For bookkeepers and accountants, the key to sustainable, successful growth is efficiency. Here, we break down the productivity-boosting operational systems that take you beyond your GL and level up your tech stack.
Growth: We love to see it. More clients, more work, more revenue. The ability to scale up, hire a bigger team, and tackle bigger projects is the perennial goal for any advisor running their own firm. But pursuing growth without a strong suite of supporting systems in place? That can land you in a world of pain—from operational chaos, to having to manage a roster studded with undesirable clients who aren’t paying you what you’re really worth.
The five systems every firm needs
In 2021, Tyler Otto launched his own firm, Specialized Accounting. Over the course of four short years, he went from running a six-person operation to heading up a team of 17. Tyler’s also the co-host of UnAccountable, a biweekly podcast that gamifies the world of finance and accounting (while managing to sneak in some sage advice along the way). In short, he’s a pretty busy guy.
With time very much being a limited resource, Tyler has made efficiency a business priority—and he’s eager to talk about how he does it. His blueprint for growth relies on perfecting five core systems that allow your bookkeeping or accounting business to operate effectively, creating a solid foundation for sustainable growth and success. It’s your tech stack, but super charged and synchronized to maximize your capabilities.
These are the five key systems that Tyler says keep his firm running smoothly and his business growing:
The Central Knowledge Base
The right knowledge centralization system makes the road to success a bit less bumpy. Think of it as a shared brain or a giant, digital library. This is where you store all your firm’s knowledge, whether it’s about processes and operating procedures or client details and documentation. It’s centralized and accessible to your entire team, but it can also be segmented so that key information is at each team member's fingertips as it relates to their specific role—be it bookkeeping or tax prep or office administration.
There are many different platforms to choose from, says Tyler—his firm uses Guru for knowledge centralization, but other popular options include Notion, Document360 and Confluence). The goal is to choose one that ensures consistency, allowing for faster onboarding as your firm grows to include more employees and clients while reducing errors along the way.
The decision comes down to user preference and your firm’s unique needs in terms of the way you operate and the types of clients you work with, though Tyler recommends looking for features like integration (for example, a link to your general ledger software) and automation.
The Task and Workflow Management Tool
Successful firms are ones that prioritize consistency and reliability—two traits that are made simpler via workflow tools that equip your team with improved visibility, automated accountability, and structured tracking that prevents deadlines from being missed or key tasks from slipping through the cracks.
“It’s one place to make sure that everything gets done consistently,” says Tyler. “You can document that it was done so when that client who never responds to your email says, ‘Hey, I didn't receive this six months ago,’ you can show the backup. You can check on it quickly.”
He recommends that you choose a workflow management tool based on the category of services you provide (for example, bookkeeping versus tax planning versus tax prep). Ask yourself about the kinds of tasks you need your tool of choice to track and about the size of your client list and the sophistication of their needs.
“I would suggest checking out some of the really good players in our space right now,” says Tyler. “Keeper, Karbon and Canopy are great [as are] Financial Cents, Liscio, and TaxDome. Quickbooks is adding in little features for task management, too.”
The Standardized Core General Ledger or Tax Platform
If you’re doing accounting work, you almost certainly already use one or several tax platforms or general ledgers. Pick one. Emphasis on one.
“I highly recommend that you have one tool that you specialize in,” Tyler says. “It's going to be easier to scale your firm because it's going to be a lot easier to train your staff. Find that one GL or tax platform that works for you, specialize in it and put your clients on that platform. You're their bookkeeper or accountant. You choose the GL.”
Focusing on just one tax platform simplifies operations and training, and, when you can pair your GL with integrated banking, it also eliminates manual data entry and the brain-breaking task of reconciliation.
The Structured Client Communication System
To have a client portal or not to have a client portal? This is a question that so many firms find challenging to answer. Not Tyler Otto. For him, the answer is a resounding yes. Client portals centralize documents and communication, reduce email clutter, and make it possible for your team to collaborate efficiently. It’s also the lens through which your clients experience your business. It’s what they see and feel when they interact with your firm.
“Some clients don't like a client portal because they don't like structure,” he explains. “They want to be able to just text you whenever they want or shoot you an email and make it your problem to manage. I'll be honest, as you grow it's going to be hard to manage your entire workflow through email. It gets really hard.”
With a structured client communication system, access to documents and emails are centralized. It acts as a one stop shop for both your clients and your team, eliminating the access and communication roadblocks that occur when, for example, a team member is away on vacation or out sick.
The CRM or Pipeline Management Tool
Pipeline management tools work in two critical ways: they keep leads warm while ensuring that the clients you don’t want to work with aren’t taken onboard. To Tyler, finding good clients is just as important to the success of his business as avoiding difficult ones that take up more than a justifiable amount of time and effort.
With a strong CRM, the work of maintaining new client relationships and leads is automated and organized so that you never miss an opportunity to earn more business.
“I can't tell you how many clients I've signed that took over a year,” says Tyler, explaining that often he’ll approach potential clients before they’re ready to hire an accountant. His CRM allows him to follow up when the time is right. “All of a sudden, a year later, they sign instantly. You need to have those ways to keep those leads warm, to keep following up with them.”
Wrapping it Up
Success, the kind that’s sustainable and builds your business while building your confidence as a business leader, requires efficient systems and processes built on top of the right tools. For Tyler, each of these platforms is well worth the cost and effort it takes to implement them—because each works to free up the time and capacity to take on and manage more clients and accelerate the path towards even greater profitability.
Relay’s tools are made to enhance the way you run your firm, with features specifically designed for bookkeepers and accountants. As part of an accounting tech stack, these tools offer an operational leg up thanks to ultra-detailed transaction data, secure, single login access to client banking, and reliable bank feeds that sync directly into Xero and QuickBooks Online.
Relay is a financial technology company and is not an FDIC-insured bank. Banking services provided by Thread Bank, Member FDIC. FDIC deposit insurance covers the failure of an insured bank. Certain conditions must be satisfied for pass-through deposit insurance coverage to apply.
