Xpitax News Articles
Tax Season Evaluation
You survived another tax season! You've celebrated with your staff, gotten reacquainted with your family, and hopefully taken a well needed and much deserved vacation! Before tax season is a distant memory or just around the corner again, take a little time to figure out what worked and what needs to be fixed!
To get the best feedback, ask each department to discuss their experience this year. You can do this in group meetings or through an anonymous questionnaire. There are web-based companies such as Zoomerrang.com that offers free surveys that can assist you. However, face to face meetings usually produce the best feedback along with creative solutions.
First, figure out what questions to ask and phrase them so they will draw out information. Use open ended questions: who, what, how, why, when, and please explain. Select specific areas that are important and leave some room for areas you might not have thought of. Ask each person in your firm; don't forget to include the administrative staff as they sometimes see the trees and not just the forest. Some areas to consider are:
- Processes - did the work flow from person to person or did the files get lost from office to office or from pile to pile? Did you have accurate information to manage the process?
- Client service - how many times did you get that dreaded call from your client asking where their return was? After frantically searching the office, how long did it take you to get back in touch with the client? Did you have all the information regarding each return in a well documented, organized system?
- Control - did you have control of the season or did it control you again? Could your administrator plan appropriately for support staff or did they show up each Saturday with nothing to do but order lunch (excluding the last couple of weeks in April where they work non-stop)?
- Bottlenecks - were you able to spot bottlenecks before they became major issues? Where were the biggest bottlenecks this year? Did you have enough bodies with the right expertise?
- Systems - were you able to get real time information to help you manage the season? Is technology available that would help manage the tax return process? Did your document management systems provide the expected efficiencies? What could be done to reach the expected ROI?
- Staffing - did you have enough trained staff to efficiently process all the work? Who do you need in place for next season? Should you consider part-time staff to help ease the stress? Have you considered outsourcing?
- Overall - Ask each level to evaluate what worked well for them and what didn't. How was staff morale this year? The perks you provided are sure to be highpoints but don't let your discussion lead to more perks and no improvements to the overall process of tax season.
When you ask your staff for feedback, make sure you require each "didn't work" statement to be followed with an idea how it can be improved. If your staff is part of the solution you can expect better buy-in to implement the improvements by February. Remember, "if you say it they can doubt it but, if they it say it's true." Empower your staff to fix what's not working optimally; you may be amazed at what they can do!
A word to the wise; don't ask for feedback unless you are committed to act on the recommendations. Nothing decreases morale more then asking for ideas/feedback and not acting on recommendations. Once you decide on a course of action, assign a Champion to lead the cause. The Champion has the responsibility of making everyone accountable for their task and to report to the firm the group's progress. Your group can work individually or in teams, whichever is appropriate for the task(s). Be sure to include due-dates and assign action items to each task. Regular meetings should be scheduled each week to keep everyone on track to accomplish the goal of a better tax season in 2006.
Ask now and plan ahead - summer is the perfect time to install the appropriate software, controls, and management back into tax season. Otherwise, be ready to live through the exact same horror show next February, March, and April!