Fellow accountants, the time has come to embrace the transformative power of automation in our profession. The shift towards digital and automated solutions is not just a trend; it’s a revolution that empowers us to transcend traditional boundaries and deliver unprecedented value to our clients.

While accounting technology options are evolving rapidly, offering us the tools needed to streamline our workflows and elevate the services we offer, it can be overwhelming to identify the right tech stack as your practice grows and evolves, too. Read on to learn how to streamline and simplify this process because, let’s be honest, no one became an accountant because they love manual data entry (and if you did, we need to talk!).

Automation frees us from those monotonous tasks, allowing us to dive into the aspects of our jobs that truly excite us—such as deciphering complex financial puzzles and making strategic decisions that propel businesses forward. And let’s not forget, with automation handling the mundane, we might have time to grab that second cup of coffee—or even an extra doughnut—during our workday. So, let’s begin our exploration with the one and only, QuickBooks, The Cornerstone of Automation!

QuickBooks Solutions for a Better Experience

QuickBooks stands as a pillar of accounting automation, offering a plethora of features that simplify everyday accounting tasks. Here are some of my favorite QuickBooks features that have revolutionized our workflow:

QuickBooks Online for Accountants is a game-changer for accounting professionals, offering a robust, cloud-based platform that provides unparalleled flexibility and efficiency. This specialized version of QuickBooks Online enables accountants to seamlessly manage multiple clients from a single dashboard, providing real-time access to financial data from anywhere, at any time. Its comprehensive suite of tools includes automated invoicing, payroll processing, expense tracking, and detailed financial reporting, all designed to streamline accounting tasks and boost productivity. The collaborative features of QuickBooks Online for Accountants allow for effortless communication and data sharing with clients, fostering stronger client relationships and enabling more strategic financial advising. By integrating with various other apps and tools, it further enhances workflow efficiency, making it an indispensable asset for modern accounting practices looking to stay ahead in a competitive market.

QuickBooks Payments: Streamlining Financial Transactions for Businesses

QuickBooks Payments simplifies and streamlines the financial transaction process for businesses, making it easier than ever to receive payments and manage cash flow. This seamless payment processing solution allows businesses to accept a variety of payment methods, including credit cards, debit cards, and ACH bank transfers, directly through QuickBooks. By integrating payment capabilities within the accounting software, QuickBooks Payments ensures that transactions are automatically recorded and reconciled, reducing the manual effort and errors often associated with traditional payment processing. The real-time updates and instant payment notifications keep businesses informed of their financial status, improving cash flow management and enhancing the overall financial health of the organization.

Additionally, QuickBooks Payments offers competitive rates and secure processing, giving peace of mind to both businesses and their customers. Whether it’s invoicing clients or setting up recurring payments, QuickBooks Payments delivers a convenient, efficient, and reliable solution that enables businesses to focus more on growth and less on administrative tasks. Embrace QuickBooks Payments to streamline your transaction process and elevate your financial operations.

QuickBooks Time: Revolutionizing Workforce Management

QuickBooks Time, formerly known as TSheets, revolutionizes workforce management by offering an intuitive and efficient way to track employee hours and manage payroll. This robust tool allows employees to clock in and out using a variety of devices, including smartphones, tablets, and desktops, ensuring accurate time tracking

regardless of location. With features such as GPS tracking, customizable timesheets, and real-time reporting, QuickBooks Time eliminates the guesswork and manual entry errors often associated with traditional time tracking methods.

Managers can easily approve timesheets, monitor workforce productivity, and generate detailed reports that integrate seamlessly with QuickBooks for streamlined payroll processing. QuickBooks Time also simplifies job costing, project tracking, and compliance with labor laws, providing a comprehensive solution for businesses to manage their teams more effectively. Embrace QuickBooks Time to enhance efficiency, accuracy, and overall workforce management.

Other Essential Tools and Apps

While QuickBooks forms the backbone of our automation strategy, several other tools and applications also integrate seamlessly with our workflows:

Jirav:

An all-in-one financial planning and analysis (FP&A) solution, Jirav integrates effortlessly with QuickBooks. It enables dynamic budgeting, forecasting, and reporting, allowing us to create multi-scenario financial models. The real-time data sync with QuickBooks ensures we always have the latest financial information at our disposal, facilitating more informed strategic decisions.

