harmon.ie helps accounting firm Add iT shorten response times and build client trust

For Add iT, each client engagement is a deep, lengthy relationship often spanning years if not decades. Each account spawns a steady waterfall of documents and email messages, which all must be filed away and organized because of the highly regulated nature of accounting. But Add iT has other reasons for having an extremely well-organized file management system.

As Add iT’s managing director Annie Conza put it, “If I can’t find something in one minute from among our hundreds of thousands of emails and files, I’m not happy.”

This requirement isn’t just to save time. It also facilitates Add iT’s dedication to nimbly serving its clients with exemplary support and resources. Conza knew a big frustration for both team and clients alike about other law and accounting firms she worked at in the past was that things couldn’t be found right away, forcing clients to be asked for data more than once because it was lost or filed incorrectly. For Conza, “If a client is asked for a document a second time, it’s absolutely unacceptable”.

Add iT needed a way to ensure handoffs between staff were seamless and everyone knows where to find every last document. So the company chose SharePoint as its file management solution. However, the firm needed a workflow and user experience that prioritized speed, accuracy, and simplicity to keep up with the breakneck pace the firm operates to service its clientele.

SharePoint IDs are the “connecting thread” for Add iT. Colleagues can simply say “Can you review document 12345” instead of having to provide additional context to help their coworkers locate the file in question. They can simply search for that SharePoint ID right from the harmon.ie pane in Outlook.

“Once we receive an email and I’ve either responded to it or done something with it I’ll send it to SharePoint using harmon.ie—often renaming it for more accurate reference—and then I’ll go to Xero Practice Management and I’ll document what I’ve done and include a SharePoint reference number,” said Richard Jansen, Add iT’s business manager. “Anyone at any period of time can see exactly where it’s at and they can use that SharePoint ID to find out what we’ve done.”

The firm constantly gets urgent requests to know when and why things were done in the past, whether it’s to understand tax implications or to revisit why certain choices were made. This has made Add iT even more invaluable as a trusted resource for all their clients—including other professionals associated with those same clients—and harmon.ie provides the framework to search, discover, and share these key files and messages in seconds.

For example, when clients are in meetings, decisions can be made far more quickly. “You walk out with a game plan instead of follow-ups,” Jansen said. “People will call because we have this system and we’re the go-to person for these clients. It might take a little extra time to invest in the system and file everything, but the payback is extremely tangible. It can help you get the jump on something and take advantage of opportunities that might slide by and give clients and associates trust in you. It saves you so much time and so much frustration so you can actually enjoy your job more.”

“Another huge benefit is that if a client is transferred from another practice using this system, the whole client file can simply be copied, then loaded onto the new practice's system,” Jansen continued. “And just like that instant access to the complete client history, including all email communications and relevant documentation is available.”