Your business has value, but does a buyer see it the way you do? In today's episode of Building the Premier Accounting Firm, Roger sits down with Marc Adams, strategy mentor and business exit planner with Acquisitions for You. Together they explore why most small businesses never sell and how accounting professionals can prepare clients for a tax-efficient exit. Learn what buyers really pay for, where founders lose money, and how to build a more transferable business.

00:00 Welcome and Beginning With the End in Mind
03:19 Marc's Cancer Diagnosis and COVID Recovery
07:20 Nine in Ten Businesses and a Promise
14:20 Value Leakage and Doubling Business Worth
21:00 Transferable Value and Messy Businesses
27:35 Hidden Leaks and the AI Valuation Premium
31:28 How Accountants Prepare Clients for Exit
38:41 Private Equity Versus Faster Direct Exits
44:50 Show Promotions and Event Invitations
50:04 Closing Thoughts and Speaker Invitation

• Start with the end in mind. Define the exit outcome you want, and set your timeline, whether that is one year or ten.

• Build systems, processes, and a management team so the business can run without the owner.

• Raise prices regularly. Ask clients when they last increased fees, because small increases can lift profit significantly.

• Plan early. Restructuring a business just before a sale can trigger IRS scrutiny, so prepare well before going to market.

• "They're the people that you need to help. If one of them does sell, they don't need your help. Somebody's going to buy it." — Marc Adams

• "Owners buy certainty of profitability, and the more that you've got around it, effectively, that can make it certain and run without you." — Marc Adams

• "Start with the end in mind. Very few of us actually practice it." — Marc Adams

Earn CPE: NASBA-approved CPE and IRS-approved CE credits are offered via Earmark by listening to this episode. ⁠

Access our QAS Self-Study Courses here: https://www.earmark.app/channels/0384dbbe-df08-4ae3-ba82-621a7a465e95

Conclusion:

Thank you for joining us for another episode of Building the Premier Accounting Firm with Roger Knecht. For more information on how you can establish your own accounting firm and take control of your time and income, call 435-344-2060 or schedule an appointment to connect with Roger's team here.

Sponsors:

Universal Accounting Center

• Helping accounting professionals confidently and competently offer quality accounting services to get paid what they are worth.

Offers:

Are you a founder, business owner, or advisor, helping clients think through exit readiness, business value, tax-efficient outcomes, or what may be reducing the owner's keep rate before a sale? Connect with Marc to learn how to double your/their business value in 6 months: https://acquisitions4you.com/

Special Offers for our Podcast Listeners: CLICK HERE to take advantage of them today!

Remember this: Accounting Success IS Universal.

Be sure to listen to our next episode and subscribe.

Also, let us know what you think of the podcast and please share any suggestions you may have. We look forward to your input: Podcast Feedback

For more information on how you can apply these principles to start and build your bookkeeping, accounting, & tax business, please visit us at www.universalaccountingschool.com or call us at 801-265-3777. And know that if it's about accounting, it's Universal.

Welcome to another episode of Building the Premier Accounting Firm. Today, Roger Knecht explores how artificial intelligence impacts the accounting profession today. Discover practical strategies to adopt AI, protect client data, and maintain essential human skills.

00:00:00 AI in Accounting: Moving Past Early Adoption
00:04:41 Fight, Flight, or Freeze in the AI Era
00:08:33 Remaining the Human in the Loop
00:14:24 Four Practical Steps to Leverage AI Daily
022:17 Overcoming Catastrophism and Staying Relevant
027:36 Preserving Core Accounting Skills and Education

• Adopt AI tools now because early adopter phases are long gone.

• Protect client data by utilizing built-in security settings within platforms.

• Learn the vocabulary of AI to discuss technology intelligently with clients.

• Replace traditional search engines with AI conversation and voice features.

• Maintain core accounting skills to remain the essential human in the loop.

• "The time for early adopters, that was months ago. What we're dealing with now is, we as average users are jumping in and taking advantage of this." - Roger Knecht

• "We as a professional need to remain as the human in the loop." - Roger Knecht

• "Don't become lazy… that is the downfall of where we're going to be as a species if we do not retain our skill sets." - Roger Knecht

Earn CPE: NASBA-approved CPE and IRS-approved CE credits are offered via Earmark by listening to this episode. ⁠

Access our QAS Self-Study Courses here: https://www.earmark.app/channels/0384dbbe-df08-4ae3-ba82-621a7a465e95

Thank you for joining us for another episode of Building the Premier Accounting Firm with Roger Knecht. For more information on how you can establish your own accounting firm and take control of your time and income, call 435-344-2060 or schedule an appointment to connect with Roger's team here.

Sponsors:

Universal Accounting Center

• Helping accounting professionals confidently and competently offer quality accounting services to get paid what they are worth.

Offers:

Special Offers for our Podcast Listeners, CLICK HERE to take advantage of them today!

Remember this: Accounting Success IS Universal.

Be sure to listen to our next episode and subscribe.

Also, let us know what you think of the podcast and please share any suggestions you may have. We look forward to your input: Podcast Feedback

For more information on how you can apply these principles to start and build your bookkeeping, accounting, & tax business, please visit us at www.universalaccountingschool.com or call us at 801-265-3777. And know that if it's about accounting, it's Universal.