Bookkeep:

Bookkeep automates the bookkeeping process for e-commerce, gig economy, and other transactional businesses by integrating with QuickBooks and other platforms. It ensures that transaction data is captured accurately and posted correctly. This reduces manual bookkeeping efforts and enhances the accuracy and timeliness of our financial records. With Bookkeep, we’ve been able to streamline reconciliations and provide more accurate financial insights to our clients.

SmartVault:

SmartVault is an essential document management solution that integrates seamlessly with QuickBooks. It offers secure storage, easy document retrieval, and streamlined workflows for managing client documents. SmartVault’s integration ensures that all necessary documents are linked directly to the corresponding transactions and records in QuickBooks. This enhances both compliance and efficiency in our document management processes, making client audits and reviews smoother and more efficient.

Inspiring the Accounting Community to Evolve and Grow through Automation

The technology transformation we have ahead of us is exciting, and so are the possibilities that it offers for your firm. I encourage you to explore and adopt these revolutionary tools, then share your experiences, successes, and even challenges, so we can collectively learn and grow. The future of accounting is digital, and together, we can drive our profession into this new era with confidence and enthusiasm.

It’s time to embrace the change! We can transform our practices for the better by adopting automation. I firmly believe that we are not just accountants; we are strategic partners, innovators, and leaders in a thriving, modern accounting landscape. Let’s lead with innovation, adopt the best tools and technologies, and inspire one another to elevate the accounting profession to new heights. The future is now—seize it with an open mind and unbounded ambition!

This is a paid partnership with Intuit.

If you’re still using QuickBooks® Desktop (QBD), don’t worry, this article is not a sales pitch to get you to move to QuickBooks® Online (QBO). In fact, I know that if you are still using QBD, you likely have many good reasons why. I know that I sure did, before I moved the majority of my clients over to QBO. 

The truth is, I still have a handful of legacy clients on QBD. These are larger clients who will need to invest a significant budget for my firm to do the work of transitioning them to QBO. Moving these clients to QBO is the final part of the plan that I made about seven years ago when I moved my practice to the cloud and when I knew that the sunset of the QBD product was literally on the horizon. Right now, I am working toward the transition of these legacy clients and I am definitely leveraging some motivational strategies to get the job done.

If you are in the same position, or perhaps you haven’t yet started transitioning your clients from QBD to QBO, I want to offer some hard-won advice from my own experience. As members of the Intuit community I encourage you to reach out for assistance or support as you make the transition in your firm. The following motivational thoughts are intended to be a shot in the arm to help you “turn the corner” so to speak from being an entrenched QBD user to soon enjoying all the benefits of QBO and sharing those benefits with your clients, too! 

So here goes, some motivation from me to you!

1. Plan to succeed. By developing a timeline and the specific steps you need to take with each client the transition will be less daunting. Developing a plan to transition to QBO will make the shift so much easier for you, your team, and your clients. I speak from experience on this one! Your plan document can be a roadmap that gives you clarity and structure that reduces ambiguity, inefficiency and stress along the way. 
2. Let go of the past. We’re all likely guilty of holding on to systems and software that aren’t serving our current needs, often because we are comfortable with a certain solution or a workflow that we’ve used for a long time. With a software as central to many accounting practices such as QBD, it’s not surprising that making the shift to QBO might cause concern, or even usher in feelings of anxiety for you and any team members you have. Not to mention clients who may or may not be ready to embrace new technology. In this case, it’s important to paint a vision of a better way of working in the future so clinging on to the old ways are seen as cumbersome as they are! 
3. Make a list of the benefits of your transition. I have found that writing down why I want to make a change is truly a powerful motivator.  Here are a few ideas to get you started: You can serve your clients in more productive ways, get more business by extending your services using QBO-powered apps, and free up your time to focus on improving your firm. Having a list of benefits like these in plain sight as you go through the transition phase is something I found highly motivating when I started my transition!
4. Communicate the benefits to your team and clients. Reminding yourself, your team, and your clients of “the reasons why” you need to make this transition is key. After all, they are likely comfortable with the status quo, so detailing how beneficial this is will be very helpful in keeping them motivated to make their own moves to QBO. 
5. Focus on achieving peace of mind. Another important component and benefit of your QBD to QBO transition is greater peace of mind. Once you have completed several client conversions, you will start seeing the difference in a positive sense in terms of increased collaboration, efficiency and productivity. You’ll also appreciate how much more secure your data is in the cloud, which has short-term data security benefits and long-term compliance benefits, too. 

