The Smart Shift in Accounting - Inside Issue 10 of The Outsource Insider
Welcome to “The Outsource Insider”, dispatched to you biweekly by Finsmart Accounting, where we share insights, resources, and a little fun - designed for firms to grow with offshore talent.
🧩 THE BIG SHIFT
Why Fast-Growing Firms Break Before They Scale
“We’re growing fast… but everything feels harder.”
This is a common feeling that growing accounting firms face every day.
More clients = more chaos.
More team members = more confusion.
More revenue = somehow, more pressure.
It’s not a failure. It’s physics.
Growing firms break because the systems they have built aren’t designed to handle the post-growth reality. This is what we call:
But the reality is harsh. In reality, there are:
Unclear processes
Scattered responsibilities
Founders who are doing a whole lot and not getting the time or life they desire
Inefficient onboarding
Reactive client management
The good news is when things break, it’s a sign your firm is ready for the next stage — not that you did something wrong.
The shift you need is:
Stop fixing fires. Start rebuilding foundations.
Scaling isn’t about hiring more. It’s about rethinking how work happens.
📌 THE CHANGING TREND
The norm of “doing more in-house” is fading — fast.
Accounting, although, is an integral part of any business, the discrepancies and challenges across the industry continue to linger, leading to the persistent shortage of the right talent.
Despite the debate around the 80-hour work week, accountants are still clocking in for 60-80 hours, especially during the busy season. This is one of the key reasons for burnout. (https://ln.run/d6_5F)
80% of tax and audit professionals are working 51+ hours a week, yet have unpredictable workflows, leading to stress.
Burnout is now among the top 3 reasons why accountants quit. This is a leadership problem. (https://ln.run/OrYlA)
Stress peaks when teams are compelled to work with unclear processes and poor documentation(https://ln.run/_G6dC)
The assumption that “pressure = productivity” is outdated. Unlike boomers or even millennials, the new generation wants clarity, not chaos.
This rising need to break out from patterns that lead to burnout gives rise to offshoring, where you get access to plug-and-play, English-speaking talent. This allows the firm owners to focus on more strategic work, while the operational jobs are being taken care of.
The more the business leaders and firm owners acknowledge this and become ready to make the shift, the better they can handle talent and retain them effortlessly.
Want to know more about the state of accounting and what can change the future? Here’s an interesting take: https://23224411.fs1.hubspotusercontent-na2.net/hubfs/23224411/The%20State%20of%20Accounting%202024-1.pdf?utm_source=Google&utm_medium=newsletter&utm_campaign=Promotion
🛠️ THE PRACTICE BUILDER
The “5-Minute Expectations Reset” (Try this to reduce the holiday season stress)
The holiday season is exciting for all of us. But when even the changing weather of fall, pumpkin spice latte, and holiday season decorations don’t compel that one client to leave you alone, you need to take charge.
Here’s what we want you to do this week.
Pick that one client who’s constantly stretching you.
Send a short email that says:
“To make sure we are aligned and everything moves smoothly, here’s how we’ll handle delivery and communication going forward…”
Proceed with outlining:
Response time
Document turnaround timeline
Tools you will use
Review cadence
Who handles what
This will take 5 minutes of your time, but it will save you 5 hours of unnecessary back-and-forth every week.
Don’t forget to let us know how it works out!
🎧 FROM THE SMART OUTSOURCING UNIVERSE
“Accounting and creativity are two very different dimensions. How do you blend it? It’s not easy! The right brain and the left brain don’t like to work in community. They have conflicting views.”
Accounting has always been considered a boring profession, and that is one of the key reasons that the new generation, despite having an accounting degree, is steering away from it. But this conversation between Scotty Scarano, President at Padgett NC & a rapper, and Maanoj Shah, Offshoring expert and Co-Founder & Director at Finsmart Accounting, showcased that it all depends on how we perceive a profession.
Scotty has moved away from traditional accounting. He has a team that looks after the technical part. Scotty has been focused on building a workspace, a culture that, when clients look for a fun accountant, he emerges as the one. He also ensures his team, a part of which is offshored and the other part is based in-house, has fun constantly when working.
Curious to know how Scotty has been doing it for all these years? Watch the complete conversation:
🌍 A FINSMART POV
At Finsmart, we have worked with about 70+ accounting firm owners, serving about 300+ clients. And over the years, if there has been one thing they have struggled with consistently is streamlining their workflows.
Some of the common challenges they face include:
Lack of SOPs, which leads to struggles in handing over work or training a new member, in-house or offshore
Lack of documented processes, streamlined communication channels
Lack of visibility, accountability, and task management
Lack of efficiency and lost time
Client friction and delays in onboarding
We wanted to help ease these daily struggles. And that is why we present to you a downloadable workflow template that will help make things easy from Day 1.
DOWNLOAD THE CUSTOMIZABLE WORKFLOW TEMPLATE HERE
The Smart Shift is simple:
Better systems + better distribution of work = better firms.
If offshoring is part of the next step you’re considering, we share real playbooks, not theories.
👉 Stay tuned for the next issue — it might have the solution just for the challenge you are looking for!
Happy Thanksgiving in advance, and we will see you next time!