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Community Call #8: What Is Onboarding?

April 30, 2012 by thriveal | 1 comment

“Do you run a small business? Do you have a pulse? If you answered yes to either of these, you may be the perfect client for us! We don’t even know your name, but we can definitely do whatever it is that you want us to do.”

While you may not have stooped to this level, most entrepreneurs are delighted to bring in new clients. It’s an exciting process because it means the business is growing and stands to make more money. The problem with this perspective (and we all intuitively know this) is that jumping into a relationship too fast can ruin its potential from the start.


What is Onboarding?
     “Creating an initial entry customer experience that sets you apart from other loser firms.”  Jason Blumer

 

If you were to search “onboarding” you’d see that most people use the term to talk about how a business plans to bring new hirees up to date with their internal processes. Here in THRIVEal, we’re applying that idea to bringing on new clients or customers. Typically these two types of onboarding look very different, but maybe we should examine those differences and innovate.
Jason’s 3 step process:

-note: I’ll list the client step and then the hiree equivalent (in parenthesis)

  1. Vetting the client (Interview)
    • Initial contact is made. It’s time to negotiate pricing and discover if the relationship will truly benefit both parties.
    • The owner or “closer” must conduct this step.
  2. Welcome to the family! (You’re hired!)
    • This is where enthusiasm and character should shine through.
    • Information is obtained but becoming a cold technician must be avoided.
    • A designated “Onboarder” is preferable for this role.
  3. Get to work (Get to work)
    • Work. Self explanatory.
    • The point of listing this is to note that the prior steps should minimize re-asking initial information.

Don’t reinvent the wheel
There are people already doing this! Meet Meilnda Guillemette, the onboarder for Blumer & Associates, CPAs. In a recent THRIVEal Community Call she shared one of the keys to implementing this process: we must avoid slipping into the role of a technician. As CPAs, most THRIVEal members THRIVE on counting beans and pushing calculator buttons (sorry to out you guys). More generally, entrepreneurs are predisposed to becoming technicians (source: Gerber, E-Myth). If we can resist these urges and focus on developing relationships with new clients, they will get a taste of what our firm is all about. Melinda called this “telling your firm’s story.” It has the power to become a significant differentiator for any business.

 

Jason also had some valuable insight on the call. He outlined something called the “Blumer Sucks Process.” It’s the way he formerly brought in new work and you may recognize it as the current process in your firm. It essentially skips past step 2 and jumps quickly into the 3rd “work” step. Once this happens the ball can start rolling very fast, causing a higher chance for data to be forgotten or lost. Jason suggests slowing down between step 1 and step 2 allowing for a more deliberate review of the coming situation. This will not only allow for better data collection, it can facilitate a new environment where trust is developed more naturally by both parties.

 

At Blackwell, CPA we’ve been brainstorming ideas like gathering clients for onboarding retreats or creating a gift bundle with books. Leave a comment for a discussion on further ways to push the idea further.

 

After graduating from Auburn University in 2009, John Blackwell returned to his hometown of Orlando, Florida to join his father Terry at Blackwell CPA. Terry founded the firm in 1986 and with the help of John, the father son team is focused on serving customers in innovative ways. John is also a member of the THRIVEal CPA Network.

Community Call #4 – Knowledge Sharing: Is Keeping It All To Yourself Beneficial?

August 31, 2011 by thriveal | No comments

Wow! What a great call!

In my opinion, the topic of knowledge sharing is undiscovered in the accounting industry. In the world of financial advisors and bankers, knowledge sharing is used as part of the culture. Why are we still all “grey suits” in this area? How effective is our cloud without knowledge sharing?

What is it? What does knowledge sharing mean? Simply put – it’s a tool to share information regarding the relationship with each client.

Examples:

  • Client workflow and notes
  • Client contact information and preferences
  • Client issues and resolutions

How much of this information do you keep between your ears? Is this really benefiting you? Some of our callers focused on a few truly eye-opening reasons why knowledge sharing is important:

  • Some of us worry that sharing knowledge might train our employees to become our competition. Is the alternate reality of this not worse? Retaining employees with whom you haven’t shared knowledge that are serving your clients regularly?
  • Two words – business succession. How useful and attractive would it be to a potential buyer of your firm to have a complete database of customer information?
  • We owe it to our clients.

Customer relationship management software is the most used tool for knowledge sharing. Proprietary software is another option. Do you share knowledge? How?

 

 

Jennifer Pierce Cook oversees outsourcing the controllership needs for her small business clients.  Jennifer also oversees the individual and trust filings in her firm.  Jennifer obtained her CPA license in September 2007.  She obtained both her Master’s and Bachelor’s degrees in business with an emphasis in accounting from Middle Tennessee State University.  She is an active member of the AICPA and the THRIVEal +CPA Network.  Jennifer has been with Hardee Accounting for nearly seven years.  Also a managing partner, Jennifer is dedicated to helping clients grow sustainably.  Find Jennifer on Facebook here or follow her on twitter at @ahsumcpa .

Community Call #3

July 20, 2011 by thriveal | 3 comments

Holy Moley what a call!  The latest Thriveal community call took place Tuesday, June 28th, and the topic was client selection.  An amazing group of professionals shared their experience on a topic that I struggle with.Client selection to me has not meant much in the past.  Based on my experience, I have drawn a line in the sand on who I will and will not work with.  The “will not work with” list was developed based on some pretty crappy endings to client relationships.  More specifically, they did not pay.  Here are three points to consider when selecting a new client.

  1. Due Diligence – How well do you know you clients?  Would you believe me if I told you there are CPA firms out there preforming a 30-day due diligence period before they bring on the potential client.  Picture the call now, “Yes Mr. Smith, please drop off our records request and we will contact you in 30 days to let you know if you are a good fit for our firm.”  While this practice may drive away most callers or even referrals, it sure would perk my interest to see what that firm has to offer.
  2. Education – Would your clients be willing to sit down for 6 hours, with you, to discuss expectations, goals, successes, challenges, of their organization?  This practice is starting to pop up in CPA firms as we move away from fire-fighting and into the role of a trusted business advisor.  A willingness to be educated was mentioned by most the speakers on the call as a key indicator for selecting a new client.
  3. Relationship Goals – A result of number 1 and 2 above should net goals between you and the client.  These goals are mutually agreed upon and they serve as a benchmark to see if both parties are living up to what they agreed on.  If the client falls behind on their obligation, “caller-id cringe” may appear.  Caller-ID cringe is where no one in the firm want to take the call once they identify who it is.  It may be too late at this point to try and save the relationship, but as a good friend of mine once said, “bad clients drive out good clients.”
The call for me was bitter-sweet, it shed some light on one idea that I have been trying to put to rest for many months now……Money will/can not create a relationship between me and my clients. My biggest take-away was a light-bulb moment I had the day after the call.  Not once during the call did I hear someone share “Yea, I price my self out of the engagement” or “If we don’t think it is a good fit, we charge them like, 10000000 dollars and see if they bite.”
Its not about the money anymore folks! 
We no longer use money as a shield to deal with unruly, uncooperative clients.  Sure we all like to be paid for our knowledge and value we add to a clients situation, but not at the expense of losing a team member, or even worse; a good client.
After early retirement from an unsuccessful acting career, Chris decided to become an accountant.  Growing up in a family of accountants, accounting was the center of the universe and where all business emerged from. Chris graduated from the University of Florida with a BS in Business Finance, and received his MBA from the University of North Florida. He loves his wife Razan, and son Rami.  His hobbies include: swimming, running, cycling and weekend bbqs.  Lets laugh together.