Here’s one last motivational tip to help you, one that I know I will be using as I move my legacy clients over to QBO: Start now, your future self and your future firm will thank you! Make your plan, list out the benefits, and share both with your team and your clients. Doing so will move you so much closer to operating a firm you love while providing your clients with a better experience and more robust services. I can’t think of a better motivator than that!

Get dedicated support materials written by accountants who have successfully migrated their own clients and want to help pave the way for yours. Download migration guides.  For access to more information and resources, visit our move online site.

This is a paid partnership with Intuit.

How many times have you looked up a local business on Google or Facebook and went straight to their customer reviews? If you are like the majority of people, you have. This includes your clients and prospective new clients! So why not harness the power of positive reviews for your firm?

After all, if someone else like you gives honest feedback on a business based on a personal experience, you’ll probably listen to what they have to say, right? Don’t just take my word for it, the statistics from NiceJob (the app that I use to automate the process of getting valuable reviews from my clients and the attendees at my speaking engagements) show this is true: reviews influence 90% of potential customers better than a sales pitch.

Another vital fact about using client reviews for growing your accounting firm is that prospective clients will trust you more because having objective, third-party reviews will provide social proof and unbiased opinions that are more trustworthy than what you would say yourself about your firm (this is because you are perceived to have a natural bias as the owner of the firm). 

I know this first-hand because I have been using NiceJob to get reviews after my speaking engagements, the app makes it super simple, and I even added a QR code on my book, The Designated Motivator, so NiceJob can help me get reviews from readers, too! Next up: using NiceJob for my accounting firm, Powerful Accounting, Inc.

Reaping the rewards of client reviews comes down to the right numbers

According to NiceJob, potential customers read an average of ten reviews before committing to a service provider such as an accountant. Yes, that is ten reviews! If that feels like an overwhelming lift, then it’s time to think about automating the process. That’s what I did when I started using NiceJob. The software solicits reviews from your clients and follows up for two weeks after the initial request to secure those revenue-boosting reviews!

The reason why this number is so important is that reviews are likely to engage more serious potential prospects, and they want to do their due diligence before reaching out. Since they are investing time in doing due diligence rather than breezing by your website online, it’s important to have a review strategy in place so you have a constant stream of new reviews that are relevant and recent.

NiceJob makes getting more reviews easy through an automated process.

While reviews are no doubt critical, they can also be time-consuming to solicit. The beauty of using NiceJob is that it takes care of time-consuming tasks so you can spend more time focusing on your existing customers. In fact, NiceJob does all the work (and follow-up for you with automated campaigns.

Remember, customer reviews can be done on multiple platforms such as on your Google Business Profile, their Facebook Page, and your website to gain a competitive edge and reap the benefits of both social proof and search engine optimization. Google loves reviews!

Reviews actually can, and do, impact the bottom line of a business because they bring in new leads like no other source! Think about the number of times you have read a review that resonates with you and then made a move to purchase that service or product. Your potential clients are doing this, too. You can also include them in your marketing collateral, use them on social media, and include them on your website which are all powerful ways to move the needle and move prospective clients into the buying phase of your service.

Another benefit of reviews? If you take time to read them, you can also learn a lot about what your existing clients think! Take time to consider the positive (or negative) review of your firm and what action you can take to celebrate what you are doing right and what needs work. 

If you are nervous about a negative review, remember that the best way to handle those is to respond with compassion and empathy and then do what you can (offline of course) to help rectify the situation. If you do this, you’ll likely strengthen the relationship considerably and win a nice new positive review in the process!

Get ready to rev up your referral stream with reviews!

If you want to grow your firm, leveraging a tool such as NiceJob can be a game changer!  You can sign up for NiceJob here and learn more about how to spread the word about all of the amazing things you do for your clients!

I started my practice over twenty-five years ago, I chose QuickBooks. Today it’s still the backbone of my accounting system, throughout the years (decades!) Intuit has kept innovating based on the insights of their users and the needs of the clients that we as practitioners serve.

One of the most pivotal strategic moves that Intuit made in the QB ecosystem was the decision to keep their API open, that means, allowing other apps the capability to build products that integrate directly with QuickBooks. This allowed what we know today as the QuickBooks marketplace to not only exist, but to empower us as practitioners to keep pace with our clients’ needs to drive maximum efficiency within our own practice.

