Home / 2022 / September

Should Accounting Firms Use Nifty for Project Management?

By jetpack workflow | Updated on Dec 28, 2023 | 7 minutes
nifty accounting

Nifty aims to be an all-in-one solution. It includes chat features, project management, goals, document storage, and tasks in a single application. The focus is milestone driven, which works well for large projects and multi-disciplinary teams.

So is Nifty a good fit for your accounting practice?

There is a push for accountants to embrace more technology and tools that streamline processes. Most accountants have ditched paper files and moved to paperless and cloud-based solutions. Paperless is great—but it requires you to have a system for tracking your projects.

Technology has made it easier than ever to interact with clients via multiple channels. The greater accessibility and ease of reaching their accountants means clients are asking for additional services and a more comprehensive range of solutions from their accountants.

Finding the right project management for your firm may mean testing several programs to ensure you’ve found the best fit. The applications need to be easy to use, easy to learn, and integrate seamlessly into your existing (or future) workflows.

Nifty is a contender among accounting project manager apps. This article will look at the software’s benefits and drawbacks to see how it works for accounting firms.

It will also rank some alternative options and look at them alongside Nifty so you can see where the program excels and where it falls short.

Options for Project Management for Accounting Firms

As your firm grows, you’ll find yourself spending more and more time juggling tasks, making it easy to lose track of projects. This is true in any growing business, and it’s especially true for accounting firms that handle accounting for multiple clients with various deadlines.

When you’re working alone, you have a good idea of what projects are due. However, as your team grows, it can be harder to monitor what everyone is working on.

There are several options for handling project management. You can keep to-do lists on paper (or spreadsheets) or implement project management software. 

While paper and spreadsheets may work for small teams, a workflow management system can automate many repetitive accounting tasks.  

Let’s look at how each of the options stacks up.

Spreadsheets and Manual Checklists

Spreadsheets and to-do lists work great for a single person with a reasonable number of tasks. But as your business grows, lists can become unwieldy. 

As soon as you add team members and more clients, to-do lists become less effective for managing your projects.

The best tools augment solid processes that already exist. If you’re still in the early stages, ensure you’re certain about the timeline of events in every client engagement. One day, you can build that into the workflow tool you choose.

For accountants that have moved to automated solutions, 30% of businesses found they saved money, and 44% found they saved time.

Workflow Software for Accounting Firms

Once you’ve reached the point where spreadsheets are no longer an adequate solution, you need to implement workflow management software for your team. You’ll want to ensure you’re picking the right software so you’re not wasting time learning and integrating a series of less-than-ideal solutions.

The most important aspect of a project workflow management solution for accountants is having a set of predefined templates that allow you to hit the ground running. Software that comes with predefined templates for accountants was built with them in mind and is more likely to meet your needs and seamlessly integrate into your existing workflows.

Some of the top accounting firm workflow software options include Jetpack Workflow, Aero Workflow, Canopy, and Karbon. 

Users of Aero Workflow have generally considered it to have an outdated (and not user-friendly) interface. Canopy and Karbon have steep learning curves and steep prices. 

Jetpack Workflow is a straightforward, modern solution that more than 6,000 real accountants use to manage the flow of projects and tasks in their growing firms.

General Project Management Software

Nifty is a general project management tool meant to work for companies in various industries. It attempts to solve multiple problems for companies, including communication and workflow management. Unfortunately, by trying to accomplish everything, it falls a bit short on workflow management, and the solution is not specific to accounting firms.

What is the defining difference between Nifty and other project management solutions? Nifty does not have any specific templates for accounting professionals. You would need to spend the time to create each of your workflows from scratch, which creates another barrier to your team’s integration of a new project management tool.

How Nifty Works

Nifty works similarly to other project management systems. The initial registration is free, and there is no ongoing expense for the basic account. 

If you need additional features such as time tracking and reporting, you’ll need to upgrade to one of the higher tiers. To receive the highest level of support (which includes phone support), you’ll need to upgrade to the highest tier. At the time that this article was published, it cost $16 per user per month. 

Next, you’re going to:

  • Create a new project. The free tier only allows you to have two projects. You should carefully consider how you want to structure your practice.
  • Within each project, you can chat, create task lists, and track time (if you have an upgraded plan).
  • Team members can mark items as complete or add notes to existing projects. 

