It’s worth reflecting on what Community Service Month truly reveals—not just about our community impact, but about who we’re becoming as a firm.

Service isn’t a checkbox activity. It’s a strategic question: Are we building an organization that creates value beyond billable hours?

This month, our team didn’t just volunteer time. We practiced the deeper work of firm transformation:

• Stepping outside comfort zones (much like challenging our traditional service delivery models)
• Building relationships without transactional expectations (the foundation of advisory evolution)
• Leading with purpose over process (exactly what client-centric transformation demands)

The communities we serve become mirrors. They reflect whether our stated values actually shape our daily decisions, whether our leadership philosophy extends beyond our conference rooms.

Here’s the insight worth carrying forward: The same courage required to serve authentically is the courage needed to reimagine our firm. Both require us to ask uncomfortable questions, embrace meaningful discomfort, and invest in outcomes we may never fully measure.

Community service isn’t separate from firm strategy—it’s the laboratory where we test whether we’re building something worth building.

What has service taught your organization about itself? Let us know at info@blumercpas.com!

Core values are fundamental principles or beliefs that guide an individual’s or an organization’s actions, behaviors, and decision-making. They serve as a foundation for how people or organizations operate and interact with others.

Sounds pretty important for an individual to have some strong core values…of course! But what about a business who will come in contact with hundreds, maybe even thousands of people a year? What an impact a business can make by having strong core values and team members who hold themselves to those core values as well! 

One of the strong core values that Blumer CPAs shoots for is Coachable, Reliable, Resilient. But why is this core value important to us? 

Being coachable means being capable of being easily taught, trained, or improved through coaching. 

Coachable implies a willingness to receive feedback, learn from it, and apply it to enhance performance or develop new skills. At Blumer CPAs, this looks like team members who seek feedback to improve, professionals who stay current with accounting practices, and accountants who listen to clients’ needs before giving solutions. 

I can think back to a time when I first started at Blumer CPAs where I was doing what I thought was “fine” calendar blocking but it was not quite up to par…I was asked to work on my calendar blocking with some pointers on items that needed to be improved. Of course, in my mind I was thinking, “What was wrong with it?” But as soon as I put the feedback into action on my calendar, it truly changed my work life and improved my time management tremendously! Looking back, it may have not been kicks and giggles at the time, but I am so glad I was able to be coached, took the advice and used the feedback I received to improve myself. 

Being reliable means consistently good in quality or performance; able to be trusted. 

For our clients, being reliable means meeting deadlines, even during busy tax seasons, providing accurate work that might not make a client the happiest, and being available when our clients need us most.

A team member that constantly shows “reliability” in her role at Blumer CPA’s is Andrea Hyman. As an Operations Coordinator,  I work alongside Andrea, our Operations Manager. She has always demonstrated that I can rely on her to help guide me (and our team) through an organized and achievable path forward when issues arise in Operations at Blumer CPAs. Whether it is helping write a complex email or planning events together, her reliability never changes!  

Being resilient means being able to withstand or recover quickly from difficult conditions. 

At Blumer CPAs, resiliency shows up as finding solutions when other approaches fail, staying composed during high-pressure situations, and supporting clients through their own financial challenges.

I often see CEO Jason Blumer and COO Julie Shipp showing strong resilience. Whether something has come up in client work or their personal life, they bounce back quickly and support the team just as normal! To have the resilience they have is to go through life challenges while still achieving their goals.  I believe all the team at Blumer CPAs see this core value in Jason and Julie and appreciate the support they provide us through the resilience they have gained through their own lives. 

Coachable, Reliable and Resilience Strengthen Each Other at Blumer CPAs

These three qualities strengthen each other. Our coachability helps us learn from challenges, making us more resilient. Our resilience ensures we remain reliable even when facing obstacles. And our reliability builds the trust needed for honest coaching.

At Blumer CPAs, we don’t just talk about these values—we live them every day in how we serve our clients and work with each other. When you work with us, you’re partnering with a team committed to these principles that help both us and our clients succeed.

Want to learn more about our core values? Check out Core Values? Who Gives a Crap?

Lauren is Blumer’s Strategic Operations Coordinator. She demonstrates this core value (Coachable, Reliable, Resilient) with her positive attitude and desire to serve the team wherever needed. She manages many of our internal processes that keep the Blumer train running smoothly and is one of the initial “faces” prospective clients meet. She is “hospitable” personified and we are thankful to have her supporting the Blumer team.