Why Isn't My TaxDome Setup Working?
If you’ve been sitting there feeling extra frustrated with your TaxDome setup, and feel like it's just not working for your CPA firm, then this blog is for you.
Whether you’re struggling to get started, frustrated with your progress in preparation for tax season, or ready to throw your hands up in defeat, you’re not alone.
For the past nearly 20 years, we’ve been working in Accounting & Operations for large companies, our own accounting business, and now as consultants helping firms implement the operations that you need to survive in this day and age. We’ve worked with hundreds of firms over the years, and we know the exact challenges firms face, where they go wrong, and where they struggle in successfully adopting any software, especially TaxDome.
We’re writing this blog to answer those exact questions, and to help you figure out your next step. If you're an accounting firm owner or CPA who has invested in TaxDome and feels like it's not delivering what you hoped for, here’s what's actually going on and what to do about it.
Why isn’t my TaxDome setup working?
Your TaxDome setup consists of 3 phases. The first phase is getting the basics setup. These are your integrations, your settings, and getting your clients added in. If you’ve got this going then you’re off to a great start! The second phase is building your pipelines, and the 3rd is testing. We’ll explore the second two below, and explain where you may see issues.
Where we typically see the challenges start to pop up is in creating and utilizing the workflows (or pipelines) in TaxDome. Pipelines consist of a series of “automations” that are triggered based on actions taken either by the client, or by the firm. For example, you may have automated tasks that pop up that require an internal action to be taken in order to complete the task. Or, you may have an automation pop up that automatically sends an engagement letter to the client to be signed, or an invoice to be paid for example.
Many firms love the idea of automations, but tend to hold back in automating a lot of their workflow, and this is where we start to see the setup “not working.” It may not be that it’s not working, it may be that you aren’t fully utilizing the functionality, or even that the automations don’t have appropriate triggers. So here are a list of things to check or consider when auditing your pipelines and determining whether they are working properly:
Do you have an actual trigger in place? For example, if you have an email in a stage, but no other specific action that you or the client must take, there is no trigger to move this job to the next stage. Each stage MUST have a trigger that has to be completed before moving on. Triggers include actions such as: internal tasks, invoices to be paid, e-signature to be completed, organizer to be submitted, etc.
Is Automove turned on? In the pipeline setup, each stage must have automove turned on in order for the job to automatically move to the next stage upon completion of the trigger.
Are your conditions set up properly? Using conditional tags in your pipelines is a fantastic way to customize your workflows, but if you aren’t using them properly, they can cause all sorts of problems in your pipelines. Again, you have to ensure that ALL jobs will have a trigger that will help it move forward upon completion.
Are clients holding you up? Some triggers that require clients to take action may often delay the process. Setting automated reminders can help remind clients to take the necessary action. Communicating expectations clearly to clients about using the client portal and taking the action can also help move the action along.
Are all tasks being assigned? If you have internal tasks in your pipeline, you want to ensure you are adding assigned users to the templates themselves, or auto-assigning to the job owner. Tasks with missing owners create bottlenecks, and where you can auto-assign these, you will help with ownership and accountability in moving things forward in your jobs.
Completing a quick audit of your pipelines is the first step in diagnosing any issues, and the above points are a great place to start. Another thing we always recommend, and even use when we are building pipelines for our accounting firm clients is to test.
Test. Test. Test.
Using a test account with a test job is the best way for you to not only see what the clients are seeing, but also to assess where things might be going wrong.
Why TaxDome Implementations Fail (And It's Not the Software)
Not only is it possible that your pipelines aren’t set up correctly, or are running into issues with automations, but you have to consider the human element.
Humans are resistant to change, and that’s both your clients and your teams (and let’s be honest, even ourselves.)
Change can be hard to adjust to, and when we’re living in a world with an excess of new technology, automations, and constant improvements, it can be hard to ask people to quickly adapt to this change.
Don’t stop here.
Change is hard, but also necessary, but it’s important to do it the right way.
When it comes to your team AND your clients, your communication is key. You don’t want this to be the reason this fails.
Creating a clear communication plan to your clients about why you are making this change, the benefits to them, and what exactly they need to do is critical in getting them to accept the new technology, and to help the rollout process go smoothly.
For your team, not only do you need to clearly communicate the same things, you also need to get them on board. This may look like involving them in the build out, or decision making process, or even just a very robust training. What you don’t want to do, and why some firms fail here, is just to throw it at them and expect them to jump in headfirst. Be their biggest supporter, understand that it's challenging to do something new, and be deliberate in how you roll it out.
At the same time, you have to keep in mind, and also share with your team that quitting isn’t an option. Oftentimes we see teams that try any new technology for a few weeks, get frustrated, stop using it and then blame the technology for being “too hard.”
Sorry to tell you, but it's the change that's hard - not necessarily the technology. Any time we are learning something new, it's going to present challenges. The key is to not let those challenges stop us from moving forward, or even to allow us to quit.
Make this a non-negotiable, telling your team that you are going to do what it takes to make everyone successful, and then stick to it.
Giving up too quickly is not only a waste of time and money, it’s a pattern that can be repeated regardless of the technology you are trying to use and is not a long term strategy that will help your firm move forward.
Is TaxDome Hard to Implement? Here's the Honest Answer
Again, change is hard any time you are introducing something new. We’ve seen this story play out for 20 years now. Technology has to be learned, new ways of doing things have to be introduced, trained, supported and maintained.
Not building a lasting business is hard.
Having chaos in your business is hard.
Having difficulties managing the work, and not being clear on where you are at is hard.
So you get to choose your hard.
In the case of TaxDome, it really isn’t any more difficult to use than any other technology. In fact, I think it's actually fairly easy to use compared to some competitors and is definitely more clear to see where each job is at. The effort comes in the form of setting up your workflows the right way, getting your team trained to use it, and then consistently using it.
But getting there is half the battle. You know you need to get it set up, your team needs to be trained and ready to go, your clients need to be communicated to, and again, you’re wearing all the hats. This is where you might start to wonder how to go about getting it all done.
Do I need outside help with my TaxDome setup or can I fix this myself?
Getting the right help in building your pipelines and automations is something you can do as a firm owner to not only get help, but to consult on the best way to do all of these things. Building your pipelines and automations is a piece of the puzzle, but getting your team ready is also important.
We offer a few ways to support firms wanting to build their pipelines from scratch or improve the way they operate in TaxDome.
Our first option is a done-for-you build where we design, customize, and set up your TaxDome pipelines from scratch, so you can stop thinking about it and start using it. Not only do we help you build fully customized to your firm pipelines in TaxDome, but we’ll also help ensure your team has the right training and tools to support the implementation.
The second option is our FutureProof Accountant Membership where we give you the pipeline templates, training, and support to build your TaxDome with a plan, so that you can maximize your TaxDome using expert created templates. Our community of tax preparers, accountants and TaxDome users is there to help answer your questions and give you the support you need to implement your TaxDome.
If you want to explore which option would work best for your firm, take a look here to learn more.
Whatever path you choose, we’re here to help. Whether it's through our YouTube, blogs, membership or custom builds - our goal is to help you stop sitting in your frustration, and build the firm you need.
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