For customer support, they provide live chat and phone support. The highest tier plan includes a dedicated resource for technical support.

Best Nifty Alternatives for Accounting Firms

As a general project management program, Nifty accomplishes its goals. However, you may want to consider a tool built with accounting tasks in mind. Accounting work is unique in its strict deadlines and the number of recurring tasks. 

Below is a list of the best tools for accounting practices.

Best Overall Accounting Workflow Tool

Jetpack Workflow was built from the ground up with accountants and bookkeepers in mind. Every aspect of the program is tailored to the nature of accounting tasks.

Jetpack Workflow Dashboard

You’ll start with more than 70 predefined templates, which means you can have your firm up and running shortly after signing up. If the templates aren’t quite aligned with your team’s workflow, you can easily customize them to meet your needs. You’ll be able to track your team’s progress and monitor their workflows within the system.

Jetpack Workflow offers a free 14-day trial to let you see how well the system works for your team. It also has flexible pricing options starting at $36 per user per month. You can use the time tracking system for invoicing your clients, saving you time and getting you paid faster.

Best Enterprise Audit and Tax Solution

Some accounting practices, such as tax and audit practices, are responsible for meeting hard deadlines, with work requiring constant communication with clients. These firms need to monitor and track communications with several team members in a centralized location.

Karbon is often recommended for complex projects and large teams due to its enterprise-level solutions. However, for smaller teams, the learning curve is very steep, and the interface is not intuitive. Add in the hefty price tag, and you’ll find this is not an ideal solution for small firms. It can be a powerful tool for large teams working in multi-discipline companies with the time to devote to learning new software.

For tax consultants working on a schedule heavily driven by deadlines, ensuring you have a platform to manage the back and forth between you and your clients in advance of due dates is key.

Best Accounting Client CRM Platform

If your firm markets heavily and proactively reaches out to clients, you may want to consider a strong customer relationship management (CRM) platform. While CRM software is great for tracking these types of interactions, the systems often have weak workflow management modules.

If your focus is CRM, Canopy might work for you. The platform tries to solve a variety of needs and is known for handling a little bit of everything. Just keep in mind that the workflow management module is not its primary focus, and you’ll need to figure out ways to make it work for your accounting practice.

32 Free Workflow Templates

Subscribe to the Growing Your Firm weekly newsletter, and get the best accounting workflow templates today!

Looking for more? Here are some
related articles you may like.

See Jetpack Worflow In Action

Get under the hood of Jetpack Workflow’s accounting workflow and project management platform. See some of the top features and how it helps your firm standardize, automate, and track client work more efficiently.
Watch Product Tour Start Your Free Trial

5 Non-Obvious Tax Saving Strategies for Your Accounting Clients

By jetpack workflow | Updated on Dec 28, 2023 | 8 minutes

 

 

Summary

 

  • Lightweight Marketing Consulting Opportunity
  • Charitable Giving
  • Bird in the Hand, Two in a Bush
  • Selling Appreciated Assets
  • The Augusta Rule

 

Resources

 

 

In this “Growing Your Firm” podcast, CEO and founder of Jetpack Workflow, David Cristello, discusses five tax-saving strategies for accounting clients. He interviews Mark Myers, the founder of Peak Profit Solutions. During this interview, Mark gives insight into several different ways to save on taxes in your life.

 

Meet Mark Myers 

 

Mark Myers is the founder of Peak Profit Solutions, and he’s a Tax Savings Architect. As stated on his website, “Peak Profit Solutions and its affiliate partners have helped thousands of individuals increase profit and permanently reduce their annual tax bill to help them better grow their business and accelerate their wealth.” Mark has worked with many clients on how to lower tax burdens. Mark gave us five strategies to start with: 

 

1. Lightweight Marketing Consulting Opportunity 

 

The first strategy Mark brings up is the Lightweight Marketing Consulting Opportunity Strategy. In an imagined scenario, an individual structures an entity that supports their main entity. They can structure their entity in a way where the only individuals who would benefit are:

 

  • The owner
  • Owner’s family
  • Whoever else the owner wants to attach

 

You can also find a way to allow working employees to take income–but it’s not categorized as income. 

