Client Accounting Services (CAS) practices are taking off in a big way, and it's been one of the fastest growing accounting sectors over the last few years. However, there is certainly some careful consideration necessary before launching your own practice.
Kane Polakoff, practice leader of UHY's client accounting advisory services (CAAS) practice, recommends taking a measured approach and to first look internally when developing the menu of CAS services.
“I understand the desire for firms to make a big splash at launch by offering a full suite of services, from transaction services up to CFO-level services, but that is a challenging approach. You want to do an assessment internally first and figure out what services make the most sense for your firm. What skill sets do you already have or could develop relatively quickly? How much capacity does the team have? Are there specific industries where you already have expertise that could be an opportunity to test your services?” said Polakoff. “I recommend dipping your toe in first at the transactional level and getting good at those core services before adding advisory services. The same thing with industries: Don’t go out and try to be everything to everyone on day one. If you focus on industries where you have relation-ships and expertise, you already speak the same language and are more likely to succeed.”
Polakoff spearheaded the creation of the firm’s CAAS practice in July 2019 to help centralize and standardize processes and technology across its offices throughout the country. The CAAS practice welcomed its first client in November 2019, just months before the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. Today, the CAAS practice can digitally transform the client’s back office and provides a host of value-added services, including:
- CFO and controller services
- Financial statement preparation and advisory services
- Technology solution deployment
- Accounts payable and accounts receivable services
- Reconciliations (e.g. bank, credit card)
- Sales tax filing and management
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