I credit David Leary, co-host of the Cloud Accounting Podcast and QuickBooks technologist, with helping Intuit see the future of the accounting profession and the need to allow accountants to have the freedom and flexibility to add other applications to their accounting software. I vividly recall The Intuit Hackathons, 

 is where the QuickBooks open API really started. 

As we know, businesses don’t grow in a box, and if your accounting management software is inflexible, you’ll never be able to scale or serve larger clients because you will be completely limited in the tools you have available. Not to mention, your practice will be a patchwork of unproductive apps that don’t play together…that is a revenue killer right there. The integrated technology ecosystem that I have built using QuickBooks’ open API and third-party apps is the lifeblood of my firm’s efficiency, productivity and increased profitability. 

The QuickBooks Open API levels the playing field for practices of every size

Depending on your sweet spot and growth plans, the QuickBooks an open API allows you to serve mid-market clients (10 to 99 employees).Though my practice is relatively small in terms of number of employees, I am confident in competing for business with larger firms because I know that with QuickBooks and Intuit as my tax system, I can meet the needs of any small or big client because my tool box is almost limitless. 

Intuit has leveled the playing field for all firms with their open API system.  If you look at the QuickBooks marketplace, you will find literally thousands of apps that you can integrate with to create a highly functional and financially viable tech ecosystem. In my Team Brolin Playing Field, QuickBooks and Lacerte are the hubs of my workflow. They are the powerhouses around which I have built a highly efficient and completely integrated system. For example, I utilize the following apps which integrate seamlessly with QuickBooks:

Bookkeep – This is an amazing automated e-commerce reconciliation direct to QuickBooks. It really could not be simpler, and the automation actually does what it says it does, so I trust it completely to sync all e-commerce transactions with my clients’ QuickBooks!

FinancialCents -for practice management Financial Cents has accounting practices covered, and it also integrates with QBO so you can sync contacts, service items, invoices and payments — all in one place. 

Corpay One – I use Corpay One for payments and the integration for QuickBooks Online makes the whole process seamless. Corpay One automatically syncs document data to QuickBooks Online, including vendor invoices and payments. This is a massive  timesaver!

Jirav – Provides the tools for financial planning and analysis, working seamlessly with QuickBooks Online or QuickBooks Desktop. It pulls in your chart of accounts and account balances to drive your dashboard, reports and forecasts automatically. Jirav’s automatic and ongoing synchronization with QuickBooks allows you to build your forecast in the same way a business operates. 

Liscio – This is my go-to app for client communications, but you can also create and send QBO invoices right from Liscio. Once paid, the QBO receivable is satisfied and QBO records can also sync with Liscio so your contacts are always up to date.

Smartvault is my secure document management go-to with seamless integration with QuickBooks to attach source files to entries in QuickBooks or QuickBooks Online. 

Together, these two applications allow you to go paperless and stay audit ready because you can attach source files to entries in QuickBooks Online, including: bills, invoices, vendors, customer records – even transactions and list items! Once stored in SmartVault, files are available from QuickBooks or right from your browser or mobile device.

QuickBooks’ open API: Build the tech stack and the firm that works for YOU.

I can truly say my practice would not be where it is today without QuickBooks and Intuit. From the first day I came home with the iconic green box of QuickBooks and triumphantly declared to my husband I was going to hit a grand slam with my bookkeeping business to now serving clients across the country and beyond, the QuickBooks ecosystem has both empowered and enabled me to achieve so much in my business while still creating exponential efficiencies which means I have a  life, too!

If you aren’t already in the cloud and leveraging QuickBooks open API, let’s change that. Check out the QuickBooks marketplace and consider the problem or pain point you want to eliminate based on the apps you are already using. I bet there are many that can integrate with QuickBooks to help you gain more efficiency, productivity and allow you to make more money by eliminating manual or inefficient processes as well as by freeing you up to serve your clients with comprehensive, advisory-focused services. 

This is a paid partnership with Intuit.

Be a Bookkeep BOSS: Get Certified, Get Your Partner Pin at Scaling New Heights 

Conference season is here once again and with it comes so many opportunities for learning, including getting certified in technology solutions you may be using in your practice. One of the new certifications I am getting before I head to Scaling New Heights in St. Louis in a few weeks is for one of my favorite apps ever, Bookkeep.

