CPA Practice Advisor - 5

COVER STORY
CHECK OUT THIS ROADMAP WORKSHOP FROM CPA.COM:

Developing a Tax & Personal Financial
Planning Advisory Service
(www.cpa.com/tax-and-personal-financial-planning)

PERSONAL FINANCIAL PLANNING IS
A NATURAL EXTENSION OF TAX
Adding PFP services isn't as daunting as you may
imagine. Our clients' financial needs are diverse,
and the knowledge base and trustworthiness
of the CPA profession has put us in a strong
position to advise them on questions that go
beyond taxes.
In fact, as you prepare and review your
clients' tax returns, you have a unique window
into their financial situation, which can provide
opportunities to identify and discuss planning
opportunities. The AICPA PFP Section has even
developed a free checklist to help analyze a
tax return for planning ideas. Further, clients
undoubtedly look to you as a trusted adviser
and already come to you with questions that go
beyond taxes.

Personal financial planning is a
rewarding career, and we've
personally tasted and seen the
rewards for our futures and the
future of our clients.
THERE ARE MULTIPLE MODELS AND
IT'S POSSIBLE TO START SMALL

* Improving work/life balance by spreading out
your workload
* Providing holistic advice in the best interest of
the client
* Finding fulfillment in helping clients set and reach
financial goals
* Improving staff retention, development and
utilization

Many CPAs hear the term "financial planning"
and immediately tune out, equating PFP with
product sales or investment-centric advice,
and assume it will turn life into a compliance
nightmare. The reality is that financial planning
is much broader than investments, and you can
tap into your knowledge base to serve your clients
without having to overhaul your practice.
A logical place to start is engaging in conversations with clients about the questions that keep
them up at night, such as saving for retirement
or funding a child's education. These natural

conversations can lead to planning engagements
as straightforward as assisting clients with
retirement projections or cash flow management.
If you charge your tax clients on an hourly
basis, you can continue to use the same billing structure without disrupting your current
business model. As you progress and broaden
the advice you provide, there are many different compensation models, including retainer
arrangements, assets under management or
some combination thereof. For an overview of the
steps to develop and manage your CPA personal
financial planning practice, use a free roadmap
from the PFP Section.

SUPPORT, COLLABORATION AND
GUIDANCE ARE AVAILABLE.
We wouldn't be where we are today without
learning from and sharing knowledge with other
CPA financial planners. An online search for a
local CPA/PFS using this directory and a chat
over coffee is often all that is required to make
a connection.
We've also found valuable technical and
practice management tools through membership
in the AICPA's Personal Financial Planning Section. The PFP Section, at the guidance of leading
CPA financial planners, has developed a wealth
of resources for CPAs ready to transition from
tax preparer to financial planner, as well as an
educational pathway and credential to deepen
and demonstrate your knowledge in the PFP
disciplines.
Personal financial planning is a rewarding
career, and we've personally tasted and seen
the rewards for our futures and the future of
our clients.
Visit www.aicpa.org/pfp to learn more about
the AICPA's PFP credential. ■
Ryan Genor, CPA/PFS, and Sarah Lane, CPA, provide
integrated tax and financial planning at CLS Financial
Advisors, Inc., a registered investment advisory firm in
Portland, Oregon. After many years of providing tax services as a partner in its affiliated CPA firm, Ryan joined
CLS in 2012 to assist with retirement and income tax
planning in addition to client management. Sarah worked
in public accounting and higher education before joining
CLS in 2016, where she combines her love for financial
education with her background in tax.

This article was originally published on AICPA
Insights: https://blog.aicpa.org

JULY 2019 ■

www.CPAPracticeAdvisor.com

http://www.CPA.COM http://www.cpa.com/tax-and-personal-financial-planning http://www.aicpa.org/pfp https://blog.aicpa.org http://www.CPAPracticeAdvisor.com

CPA Practice Advisor

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