The 2020s are here and with them come the reality of a whole new decade ahead of us. Like most companies, we think of what that means to the business – new hiring, new strategies, and new challenges.
We would love for it be another prosperous
“Roaring 20s” like the decade the U.S. experienced in the 20th century. (Hopefully, minus the stock market crash, raccoon coats and flagpole sitting) However, no business can experience such success without a plan.
What goals should be set? The answer is often financial in nature, but there are more complex objectives than simply profit and revenue. Understanding historical patterns of sales cycles, cash flow, manpower and so much more go into long-term planning. Accordingly, Accounting and Finance roles have morphed from simply crunching the numbers to adding key strategic value to a company’s direction.
Financial and operational leaders need to be able to articulate business data and help plan for and present possible outcomes and challenges. Having the best tools, processes, and systems in the world won’t matter if the right people aren’t in the right seats.
So, who are the right people for the right seats? For many, the answer is very subjective as each firm’s specific needs and goals are the driving force behind it. At VALiNTRYcpa, we believe someone not only has to have the experience, attitude, work ethic, and critical thinking skills to be a team player but fit also well within a company’s or team’s unique culture. For example, sometimes a number whiz can’t communicate data to others effectively. Sometimes, a team leader is more strategic than technical. What talent gaps could you possibly fill for your new employer? If you’re not sure, VALiNTRYcpa can help you discover them and create a plan for career success.
A Career Success Plan can include
- Decide on employee bonus payments (if applicable)
- Analyze the health of the firm by reviewing your Key Performance Indicators like Year over Year comparisons of your balance sheet, income statement, and P&L
- Examine your monthly/weekly cash reports to understand how your cash flow changes and identify patterns.
- Review insurance policies, vendor agreements and other contracts
- Create Shareholder/ Investor briefings based on your financial data
- Review your goals for the year. What did you achieve? If you missed on any targets, conduct a root cause analysis of where you could improve.
- Talk with other business leaders in the industry and the local market about social, technical and other business trends they are expecting.
- And make SMART goals (Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant and Timely)for next year, and if applicable the next several years.
By setting those long term, SMART goals, you will be able to envision and plan smaller tasks that you can achieve in the near future that will keep you focused, and will add up to your larger goals over time. Best-selling author and time management pioneer, Alan Lakein said it best in his book, How to Get Control of Your Time and Your Life: “Planning is bringing the future into the present so that you can do something about it now.”
Although many organizations do some of these things throughout the year, the end-of-year is often a much heavier load than other times so you need to have a good system to ensure you can get this done with minimal impact on normal business operations. If you work with the government, operate internationally, have a charitable organization, or multiple locations with different operating locations it can become even more complex.
Financial Career Future Planning Series
VALiNTRYcpa helps public accounting firms of all sizes find the best talent who can help them answer important questions that bridge a client’s historical performance with future planning. We focus not only on hard skills but also on personality and culture fit to ensure CPA candidates are truly the right people in the right seats. With this program, we’ll be using our blog to discuss some of the top challenges that companies can expect to face in the next decade and how, as a CPA looking for your next role, you can leverage that information to stand out during the interview process.
We’ll cover topics such as the correlation between Data Modeling and Financial Forecasting; How to Make Yourself the CPA of the Future, How Disruptive and Transformative Technologies Will Affect Your Business: (Blockchain, Virtual Reality, Internet-of-Things (IoT) and What to Expect When Your Projecting, and the Top Tax Changes Tax Seniors, Tax Managers & Auditors Must Know About.
We hope these blogs are interesting and informative, but also help you get ready to leap into your next CPA job as this next decade evolves. Don’t wait until you are already behind the power curve… Reach out to our VALiNTRYcpa recruiting team and get your job search rolling today!
If you are actively looking for a change, or are just curious about potential possibilities, we at VALiNTRYcpa are here to help you. We are one of the top CPA staffing agencies in the U.S. and we pride ourselves on being more than just an accounting job board. Our team of experienced headhunters walk you through every step of the job search process from resume development, candidate marketing, interview prep, and offer negotiation with our personalized, individual attention, for CPA job seekers at all levels. With over 400 organizations under contract nationwide, including the Big 4, we can help you find your dream job! So what are you waiting for? Contact VALiNTRYcpa today to get started!