 

Instead, it’s shown as a benefit. Taking money out of the corporation as a benefit means that it’s not taxable to the person receiving it. Some of these benefits can be created with no expense, so there’s none to the company. Yet, the dollars can’t be distributed to the employee as a nontaxable benefit. In short, you are creating deductions that have no cost. You’re then able to get that money to the employees of the entity at a no-tax ramification.

 

In this strategy, there are two levels of tax efficiency: 

 

  1. Above the Line
    1. If you are a business owner, you are looking at how you can acquire tax savings before they move on to your 1040. You are trying to find a different entity to support your entity. 
    2. Outsourcing is involved.
  2. Below the Line
    1. Through “BTL,” you try to target different groups of consumers by creating specific and characterized advertisements. The goal is that these advertisements will linger on the viewers. 
    2. More conversation-based.   

 

2. Charitable Giving

 

This applies to anyone that has a high tax build. 

 

Whether an individual is concerned about their W2, 1099, has a small or medium-sized business, or any other related example, their tax build can become an income source. This income source can come from passivity or real estate that they own. 

 

With charitable giving, you give something away to a charity and then take a tax deduction for it. This tax deduction and charitable process can become profitable for you. 

 

What if you were to buy an asset you knew you could give away? You could purchase this asset that a charity would like to have at a significant discount to its fair market value. You could then give this to a charity as a gift. It’s a win-win situation for you and the charity.

 

Another way to put it: what if you buy something for a dollar and give it to a charity at a four-dollar deduction? What if you can purchase this asset and give it to the charity during the same year? 

 

In this scenario, you won’t have to hold onto this asset for a longer period and hope that it goes up in value. A high-income earning taxpayer can purchase something for a dollar and either:

 

  • Keep it because it’s more valuable now than when they bought it.
  • Give it to a charity for a four-dollar deduction.

 

Imagine: you’re buying laptops for a nonprofit that does after-school activities. You buy ten laptops at a discount and donate them to the nonprofit as a gift. Then, you have write-offs assuming it is not exceeding the 30% income of the year. Or, you buy a building and give it to a local nonprofit. Through that, you get a tax credit. 

 

Get everything you need to manage projects and meet deadlines.

Subscribe to our weekly newsletter, and get 32 free accounting workflow templates today!​​

sign me up!

 

3. Bird in the Hand, Two in a Bush

 

“Bird in the Hand” refers to the two dollars that come out of that previously mentioned four-dollar deduction. 

 

For example, you set up an LLC that specifies services that acquire solar assets. You structure your LLC where, with every dollar you spend to obtain solar assets, you’re going to end up saving at least a dollar in tax in the same year–meaning that the IRS or the federal government just purchased the solar assets for you. Mark says he’d take that same dollar and fund his theoretical solar company. The same dollar gives him a dollar that doesn’t have to be sent to the IRS.

 

Mark also refers to this process as “Two in a Bush” because you got your return of capital back on your tax savings. 

 

That dollar would’ve gone to the IRS–now it funds your solar company and you own a solar asset. Usually every dollar you own an asset for will give you at least two sometimes three dollars back in cash flow in the next 25-30 years. Through this process, the IRS purchased this tax-flow-producing asset for you and, in turn, you’re going to get two or three dollars back overtime in the form of cash flow for the solar project. 

 

4. Selling Appreciated Assets

 

This is targeted at anyone that has a highly appreciated asset and is looking to sell it and get long-term capital gains.

 

If you’re selling a highly appreciated asset–as long as you can structure your sale appropriately prior to a contract being inked–you can legally either:

 

  • Defer the tax in perpetuity
  • Eliminate the tax
    • Depends on the structure you choose/the method you go about selling your asset.

 

Some trust is structured in somewhat of an installment note. Yet, you can control it. Now, the asset that has been sold inside that trust–there’s no taxable event unless you move money outside of the trust, meaning, you can save a ton of transaction tax over a 10-20 year period. 

 

You’re not having taxes on those transactions, or you just have a little bit of tax on the installments that you’re taking out.

 

On the flip side, there’s an elimination opportunity where you can take the bigger sale and take the dollars generated from the asset sale. Then, you would shift this sale into a private placement life insurance policy. 

