CPA Explains How to Improve Workflow During Lockdown

by GruntWorx

Running a successful accounting practice requires carefully considering how you organize workflow. When it comes to preparing client tax returns, having an efficient system for managing document exchange, organization, and processing can dictate whether your filing season becomes a nightmare. Some of the most battle-hardened workflows buckled under the strain of having to unexpectedly implement social distancing and work-from-home policies during the pandemic. But not everyone struggled.

Johnson Financial, Inc., thrived in 2020, so we asked Logan Johnson, CPA, how the practice he and his father run was able to maintain an efficient workflow despite the challenges of the pandemic. Logan says they were lucky to already have systems in place, but the Johnsons began laying the groundwork years earlier when looking for a better way to handle document organization. Their experience might help other accounting and tax practices improve their workflow in an age of telework and serving remote clients.

How can having a poorly organized tax office affect your profitability?

“When we first opened, we kept all of our clients’ tax documents in manila folders and stored them in filing cabinets,” Logan said. “When the next tax season came along, we were forced to put those folders into bankers boxes and keep them in a large storage room. Having to track down a document—even if it’s only a few minutes—takes time that can be better spent doing something productive that adds to the bottom line.” If rows of metal filing cabinets sounds familiar, then you probably have similar treasure-hunting stories.

The frustration over wasted time and money ultimately led the Johnsons to look for a solution to their problem. While this quintessentially analogue bottleneck is completely avoidable in a digital world, not all workflow products are created equally.

“At first, we had an expensive, cumbersome document management software that, honestly, was not much better than having paper files in a metal cabinet,” Logan explained. “We moved on from that software and discovered GruntWorx, which let us more effectively use our tax prep software-provided document manager.”

How does tax automation improve document organization?

Most tax automation products are based on Optical Character Recognition (OCR) technology, which “reads” text on images. Specific to document organization, the cloud-based GruntWorx Organize and Organize LITE products read the text on scanned client tax documents to create a single, searchable PDF that is bookmarked in the order of a 1040 return; when the process is complete, users simply download the files from their web-based account interface. The Johnsons immediately saw the benefit of using uniformly organized output in their workflow.

“Since GruntWorx returns a PDF that is bookmarked the same way every single time, we were able to access client data quickly and reliably—it really has changed our entire process,” Logan said. “GruntWorx even helped us clear the biggest organizational hurdle of the pandemic: clients submitting various documents to us over a period of time. Being able to add newly scanned documents to an established, bookmarked PDF two days or two months after receiving the initial information has been incredibly helpful. At the end of the day we are still looking at one PDF of organized client data instead of having a folder full of PDFs based on the date the client submitted the data.”

Some document organization applications are designed as standalone solutions. GruntWorx directly integrates with most professional tax preparation packages and uses common file types, like XLS and PDF, so the Johnsons were able to easily use it with their cloud-based tax preparation and document exchange services—effectively creating a custom remote-work suite:

• Receive scanned client documents from the secure, online file exchange platform

• Convert scanned documents into a single, uniformly bookmarked PDF with GruntWorx Organize

• Prepare client returns using cloud-hosted tax preparation software

• Send returns back to clients for review and electronic signature

Whether needing to build a telework setup or improve the efficiency and flexibility of your practice, OCR-based tax automation software can help you build a successful workflow. Since GruntWorx also automates data entry for Forms 1040 and consolidated brokerage statements, you can cut even more time spent preparing returns.

How do I choose the right tax-automation solution?

Logan’s advice for adding any product for your accounting practice is straightforward: “Investing money into technology can make you more efficient and capable of providing great service to your clients, especially when dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic. So, take the time to find solutions that truly fit your practice. GruntWorx improved our overall organization and workflow by providing us with a consistent product that is easy to navigate. Since everyone deals with PDFs on a regular basis, having each client’s data in a searchable, bookmarked PDF has really helped us efficiently complete returns.”

The Johnsons’ experience highlights how important it is to know whether a product delivers on its promises. Hands-on experience is an invaluable way to avoid the misfortune of software conflicts and workflow hiccups. To ensure a smooth rollout, GruntWorx offers free software trials and webinar demonstrations, and included during the onboarding process, account managers teach you to use Organize, Populate, and Trades with your tax preparation software.

To learn more about GruntWorx products or to sign up for a free trial, visit GruntWorx.com.