august2021 - 14

2021 INNOVATION AWARDS
FOR ACCOUNTING FIRMS
TECHNOLOGIES THAT ENABLE remote work and help further automate and streamline
accounting and tax practices are in the spotlight as the 18th annual Tax &
Accounting Technology Innovation Awards were announced by CPA Practice
Advisor on Wednesday, August 4, 2021.
The Innovation
Awards honor new
technologies
that
help
accounting
firms and their
business clients operate
and collaborate
more efficiently and
profitably. This can be
through improved workflow,
enhanced automation
capabilities, increased
accessibility, or additional
efficiencies. Nominated
products or technologies must
be less than 2 years old or have
new, significant features or enhancements during
that time. " These awards recognize new
technologies that dramatically enhance the
ability of accounting professionals to provide
services to their clients and run their own
firms, " said CPA Practice Advisor Editor-in-Chief
Gail Perry, CPA. " As the tax and accounting
profession continues to evolve, these new
technologies and workflows are a key element
to firm productivity, efficiency, and their ability
to increase profitability. " Perry also manages
a tax practice and is the author of more than
30 books, including Mint.com for Dummies, and
Idiot's Guide to Introductory Accounting.
The winners of the CPA Practice Advisor Tax
and Accounting Technology Innovation Awards
2021 INNOVATION AWARD WINNERS
AVALARA MANAGED RETURNS FOR ACCOUNTANTS
- BY AVALARA
https://www.Avalara.com
The Supreme Court's Wayfair ruling is about three years old,
and most businesses still haven't taken steps to ensure they
are in compliance with the states they sell in. So, naturally,
these businesses are turning to their accounting and tax professionals
for guidance. Avalara's Managed Returns for Accountants
(MRA) was designed specifically to help accounting and tax firms
automate the sales tax compliance process for multiple clients
that sell to multiple states. And firms can implement the system
at any scale without adding resources or burdens to existing staff.
MRA accomplishes this by letting these firms provide these vital
compliance services for their clients, but then offloading the complex
and tedious tax return filing process to Avalara. This lets firms focus on
more profitable engagements, such as financial and tax advisory services,
strategic business consulting, audit preparation, nexus assessments, and
other advisory services. MRA can be used by any size firm for filing SALT
taxes for any size business clients. As a cloud-based service, it offers full
remote office support for managing these compliance challenges.
With MRA, firms can:
* Manage the sales tax filing process for all clients and their returns from a single
dashboard designed for efficient accountant workflow, with customizable,
multi-client views, all managed from one cloud-based system.
* Automatically prepare tax returns based on the appropriate government forms
and state and local requirements.
14 AUGUST 2021 ■ www.CPAPracticeAdvisor.com
* Remit payments on clients' behalf, with Avalara handling the filing, payment,
and related notice management (at firm's request) on behalf of clients.
* Work remotely, with staff managing clients' returns from any location, keeping
the firm nimble and efficient. Support omni-channel data imports, easily
aggregating client sales information from multiple channels and marketplaces.
* Keep client data safe and private, with MRA providing strong security controls.
* Avalara MRA enables accounting firms to offload the complex tax return filing
process in order to focus more on audit preparation, nexus assessments, and
other more profitable tax advisory services, contributing to meaningful firm
growth in 2021 and beyond.
CPA BUSINESS FUNDING PORTAL - BY CPA.COM/BIZ2CREDIT
https://www.cpaloanportal.com
The CPA Business Funding Portal was jointly developed by Biz2Credit and CPA.
com, a subsidiary of the AICPA, to provide a single, centralized platform for
CPAs assisting clients with much-needed access to business relief programs.
During the initial rollout of the Paychex Protection Program (PPP), CPA firms
were forced to set up manual processes, navigate across multiple lenders with
disparate platforms, and often operated with limited guidance.
The CPA Business Funding Portal is a firm-wide solution, with integrated
dynamic guidance, that enables CPA firms to offer Business Relief & Financing
Advisory services that are scalable. With this platform, firms were able to
support the PPP loan application process more efficiently for clients, and will
be able to do so as well in the next phase of loan forgiveness.
are selected from nominated products by our
editorial board and awards committee, which
include thought leaders and professionals
engaged in various practice specialties across
the country.
CPA Practice Advisor provides a variety of
independent digital and print resources for
accounting professionals, including practice
resources, technology reviews, interactive
tools and content that helps firms achieve
greater productivity. Learn more about the
Innovation Award winners and finalists in
the August issue of CPA Practice Advisor. (The
award winners are listed in alphabetical order.)
http://www.Mint.com https://www.Avalara.com http://www.CPA.COM/BIZ2CREDIT https://www.cpaloanportal.com http://www.CPAPracticeAdvisor.com
august2021

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