 

5. The Augusta Rule

 

This is for anyone who has their own business that is structured as an S Corp, LLC, or C Corp. 

 

In Augusta, GA, an individual gets a green jacket every year because of the Masters Tournament. People rented their homes to individuals who wanted to watch the Masters Tournament live. These Augusta residents found out that, if they had a primary or secondary residence that isn’t an income-producing property, then they have the right to rent that residence to a third party up to a certain amount of days per year. As long as they followed all of the legal rules, then the money they received for rentals is not taxable. This phenomenon is called the Augusta Rule.

 

You might not want a stranger inside of your home for the sake of tax-free income. Mark suggests that your business is a person, so why not have meetings at your home for the purpose of things you need for your business? You can easily implement these things for people who need them. You can essentially take the Augusta Rule and rent your primary residence for business purposes. The income you receive is then not taxable. 

 

As a Tax Savings Architect, Mark thinks his five non-obvious tax saving strategies can help anyone who is interested in making their life a little bit more tax-free. 

 

To learn more about Mark’s strategies, listen to the full podcast above. Make sure to share with a fellow firm owner who needed to hear Mark’s advice.

 

32 Free Workflow Templates

Subscribe to the Growing Your Firm weekly newsletter, and get the best accounting workflow templates today!

Looking for more? Here are some
related articles you may like.

See Jetpack Worflow In Action

Get under the hood of Jetpack Workflow’s accounting workflow and project management platform. See some of the top features and how it helps your firm standardize, automate, and track client work more efficiently.
Watch Product Tour Start Your Free Trial

How to Escape the CPA Firm Rat Race

By jetpack workflow | Updated on Dec 28, 2023 | 7 minutes

 

 

 

Summary

 

  • Meet Michael Frost
  • How did Heritage Begin?
  • Trained Trust
  • Complimentary Partnership
  • The Mess-up and the Journey

 

Resources

 

 

In this Growing Your Firm Podcast, founder and CEO of Jetpack Workflow, David Cristello, brings in special guest Michael Frost to speak about the ups and downs of the CPA firm owner rat race. 

 

Although Michael found success in his firm, there was also struggle. Nonetheless, Michael is here to share his story.

 

Meet Michael Frost

 

Michael Frost is the co-founder and president of Heritage Family Offices. His partner, Ralph Nelson, is a CPA and also licensed as an attorney. Heritage Family Offices is a multi-disciplinary firm comprising a law firm, CPA firm, wealth management firm, and insurance company. 

 

The firm began 11 years ago. It’s a 100 percent vertical firm, so there’s no outsourcing. Among all disciplines, Heritage Family Offices has a little over 45 employees. They service fluent, ultra fluent, and high incomers. In 2018, they produced a package that sold a big portion of their tax practice. Michael and Ralph focus on clients who see greater value in family office services. 

 

How Did Heritage Begin?

 

Prior to co-founding Heritage, Michael was an advisor. He grew up in the wealth management industry and had the typical referral relationship that most other financial advisors have with their CPAs. He would send referrals over to Ralph Nelson, a CPA. Instantly, Ralph’s clients and prospects trusted him. In turn, Ralph would send client referrals to Michael.. These referrals would be a company with occasionally two other businesses. This made up Michael’s and Ralph’s usual CPA-advisor relationship.

 

In 2011, an insurance salesman solicited Ralph via a cold call. The salesman told Ralph that he would like to come to his office and pitch something. Ralph allowed the insurance salesman to come by. 

 

At the time, Ralph was working at a small boutique tax practice. When the salesman came to his office, he arrived in a Ferrari that took the first two whole parking spots. This salesman and his Ferrari stunned Ralph. As Michael describes it, Ralph thought to himself, “This guy has a Ferrari. I have all of these credentials behind my name–what am I doing wrong?”

 

As Michael investigated, he noticed that the insurance salesman’s life insurance policy had a six-figure commission. Although they didn’t do any business with the salesman, Michael credits the man for sparking the relationship between him and Ralph. 

 

Wealth management and insurance were commoditized services, making them more scalable and profitable. Michael and Ralph spent six months doing business planning. They asked themselves, “How can we put these four disciplines together and bring them to the market?” 