I have been using Bookkeep for years to automatically reconcile revenue for my e-commerce clients. It really is smarter accounting automation. It’s also a complete game-changer for your practice in terms of wiping out time wasted reconciling transactions from e-commerce payment gateways, electronic payments, and POS applications.

I am doing my Bookkeep certification before Scaling New Heights because I want to get my  “Certified Bookkeep Partner” enamel pin straight from the amazing Bookkeep team while I am at the conference. You can get certified through Woodard or through the Bookkeep app. 

Here are the cool perks that we’ll get for being Certified Bookkeeper Partners:

• Access to participate in the Bookkeep client referral program.
• The ability to sell the Bookkeep Basic $40 plan clients ($40 plan is no longer available to the general public).
• Instant activation of Bookkeep’s partner discount or revenue share immediately.
• Additional marketing support.

Are you in? Let’s get certified with Bookkeep now!

Even if you currently have just a few e-commerce clients, it is very likely that you will have more in the future because most businesses are utilizing online payments in some form.  

Knowing that your revenue reconciliation books are being handled correctly allows you to free up hours of billable time. Choosing, implementing, and training your team to utilize the right automated bookkeeping solution is essential. This is what you can expect when you use Bookkeep to easily automate your daily sales reconciliations with seamless integrations from one to multi-channel platforms, all while bringing sales data into QuickBooks Online.

Once you get certified with Bookkeep, you will be expertlyly equipped to optimize your e-commerce bookkeeping efficiency. Learn how by reading  the post where I recently detailed 6 ways to leverage automated revenue reconciliation for exponential profitability gains.

Bookkeep seamlessly integrates with Clover, GrubHub, Shopify, Square,Toast, Woocommerce and more as well as with QuickBooks and other accounting systems. It also helps us advise clients to better manage their e-commerce and other business transactions with the help of financial analytics.

Become certified in Bookkeep for free to have a solid foundation in revenue automation bookkeeping as well as the Bookkeep software so you can help your clients by covering these concepts: 

• Core accounting standards and key principles of Bookeep’s solution
  • This includes recording daily sales and reconciliation of daily deposits to daily sales.
• Bookkeep’s key concepts and terms
  • This allows you to have a better understanding of the software features.
• How to get started with the Bookkeep software
• Ongoing steps and processes once the initial setup is complete
  • Bookkeep will walk you through adding your clients into the system.

Enroll in Bookkeep’s free certification course here to maximize your profit potential with smarter automation and pick up your pin while you are at Scaling New Heights in St. Louis, Missouri, or if you aren’t heading there (We’ll miss you!), get certified online and your pin and badges will be sent to you.

Now that tax season is officially over (any extensions you have to file aside), now is the perfect time to shift into tax planning mode for your SMB (small-to-medium business) clients. Why tax planning? To me, it’s the ultimate, easy way to engage clients into a deeper advisory relationship. Plus, it’s a fundamental strategy to support the future viability of your firm and your clients!

However, I like to keep things simple and streamlined, and in my mind having a process that I can follow with each of my Schedule C and S-Corp clients makes everything easier and less taxing (pun intended)! That’s where the following simplified SMB tax planning checklist comes in. I use it with my own clients at Powerful Accounting, and I am sharing it here so you can use it, too.

1. Identify your Schedule C clients who based on estimated tax payments should consider moving to an S-Corp. These are the clients where you can have a conversation about changing entity type to save them payroll taxes.

2. Entity selection planning comes next. This refers to choosing the appropriate entity type for your clients’ business based on their ownership structure, performance, and goals. If you are not doing this already, you are missing out on  a lucrative new revenue stream as well as immediate value that you can add. This also starts a natural conversation about the overall health of your clients’  business which is a great segue into other areas of assistance you can provide including reasonable compensation.

3. Once you have the entity planning conversation, you can leverage reasonable compensation analysis as an entry point to create enhanced revenue opportunities while keeping your clients in full tax compliance as well. I love RCReports for this purpose.

Special note here: You do not want to use spreadsheets to calculate reasonable compensation or skip this! If you have not been doing reasonable compensation analysis, then you definitely need to check out RCReports because it’s the law and you and your client could be the subject of an investigation by the IRS if it isn’t done or done improperly.

