CPA Practice Advisor - 47

BRIDGING THE GAP

Creating a Data Culture
HOW DO CPAS move from being historians to being advisors and consultants? One of
the crucial ways to make that shift is by leveraging data. CPA firms possess an incredible
amount of data, and the tools allowing them to use that data are increasingly available.
AMANDA WILKIE

Consultant, Boomer Consulting, Inc.
amanda.wilkie@cpapracticeadvisor.com

WHAT IS A DATA
CULTURE?
For firms with a strong data culture,
it's normal, even automatic, for
employees to use data in their
decision-making processes. They
have a consistent and repeatable
approach for basing decisions and
client recommendations on data
rather than gut instinct.
Here are five ways you can work
on guiding your firm into a more datacentric culture.

SET THE TONE
FROM THE TOP
As with any aspect of firm culture,
you need to set the right tone at the
top. Lead from example. Encourage
your teams to provide data to back
up decisions and recommendations.
This helps promote the use of data
and provides opportunities for your
team to develop their data skills and
capabilities.
Communication is key, so share
data-driven insights on performance
in emails and meetings and recognize
employees who find new ways to
leverage data with their clients.

FOCUS ON STRATEGY
One characteristic of a strong data
culture is flexibility and the ability to
spot alternative uses for data.
Often, this means employees
will need to acquire new habits. For
example, employees in the tax and
audit departments may regularly
come across client information they
have no use for while preparing
a tax return or performing audit

However, firms need a plan for using those tools to provide value to clients and create
value for themselves. Part of creating that plan is to build a data culture.
steps. However, if employees in that
department are trained to see that
information within the context of
a larger data strategy, they start to
recognize links to other services the
firm can provide, such as wealth
management, strategic planning,
process improvement initiatives,
and risk management. So encourage
employees to find alternative uses
for data beyond their own job
responsibilities and reward them
when they do.
Everyone in the firm needs to
understand why you're implementing
a data strategy and why this will be
better than the way you've handled
data in the past. This generates buy-in
and helps people understand how
data strategy will affect their role
and the skills they need to develop
and use. Ensure people understand
how growing the firm's use of data
will help them better serve clients,
progress in their careers and improve
the firm as a whole. Having a clear
strategy will create a more receptive
environment.

INVEST IN THE RIGHT
TOOLS
For your firm's data culture to thrive,
you need to invest in the tools and
technology that will support datadriven results and processes, now
and in the future.
The most crucial step here is to
ensure that your data isn't siloed.
Silos of information are the enemy of
a thriving data culture. Firm leaders
must promote data as a flexible
asset that's available to multiple

departments, from tax and audit to
marketing, business development
and HR.
Your team cannot make datadriven decisions if all of the data you
need for those decisions is in disparate
systems that aren't connected to each
other. You wind up with inconsistent
and outdated information across
multiple systems. This hurts both
your own team members and the
client experience because it slows
down workflows and requires people
to spend more time double-checking
and cleansing data.
Some people in the firm may
want to cling to familiar applications
and processes, even if they don't
support integration. CPA firms use
an impressive number of solutions
and apps, but the more unique, nonintegrated applications you use, the
harder it is to bring all of that data
together.
There's no room for personal
preference in a data culture. Ensure
all of your systems are integrated and
communicating with one another so
you can have a complete and accurate
view of the data throughout the firm.
Ultimately, this will provide better
information for people to make datadriven decisions.

MAP THE FIRM'S USE
OF DATA
Educate employees on how the data
they collect and use daily impacts
other parts of the firm so they can
see the bigger picture.
Draw maps showing how data sets
are used by different departments

AUGUST 2020 ■

and link that data back to your firm's
processes. This map will become a
framework for everyone in the firm
to better understand how information
is used.
This process can also help uncover
other sources of siloed data that you
may not have realized were there.
For example, if your innovation team
is working on new lines of service
that your sales and marketing teams
aren't aware of, they can't help
the firm promote and sell the new
services. If auditors are unaware
of the tax planning conversations
happening with a client, they may
not understand why clients are
structuring transactions in a certain
way, and client service suffers.
Identify those pockets of data and
look for ways to bring it in.
Everyone in your firm needs
to understand how data can help
the firm and its clients. Support
this knowledge with an easily
understandable data strategy, data
mapping and the right technology.
That will set your firm up for success
with a strong data culture. ■

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