 

Michael and Ralph left their independent practices and put their four licenses together. They began to deliver a family office service. They both realized that, in the marketplace, the family office industry needed more attention. Instead of looking at their competition to see how Michael and Ralph could do a better job than other existing firms, they chose something missing from the marketplace.

 

Because of this method, their first years together were successful. Michael and Ralph provided their practice to an underserved industry. This realization and exploration kickstarted their relationship together and their firm. 

 

Get everything you need to manage projects and meet deadlines.

Subscribe to our weekly newsletter, and get 32 free accounting workflow templates today!​​

sign me up!

 

 

Michael and Ralph quickly recognized that clients train themselves to trust their CPAs. Clients want to trust their CPAs and advisors. In short, clients want a deeper relationship. Your clients depend on your advice when making decisions. Since they trust you, they believe you’ll aid them with making the best decisions.

 

In their experience, Michael and Ralph began to add more services to their relationships with their clients. As their practice evolved, Michael and Ralph increased their prices. Once, Ralph had a client paying him $5,000. As Ralph offered more services, his relationship with his client became more involved. That $5,000 then became a recurring $50,000. 

 

Ralph could successfully raise the prices on this client because their relationship was already strong. The existing client had already trusted Ralph, so they didn’t mind the price change.

 

Complimentary Partnership

 

Michael said Ralph would prepare the tax return on the computer and print out his work. He’d then look it over in paper form. In this sense, Ralph was both the tax preparer and reviewer. Ralph was the only person controlling tax services.

 

What Michael and Ralph had in common in their relationship–which made them successful–was that they didn’t point fingers. They kept everything 50/50. Michael brought his elements to the table while Ralph brought in his practice. They maintained an equal balance between their different services and practice. Both of them had a complimentary partnership. 

 

Without Ralph, there was no firm. Clients trusted his practice, and Ralph put his effort into the firm. Ralph wouldn’t have been able to start a firm without Michael. Heritage Family Offices wouldn’t be what it is today if Michael and Ralph didn’t work together.

 

The Mess-Up and the Journey

 

Michael and Ralph were scaling up to almost seven figures. Ralph had a $700,000 practice at that time with a $4,000,000 revenue. If all the new business was from the CPA firm, then why not go bigger? Micahel and Ralph decided to start purchasing CPA firms. They made their first purchase at $800,000. 

 

Michael and Ralph figured that if they could buy the CPA firm, they could also purchase the client list. The two used up all their cash and took on debt as they purchased two firms back-to-back. They went through tax season and bought another firm. On paper, the revenue would justify the acquisition, and it made economic sense.

 

Yet, Michael and Ralph learned quickly that they were a ten-person firm acquiring a firm with 30 people. These 30 people have been in business for 35 years working with the same practice that Michael and Ralph were familiar with. According to Michael, from a culture and people standpoint, it was the biggest professional mistake Michael and Ralph ever made. However, Michael wouldn’t have changed a thing. 

 

Michael and Ralph ended up a hostage for their own CPA firm. They had 3,000 clients. They were trying to keep their heads above water to service those clients. They lost two other clients whenever they tried to get a family-service client. They could not properly run a multi-family office anymore. 

 

Michael and Ralph both had young families. Trying to take care of a family was challenging, and this new dilemma in their work lives made it even rougher. The two also would regularly go to conventions and answer questions from other CPAs. When they realized that their practice wasn’t going well, their answers to these CPAs gradually became less positive. So, in 2018, they packaged everything they had acquired and sold it all. 

 

Although Michael and Ralph had this mess-up, they have no regrets. Michael stated that these mistakes led them to how successful they are to this day. Having these bumps in the road not only made them stronger but also showcased the hard work they accomplished with their firm. The journey toward success is a tricky one, but Michael and Ralph ultimately found their grooves and thrived. 

 

To hear more of Michael’s story, listen to the full Growing Your Firm Podcast above. If you enjoyed this information, leave a five-star review and share this with a fellow firm owner who needs to hear Michael’s story!

 

32 Free Workflow Templates

Subscribe to the Growing Your Firm weekly newsletter, and get the best accounting workflow templates today!

Looking for more? Here are some
related articles you may like.

