STEP FIVE:
Presenting your case

Your big moment is here

This is the final step in delivering your case. It’s the moment you outline what you’ve researched to your firm’s decision-maker.

When it comes to the meeting itself, don’t overdo it. Get the right people around the table. This means the person signing off on the software, the vendor (who will answer any questions), and yourself. If you won't be responsible for implementation, consider whether the person who will should be present, particularly if they'll have a view on how the new solution fits your existing systems.

In smaller practices, three people around the table is often enough. In larger firms, you may also want your practice manager or IT lead present if they'll own the rollout.

Anyone else can crowd the meeting, so be sparing with any additions. What you want is a clear decision by the end.

Why is your vendor in the meeting? You don’t want any questions left unanswered. A senior member of their customer success team can help explain how their products resolve each pain point very well because they do this every day. If you anticipate technical questions, a good vendor will bring in a specialist from their development team.

Delivering the business case

A senior partner or CFO wants the picture in three clean beats. That way, they can spend the rest of the meeting asking questions. Here’s a way to structure the presentation:

Describe the operational pain. Explain the issue clearly enough that someone outside your day-to-day operations can grasp the point. Don’t overcook it; describe the problem clearly and move on.

BEAT ONE

Explain the cost of doing nothing. Whether it's a financial cost (e.g. lost revenue and write-offs), a time cost (e.g. hours per month and days per partner), or a risk cost (compliance exposure, missed deadlines, and single points of failure), this is your chance to provide a number-driven narrative.

BEAT TWO

Outline the solution. Set out the investment amount per year and what the upside is to the team and the firm. This could be saving time, reducing risk or improving service, for instance. As well as justifying the spend, make sure you link the investment back to the firm's stated goals (or equivalent, as discussed in step three).

BEAT THREE

Remember…

Make sure there is a clear timeline on implementation. Be honest – if your firm needs six months to onboard the software, for example, make sure your decision-maker knows. Flag if implementation needs to happen at a particular time; after busy season, for example.

Set out the investment amount. Is it an immovable figure or could you start modestly and scale up? Explain when you expect a return on investment to become apparent.

Tonally, remember your audience. You probably know the person signing off on the cost, so don’t overdo the formality with a suited, booted, and overloaded PowerPoint presentation. A chat over a few slides is fine. Keep things relaxed. If you like, it can be a good idea to put everything on one page to hand over – but don’t let this be a signal that the decision maker can go away and mull things over. You want answers as soon as possible.

What happens next?

This clear business case should produce a definitive answer from your decision-maker. If not, things should still move forward significantly. Maybe the final decision is contingent on the vendor researching the answer to a particularly complex question.

If it’s the latter, keep things tight with a timeline. See when you can get a final answer and a final decision. Put these deadlines into the calendar there and then.

What to do if it’s a “no”

Hearing “no” after so much research can be an emotional moment, so take a breath. Try to walk out with something useful. Maybe you can do something differently next time. Perhaps there is a broader issue the firm is trying to solve, and they need to do that first.

If they say it’s “bad timing”, then don’t discard all your hard work. You’ll be surprised how quickly your real moment to shine might come.

Remember, you’re never alone when it comes to building a business case

If you're ready to start building your case, we can help. Whether you want a demo, a conversation with one of our team, or access to case studies from firms like yours, get in touch.

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About IRIS

IRIS has been providing accountants with solutions for more than 45 years. Since then, we have evolved to be relied on by more than 100,000 customers across 135 countries in accountancy, education, and business.