Last fall we quietly rolled out The CPA Technology Advisor Productivity Survey. The web-based questionnaire requires firms to invest time (about 30 minutes) to answer a series of questions relative to their technology and business practices. The questions and their scoring weights were derived in cooperation with some of the professions’ most respected thought leaders. The survey’s outcome is the Productivity Score(TM), sponsored by Selden Integrated Systems.. Hundreds of firms have completed the survey and have received their detailed narrative report suggesting possible areas of improvement. Later this year we will begin reporting comparative data based on location and also on firm size. The possible scores range from -400 to +600, although no scores under 150 are reported. Since the scores are based on a “best practices” standard, scores over 450 are unlikely while scores from 150 to 300 are common-place. To date the firms that have completed the Productivity Survey have a normalized average of 169. Considering the 1,000 point possible spread that 169 score places the average firm at about the 57th percentile – or, not surprisingly, slightly above the mid-point. The important thing is that you finally have a benchmarking device that can be utilized on your schedule (you’re eligible three times each year). In addition to an ongoing internal score you’ll also have ready comparisons to your colleagues and competitors. In other words ---- we’ve provided you both a compass AND a road map!
Enjoy!
gll
