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Unrecovered out of scope work is costing Australian accounting firms on average over $100k each year

Business

Accounting and bookkeeping practices pay a heavy price for avoiding awkward client conversations. See the trends in the 2022 State of client engagement report.

Promoted by Ignition 3 minute read

Scope creep is a major challenge for firms with 97% of accountants and bookkeepers in Australia reporting they’ve experienced increases in the scope of client work in their business. However, more than a third of accountants (35%) say they end up absorbing the increased time and cost themselves.

In Ignition’s 2022 State of client engagement in Australia report, learn how one in five accountants and bookkeepers experience clients refusing to pay for out-of-scope work at least 2-3 times per week. 95% of accountants and bookkeepers also say that clients not being billed for out-of-scope work and chasing for late payments are the most awkward client situations they encounter once a week on average.

In the professional services world, awkward client situations will invariably pop up. But we now know that nearly all accountants and bookkeepers choose to shy away from these sensitive situations. The study reveals that avoiding or delaying these conversations comes at a huge financial and human cost, for firms and their people in the professional services industry. 

Download the report today and read the challenges that accountants and bookkeepers can encounter by avoiding awkward client conversations, including:  

  • 41% Experience a loss of potential income for the business by putting off awkward client conversations.
  • 33% Staff are quitting as a result of avoiding or delaying awkward client conversations.
  • 53% Clients not being billed for out-of-scope work.
  • 49% Clients refusing to pay for out-of-scope work. 
  • 51% Chasing clients for late payments.

>>Download the research report<<

 

About the Ignition report

A 21-question online study was conducted by YouGov on behalf of Ignition. Ignition is the world’s first client engagement and commerce platform for professional services businesses to streamline how they engage with clients and get paid. The research comprised of a national sample of 557 key decision makers in accounting and bookkeeping firms with 1-50 employees in Australia. The study had two aims: (1) To explore the types of awkward client situations that can arise in the accounting and bookkeeping industry. (2) To understand and quantify the financial and human cost of avoiding or delaying awkward client conversations.

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