I Hate Timesheets! (And So Should You)

When you know better, you do better

That’s right. I’m loud and proud when I assert that I hate timesheets. Why do I hate them so much? Because they’re not accurate. The data is typically at least 30% incorrect. And they tend to be the root problem of a toxic firm culture.

Also, consider that most people report their time inaccurately anyway. Sometimes it’s garden variety sloppiness; other times it’s simply because an employee can’t remember what time they started. Other times team members “eat” their time or bill it to another client because they don’t want to appear like they’re not putting in enough hours. And because budgets are based on years of incorrect time, team members feel like they don’t have another option.

CPAs have been judged for years about being inefficient — rather than getting recognition for how effective they are…for the value of their services. When you price on value or outcomes, efficiency is a big piece of the puzzle. And with increased automation, efficiency will continue to skyrocket…leaving timesheets pretty far back in some pretty thick dust.

The bottom line is that the time has come for firm partners and stakeholders to admit defeat when it comes to timesheets. It’s time to move to a newer, better business model. Because, as the great Maya Angelou said: “When you know better, you do better.”

Hear me out…

Firms have allegedly evolved to say employees are measured on “other things” besides time. But we know that’s not really the case. Michael Maksymiw, CPA CGMA MSA makes this point pretty clearly. Click here to check out his story.

And then there’s a work conversation that sticks with me. I’ll never forget getting in ‘trouble” over my timesheet and the hours I spent on one particular job. I used to sit outside a managing partner’s door where he could hear me on the phone with clients. As I was leaving that day, I made a negative comment about myself and the partner said to me:

“Jody, it’s not the end of the world. I can teach you to be more efficient, but you have something that I wish I could teach the rest of this firm. You have a special rapport and understanding in the way you handle clients that I can’t replicate.”

And yet, I was still judged against everyone else on timesheet data. Ree-dic!

As Ron Baker says, “Timesheets are the cancer” in a firm.

I don’t believe that most partners want to be toxic. It’s the business model that’s significantly broken.

But what if timesheets were accurate? Does that mean using data pulled directly from keystrokes? Creepy, yes. But having accurate data for your pricing floor would be so valuable because you’re going to have to change the way you price. I guarantee it. There’s no way to bill a nanosecond when AI is going to do a third of your work.

Kicking timesheets to the curb is the right thing to do. But do you know what the hardest part of this change is going to be?

Answer: Partners admitting that they’ve been doing it wrong for decades.

So the big question is: Do firm leaders have the humility to admit they’ve been wrong and transition to new a business model?

I highly recommend biting that bullet and following the words of Maya Angelou. You remember, right?

“When you know better, you do better.”

What do you think? Tell us in the comments!

#accountingandaccountants #CPA #CPAfirm #timesheets #valueprice #RadicalPricing #radicalcpa

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By the way…

Are you going to #IntuitConnect? I'm hosting a lunch with my Accounting for Innovation podcast co-host Matt Tait, and I'd love to have you there. It's Tuesday at noon at Javier's right in the Aria.

We're having good food and great conversation. There's no formal agenda so come with your questions to ask a really smart group of your peers. It's bound to be great networking and learning.

Seats for practitioners are very limited, so you have to register to attend: https://bit.ly/3YvSjq0.

A big thanks to SysCloud for sponsoring this event and supporting innovation in accounting!