Are Your Processes Ready for Busy Season?

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Editor's Note: This article is from our new publication, Tax Practice News. A news source for the tax preparer; to help get your firm into good habits, efficient workflow procedures and help with the overall success of your firm. Subscribe to this weekly publication, here.

It is time, but are you ready? We have been working on our tax season process for the last 3-4 months taking time to reflect on the prior tax year and extension season. I fully believe that clients will work with you the way you want them to work with you. After all, we are the professionals. Our workflow has proven to be the most efficient and productive workflow we have ever experienced - and this didn’t happen overnight. 

You MUST be purposeful with the time you invest in your business developing a solid tax season work flow. Two and a half months is not a lot of time to prepare hundreds or thousands of tax returns. With a solid workflow, you have the potential to prepare 85% of your returns on time and minimize your exposure to extensions. Who wouldn’t want tax season to be over on April 17th? I know that extensions are simply a burden to a tax preparer. Unless, of course, that is the only service you provide.

I am going to share with you our basic workflow. I will be publishing a small tax practitioner guide to a solid workflow in the coming weeks. In the meantime, here is our process for Individual 1040’s:

Administrative Team

  • Email Engagement Package from RightSignature to client (includes Engagement Letter, Organizer, Form Price List and Payment Authorization Form
  • Receives the signed engagement package and uploads to SmartVault in the appropriate Firm Source Documents folder
  • Updates QBO: Adds client or updates existing client information from the Organizer including name(s), addresses, phone number, email addresses, payment and billing information
  • Updates practice management software (Karbon) if necessary: Adds client or updates existing client information from the Organizer including name(s), addresses, phone number, and email addresses
  • All Admin tasks are marked complete and Karbon automatically shifts the tasks to the Tax Preparation Team.

Tax Preparation Team

  • Research property tax payments made during the applicable tax year.
  • Double check filing status and resident state from Organizer
  • Verify all applicable forms are received
  • Upload to GruntWorx for organization and population into tax software
  • Enter any of their data that is not populated by GruntWorx such as contributions, etc.
  • Final review of return and print to SmartVault
  • Copy of return sent to client via SmartVault
  • Form 8879 sent to client via DocuSign with Envelope and KBA.

Administrative Team

  • Monitors receipt and signature of Form 8879 by client
  • Upon return of signed 8879, process payment in QBO and send receipt to client

Tax Preparation Team

  • Federal and State returns e-filed

Administrative Team

  • Prints e-file acceptance letter to SmartVault
  • Marks the wrk completed in Karbon.

This workflow includes the entire team, and everyone is assigned their tasks within Karbon.  The use of automators in Karbon and the ability to email within a work are two amazing tools that we have mastered over the last 6 months. Wishing every one of you a successful 2019 Tax Season!

Fight Against Fraud will have this process and the engagement letters, organizers, pricing list, and payment authorization form for sale on www.fightagainstfraud.com by Wednesday, January 23rd.  Use code TPN to get $25.00 off the sale price.  Go check it out.

Author Bio: Dawn W. Brolin is a Certified Public Accountant, Certified Fraud Examiner, and CEO of Powerful Accounting, LLC, a nationally recognized accounting, tax, forensic and fraud, IRS Representation as well as a QuickBooks consulting firm.  Dawn’s list of professional accomplishments is extensive and includes speaking and consulting for prestigious companies.  Named “Top 25 Most Powerful Women in Accounting” 2012-2017 by CPA Practice Advisor, a “Top 10 Managing Partner Elite – Great Accounting Firm Leader” in 2017 by Accounting Today, and selected as a “Top 40 Under 40” by CPA Technology Magazine.