Small Firms: Prospering Through Shared Resources
Obstacles faced by small firms can seem endless at times to firms that deal with them alone. Going paperless, planning strategically, training/retaining good people, and technology management are just a few of the issues that most accounting firms deal with regularly. For small firms these issues can cripple productivity if not addressed correctly.
Many times in firms with only 2 or 3 partners, people wear many hats. Almost everyday I speak with partners from small firms that must split time between revenue producing client work and any number of other projects. They don't have the team to delegate these non-revenue producing projects to. Certainly this happens in large firms also, but small firms run into problems when too much time is devoted to these other projects. This seems to be especially true when it comes to technology related projects.
There are many instances where small firms have 3 or 4 major initiatives in the works on top of regular business. They are struggling because they don't have enough people to address the time-consuming tasks such as research and planning. When this is the case, I always ask the firm if they have a peer group or association they can turn to for help. Firms will answer that they belong to one group or another. The problem is that many times these groups don't provide the strong networking or valuable resources for true improvement. This is why Boomer Consulting, Inc. created the Boomer Technology Circle ™ for Small Firms . It is a place for these firms to meet with a peer group to address issues they are all facing. They are able to help each other come up with workable solutions that help all firms involved.
The Circle for Small Firms is not for every firm and we don't try to make it that way. I would recommend that small firms research the peer networking opportunities that are available. Utilizing a peer network or association such as the Boomer Technology Circles ™ helps small firms face issues with help and support. Small firms should not spend time reinventing the wheel. Instead, firms in strong peer networks are able to spend more time on revenue production and client service.