Empowering every role

Where innovation meets advisory

Papin CPA PLLC is a forward-thinking accounting firm with a team of seven professionals. Since 2016, the firm has been part of the Thomson Reuters Practice Forward community, emphasizing an “advisory-first” approach. Their mission is to apply tomorrow’s AI tools today — enhancing daily efficiency and driving innovation that delivers lasting value.

Closing the advisory divide

Even with a strong advisory foundation, Papin CPA still faced a common but critical challenge — bridging the gap between technical expertise and client understanding. This challenge is especially prominent in an era where AI-generated content often gives clients a false sense of confidence.

Internally, the firm also struggled with consistency. While their workflows were well-developed, there was no guarantee that every team member would follow the same steps or deliver the same quality of insight. Junior staff, in particular, lacked the confidence to step into advisory roles, often unsure of how to translate complex tax concepts into client-friendly language.

The result was a bottleneck in scaling advisory services and a missed opportunity to fully leverage the team’s collective potential. As Chris Papin explained, “I see Ready to Advise being able to give my team the confidence in the platform to know that the answer is correct, even if they don’t necessarily need to know how it goes on a tax form.”

A catalyst for change

As Ready to Advise became a foundational part of Papin CPA’s advisory workflow, the team began using it at the very start of client engagements — uncovering valuable insights before conversations with the client even began.

Beyond the technology itself, the platform became a catalyst for cultural change. Administrative staff began to take on more proactive roles, using the tool to identify opportunities and initiate client conversations. Meanwhile, technical team members found a reliable validator for their expertise, ensuring that no critical steps were missed. The result was a more confident, collaborative, and empowered team. “Ready to Advise will allow folks that are traditionally in administrative positions to accelerate the opportunity and get opportunities in front of the clients,” Papin noted.

The impact of Ready to Advise

Papin CPA saw a noticeable shift in how their team approached advisory work. With the platform’s ability to reveal insights early in the client lifecycle, conversations became more strategic and forward-looking. The team no longer had to rely solely on memory or manual processes to guide client engagements — Ready to Advise provided a consistent, replicable framework that elevated the quality of every interaction.

Tangible outcomes

Improved efficiency. The tool helped identify new opportunities to streamline workflows and enhance client conversations.

Increased confidence. Team members gained confidence in delivering accurate, consistent advice.

Client understanding. Clients better understood the rationale behind recommendations.

Proposal impact. Visual, logic-driven proposals created with Ready to Advise resonated more with clients than traditional spreadsheets.

Quantifiable gains

Time savings. Reduced time spent manually validating research and preparing advisory materials.

Client conversion. Proposals generated through the platform led to immediate client buy-in without additional selling.

More than a tool: A new advisory mindset

For Papin CPA, Ready to Advise has become more than a tool — it’s a shift in mindset. It’s about giving every team member, regardless of title, the confidence to step into the advisory space with clarity and consistency. It’s about showing clients not just what’s possible, but why it matters.

As Papin put it, “There’s a lot of noise in our industry, and we get a lot of questions from clients that are sometimes misplaced.” Ready to Advise helps cut through that noise. It brings structure to complexity, turns uncertainty into opportunity, and transforms client conversations from reactive to proactive.