See Jetpack Worflow In Action

Get under the hood of Jetpack Workflow’s accounting workflow and project management platform. See some of the top features and how it helps your firm standardize, automate, and track client work more efficiently.
Watch Product Tour Start Your Free Trial

7 Best Practice CS Alternatives to Manage Your Workflows

By jetpack workflow | Updated on Dec 28, 2023 | 7 minutes
practice cs alternatives

Practice CS was a cutting-edge practice management software when it was developed. Over the years, however, the program has not kept up with the rapid pace of technological advances. 

If your firm uses Thomson Reuters Ultra Tax, you may also be tempted to use their practice management software. Practice CS bills itself as an all-in-one practice management software that handles billing, time tracking, and invoicing. 

We’ll look at some of the drawbacks of Practice CS and some of the best alternative programs on the market today. If you’re looking for more robust workflow management tools or to replace Practice CS, read on.

Shortcomings of Practice CS

Though Practice CS works well for some firms, it’s not ideal for many practices. There are several drawbacks to the program, which make its competitors worth a look.

Design. Practice CS attempts to do many things at once, which makes its design dated and clunky. It lacks the sleek interface of newer programs.

Speed. Many users cite the slow response times as an ongoing problem. Accounting professionals know their time is valuable and don’t need a productivity tool slowing them down.

Ease of Use. Practice CS lacks intuitive interfaces, making onboarding new employees time-consuming. Even those who have been using the program for a while need reminders of how to navigate less frequent tasks, and rate the program on ease of use at 3.7 out of 5.

Pricing. Their website does not have pricing published. You’ll need to talk to a salesperson to find the current prices. 

Lack of Integration. Since Thomas Reuters has many high-quality products, Practice CS does not directly integrate with many third-party tools, instead forcing you to buy add-on products to get the full functionality you’d want from an integrated tech stack.

The 7 Best Practice CS Alternatives

Note that all pricing is current as of the publishing of this article, and prices are subject to change without notice.

1. Jetpack Workflow

What Is It: Jetpack Workflow is an accounting workflow management software built from the ground up with accountants and bookkeepers in mind. The intuitive interface allows you to see at a glance where the bottlenecks are in your processes. You can quickly reassign clients, evaluate deadlines, and determine whether any of your staff is overloaded.

Jetpack Workflow App Jobs Tab

Top Features: 

  • Predefined workflows for common accounting bookkeeping tasks
  • Due date tracking so you won’t miss any deadlines
  • Task management for easily reassigning tasks and leveling workloads
  • Document management system so all your files and tasks are in one place

Best For: Small to medium-sized accounting and bookkeeping firms.

Pricing: Jetpack Workflow’s pricing starts at $36/month/user (billed annually) for their Organize plan, which includes unlimited jobs, team collaboration, Zapier integration, and live support. The Scale plan costs $39/month/user (billed annually) and adds capacity management features and team scheduling management.

2. Aero Workflow

What Is It: Aero Workflow is another workflow management program for accountants. With Aero, you get one clear view of all the client work that needs attention for the day. While it is reported as being easy to use, the reporting tools are lacking and lots of reviews mention the clunkiness of the interface.

Top Features: 

  • Time tracking includes an integrated timer when you start a task and then records your time
  • Project overviews allow you to see all your open items on a single screen
  • Profitability tracking by client allows you to determine who your most important clients are

Best For: Smaller firms looking to move from a to-do list or shared task list to a more formal system.

Pricing: Their Sole Proprietor plan is $39/month (billed annually) and includes unlimited customers, software integrations, and templates. For larger firms, you’ll need to upgrade to either the Small Firm ($79/month billed annually) or Large Firm ($149/month bill annually) plans to have more users. 

3. Financial Cents

What Is It: Financial Cents is a minimalist accounting workflow management tool. The tool’s main screen allows you to see the progress on each of your team’s open items and priorities on your to-do list. The system allows you to track time and send automated reminders to clients for missing items. One thing to note about this tool is that we couldn’t find any integrations, including on Zapier.

Top Features: 

  • Easy task delegation with a few clicks
  • Integrated client reminders that can be automatically sent
  • Solid reporting tools that provide valuable firm insight

Best For: Remote first firms juggling remote worker task management.

