Resources

For more than 23 years, our firm has evolved alongside the businesses we serve. Today, that evolution includes becoming what we call a Human First, AI Forward firm. That phrase matters because there’s a lot of noise right now around AI in professional services. Some firms are treating AI like a marketing slogan. Others are promising fully automated experiences. But we believe the real value of AI isn’t replacing relationships—it’s improving how quickly and effectively we can serve our clients. At its core, accounting has never really been about paperwork. It’s about helping people make better decisions. The problem is […]

Post 5 of 5 — The limits, the safeguards, and the rules we will not break The first four posts in this series have been about what AI is doing inside our firm. This last one is about what it is not doing, and what it will not do. Because everything I have described in the last four posts only matters if it is done responsibly. And the responsibility piece is not an afterthought. It was the first thing we worked out, before we deployed any of these tools. Three rules we will not break There are three rules that […]

Post 4 of 5 — Why we are not lowering our prices, and why you probably should not want us to. We’ve covered how AI is changing our work, now let’s address the question everyone is quietly asking: what happens to fees? A few clients have asked me, gently and reasonably, whether their fees should be coming down now that AI is making parts of our work faster. It is a fair question, and I want to answer it honestly. No. And here is why you actually should not want that. Why “faster” does not mean “cheaper” in our line […]

Post 3 of 5 — There are two kinds of AI. We are teaching our team both. So far we’ve talked about how our work is changing and how we’re adapting—now let’s talk about how we actually use AI. Most people I talk to think of AI as one thing. It is not. There are two distinct flavors of AI my team is learning to work with, and the difference matters for the quality of the work you receive from us. I want to take a few minutes to explain both, because the distinction is genuinely useful, and most other […]

Post 2 of 5 — How our team is learning to work differently In the last post I told you that the work itself is changing. That AI is quietly redefining what an accountant actually does in 2026. This post is about what we did inside our firm to help our team handle that change. And it starts with a custom GPT my team has nicknamed Chad. Why Chad exists When we started seriously deploying AI tools at the firm, I knew the hardest part was not going to be picking the software. It was going to be helping a […]

Post 1 of 5 — What our team is doing internally to serve you better We’re kicking off a short series on how AI is changing our work and what that means for you. I want to start this short series with the most honest thing I can say to you about what AI is doing to our profession. It’s a real specific function we perform as accountants: read on to see what I mean. A bank reconciliation has been one of the core functions of an accountant for decades. At its most basic, it is the process of comparing […]

AI Is Everywhere. Here's What It Actually Changes (And What It Doesn't). Every software vendor says they're "AI-powered" now. Every firm owner says they're "using AI." Most of them have no idea what that actually means for the people they serve. So let me be specific. At Blumer & Associates, we describe our approach as Human First, AI Forward. That's not a tagline — it's a real operating philosophy that shapes how we work and what clients actually experience. A lot of what AI does for us, you'll never see. Meeting notes get organized. Technical research gets summarized. Internal documentation [...]

Every business goes through seasons. Some seasons are about aggressive growth. Some are about launching new services or expanding into new markets. And some — often the most strategic — are about strengthening the foundation. Many leaders assume forward momentum always means acceleration. But sustainable growth isn’t built on constant expansion. It’s built on clarity, alignment, and operational strength. Sometimes, the smartest move a company can make is to reset and simplify. Here’s what that can look like. Reevaluate the Clients You Serve Not all revenue is equal. As businesses grow, client rosters naturally evolve. Over time, misalignment can creep [...]

Many business owners have a compliance-based relationship with their accountant. You send documents. They file returns. You pay the invoice. The work is accurate and necessary — but largely historical. It reflects what already happened, not what you’re about to decide. Compliance is essential. But if that’s the only interaction you have with your accountant, you may be underutilizing one of the most valuable strategic resources available to your business. The Difference Between Compliance and Advisory Compliance looks backward. It tells you what your revenue was. What your expenses were. What you owe. Advisory looks forward. It helps you think [...]

Revenue is a vanity metric. After decades of financial advisory working with entrepreneurial service businesses, I've learned that impressive top-line numbers don’t paint a full picture without the right operational foundation. At the complexity level where most businesses operate—$500K to $5M in revenue—you cannot afford to run on accident or default. All things have to switch into being intentional. These six metrics reveal whether you're building genuine sustainability or just presenting well. 1) Top-Line Revenue Growth Rate The Strategic Benchmark: 15-20% year-over-year growth Growth beyond 25% annually creates a tricky operational reality: revenue produced by humans requires those humans to [...]