've always been doing, and that's the reality," says Trent.
Watch out for Part 2 of this fascinating conversation between Rob and Trent. Coming soon!.
If you would like to listen to the full conversation click here. Or watch a video of the exchange here.