Pricing: Financial Cents charges $23/month for annual billing or $29/month if paid monthly. 

4. Canopy

What Is It: Canopy’s project management software is a cloud-based solution that helps organization manage their projects and people in one place. The software is designed to be user-friendly and easy to use, with a great emphasis on simplifying paperwork and removing the need for multiple spreadsheets. Canopy also offers excellent support and training materials, making it a solution for organizations of all sizes. Users report that the tasks features can be a bit clunky.

Top Features:

  • User-friendly design allows you to get up and running quickly
  • An integrated document management system allows you to use a single program for your firm management
  • Uses Zapier to integrate with other accounting and tax software

Best For: Firms looking for a project management tool that also includes a CRM and some communication abilities.

Pricing: Canopy prices its product by module, so the cost can quickly add up. The workflow management module costs $37/month/user when billed annually, and the document management module adds another $40/month/user. 

5. Karbon

What Is It: Karbon is a project management software that helps businesses to plan, track and manage their projects. It provides users with a range of features, including task management, resource planning, invoicing, and reporting. Karbon also offers a mobile app, which makes it easy for users to access their project data on the go. While KarbonHQ has a great interface, the typical course of setup seems to be paying for one of their many service options. 

Top Features: 

  • Useful for other (non-accounting) departments
  • Budget versus actual reporting
  • Automated client reminders remove most of the manual follow-up work

Best For: Managing medium and large accounting firms or financial-related businesses with teams who need to collaborate from different departments and locations.

Pricing: Pricing starts at $59/month (billed annually), making it one of the most expensive options on this list. The cost increases depending on the number of employees and additional features you need.

6. Asana

What Is It: Asana is a project management software that helps teams coordinate and track their work. It is designed to be simple and easy to use, with a focus on collaboration and communication. Asana can be used for a variety of tasks, from managing small tasks to large projects. It has a variety of features that work for most teams, including the ability to create tasks, set deadlines, assign team members, and track progress. Asana is also available on mobile devices. Teams can stay connected and coordinated even when they’re on the go. 

Top Features: 

  • Intuitive design makes assigning tasks simple
  • Low pricing makes it valuable for smaller firms
  • Integrated messaging allows you to send messages about projects within the system

Best For: The software is not accounting-specific and does not come with preloaded accounting templates. Asana is ideal for accounting firms that are part of larger companies or small firms looking for a step up from shared to-do lists.

Pricing: Plans start at $10.49/month/user (billed annually). Upgrade plans include goal setting, custom fields, and workload management features.

7. ClickUp

What Is It: ClickUp is designed to be user-friendly and can be customized to meet the specific needs of each project. It also offers a range of integrations with other popular software products, making it a versatile tool for project management. ClickUp is used by businesses of all sizes, from small startups to large enterprises, and is suitable for managing any type of project. 

Top Features: 

  • Scalable for large firms
  • Integrates with many software
  • Advanced reporting allows you to quickly create management reports

Best For: Firms where many of the tasks are not accounting specific.

Pricing: Plans for small teams start at $5/month/user, although most businesses will want to opt for the additional features in the Business plan, which is $12/month/user.

32 Free Workflow Templates

Subscribe to the Growing Your Firm weekly newsletter, and get the best accounting workflow templates today!

Looking for more? Here are some
related articles you may like.

See Jetpack Worflow In Action

Get under the hood of Jetpack Workflow’s accounting workflow and project management platform. See some of the top features and how it helps your firm standardize, automate, and track client work more efficiently.
Watch Product Tour Start Your Free Trial

What is Fractional Accounting and Is It a Legit Service?

By jetpack workflow | Updated on Dec 28, 2023 | 5 minutes
fractional accounting

Fractional accounting services have been around for centuries, dating back to the early days of commerce. 

In the past, businesses would contract with accountants to keep track of their financial affairs on a part-time basis. This allowed businesses to save money on overhead costs while also tapping into the expertise of experienced professionals. 

Today, fractional accounting services are still used by many businesses for the same reasons. As a result, fractional accounting services play an important role in the business world.

What is Fractional Accounting?

Fractional accounting services are a type of professional accounting service that provides part-time or project-based assistance to businesses with their financial needs. This can include bookkeeping, preparing and filing taxes, and other financial tasks. 

