2020 Dream Practice Virtual Accounting Conference May 2014 | Page 7
Keynote Speaker: Joel Sinkin
Mr. Sinkin is an editorial advisor to the AICPA’s newsletter Small Firm Solution and
a member of The CPA Journal Editorial Review Board. Recently Mr. Sinkin fulfilled
a personal goal to create a new type of consulting firm that brings a fresh approach to the succession and growth needs of accounting firms and their owners
nationally. In 2004, he joined forces with Terrence E. Putney, CPA to form
Transition Advisors.
Joel Sinkin
In 2012 & 2013 Accounting Today named Mr. Sinkin one of the top 100 most
influential people in accounting.
www.transitionadvisors.com
Succession planning is key to ensuring that you maximize
the value of your firm should you decide to slow down or
retire. In my experience, there seems to be a mystical
shroud around the topic of succession and transition planning for accounting firms. I recently spoke to a group of
accountants and every single participant in the room had
the same plan – a younger accountant would buy their
firm. Not surprisingly, not a single person in the group had
identified this hypothetical younger accountant, despite
most participants indicating that they intended to retire
within two to five years.
I have seen many accountants assume that they can successfully sell or transition their practice. Many would rather avoid paying for advice, so they adopt the do it yourself approach. I believe that it is difficult for any business
owner to anticipate and respond appropriately to many of
the issues that come into play in a transition scenario. I
believe that it is even more difficult with an accounting
firm, as the owner is personally attached to the business
(and clients) and may not be objective.
The accountants that I have known and worked with who
sold their practices all had one primary concern – would
their replacement take good care of their beloved clients? Too often, lack of planning means that the replacement is not necessarily the best candidate and the clients
ultimately suffer.
Joel and his team at Transition Advisors have been leading
accountants through transition since 1990, completing hundreds of transactions successfully. The majority of their
materials and resources discuss topics from the perspective of CPA’s in the United States. However, I have heard
Joel speak many times and have always taken away something of immediate relevance to my practice in Canada. I
was very happy to see them launch a Canadian office in
Toronto.
Joel recently published a series of articles in the Journal of
Accountancy, highlighting key issues and trends in the field
of succession. I highly recommend taking the time to read
it (JOA Combined articles 2013 2014).
Joel has also co-authored an article with Terrence Putney
entitled: “Keeping it Together”. The article covers the importance of planning your transition carefully in order to
retain key staff and your clients. I can’t stress enough how
important key staff can be to the transition. Many practitioners ignore this aspect at their own peril. You can read
the article here: Keeping it Together_Reporting_Patton_April09.
If you foresee a transition in your future, you should take a
look at the Transition Advisors website. I particularly recommend the articles in their resource section
Jeff Borschowa (Event Organizer, Host and Speaker)
I have had the pleasure of knowing Joel Sinkin
from Transition Advisors for a few years. In that time, he
has impressed me with his knowledge of the accounting
industry and specifically his focus with mergers, acquisitions, and transitions of accounting firms.
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