Clarke Nicklin

Summary

Thanks to CMap, Clarke Nicklin Chartered Accountants have practice management software that eliminates manual processes and serves as a single source of truth.

Situation

Founded in 1987 and based in England, Clarke Nicklin Chartered Accountants is an advisory and accountancy practice that serves entrepreneurs and owner-managed businesses internationally. The firm’s philosophy is that accountants should work alongside clients and offer personalized advice that suits their business needs.

To serve its clients and manage various areas of its business operations, Clarke Nicklin was previously using a practice management application that was an extension of a suite of compliance tool products. However, it was difficult to get useful information from the software and not all of the firm’s engagements were in the software. This caused the firm to use Excel spreadsheets to enter, extract, and analyze data.

“The software we used just didn’t provide the functionality we needed to handle thousands of projects,” said Andy Baggott, managing partner at Clarke Nicklin. “It didn’t have dashboards to help us conduct the type of detailed analysis that would assist us with managing our practice. Let’s say we wanted to track the progress of live projects, manage quotes and fees, and determine whether we are making a profit on the services we’re providing. The software simply could not do all of those things.”

To meet his firm’s needs, Andy looked for a software solution that would replace manual processes, enable management to oversee projects, and provide a single source of truth. That’s how he found CMap.

‍

‍

Solution

CMap is a business management software that helps professional service firms to win more work and manage more work profitably. The software eliminates headache-inducing spreadsheets and disconnected software packages. Instead, firms have all of the data and functionality in an accessible, unified system.

“Rather than being off-the-shelf software, the CMap team tailored the software to meet our specific needs,” said Andy. “That customization was a key factor in the decision process.”

Another important reason Clarke Nicklin chose CMap was that CMap had the ability to capture anti-money laundering details for Clarke Nicklin’s customers.

“We can now track our customers’ compliance with relevant laws,” said Andy.

Overall, CMap was the practice management software an accounting firm like Clarke Nicklin was looking for.

Results

• A Single Source of Truth - “With the CMap software in place, I’m comfortable that we are achieving our business goals,” said Andy. “Because all of our information is centralized, it’s easier for us to make strategic business decisions.”
• Increased Productivity - “It’s important that we deliver the best service to our clients, and CMap helps us do that,” said Andy. “We’re able to manage what we’re doing and how well we’re doing it without resorting to using lots of spreadsheets.”
• Better Decision-Making - Because Clarke Nicklin has a single source of truth, the firm’s management team now has a resource management tool that enables them to make better decisions regarding who works on what project and when.
• Fast Implementation - Clarke Nicklin set a tight deadline for implementation, and the CMap team came through. “We managed to implement the software faster than I expected,” said Andy.