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As owners of accounting firms and tax practices, you're uniquely positioned to guide clients beyond compliance and into strategic business enhancement. The emerging research on workplace wellbeing presents a compelling opportunity to expand your advisory services while delivering significant value to your clients.
The business case you can present to clients is increasingly robust. Oxford researchers Jan-Emmanuel De Neve and George Ward have compiled the world's largest dataset on employee wellbeing, revealing concrete connections between workplace happiness and business performance. Their findings transform how we understand the relationship between employee satisfaction and organizational success.
When discussing operational efficiency with clients, you can now highlight wellbeing investments as proven productivity drivers. This shifts the conversation from viewing these as costs to recognizing them as performance investments. Research consistently demonstrates that happier employees are more productive, more creative, and more engaged with their work. These aren't soft benefits—they translate directly to measurable business outcomes.
In conversations about your clients' staffing challenges, position wellbeing programs as strategic talent management tools. Companies with strong wellbeing cultures report significantly lower absenteeism and reduced turnover. This translates directly to reduced recruitment and training costs, addressing pain points that your clients frequently mention. The competition for talent remains fierce across industries, and workplace wellbeing has emerged as a decisive factor in both attracting and retaining valuable team members.
For your bottom-line focused clients, emphasize that companies with high employee wellbeing scores consistently outperform their peers financially. This makes wellbeing initiatives ROI-positive investments rather than just HR expenses. Your financial expertise allows you to frame these conversations in terms your clients understand—projected returns, efficiency gains, and competitive advantages.
Consider expanding your advisory services to incorporate wellbeing-focused offerings. Develop capabilities to help clients measure and maximize returns on their wellbeing investments. Offer specialized consulting on optimizing the structure of wellbeing programs for maximum employee impact and business benefit. Create financial models and tax planning strategies showing projected returns from specific wellbeing investments tailored to each client's industry and circumstances.
When discussing workplace wellbeing with clients, speaking their language is essential. Frame recommendations in terms of business outcomes like operational efficiency, reduced turnover costs, and enhanced productivity, and reduced tax liability. Leverage your credibility as their trusted financial advisor—your recommendation carries significant weight, especially when supported by research from institutions like Oxford University. Emphasize that early adopters of comprehensive wellbeing strategies are gaining meaningful competitive edges in their industries.
Offer clients a thoughtful approach to implementing wellbeing initiatives. Help them evaluate their current workplace culture and identify specific wellbeing improvement opportunities. Recommend starting with high-impact, modest investments to demonstrate quick wins. Establish clear metrics to track program effectiveness, focusing on both wellbeing indicators and business outcomes. Provide ongoing advisory to refine approaches based on measured results.
As accounting and tax professionals, you have the trusted relationship and financial expertise to help clients understand that workplace wellbeing isn't just a feel-good initiative—it's a strategic business imperative with measurable returns. The forthcoming book and webinar by De Neve and Ward provide timely, evidence-based support for these conversations.
Christine Gervais is a licensed CPA, using her skills to help businesses grow and achieve their fullest potential. Christine has a Master’s degree in accounting from Southern New Hampshire University in addition to holding her CPA license for over a decade. Notably, Christine is a nationally recognized speaker providing education to other CPAs on how to best serve clients as well as instruction on a wide variety of topics for business owners on how to maximize success. Christine prides herself on the value she can bring to clients with her extensive tax knowledge and provides strategic, forward-thinking financial strategies to help clients grow. When not behind her desk, you can find Christine spending quality time with her daughter and stepson or tending to the family’s excessively loved farm animals.
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