As many accounting professionals are aware, Intuit Connect (or ‘Connect’) occurred this week, and there are questions on attendees’ (and those that opted out) minds about where their relationship stands with the software maker that, for the most part, has been ubiquitous in their professional lives.
I wrote about this similar topic last year and even interviewed Intuit’s Director, Accountant Partnership and Strategy, Ted Callahan about where he sees the company’s relationship with accountants. Since then, and factoring in my three decades of overseeing the accounting profession and Intuit’s role in it, relations have never been more strained.
Anecdotal evidence of this tension can be found throughout social media, in conversations at other social gatherings with accountants, and in the decided absence of some long-time attendees and supporters of the brand (who shall remain nameless). Much of this consternation seems to stem from increased pricing that, while it can be generally seen in every software market, is causing many small firm leaders stress around how they can continue to pass those costs on to clients. In other cases, it’s around Intuit’s acquisition and use of data, which some view as unsafe and even unscrupulous.
On the one hand, Intuit is a multi-billion dollar software company that, in all honesty, does not need to cater to all the feelings of small firms and has shareholders and millions of small business customers around the world to consider as well. On the other, there is a growing sense that the partnership accountants have long had with Intuit has changed in a way that they no longer believe equally benefits them.
Somewhere in between all of the aforementioned is what is really going on. And at a large, annual event that has been almost exclusively for accountants over the past several years, it is an opportunity. Moreover, it is a chance to make a case for why a solid, long-term partnership continues to exist and that any concerns to the contrary are unfounded, more nuanced, or somehow less significant than the value of the technology offerings and overall growth potential for accountants and Intuit together.
This is a somewhat long-winded way of saying that, like all long-term relationships, they evolve. You are either “on board” or feel a part of the journey, or you don’t. The latter is where a growing number of accountants appear to be at right now. We may or may not see that on display at Connect, for the majority of those who choose to go likely do so because they do feel a part of it, while the rest have opted not to attend and may never again.
In a follow-up article, I plan to dig into these issues and also (hopefully) share some viewpoints from Intuit execs and attending accountants alike on their present and future with the partnership.