It is, after all, the end of Tax Season.
The deadline for filing tax returns for this year has passed.
As the dust settles and we reflect on this year’s tax season, a few trends and lessons to be learned have emerged.
Here are the top 6 things that we wish CPA & Accounting Firms to Learn at the End of Tax Season
1. Workflows Efficiency:
Even after the Tax season ends, the integrity and functionality of workflows are critical to ensuring that all duties are accomplished efficiently and without errors. While optimized workflows can be extremely beneficial, there is no one-size-fits-all solution. Because each business has unique requirements, it is vital to design workflows to meet those objectives. Without efficiency in your workflow, you risk compromising the quality and timeliness of your work, putting you at risk of slipping behind your competition.
The first step toward establishing efficient workflows is to analyze the existing systems. Ascertain that processes are robust and do not come to a grinding halt under any circumstance, plausible or implausible. If the last two years have taught us anything, it is that events once considered exceedingly improbable may recur.
2. Getting data from clients Regularly:
According to Intuit, up to 65 percent of tax work time is spent chasing down client information.
If the necessary documents, files, and numbers are not received on time, the entire process is slowed down. This is a significant bottleneck in terms of tax season completion.
This also affects your client relationship, as the time allocated to communicate with and build relationships with your clients is spent requesting data from them (i.e. not adding value.)
The first step is to engage with your clients early: do not wait until tax season arrives; contact them at least one month in advance.
Most importantly, automate as much of the client chase as possible, whether through email templates, creating a checklist for your clients, or designating a specific time and person (or system) to remind them of their submission.
3. Employee turnover:
Employee turnover is a term that refers to the number of employees who leave your organization over a specified period.
A higher than average turnover rate of employees may indicate a problem with your company, management, or other contributors.
A low turnover rate of employees may indicate that you are doing a good job and that people enjoy working for you.
This could be a result of a small but dedicated staff. A low rate also provides an opportunity to hire new talent who can bring new ideas and improved methods of doing things to the organization.
You should constantly question yourself if the employee turnover from the previous year affected your standard workflows? If yes, then you should plan out the necessary measures accordingly.
4. Employee Lacking the Knowledge:
By the end of the tax season, you can get a good enough estimate of your staff’s skills and knowledge. If you think there were areas where the knowledge gaps were high and hindered the workflow during the tax season, you can start planning for some training programs for your employees.
5. Outsource your workload:
If you felt during the tax season that you had more work on your plate than you could handle, or your employees felt burnt out, maybe you should consider outsourcing your workload to an experienced firm that provides outsource tax preparation services.
That way you will also have time in hand to focus on the operational side of your business!
6. Developing a Marketing Plan:
It is a very competitive world, and if you want to survive the competition then now is the time to start taking marketing seriously if you have not already. Marketing educates a large number of people about a particular service.
When people are informed about your service, you will see an increase in sales. Marketing enables numerous business establishments to generate revenue streams. It occurs when businesses employ a variety of marketing strategies to increase their profits.
Congratulations on another tax-filing season that was a success!
If you haven’t already, we strongly encourage you to engage us now to assist you in planning and strategizing for the upcoming fiscal year.
Contact us if you have any questions about your taxes or would like to plan for the coming year.