Caren Schwartz specializes in working with legal and other professional services firms. Ms. Schwartz is an Advanced Certified Professional Advisor for QuickBooks® and QuickBooks Online. Caren is the author of the book QuickBooks for Law Firms. Caren is a LeanLaw Accounting Pro.
What will you be speaking about at QuickBooks Connect 2019? Why did Intuit choose you?
My breakout session, Working with QuickBooks Online and Law Firms, (November 6, 1pm) is about how QuickBooks and legal apps work in law firms and understanding their strengths and limitations. I was chosen because I have expertise in the legal industry and I’m an Advanced Certified QuickBooks ProAdviser.
What do you want the audience to take away from your presentation?
I would like my audience to understand when QuickBooks Online is a good fit and what to do to help the client when it does not seem like a good fit.
How long have you been working with QuickBooks Online?
How long has QuickBooks Online been around? When QuickBooks Online came out, it was natural for me to learn about this new offering. I was in the first group to be certified and advanced certified for QuickBooks. Each year I have done more work, especially as the number of legal apps that integrate with QuickBooks Online has increased.
I have used QuickBooks desktop since v2 or v3 and still have some of the disks around – anyone have a drive to read a 5 ¼” floppy? and I wrote a book “QuickBooks for Law Firms.”
Why should an accounting pro go to QuickBooks Connect 2019 for the first time?
It’s a great place to learn about QuickBooks Online and to learn more about many of the apps that work with it. In addition, there are wonderful opportunities to learn about growing your practice and tools to better run an accounting practice.
Accounting is changing and QuickBooks Connect offers resources and training to help you understand the change and figure out how your firm can approach the change so you can continue to flourish.
Would you encourage law firms to go to QuickBooks Connect?
If the firm is committed to using QuickBooks Online then there could be benefit from learning more about QuickBooks Online and seeing some of the apps, especially those that can enhance reporting/forecasting.
What are you looking forward to at the conference?
Networking and seeing friends/colleagues.
If a colleague were on the fence about going, what would you tell them?
If you are interested in working with QuickBooks Online you should be there or if you have an accounting firm that is searching for ways to thrive in the changing accounting arena, QuickBooks Connect is a conference you should attend.
Any advice on how to get the most out of the conference?
- BE PRESENT
- Review the course offerings in advance and plan your schedule.
- Don’t party too much as attending classes and networking is so important an you want to get as much as you can from the conference.,/li>
- Try to “leave work behind” so you can focus. If you are on a call at every break you wan’t be able to network.
- Review the vendor list and decide who you should talk with. If youa re interested in a particular type of software – for example reporting – look at who will be there. Look at their product websites before you go and then plan your time.
- Be flexible. It may be worth spending time with additional vendors as there might be things you didn’t recognize on the website. If there are solutions you are particularly interested in, reach out to the vendor(s) in advance and try to arrange to spend some time speaking with them as the trade floor can be busy.
If you want to know more about Caren, you can to to her talk, Working with QuickBooks Online & Law Firms at 1pm on November 6, the first day of the conference.
You can also find out more about Caren at her website.
If you are going to QuickBooks Connect, stop by our booth, D11, and pick up a I ♥ Lawyers tshirt. We hope to see you there!
