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Client Advisory Services (CAS) has quickly become one of the most valuable offerings in accounting firms, providing regular, high-level support that helps businesses thrive. For firms looking to launch or improve their CAS practices, it’s important to understand the core elements that can make or break success. We recently hosted a session featuring Michelle Welch and Christine Triantos of Infinite Advisors, who shared their expertise in navigating the complexities of CAS. The full session recording is available for you to see for yourself—and you should definitely check it out; there’s a lot of good information we didn’t write up here. But to get a flavor of what our experts dove into, read on!
Starting with the Right Clients
Michelle and Christine emphasized the importance of selecting the right clients when launching a CAS practice. Not all clients will be a good fit for advisory services, so it’s vital to focus on those who value financial reporting and can benefit from regular consultations. Converting every client into a CAS client isn’t going to be possible for most firms. Instead, focus on those who already demonstrate a need for financial insights or have complexity in their operations. Starting with clients who already have challenges such as cash flow issues or debt covenants can provide easy opportunities to offer valuable advisory services.
Defining Your Service Offering Clearly
A critical point Michelle and Christine made was to clearly define the services offered in your CAS practice. While advisory services are typically seen as complex, they argued that small steps can have a huge impact. For example, pointing out small variances in vendor pricing or identifying areas where clients could raise prices or cut costs can make a significant difference. It’s not about doing everything at once, but about starting with simple, manageable advisory conversations that add real value. Providing a clear monthly deliverable package that clients can easily review is key—this helps clients understand the value they’re receiving while reducing confusion and unnecessary questions.
Pricing Your Services
Pricing is one of the most common challenges when it comes to CAS, and Michelle and Christine shared several key insights here. First, they advocated for fixed fees rather than hourly billing. Hourly pricing can encourage clients to focus on how many hours you spend on tasks rather than the value they’re receiving. They also stressed the importance of scoping out every engagement properly so that your pricing reflects the actual work required. Breaking down pricing into clear categories for specific services can help clients understand what they’re paying for, reducing pushback and clarifying expectations.
To make sure your pricing is sustainable, it’s also crucial to know your firm’s margins. Don’t be afraid to assess your client base regularly, ensuring that low-margin clients are either moved off the books or brought in line with your pricing structure—this can be difficult, but it’s necessary. With the right pricing strategy in place, firms can improve profitability without overburdening staff or cutting into margins.
Using Technology to Improve Efficiency
Michelle and Christine highlighted the importance of leveraging technology in the CAS space. From workflow management tools to automated monthly financial packages, technology can help firms streamline operations and provide clients with real-time insights into their financials. Products like Karbon, QuickBooks Online, and Expensify were mentioned as critical components of an efficient CAS stack, along with tools like TPI and SAASANT for mass data imports and journal entries.
Tech integration isn’t just about improving internal processes—it’s about providing clients with seamless experiences. As Christine pointed out, avoiding manual processes and reducing the risk of errors should be a top priority. In fact, automated systems that push financial reporting packages with just the click of a button can save hours of manual work, letting your team focus on higher-value tasks like advisory.
Staff Training: The Key to Success
Building a successful CAS practice isn’t just about the right technology or pricing model; it’s also about having the right people. Michelle and Christine discussed the importance of creating a team with the right mindset and training. Not all bookkeepers will thrive in a CAS environment, as the work requires constant change and the ability to adopt new technologies.
The duo emphasized the importance of technical training, tech adoption, and leadership development as three separate, but interconnected, priorities. This includes upskilling your team in accounting principles as well as in how to effectively use your tech stack. Leadership coaching, they noted, is often an overlooked aspect, but it is just as essential for a firm to grow and adapt to the fast-evolving nature of CAS.
The key takeaway here is that while technical knowledge is important, the ability to communicate with clients and identify new advisory opportunities is what sets successful CAS teams apart. Michelle and Christine shared how they train their staff to not just execute tasks but to understand the meaning behind the data and spot trends that can drive client conversations forward.
Managing Capacity and Avoiding Overwhelm
Managing the capacity of your CAS team is another common challenge that firms face. When scaling a CAS practice, you want to avoid constantly hiring more staff and instead focus on efficiency. The team suggested using workflow management tools like Karbon to track capacity, manage deadlines, and ensure that team members are not overwhelmed by manual tasks.
They also advised that when you’re at full capacity, it might be time to say no to new clients—or at least price them in a way that reflects the capacity constraints of your team. Knowing when to stop is just as important as knowing when to push forward, and it’s essential to make smart decisions about the kinds (and numbers) of clients your firm can realistically service.
Creating a Culture of Change and Adaptation
Another key point made by Michelle and Christine was the need for a culture of constant improvement. With the rapid pace of change in both technology and client needs, a successful CAS practice must be able to adapt. This means that your team must be open to trying new tools, changing workflows, and continuously evolving. Leadership training and fostering a growth mindset are crucial for ensuring your team remains motivated and responsive to these changes.
Michelle shared a great example of how her firm actively involves staff in the selection of new tools and systems. By incentivizing team members to champion new technologies, the firm can foster a culture of innovation where everyone is invested in improving client service and operational efficiency.
Differentiating from Traditional Services: Is It Worth It?
One of the final points of discussion was whether CAS should be run as a separate business from the rest of the firm. While some firms have chosen to separate their CAS operations to avoid complications with guidance such as SSARS, Michelle and Christine shared that this may not be necessary. Regardless of whether CAS is its own entity or part of a larger firm, the core principles of risk mitigation and clear engagement terms still apply. As always, it’s about striking the right balance between specialization and integration.
Watch the Full Session for More Insights
Building a successful CAS practice is no easy feat, but with the right strategies and tools, it can be incredibly rewarding. Michelle and Christine’s session provided actionable insights on client selection, service delivery, pricing, staffing, technology, and workflow management.
If you want to dive deeper into these topics and learn more about how to make your CAS practice more efficient and profitable, we encourage you to watch the full session recording.