Fractional accounting services can be a great solution for new startups and established businesses that don’t have the need or resources for a full-time accountant. They can also be a convenient option for businesses experiencing a period of growth or transition and needing extra help to manage their finances. 

Fractional accountants provide more services than a standard bookkeeping contract but without the commitment and expenses of a full-time finance team.

Typical Responsibilities of a Fractional Accountant/CFO

The role of a fractional accountant or CFO can vary depending on the client’s needs. However, there are some common responsibilities associated with this position. 

Typically, a fractional accountant or CFO will help to prepare financial statements, maintain records of income and expenses, and reconcile bank accounts. In addition, they may also provide advice on tax planning and compliance issues, as well as assist with the development of budgeting and forecasting tools. 

Fractional accountants will participate in company meetings and may act as company representatives for external meetings with investors or lenders. A fractional accountant will be well-versed in the company’s activities and able to speak intelligently about how upcoming events will affect the company’s finances.

By working with a fractional accountant or CFO, small business owners can free up time to focus on other aspects of their business while still ensuring their finances are in order.

What Companies Usually Pay for a Fractional Accountant

When hiring a fractional accountant, companies usually look for someone with years of experience and a high level of expertise. However, they also want someone willing to work for a lower rate than what they would pay for a full-time accountant. Fractional accountants usually only work a few hours each week and do not receive benefits such as health insurance or a retirement plan. 

Fractional accounting services are usually performed for a flat monthly fee. The monthly fee includes specified accounting functions and usually places a cap on the number of hours devoted to the company. Some fractional accountants provide unlimited hours to their clients as part of the contract. Clients appreciate knowing what they will be paying each month. Most fractional CFOs charge $2,500-$8,000/month for their services.

Other fractional accountants choose to bill hourly. They track the time spent working for or with each client and submit an invoice at the end of the month. This requires careful time tracking and time management to ensure that you still provide quality services at a reasonable price. 

With hourly pricing, clients will only pay for the time you are actually performing services for them, although the bill will vary each month. Fractional accountants often charge $200-$400/hour when billing hourly.

Deciding If You Should Offer This Service

Deciding whether or not to offer fractional CFO services can be tricky. 

When it comes to providing accounting services, there are a few things you should consider. 

First of all, what type of accounting do you specialize in? If you’re primarily focused on corporate accounting, providing fractional services may not be the best use of your time. 

However, if you’re comfortable working with individual taxpayers and small businesses, offering fractional services could be a good way to grow your business. 

Another thing to keep in mind is what your clientele is looking for. If they’re primarily interested in getting their taxes done quickly and efficiently, they may not be willing to pay for the extra services that come with fractional accounting. 

On the other hand, if they’re looking for someone who can provide more comprehensive advice and guidance, they may be willing to pay a premium for your services. 

How to Stay Organized as a Fraction CFO

As a fractional accountant, it’s important to stay organized in order to maintain a good workflow. One of the best ways to do this is to create a system for yourself and stick to it. 

For example, you might create a folder for each client and then sub-folders for each type of document. You can also create a color-coding system to help you keep track of what needs to be done and when. 

Once you have a system in place, make sure to put everything back in its proper place after you’re finished with it. This may seem like a lot of work, but it will pay off in the long run by helping you save time and stay organized.

Consider a product such as Jetpack Workflow. It was designed from the ground up with accountants in mind. It helps you stay organized, monitor your projects, and ensure nothing falls through the cracks. If you work with a team, it will help you monitor workloads and assign tasks – especially if using fractional support to allow you to see what the team is working on at any time.

Being a fractional accountant means that your clients rely heavily on your accounting expertise, and you’ll be juggling multiple clients and priorities. A workflow system will help you make sure you’re tracking all the demands on your time.

32 Free Workflow Templates

Subscribe to the Growing Your Firm weekly newsletter, and get the best accounting workflow templates today!

Looking for more? Here are some
related articles you may like.

See Jetpack Worflow In Action

Get under the hood of Jetpack Workflow’s accounting workflow and project management platform. See some of the top features and how it helps your firm standardize, automate, and track client work more efficiently.
Watch Product Tour Start Your Free Trial