It takes a lot to keep clients happy as an accountant and to cultivate relationships where they trust you. These people trust you with their finances and often their entire livelihoods as well as their futures. This is why it’s important to have clear client relationship management (CRM) policies for all clients both new and veteran. Client management for CPA firms is a good start for creating and enforcing policies that work while also making the necessary information freely available to everyone at your firm.

Review Standing Relationships

There may be clients that have been with your firm from day one and they seem like just as much a part of your firm as the accountants and other employees that keep it running every day. The CRM polices that you create as your firm grows may not apply to them and because of that, those relationships should be reviewed frequently and the satisfaction of the clients assessed. Without adhering to a specific policy it’s not as easy to see if these clients are feeling good about the services they receive. The best way to find out is simply to ask.

Learn What Your Firm Wants

Before you begin creating new policies, you should learn about what the people that work for you want from the firm and how they believe client relationships should work. Client management for CPA firms will only be effective if the CRM policies created are followed and the accountants at your firm will feel more comfortable following rules they had a hand in setting.

Be Confident in Your Confidentiality

This is an area where no policy can be lax. Whether the client is brand new or they’ve been around from the day you opened your doors, their confidentiality is a major component of client management for CPA firms. This doesn’t just mean keeping their numbers and information safe but it also means getting their permission if you believe other accountants may be handling them in the future. If your firm rotates responsibilities, this is absolutely necessary for your own legal protection and the clients’.

CRM Training for New Hires

Shadowing senior staff is a good way for new hires to learn about how things work at your firm but specific CRM training is also important. If you use established client relationship management for CPA firms and enforce the policies you’ve created, new hires will comply from day one. Track the progress and training of new accountants to see if they’re using the CRM policies you and senior staff trainers have taught them. You can use generated reports from management software to see how each person is doing once they’re on their own.

When Disciplinary Action is Necessary

No one likes to think this moment will come but sometimes people just want to do things their own way instead of using the policies your firm puts forth. Unfortunately, this happens most often with senior staff because they get used to doing things a certain way and have more trouble adjusting to change. This is not a step to be avoided regardless of how long the person who doesn’t follow policy has been with the firm. It’s a good idea to pull them aside and have the disciplinary discussion in private but it’s still a discussion that must happen. If one person believes they can get around policy, then everyone may begin to believe they can do it too.

Your Growing Business and Technology

Available technology can be extremely beneficial to your growing business and the way you utilize client management for CPA firms. The right software can make the information the accountants at your firm need available through mobile platforms, which gives them more autonomy when dealing with clients. Accounting emergencies can be handled with ease and managers can work from home effectively. Using the latest technology also gives your firm a leg up when it comes to future CRM developments and the way clients will interact with your firm as time goes on. Utilize all of the tools at hand and your CRM policies will be updated when you need them to be in an instant for the best client relationships between your firm and clients both new and loyal.

It’s not always easy to keep track of everything within a small business and firm management for Quickbooks can make that easier for you and everyone at your firm. When you streamline expenses within projects and other office spending, you make more funds available to service clients, bring in new clients, and make the work environment better for accountants and other employees. Learn to track and plan how you’re spending and where you can afford to rearrange things to make room for what’s to come so that you’re firm can grow.

Track and Review

You may have been tracking expenses in the past but in an overhaul like this where you’re trying to streamline, you’ll have to kick it into high gear. Use the tools within firm management for Quickbooks to track every miniscule expenditure and use reminders and task lists to be sure that the accountants in your firm turn in reports about what they may be spending autonomously, if that’s allowed among your staff.

After you’ve tracked expenses, then it’s time to take a look at where you can afford to streamline. Things you may order on autopilot on a regular basis could possibly be eliminated with new programs. For instance, if you’re spending a lot on insulated paper coffee cups and disposable single serve coffee pods, then you can go green. Enforce a policy that accountants must bring in their own reusable mugs and switch to a drip coffee pot and fair trade coffee. Many things like this are simple changes that actually make the office environment more enjoyable for everyone.

Send Accountants Home

It is every office worker’s dream to be able to stay in until after lunch, lounge in their pajamas, and work from the couch instead of getting dressed and coming to the office. Make their dreams come true by teaching employees how firm management for accountants can effectively allow remote access for projects and office communications. Use group chat functions, set task lists, and put face-to-face meetings on the calendars to encourage progress while still allowing accountants to work outside the office. You’ll be streamlining expenses with this practice by letting accountants bill hours directly instead of paying them for being in the office for a certain time each day. They’ll be responsible for their own earnings.

Let Teams Operate Autonomously

With the remote access tools and digitized files available, it is possible for teams to work autonomously and managers to monitor their progress. Teams will be able to work better and use materials at home or software that links to the office system instead of taking paper files back and forth. Give them the tools to operate in this way and they’ll feel good about the work they do and the respect they’re getting.

Enforce Accountability

One way that expenses can get out of control is when employees are not properly held accountable for the mistakes they make. A number in the wrong column or a misplaced decimal point can be the difference between over ordering and having only what you need for the next order. Use reports generated by management software to see who is spending what and where mistakes are being made. Even if it’s only a small thing, be sure to talk to the person responsible and hold them accountable for what they’ve done. This might mean docking pay or other disciplinary action that seems harsh but can save you and everyone else a lot of money.

Ask for New Ideas

The first time you go through your firm management for Quickbooks and find areas to streamline can be overwhelming and the changes may be considered sudden. Discuss with your accountants and other employees why you made the changes you did and how everyone will benefit as time goes on. After that explanation, encourage them to come up with ideas of their own for streamlining expenses and saving everyone money. Make it a competition or simply reinforce in positive ways to create a culture where everyone in the office is always trying to improve the way things are done.

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