Cloud-based expert solutions help firm achieve peak performance.
The next installment in the Wolters Kluwer Tax & Accounting series showcasing future-ready firms that are achieving peak performance by embracing digital transformation features 1-800Accountant, a virtual firm founded with the mission to make accounting and taxes easy and affordable for individuals and small businesses. By leveraging the latest tax & accounting technology solutions, the firm offers customers bookkeeping, payroll, and tax services across 50 states in a format that is modern and works the way today’s young entrepreneurs expect it to.
“With over 200,000 SMB customers, we believe 1-800Accountant is the largest virtual accounting firm in the country. For a lot of them, this is the first business they've ever had,” said Ermal Kukaj, Senior Tax and Advisory Manager at 1-800Accountant. “Most of our clients, I would say are between the ages of 25 and 35. Most love technology and they actually want more of it to make their lives easier. They want to be able to do as little work as possible. And what I mean by that is, less repetitive work.”
1-800Accountant knew that as their client base grew exponentially, they had to stay on the cutting edge of technology to ensure the quality of service being delivered continued to be industry-leading. Hard to scale, the firm’s previous on-premise solution relied heavily on manual entry and limited their ability to attract top talent outside of their main office locations. After exploring several options, the firm chose to migrate from on-premise software to the fully integrated cloud-based CCH Axcess™ Tax and CCH® ProSystem fx® Scan with AutoFlow Technology solutions from Wolters Kluwer.
“We actually looked at everything after the October 15 tax filing deadline and our time spent on each business income tax return was reduced by an average of 47 minutes, which was a significant increase in productivity just because we were able to do so much integration,” adds Kukaj.
“One of the biggest selling points in choosing CCH Axcess Tax was the fact that it is cloud-based. As our company continues to grow we expect to see a shift into more enterprise clients, clients that have revenue in the millions of dollars across multiple states, and who are located throughout the US and the world,” explains Kukaj. “We wanted a solution that would be able to grow with us instead of switching tax software every five years.”
CCH Axcess is built around a common client database that features an Open Integration Platform with common APIs, which enable firms to integrate existing systems and leverage the common database to seamlessly support their entire end-to-end digital tax workflow process.
CCH ProSystem fx Scan with AutoFlow Technology is a cloud-based solution fully integrated with CCH Axcess Tax that makes organizing client source documents and preparing paperless Forms 1040 and 1041 quick and easy. It automatically imports unsorted client information, determines what each item is, and outputs the documents into a single, organized & bookmarked PDF file. AutoFlow Technology automatically extracts data from 1040 and 1041 client source documents and imports it directly into the tax return, streamlining the tax workflow by removing time consuming manual entry.
“Today, clients expect to get more value from their tax and accounting professionals. Firms need to fully embrace digital transformation and modernize so they can continue to attract top talent, deliver modern client experiences, and build more efficient workflows that drive higher productivity,” said Jim McGinnis, EVP and General Manager, US Professional Market, Wolters Kluwer Tax and Accounting North America. “They need the right technology partner. One that continues to invest in development and infuses innovation into the daily workflows in ways that are most meaningful to the accounting professionals and their clients.”
Watch this short video to learn more about why 1-800Accountant chose the award-winning CCH Axcess platform to be more efficient, increase staff productivity, and strike the right work/life balance for its employees. Hear additional stories from firms that are achieving peak performance with proven solutions from Wolters Kluwer.
