Business Advisory IncomeWhy would practices need a business advisory strategy? What’s wrong with being a compliance practice? Why add new services when you’re already flat out? Mark Holton from Smithink 2020 ( http://www.smithink2020.com ) answers as follows: Less billable hours & increased competition While compliance has been the main practice income since … well … forever, software improvements meant that the number of errors in compliance data is potentially diminishing. Features such as automatic coding rules and bank feeds mean human errors are slowing being eroded – which is a good thing. Accountants can also access their clients’ data directly at any time using cloud accounting. However there’s a flow-on effect in the practice. Accountants are now able to make adjustments to company files during the year – not just when they see their clients – and there are potentially fewer billable hours throughout the year. Add to this the pressure of competition, and the idea of offering financial advice as well as compliance is a more attractive proposition than a compliance-only. It’s clear why practices are under increasing pressure to expand their service offerings. “There’s certainly pressure mounting overseas from compliance leading to the need to offer extra financial services,” Mark notes, “Especially in places like Canada, where practices have grown on the back of their successful advisory services.” “It’s no good just dipping your toes in the water, unfortunately. Becoming a business advisory practice requires a major commitment, but the payoff can be immense,” Mark says. Three keys to success for business advisory practices Mark suggests that the 3 keys to success for business advisory practices are:
High Performance SpacesWarwick Cavell at Linnergy (http://www.linnergy.com.au) mentors practices in High Performance Spaces. These exhibit five characteristics – they are safe, accessible, challenging, productive and connected. Practice leader are challenged to ensure all spaces are and remain High Performance Spaces, for a high performance culture is built one space at a time. Business Strategy: Use technology to gain growth, profitability and competitive advantage.
To users, the cloud means one key thing: it's just there. It doesn't matter what computer you're on to access your files. It's just there. It doesn't matter what tablet you're on to access your Gmail. It's just there. It doesn't matter what phone you're on to be advised of an important meeting in your calendar. It's just there. The cloud removes friction. It removes the hassle of figuring out how to keep things in sync. It eliminates the problem of figuring out how to share something with someone else. It increases reliability. It removes the hassle of checking for and installing updates. Updates just happen (whether you want that new interface or not). For the most part, the cloud even removes the hassle of figuring out where your data is stored and how to make sure you don't lose it. We expect to open a browser tab, log in (preferably through single sign on) and run. INMAN is a highly effective, lower cost IT organization that maintains and connects business-critical platforms using standardized Cloud interconnections to connect disparate platforms. |