Rethinking how accountants are paid

This week's newsletter serves up tough love, tech truths and a little heart.

We're questioning outdated pay policies, spotlighting why mentorship matters and calling out firms that sell automation while running on digital duct tape. Plus, we've got a Q&A on aligning finances with values.

Ready to rethink what growth really means? Let's dig in.

Typeform's solopreneur's guide to building a tech stack helps you decide which tools are essential to running your business and which are just bloat. 

Jason Staats, CPA, has 30 ChatGPT prompts to extract more value from meeting transcripts, and he's sharing them (free)! 

Karbon makes the case for ditching timesheets in favor of fixed-fee pricing and even includes a template to get you started. 

A longtime bookkeeper is accused of stealing from the estate of a beloved Florida Keys restaurateur after his death. A stark reminder to trust, but verify.

Putting the balance back in balance sheets

Most accountants and bookkeepers are trained to track dollars and cents. But what if we were also comfortable tracking alignment, purpose and peace of mind? 

Alana Heim, CPA/PFS, CFP and founder of Prosperity Alignment, believes accountants have a unique opportunity to help clients do more than save on taxes or grow revenue. In an interview with The Net Gains, Heim shared how professionals can expand their role to help clients (and themselves) live in greater alignment with their values. Spoiler: it starts with heart, not spreadsheets. –Janet Berry-Johnson

You help clients align their finances with their values and purpose—how can accountants and bookkeepers begin to have those deeper conversations without feeling like they’re stepping outside their lane?

Accountants are humans with big hearts! Move beyond the numbers and allow your clients to feel your deep, caring heart.

You may think, "What? How do I do that?" But it’s easy to begin a conversation by sharing your own values, what excites and inspires you and why you serve in your role. Ask your clients questions about their dreams. Speak with them just like you would a dear friend. Open yourself to be curious during your conversation. When you share from your heart, showing how much you care, your clients will lean in and feel more comfortable to do the same. Remember, you’re still in your lane—while expanding it to include the whole person behind the financial decisions, creating a more meaningful client relationship. 

Many accountants focus on helping clients grow revenue or save on taxes. How can we expand that definition of prosperity to include fulfillment, freedom and intentional choices?

Clients love to experience the results of more revenue and lower taxes, but why? Is it so they can brag to friends about how you helped them? Or is it what they’re able to create in their lives with those savings? Be eager to help clients measure prosperity not just in dollars, but in how aligned their spending is with their values, how present they are with loved ones and how their financial acumen supports their wellbeing. By connecting money to meaning, you transform accounting from transaction management to a method for creating happy clients who feel rich in all aspects of life.

For professionals who feel burned out or misaligned in their own practice, what are some first steps they can take to bring more purpose and clarity to their work?

If you feel like you’re in the grind, it’s time to pause, reflect and be honest with yourself. What do you love about your work and clients? What currently energizes you versus drains you? Sometimes it’s not just the mundane tasks that deplete us; it can be certain types of clients or projects. Reconnect with your own "why" for entering this profession. If something has shifted, align your heart and passion to the value you enjoy creating now. It’s important to apply the same holistic perspective to your own financial decisions that you share with clients.

What do you see as the future role of accountants in a world where money management is increasingly automated, but values-based guidance is more important than ever?

How wonderful that technology will support accountants with the mundane tasks! They’ll be more efficient and have more time to create meaningful relationships with clients. Imagine sitting with a client, digging deeper into the human elements influencing their life and finances. As AI handles calculations, you'll interpret what numbers reveal about a client's alignment with their deeper purpose. You'll become skilled at translating financial choices into life impact, creating safe spaces for authentic money conversations.

Your greatest value will be in helping clients see beyond financial concerns to create coherence between their resources and their values—work that no algorithm can replicate because it requires your human presence, intuition and heart.

Rethink overtime to retain rising talent

If you're having trouble hiring and retaining good people, it might be time to reexamine an old taboo: paying staff overtime.

With licensing delays, stagnant starting salaries and a shrinking talent pipeline, CPA firms may need to trade rigid classifications for more flexible (and fair) compensation models. But don't overlook the potential challenges, including legal gray areas, generational expectations and whether comp time cuts it anymore. 

Why this matters: What worked 20 years ago might be costing your firm its future leaders. Revisit your pay policies before your staff revisits their resumes. (The CPA Journal)

Mentors matter (and not just on paper)

In a heartening episode of the "She Counts" podcast, hosts Questian Telka, EA, and Nancy McClelland, CPA, shine a light on why mentorship isn't just a "nice to have," it's a game changer, especially for women in accounting. 

With only 19% of partners being women, the duo dives into the power of seeing someone who looks like you succeed, the emotional and neurological science behind mentorship and how to find mentors who actually align with your values. (Hint: it's not always about titles.)

Why this matters: Representation isn't just about diversity metrics. It's about belief. Mentors can be the mirrors that reflect someone's potential before they see it themselves. (She Counts)

 $5.4 trillion

Amount of assets expected to be under the management of family offices by 2030. (CNBC)

• Accountants reveal the software they actually like using
• Trump's tariff talk could overshadow future tax cuts
• AICPA supports some tax bills, side-eyes the rest
• This simple habit could seriously upgrade your leadership game
• Helping clients pick structures? It's time to charge accordingly

Digital plans, analog problems

Accounting firms may be talking the tech talk, but not all are walking the walk. According to a recent survey by CPA.com and BILL, 97% of firm leaders admitted they're not using technology efficiently despite the flashy promises to CFOs about automation, digital transformation and streamlined services.

While 73% of firms say they have a technology roadmap, many still can't make the most of the tools they already have. Even worse, only 37% require clients to use their tech stack, leading to poor integration, bottlenecks and messy data flows.

Why this matters: If your firm pitches automation but still duct-tapes systems together behind the scenes, CFOs will notice. Poor tech execution can undermine trust, slow collaboration and stall strategic progress. It's not enough to look tech savvy; you have to actually be tech savvy. (CFO)

The Net Gains is your one-stop shop for fresh, FREE accounting insights. You can reach the newsletter team at thenetgains@mynewsletter.co. We enjoy hearing from you.

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The Net Gains is curated and written by Janet Berry-Johnson and edited by Bianca Prieto.