4. Next, you can start looking at the tax return for some additional opportunities to help your clients. This could be with estimated taxes for business owners as well as payroll tax planning for S-corps and self-employment tax strategies for Schedule-C clients. When you have a truly accurate reasonable compensation number (see previous point) you will then have real numbers to work with!

5. Once you have the fundamentals above completed, you can use a tax planning tool to look more closely at your client’s return. This could open up opportunities for more advanced tax strategies depending on your clients sophistication and the complexity of their situation.

6. Retirement tax planning is also important to consider for SMBs and something to look at with every client. Not only will it set the stage for reducing their current tax bill, but it can also lead to other advisory service conversations if you also offer investments, insurance or retirement benefits (or partner with someone else who does).

Now that you have these six simple and easy-to-follow steps for SMB tax planning, it’s time to think back to all of your tax season clients and identify which Schedule C clients and S-corp clients you can serve, starting with the critical entity selection and reasonable compensation calculations. By starting with a solid foundation like this, you’ll have the confidence and clarity that will ensure you have all your bases covered from a compliance standpoint which is the cornerstone for effective tax planning for your clients.

Want to learn more about RC Reports? Check out the recent podcast we did together!

Do you have clients using electronic payment, e-commerce gateways, and point-of-sale applications? Maximize your profit potential with smarter automation. When it comes to bookkeeping, you want to know your books are being handled correctly, while eliminating as much data entry as possible, to free up your billable time. Choosing, implementing, and training your team to utilize the right automated bookkeeping solution is essential.

Bookkeep seamlessly integrates with Clover, GrubHub, Shopify, Square,Toast, Woocommerce and more as well as with QuickBooks and other accounting systems. One other thing I really love are the financial analytics which help us advise clients on how to better manage their ecommerce and other business transactions.

These are the top six benefits of Bookkeep that I am leveraging in my practice to eliminate manual entry using automated ecommerce reconciliations that actually work!

1. Daily sales reconciliation and daily revenue reporting is emailed in summary format right to me., so I always know the real-time numbers.
2. Reposting and refreshing of financial data to QuickBooks Online, on demand, if accounts are re-mapped.
3. Comprehensive multi-currency support and global currency conversions makes it easy to serve global clients and grow your practice.
4. Bank deposit breakdown provides a summary of deposits tied out to the sales day involved for Square and Shopify and over 50 other front end revenue applications.
5. A direct link to accounting entries so I can jump to the journal entry or bank transaction in QuickBooks (or another accounting platform).
6. Unlimited users, so I can add staff, clients or other stakeholders at no additional cost plus 5 star support with chat, email, and video options.

The truth is, automation is only useful if an app actually does what it is supposed to do and Bookkeep really means business! For my practice, it’s a best of breed solution for automated accounting and reconciliation with real bottom line benefits, Bookkeep literally eliminates hours of manual entry.

Tax Representation Network (TRN) and Team Brolin are excited to announce they are presenting The Practitioner’s Advisory Summit Virtual Conference on June 14, 2023. The conference is co-hosted by Eric Green, attorney and founder of Tax Rep Network and Dawn Brolin, CPA, CFE, CEO of Powerful Accounting, LLC. The conference is exclusively sponsored by Intuit with an agenda that provides a practical roadmap for accountants, tax professionals, and bookkeepers to establish and create a successful advisory practice. 

“Advisory services is a buzzword in the accounting profession, but for many practitioner’s being able to implement these types of services remains an elusive goal,” said Eric Green. “Attendees of the Summit will learn how to define and design advisory services that align with their goals and how to add these services to an existing practice or use them to launch an entirely new practice.”

The free Summit agenda features key thought leaders discussing all aspects of advisory services including reviewing the current state of advisory services, discussing how practitioners can create a concrete plan to add advisory services to their practices, increasing fees, boosting revenue and improving quality of life while providing clients with in-demand business insights. 

The Practitioner’s Advisory Summit Virtual Conference, June 14, 2023

The Summit’s agenda is as follows and will run on Eastern Standard Time: 

10:30 a.m. – 11:00 a.m.    Registration and Sign In

 

11:00 a.m. – 11:05 a.m.      Welcome Remarks 

 

11:05 a.m. – 12:15 a.m.      What are “Tax Advisory” and “Business Advisory” services?

