Buying Out Partners, Implementing Workflow, and Referral Systems to 2X Growth

Podcast

Summary

In this episode of Growing Your Firm, brought to you by Jetpack Workflow, host David Cristello interviews Jennifer Ryan, the owner of Bookkeeping Direct. 

Jenny shares her journey from initially joining the firm as a contractor to eventually buying the business in 2016. She highlights the company’s impressive growth of 140% in the past year and discusses how the firm expanded its staff to four members.

Throughout the conversation, Jenny and David explore what changes and strategies contributed to the recent surge in growth and how to effectively manage the increased workload to maintain quality service. 

The episode also touches upon the company culture at Bookkeeping Direct, including their unique use of Jetpack Workflow for task management and scheduling, even down to reminders for watering the office plants.

Listeners will gain insights into the challenges and successes of a small business owner, especially one in the financial service industry, catering to fellow small business owners and tradespeople starting out. Jenny’s story is a testament to the potential for growth and the importance of organizational tools and strategies in scaling a business.

This episode is sponsored by LiveFlow.

LiveFlow empowers you with flexible, powerful reporting tools to create customized dashboards that meet your specific needs. Connect to all your clients’ QuickBooks accounts and import their financial reports from QuickBooks into Google Sheets in no time. Learn more and book your demo here.

Detailed Synopsis

In the “Growing Your Firm” podcast episode, guest Jenny Ryan delves into the multifaceted uses of Jetpack Workflow, a tool that has revolutionized not only client task management but also the broader scope of office administration. Jetpack Workflow acts as a centralized hub, seamlessly integrating incoming emails into the system. 

These emails are promptly assigned to the appropriate staff member, complete with a due date and detailed notes regarding the urgency or specific timeline of the task.

This innovative system streamlines team communication by keeping email inboxes uncluttered and well-organized, ensuring that critical messages are neither missed nor forgotten. 

The assignment and tracking of tasks within Jetpack Workflow mitigate the risk of overlooking replies to important emails, such as those from clients or accountants awaiting responses.

Jetpack Workflow’s utility extends to managing both professional and personal office tasks. It functions as the team’s collective memory, reminding staff of non-work-related duties, including the watering of office plants. This feature has resolved previous issues of inconsistent plant care, maintaining a pleasant office environment by preventing both overwatering and underwatering.

Jenny shares a workplace adage that underscores the tool’s significance: “If it’s not in Jetpack, it won’t get done.” This mantra emphasizes the team’s dependence on Jetpack Workflow to ensure that every task, regardless of size, is accounted for and completed.

Furthermore, Jetpack Workflow excels in managing time allocation for tasks. Each task entered into the system is assigned a time budget, which can range from a few minutes to several hours, reflecting the complexity of the task. This provides a transparent overview of the day’s workload, detailing the scheduled hours of work and their distribution across clients and staff members. This aspect of Jetpack Workflow enhances the team’s time management, enabling more effective planning and resource allocation.

During the episode, the speaker also highlights how Jetpack Workflow is instrumental in balancing daily workloads. The tool’s features allow for the flexible redistribution of tasks, ensuring equitable work distribution among staff and timely fulfillment of client needs. With a clear view of budgeted hours, the speaker can gauge whether the firm is nearing capacity and whether additional hires are necessary. 

These insights are crucial for strategic business decisions, such as determining the optimal time for team expansion and assigning new hires to specific tasks or days.

Timestamps

[00:01:23] Rapid business growth handling.

[00:04:49] Automated consolidation product.

[00:13:41] Building referrals.

[00:14:19] Office management tool.

[00:20:34] Systemizing your business.