MORE THAN A CPA: 5 APPROACHES FOR THE GROWING ENTREPRENEURIAL ACCOUNTANT

In an industry that is focused on the following order and minimizing risks, how can a Certified Professional Accountant go beyond the status quo?

If you ask us at Provision CPA, we honestly don’t consider ourselves just accountants. You could call us entrepreneurial accountants – we’re obsessed with solving business problems with financial solutions in a way that contributes to business growth and success. We tackle our work with certain approaches, and we believe that if other accountants can be inspired by our methods, the whole industry could shift for the better: better results for clients and a more fulfilling career for accountants.

These are five approaches that we believe all tax accountants should adopt in order to grow professionally and best serve their entrepreneur clients with indispensable value.??

1. SPEND TIME GETTING TO KNOW PEOPLE

Becoming a highly successful CPA requires that you understand that your work is more than manipulating figures and reconciling accounts. Rather, it is about addressing the pain points of your clients, walking with them through their deepest fears, and empathizing with their weaknesses and failures. It is about communicating solutions that answer their questions, restore their confidence, relieve their concerns, and improve their productivity.

Revealing one’s financials is one of the most vulnerable things a person can do. When a business owner opens up to us, it’s our job to act with empathy, build trust, and nurture a positive relationship.?

Putting people first is our watchword at?Provision CPA, a Vancouver-based taxation and accounting firm. For two decades, we have been doing accounting differently by breaking through the accountant’s stereotypes and creating a new normal for?Canadian entrepreneurs?with our team of entrepreneurial tax accountants and CPAs.

Our people-focused approach extends not only to our clients but our team, too. As the entrepreneur’s taxation and accounting firm, we understand that we can only make a difference in our clients’ lives and businesses when we play the game as a team. We work as a unit to reach common goals and milestones in our service delivery to clients.

2. SEEK OUT THE GREATER IMPACT BEYOND THE TASK

The entrepreneurial CPAs and tax accountants on our team agree that making an impact on the lives of our clients takes precedence over just wanting to get a task done. If you’re an accountant looking to stand out in the accounting profession, put your effort into connecting deeply and meaningfully with your clients and bringing a significant difference into their lives and businesses.

When we’re advising and offering a solution, we carefully consider the greater ramifications. How does a decision impact the business owner’s spouse or family? How might it impact their long-term succession plan? What will the impact of one decision be on future opportunities to grow and scale the business? The entrepreneurial accountant takes the approach of big-picture problem solving rather than checking the boxes. That’s how we make a difference.

We, ourselves, have and are currently living the entrepreneurial journey at Provision CPA as a small business. So, we’ve been in the shoes of most of our clients. That’s why, at Provision, we know that navigating the?complexities?of business in Vancouver, Canada, can be an uphill task with numerous obstacles. Our highly resourceful team of tax accountants and CPAs prize the value they bring into their jobs and the impact this translates to in the client’s business and personal life more than anything else. More importantly, the ripple effects of client satisfaction on Canada’s economy are huge, unprecedented, and invaluable.

3. GET COMFORTABLE EXPLORING THE UNKNOWN

Entrepreneurs are known for doing whatever it takes to build their businesses. If you want to speak to them on their level, you must be willing to be flexible, resourceful, and creative in your tax and financial strategy. They put their blood, sweat, and tears into their companies and probably spend most waking moments thinking about how to make it better! If we can match their passion and take smart risks, we unlock new levels of potential.

Does that sound crazy and nothing like what your accounting firm partners have said in the past? Well, accountants are typically trained to see the world in black and white. We’re taught there are absolute rights and absolute wrongs. But the business world doesn’t work that way in reality. To go beyond what others may suggest, explore and get comfortable in the grey areas where new ideas can come to fruition in order to bring about maximum returns for your clients.

Provision is the only taxation and accounting firm in Canada that offer?bespoke services?for clients irrespective of the stage, size, and type of their businesses. Our desire is to help our clients overcome their specific hurdles and meet their unique needs, goals, and objectives.

4. TAKE THE INITIATIVE TO TRY (AND BE OK TO FAIL)

As a CPA, the way up is to take the initiative. Successful accountants have much more than a strong work ethic – they are creatives. They dare to take risks; they take the first step into the unknown and dare the impossible.

Say the thing that’s in your head in the meeting. Put it out there and demonstrate to your client and peers that you’re actively engaged in solving the problem at hand and not afraid to step up. Even if you say the wrong thing or the idea doesn’t work out, no one will dock you points for being an enthusiastic contributor. That’s the best way to try, fail, learn, and improve.

At Provision CPA, we are smart risk-takers. We strongly believe that though a ship is safe in the harbour, that is not where it is built for. We go all out and weather the storm, grab the bull by the horns, and get our hands dirty.

Taking the initiative has only one result, that is, more wins. By proactively taking the first step, we are better positioned to tackle our?clients’ problems, unlock more opportunities for growth for their businesses, and contribute in no small way to the nation’s economy.

To go far as an accountant, the ability to take the initiative is a must-have. It will help you act with agency, take ownership of your decisions, execute control over your outcomes, and accelerate your professional growth.

5. FIND YOUR COMMUNITY

The truth behind entrepreneurship is that we don’t know everything. It’s impossible to. Business owners seek out networks and mastermind groups to learn from each other and have a group to relate to in a way that no other group can. Why not do the same as an accountant?

Succeeding requires surrounding yourself with other entrepreneurial accountants who want the same as you – to change how accountants do things, make more of an impact, and break the boring stereotypes.

At Provision CPA, we play the game as a team and share our wins as a team. We invest in team development and training and provide plenty of coaching and mentorship. We’re able to work effectively from various remote locations because we’re united by a rallying vision – to give a shit about our clients and help Canadian entrepreneurs thrive.?

ARE YOU CONSIDERING A CAREER MOVE?

Work is more satisfying when it doesn’t feel like work. We believe this and work towards making our team feel excited about their jobs and colleagues. It’s not easy, but for a people-focused Vancouver accounting firm like ours, it’s the only way.?

Ours is an entrepreneurial accounting firm through and through. We thrive on the high-energy entrepreneurial spirit that is always on the ball to solve business problems for our clients and up-skilling as we go along. If you are a CPA with an entrepreneurial mindset, check out our?careers section?or?contact us?today.?