Efficiency and Effectiveness Are Not Mutually Exclusive: It Takes A&A Leadership

Transcription

1 Efficiency and Effectiveness Are Not Mutually Exclusive: It Takes A&A Leadership Presented by Alan W. Anderson, CPA 1

2 Session Outline The Audit Dilemma Audits Past, Present and Future Audit Leadership Quality Relevance Innovation Business Mindedness Empowerment Conclusion Questions

3 The Audit Dilemma

4 What is Getting in the Way of Success: Discuss Do you feel your audit approach may be over-implemented in certain areas? How well do you add value to the client based upon the audit? What is the goal of the audit?

5 The True Audit Dilemma Do your audits have enough checklists??

6 Standard Approach For Audit All areas are equal risk Cannot assume any level of risk except for high Cannot assume any level of client complexity Auditor skill sets all equal Cannot assume any level of team proficiency Errs on the side of inclusion rather than exclusion Auditor modifies for risk, complexity, skills This results in over-auditing many clients

7 At YOUR Firm Have you developed an industry specific approach? Do you leverage those with industry & client knowledge? Do you streamline to eliminate redundancy? Is training focused on improving processes, not just new rules or standards? Are you constantly striving to improve processes?

8 Audits-Past The Age of Simplicity 8

9 Audit - Past Pre-modern: Technology: Pencil and paper Planning: Gather only the info needed Mindful: Thought about the business and the bottom line Efficiency: Time didn t matter but clients did 9

10 Audit - Past Coming of age: Technology: Copy machines proliferate Planning: Why not copy that memo from last year? Mindless: Fill in the blanks Efficiency: Chargeable hours, less and less contact with client 10

11 Current State of Audit Age of Technology 2

12 The For Dummies Era Tech: A computer in every cubicle Planning: As forms become the norm, checklists take over thinking ahead Mindset: Dull, robotic, brain-free Efficiency: Texting replaces talking, client relationships take too much time 12

13 The For Dummies Era RESULT: Replicated the paper world Wonder about return on technology investment No one even knows the bottom line on their last audit 13

14 Audits-Future State The Age of audit rebirth Or not 14

15 Audit Trek: The Next Generation Tech: We re In the cloud! Planning: But we re back to paper and pencil o Research shows the act of writing improves memory and achieving goals Mindful: Auditing smarts yields fewer forms, smarter decisions, better results Efficiency: Delivering the goods in a way that adds value to the numbers 15

16 Audit Trek: The Next Generation RESULT: Happier client, increased business, looking forward to hitting the books on Monday morning! An audit rebirth where client sees value It will take strong and effective audit leadership 16

17 Audit Leadership Five Crucial Attributes; 1. Quality 2. Relevance 3. Innovation 4. Business mindedness 5. Empowerment 17

18 Play the Blame Game? Accuse the staff of lack of motivation? Trained to fill out forms not empowered to think What s our value when you can audit around the computer? Leadership needs to create change o o o o Empower staff to think Teach staff how to plan their audit Fight the form/make thinking the norm Create a culture of connection in the office and with clients 18

19 Take Charge of Your Future Embrace technology by leveraging what it can help us do, not what it lets us do Rule out rule-driven leadership Replace the forms police with educators who can teach the art and science of the audit Connect with clients by understanding their industry, talking about business, and understanding their goals 19

20 Take Charge of Your Future RESULT: An audit with added value! 20

21 Quality 21

22 Qualifications for Quality Control Relying on your QC expert means the auditors abdicates responsibility for quality assurance Staff needs to know the standards not by form but by understanding what they are intended to do What s their impact? Free-for-all discussions to stimulate thinking 22

23 Qualifications for Quality Control Active learning sessions: o Role play o Plain paper exercise o Meet a client with a staff member o Make leadership into mentorship o Question of the week contest (with prizes) o Get them to think whatever way you can o Challenge yourself to think! 23

24 Qualifications for Quality Control RESULT: A staff that asks questions Interacts with each other and with clients Abandons SALY by thinking and planning Leverages the audit information to help clients plan effectively for their financial future 24

25 Relevance 4

26 Regenerate Relevance Make yourself indispensable by offering sound business advice Do your homework about your client s industry Make schmooze time off the clock and it will create a client who needs you Get out of the back office and into the trenches talk to the sales manager, the production manager, the warehouse worker, the admin staff and verify information from multiple sources 26

27 Regenerate Relevance Help your clients make the right decisions by reflecting on the business effect of financial decisions Understand the standards such that you can explain why they matter to your clients Don t be afraid to live in the gray; black and white is overrated Deliver what you claim on your website: this is a checklist of items that matter 27

28 Regenerate Relevance RESULT: The more relevant your advice, the more likely you ll retain clients, and the more YOU LL feel relevant in a profession that is creating its own irrelevance 28

29 Innovation 29

30 Change Takes ore than talk Technology: You control it; don t let it control you Planning: Lose the FIFO and SALY mentality. Start with a blank piece of paper to plan how you re going to audit THIS company THIS year 30

31 Change Takes More Than Talk Mindset: Flexible, quick on your feet, out of the box thinking, maintaining a vision of your ultimate goals Efficiency: It s built into the right planning process, the best use of technology, and a successful delivery of the audit on time, and with the nuances that make it invaluable 31

32 Change Takes More Than Talk RESULT: A well-thought through plan will yield an efficient use of time to get the information you need, from the people who have it, without lowering fees or compromising quality 32

33 Business Mindedness 33

34 The Bottom Line Bring back the thinking auditor: Use business expertise to advise clients to improve profitability Net collected rate versus fee realization Remember: Decisions are not always black and white. Get comfortable in the gray. 34

35 The Bottom Line Function over form: The quality of an audit is not measured by the number of rules you follow Don t compromise our professional standards, but don t lose sight of the forest for the trees 35

36 Empowerment 36

37 Powering Forward Empower your staff: Provide education and experience-based learning Empower your clients: Interpret their business practices and advise how to improve them 37

38 Powering Forward Empower leadership: Find a vision that uses next generation tools TODAY Empower your firm: Provide the value you guarantee on your website and you ll not only retain clients, but get new ones 38

39 How Will We Leave Our Profession to the Next Generation? 39

40 Conclusion Its time for Efficiency and Effectiveness to work together It will take leadership Are you willing to do what it takes? 40

41 Thanks for Your Time! Alan Anderson, CPA m

42 Questions? 42

43 Alan Anderson, CPA ACCOUNT-ability Plus, LLC