Case study
How June CPA built a SurePrep + SafeSend workflow nobody wants to give up
A Hilton Head CPA firm went paperless, scaled capacity without adding senior hours, and built a client delivery experience worthy of the work behind it
Introduction
June CPA is a full-service CPA firm located in Hilton Head, South Carolina, focusing exclusively on tax and advisory. Their managing partner, Mark June, has seen every iteration of tax technology come and go in his 40-year career. So, when he calls something "best of breed," it means something.
June uses that phrase for both SurePrep and SafeSend. Here's how the two products, working together with UltraTax CS, gave June CPA the truly paperless, fully flexible, and completely client-friendly workflow it had been building toward for decades.
10/10
SurePrep rating
100%
Remote access to folders and returns from anywhere
10/10
SafeSend rating
The challenge: Going paperless requires the right tools
June had always run his firm with paperless ambitions. But wanting a paperless practice and achieving one? Those are two different things. The tools must be built for the job, not retrofitted workarounds that create new problems while solving old ones.
June CPA encountered that gap firsthand across multiple areas of their workflow:
- Paper-dependent workflows. The firm's goals outpaced the tools available to support them.
- Clunky client portals. Previous delivery solutions looked and felt like technology for technology's sake. Client acceptance rates hovered around 25% with constant friction.
- Inconsistent workpaper processes. Without a standardized system, review quality depended too heavily on who prepared the return.
- Bottlenecked review process. Senior staff had to be in the loop for every question a preparer had, which slowed things down.
- No flexibility for remote work. Before going digital, June was literally bringing client files home in a basket — not a sustainable or scalable approach.
- Volume limitations. Without a way to tier return complexity and delegate appropriately, the firm couldn't take on more volume without adding senior-level time.
“We've gone through portals and they kind of were a little clunky and got negative feedback. And then it was maybe a 25% acceptance rate.”
Mark June
Managing Partner, June CPA
The solution: Best-of-breed tools worthy of the title
June CPA didn't settle for "good enough" — the same mindset that led them to stop doing audits and go deep on tax and advisory applied to their tech stack, too. They went with the best tools available for each part of the workflow and stuck with them.
SurePrep: The foundation of a truly paperless practice
June adopted SurePrep, identifying it as "best of breed" early and never looked back. No matter the complexity, SPbinder provides a consistent workpaper format where every return has a consistent format, whether it's 20 pages or 200. The streamlined review process uses built-in sticky notes to flag questions on workpapers, so reviewers don't need a conversation to understand where someone got stuck. The bigger efficiency unlock came from the tiered workflow, known as "fast tracks", where lower-complexity returns are handled and reviewed by junior staff, multiplying the firm's overall capacity, while Ready to Review added another leap forward in review efficiency. The end result is a firm with full remote work capabilities — fully paperless, with staff who can work from anywhere and access any client folder with an internet connection.
“If I told (my staff) we were gonna get rid of SurePrep, they would probably not work there. It's so integrated into our processes that it just makes things a lot more efficient.”
Mark June
Managing Partner, June CPA
SafeSend: Making the deliverable as good as the work inside it
Previous portal tools were functionable but forgettable, with low client adoption and clunky interfaces that didn't reflect June CPA's standards. But SafeSend changed the experience entirely. The solution delivers from forgettable to professional with a polished, intuitive experience, automated, time-stamped delivery where engagement letters and organizers go out automatically with a full record of when clients received and opened them, and one-click handoff where completed returns route directly from UltraTax to SafeSend's print queue.
SafeSend's Secure File Transfer feature replaced email for sensitive documents, and with remote delivery from anywhere, the admin team can process and send returns remotely, giving the firm full flexibility on where and when work gets done, with no professionals pulled off billable work.
“SafeSend has the sexiness to it. It makes the firm look like you're on the technology cuff of greatness.” – Mark June, Managing Partner, June CPA.
The integration advantage
The three-product setup works because each tool owns a distinct part of the workflow. SurePrep handles the document organization, data extraction, workpaper management, and tiered review; UltraTax sits at the core as the prep engine; and SafeSend does return delivery, eSign, engagement letters, organizers, and secure document exchange. For June CPA, the integration is the whole point. A workflow that moves seamlessly from start to finish without manual handoffs or system gaps.
The outcomes: Why SurePrep + SafeSend work better together
A true paperless workflow, finally achieved
SurePrep handles the internal workflow; SafeSend handles the client-facing delivery. Together, there's no paper anywhere in the process.
Consistent workpaper quality at every level
SPbinder standardizes how every return is prepared and reviewed, regardless of who did the work.
Junior staff contribute meaningfully
The tiered "fast track" workflow lets less experienced preparers handle lower-complexity returns start to finish, which multiplies the firm's overall capacity.
Client delivery reflects firm's quality
SafeSend turns tax return delivery from a functional task into a professional, branded experience — one that clients notice.
No more excuses on document receipt
Time-stamped delivery through Secure File Transfer means the firm has a complete record of every client interaction.
Remote-ready from end to end
Both products support fully distributed work, giving the firm flexibility without sacrificing consistency or quality.
“My staff would leave without it.” – Mark June, Managing Partner, June CPA.
Conclusion
For a firm that's been in the profession for 40 years, landing on "best of breed" for both products — and sticking with them through an acquisition — says something. SurePrep solved the internal challenge — consistency, quality, delegation, and a workflow that scales without adding senior hours. SafeSend solved the external one of a client-facing experience that looks as good as the work behind it.
Together with UltraTax CS, these products form Thomson Reuters Tax Automation Suite, an end-to-end solution designed to cover every step of the tax workflow, from document gathering through final delivery.
For June CPA, it's the reason the firm runs the way it does — without paper.
At a glance
Industry
Accounting, Finance & Tax
HQ region
Hilton Head, South Carolina
Solutions
SurePrep, SafeSend, UltraTax CS
Year founded
2006
Explore UltraTax CS and the Tax Automation Suite
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