After 30 years it's time for the QuickBooks ProAdvisor Program to evolve, and it is, meet the new Intuit ProPartner Program.
In the western movies of old, you undoubtedly would hear, "there's a new Sheriff in town." Well, I'm here to say that there is a new ProAdvisor Program in town and its name is the Intuit ProPartner Program.
Thirty years, nearly one-third of a century, three generations so to speak, is a long time for something to remain unchanged. Oh sure, there have been a few tweaks and new ideas incorporated by the various Intuit leaders responsible for the QuickBooks ProAdvisor Program over the years, but it certainly has not seen any major changes from day one. It has been primarily focused on the Intuit accounting products of QuickBooks Desktop and QuickBooks Online along with the related training over the years. Training and certifications have come and gone and only recently has the training truly stayed as current as you can get. For example, if you change a feature in QBO you can generally expect that the QBO training will reflect that change within 3 months, and to me that's pretty amazing.
But the reality is that Intuit products not only strive to meet the demands of the accounting community but the future expectations of that community. To that extent, the products may contribute to changes in accounting as much as they reflect the changes that community makes. It's very much a mutual relationship.
Change is a hard thing for many individuals, especially those who are 'set in their ways' due to long-standing habits. For example, those who had barely learned QuickBooks Pro or Premier, or who never had used QuickBooks Desktop at all, were among the very first to adopt QuickBooks Online. At the same time, those who had been using QuickBooks Desktop products, including myself, for eons may only now becoming comfortable with QuickBooks Online. I admit, I use the QuickBooks Online Desktop App because I can toggle it so that QBO looks and acts more like desktop.
I am sure there will be those QuickBooks ProAdvisors who will be just as uncomfortable with the new ProPartner Program as they were 'migrating to the cloud.' But the reality is that this change seems more like Holiday wrapping surrounding ProAdvisor than any perceived elimination of what ProAdvisor has really been about.
Now I'm fully aware that the new ProPartner Program is described in detail within a Firm of the Future article titled, 'The Next Chapter of Accounting: Building your ideal practice with Intuit ProPartner Accountants' that published just a few minutes before this article was published, under our agreement with Intuit. So, I do not intend to reiterate the contents of that Firm of the Future feature. Rather I am trying to give you my perspective on why the new 'partnership' program provides the same benefits and much more.
By now, you must have heard the news or read one of the six articles I've already written on the Intuit Accountant Suite (IAS) and how it is replacing QuickBooks Online Accountant. As I 've said in more than one of those articles, one of the most exciting things within IAS is the ProAdvisor integration aspects including training access and tracking of which team members have what training and what they are "dragging their feet on."
Like the current ProAdvisor Program based around subscription to QBO-Accountant, the new ProPartner program will be free and open to any accounting, bookkeeping or tax professional that uses Intuit products to provide services for their clients. Those members will be ushered in with an Intuit Accountant Suite 'core' subscription.
Because IAS becomes the hub for the new ProPartner Program, it's going to be easy to see that the essentials of 'ProAdvising' are still very much in play within the new partnership.
For example, anyone who 'subscribes' even to Intuit Accountant Suite 'core' becomes a 'member' of the new ProPartner program, but it's only when there is one 'certified' Level 1, Level 2, or Intuit Enterprise Suite Advisor, and one QBO client associated with that IAS subscription that the Member graduates to the 'Partner' tier of the new program.
"From our perspective here at Insightful Accountant, that perfectly aligns with the 'minimum standards' for the Top Advisor awards where we require a current Intuit product certification and at least one current QuickBooks client to qualify for award participation." (Murph)
And with more timely certifications available through 'the academy' via your IAS subscription, along with more certifications on the way, like "Workforce" certification replacing the current Payroll certification, a greater number of Top Advisor award categories may become available as well. Education will continue to be a primary focus of the new program, just as it has been for the last thirty years.
ProPartners will continue to get QuickBooks Online Advanced. Bill Pay Elite, Payroll Elite and Time Tracking at no cost for their My Books account within Intuit Accountant Suite. No major change there, in other words, "nothing to fret about."
Another feature of IAS that fits right in with the new ProPartner program is the 'centralized Resolution Center.' When you initiate a support ticket with the new level of dedicated support you will be able to track your open tickets and their status in real-time. While we can continue to expect timely support that provides a level of expertise that is designed to support you based on your knowledge of issues, it sometimes is necessary to accelerate support tickets to a higher level that may require some wait time. Imagine no longer just 'sitting around waiting' but rather have up-to-the-minute visibility as to what's going on with your support request(s). And, as ProPartners move on up in the tier structure dedicated support hours expand and the team of support representatives become more specialized in product(s) support.
Back to 'change can be painful,' but what if it didn't have to be? For example, ProPartners will continue to receive the 30% ProAdvisor Preferred Pricing for QuickBooks Online, QuickBooks Payroll, and QuickBooks Bill Pay, as well as the direct-pay discount for clients during their first twelve months. Where's the pain in that... nowhere! In addition, the new ProPartner program expands the revenue share features by extending the duration of revenue sharing from 12 months to three years for QuickBooks Online and Payroll. As you advance in the new program tiers, your revenue share can increase to as much as 25% of net billings*.
And how will the ProPartner Program reach out into the existing ecosystem by connecting locally with advisors in events like the "Better Together" events as well as working with universities to upskill one-million accounting students on fintech and client advisory services. Student mentorship from the Career Pipeline Program can potentially incorporate many of the ProPartner firms across the ecosystem. Nothing painful there, after all, the students of today are the team members of tomorrow, and the firm leaders within the next decade.
The Find-a-Pro Directory isn't going away either under this new program. In fact, Intuit has plans to enhance the directory and make it simpler for your potential clients to find you including the ability to search on specific practice specializations and skill set. One thing was made very clear to me during a recent briefing I had over the new program, anyone who is currently listed in the Find-a-Pro Directory will not lose their listing with the roll out of the new ProPartner tiers.
Two things seem very clear to me with respect to this change. First, while the term 'Pro' maybe separating itself from the word 'Advisor' in the new program's title, Advisory remains a key element of the new program which will continue to build 'Advisory' through smarter education, new benefits and community. And second, while 'Partner' maybe joining the term 'Pro' in the new program, the bond of partnership between all of the 'Pros' in the ProAdvisor program and Intuit has always been a focus and will continue to be for hopefully the next thirty years.
I want to thank Intuit for the opportunity of having an advance briefing on these changes. I hope that this article may help to alleviate some of your anxieties about the upcoming changes which should make reading all the details within the Firm of the Future article easier.
*-Some information (including graphics) adapted from contents from an advance briefing and advance copy of the above cited article within Intuit's Firm of the Future blog. Intuit information adapted herein is intended to outline Intuit's general program direction, but it represents no obligation and should not be relied on in making any purchase decisions. Additional terms, conditions and fees may apply to certain features and functionality. Eligibility criteria my apply. Program terms, offers, benefits, features, and functionality are all subject to change without any notice from Intuit.
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