Moderator:  Eric L. Green, Esq., Tax Rep Network

Panelists: Diana Crawford,  Al-Nesha Jones, CPA, MBA, ASE Group

Dawn W. Brolin, CPA, CFE, MST, Powerful Accounting LLC

 

12:15 p.m. – 12:45 p.m.     Worst Tax Season EVER: Maintaining Your Mental Health

Panelists: Dawn W. Brolin, CPA, CFE, MST, Powerful Accounting LLC

Randy Crabtree, CPA, Tri-Merit

 

12:45 p.m.  – 1:30 p.m.   Leveraging Technology: The Tech Tools to Use

Panelists: Dawn W. Brolin, CPA, CFE, MST, Powerful Accounting LLC

1:30 p.m. – 2:00 p.m.        Lunch Break 

 

2:00 p.m.  – 2:45 p.m.        Action Steps: Where to Begin

Panelists: Eric L. Green, Esq., Tax Rep Network

Dawn W. Brolin, CPA, CFE, MST, Powerful Accounting LLC

 

2:45 p.m. – 3:00 p.m.         Break

 

3:00 p.m.  – 3:45  p.m.       Pricing: How to go from hourly/product billing to “relationship pricing”                                           

Moderator:  Dawn W. Brolin, CPA, CFE, MST, Powerful Accounting LLC

Panelists:     Diana Crawford, Al-Nesha Jones, CPA, MBA, ASE Group

 

3:45 p.m. – 4:30 p.m.  Converting Existing Clients and Attracting New Clients

Panelists:     Eric L. Green, Esq., Tax Rep Network

Gaynor Meilke, MS, CBC, CTRC, Charisma Ink

More information and registration for The Practitioner’s Advisory Summit Virtual Conference  can be found on the Tax Rep Network website and at DawnBrolin.com. Tax Rep Network and the Summit presenters thank Intuit for sponsoring the conference and supporting the advancement of advisory education in the accounting profession.

The Accounting Cornerstone Foundation (ACF) is thrilled to announce the launch of their scholarship application, which provides aspiring accountants and bookkeepers with the opportunity to attend their first professional accounting conference and have life-changing experiences in the accounting and bookkeeping community.

The ACF is a non-profit organization dedicated to supporting individuals with in-person education to provide personal growth and opportunities in the accounting and bookkeeping industry. The foundation’s mission is to empower individuals who are accounting and bookkeeping professionals to achieve their professional dreams and reach their full potential.

The scholarship application is open to anyone in the accounting and bookkeeping profession who have not been able to attend an in-person conference. The application process is straightforward and easy to navigate, with detailed instructions provided on the Accounting Cornerstone Foundation’s website.

The scholarship will cover the ticket cost of attendance to an industry conference, airfare, and hotel.  Chosen recipients will have the opportunity to learn from industry experts, network with peers, and gain valuable insights into the world of accounting and bookkeeping.

“There is nothing else like these in-person learning opportunities at conferences. The creation of lifelong personal bonds is amazing,” said Dawn Brolin, President of the Accounting Cornerstone Foundation. “Our hope is that this scholarship will provide recipients with a life-changing experience that will inspire them to continue pursuing their dreams and making a positive impact in the accounting and bookkeeping community.”

The Accounting Cornerstone Foundation is now collecting applications for the 2023 conference season. Donations to support the foundation are also accepted on their website.  Donations will support the mission of the organization to provide assistance for the scholarship recipients.

For more information on the Accounting Cornerstone Foundation, apply for the scholarship, or to make a donation, please visit https://accountingcornerstone.org/.

About the Accounting Cornerstone Foundation Inc.

Founded in 2023 after a ‘what if’ sticky note at an industry leader retreat known as “Appy Camp” in September of 2022, the Accounting Cornerstone Foundation, is a recognized non-profit 501(c)(3) organization was established with only one goal in mind: to share the opportunity to attend continuing education conferences and support the growth of accounting and bookkeeping professionals around the globe. Recipients of the scholarship will be provided a conference ticket, airfare, and hotel accommodations for the chosen conference.

I am super pumped to announce the official opening of Dawn’s Dugout where I am going to be hosting live Q & A sessions on the first Monday of the month. Join me for the inaugural event on May 1 from 2 to 3 p.m. or from 4 p.m. to 5 p.m.

From technology suggestions to talk about avoiding burnout and playing as a team, let’s get into what’s on your mind!

Register here and submit any questions you have, so we can discuss them.