Friday, July 13, 2012

Long Distance

For nearly a quarter-century, I had this daily workday routine. The alarm went off promptly at 5:30 am; I showered, shaved, grabbed a newspaper, and made a dash for the 6:48 a.m. train to New York.

After reaching Grand Central Terminal, it was a 20-minute subway ride  before I was in my office, sipping coffee and exchanging pleasantries with my staff  (usually in the form of movie quotes from Goodfellas or Scarface) before we went about the business of grinding out a new issue.

No more.

Since March, I’m one of about 50 million U.S. workers who work from home at least part of the time, a change I’m admittedly still on the fence about. Certainly there are advantages – being home for things such as the emergency car pool, deliveries, and repairs – but that coveted personal interaction with my new colleagues has been reduced – for the most part – to phone calls, emails, and the occasional trade show.

I’m regaling you with my recent transition from a traditional office structure to certified remote worker because it’s emblematic of what’s happening across a many industries and professions and accounting is certainly no exception.

The adoption of new technologies – particularly those that enable remote access – has allowed the CPAs to untether themselves from the bricks and mortar of the office and conduct business 24/7 in other venues including, like me, their little piece of the U.S.

Earlier this week, I gave a presentation on the trends I felt were helping shape the CPA firm of the future and, during a 10-minute break, I watched as if on cue some 25 attendees – with the precision of a Broadway musical number – simultaneously pulled out their smartphones or iPads to furiously check email and other assorted correspondence.

It was one of those rare instances where no dialog was needed to emphasize a point. If you wanted to see a microcosm of the 21st century CPA, that was it.

Depending on which statistics you read, it’s estimated that at least 70-75% of CPAs own a smartphone or a tablet. If anything, I think that’s rather conservative. Since the iPhone was introduced in 2007 or even eight years before when the Blackberry made its debut, I don’t think I’ve ever spoken or met one CPA who didn’t have either – or in some cases both.

I’m hardly climbing out on a long limb when I state that the modern era of the public accounting firm is here and that invariably will mean that the population of those who work remotely like yours truly will continue to rise

I still miss the live interaction however and in fact now sometimes find myself conducting whole conversations out loud.

On the plus side is that now I seldom lose an argument.

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