What is Outsourcing?

As the accounting industry navigates a worsening talent shortage, many forward-thinking firms are redefining their approach to talent management. To attract and retain talent, managing partners are embracing new trends like hybrid work culture and rethinking the way their firm’s recruitment processes are managed. 

In addition to these steps, savvy firm leaders are also revisiting the role outsourcing has to play in their businesses. Today, the practice of outsourcing is growing ever more popular in all kinds of professional services industries, and accounting is no different. 

But the way firms are outsourcing work today is markedly different from what outsourcing practices looked like even just a few years ago. Today, leading firms are outsourcing all kinds of accounting and advisory tasks. With the right approach, it’s a strategy that can be a force multiplier for your firm’s output. 

So, what exactly does outsourcing look like today, and how can your firm benefit from it? I recently sat down with Bruce Ditman, Chief Growth Strategist at Trigger, a global outsourcing firm, to learn more about how outsourcing enables accounting firms to turbocharge their practice growth. 

Watch the highlights of my interview with Bruce on YouTube, or alternatively read on for a full breakdown. 

Outsourcing Today: A Revitalized Practice

In the past, outsourcing was a volume-driven process. Firms would outsource large quantities of time-consuming, manual tasks, freeing their internal accounting staff up to focus on more important client activities. Tasks like data entry were good candidates for offshore professionals to work on, but many firms were hesitant to outsource more technical projects.

Today, outsourcing has been reinvented and now represents a fantastic solution to the talent shortage solution that many accounting firms are facing. 

With the growth of Client Accounting Services (CAS), businesses are becoming more comfortable with outsourcing their accounting needs. That opens up a world of possibilities for accounting firms to outsource a wide variety of tasks to offshore vendors. 

A sample of the tasks that can be outsourced include:

• Data analysis for audits
• Tax services including tax preparation and data analysis
• Transaction advisory
• Virtual CFO and advisory services
• Outsourced accounting services including monthly close processes, financial reporting, and bookkeeping

As you explore outsourcing these tasks, it’s imperative you find an outsourcing partner you trust. 

At Winding River Consulting, we partner closely with Bruce’s firm, Trigger, a South Africa-based global outsourcing partner with a commitment to delivering exceptional quality on every engagement. 

Trigger provides accounting firms with experienced, qualified talent that enables firms to multiply their production without any of the complexities or costs associated with hiring full-time employees. Learn more about outsourcing accounting tasks with Trigger. 

Outsourcing: The New Growth Driver

Outsourcing is no longer just a solution to capacity issues––it’s a new growth driver for innovative firms ready to seize the opportunity that lies in front of them. There’s a whole world of sophisticated accounting professionals out there, and it’s simpler than ever before to hire proven talent dedicated to serving the needs of your clients. 

Outsourcing partners now serve as strategic partners––advisors you can lean on as you build the future growth strategy of your firm. As you shape your strategy, the support of proven accounting leaders is invaluable. 

At Winding River Consulting, our team has decades of experience in leadership positions at top accounting firms. We bring a data-driven approach to help firms navigate strategic challenges ranging from talent management to digital transformations. Our approach to firm strategy helps managing partners make the right decisions for the long-term future of their firm.  

Interested in working with us to redesign your firm’s strategy? Contact us today.