How Collective Financial Partners set up filtered workflow repeats and centralised tax data

A practical approach to automating job creation, improving visibility, and preparing for timesheet rollout

Collective Financial Partners, a regional accounting and advisory firm with a fast-growing team, needed a better way to manage recurring work across a diverse client base. Their internal systems were solid, but day-to-day admin was creating unnecessary friction.

Operations Manager Caitlyn Jones had a clear set of goals:

• Clean up how job repeats were created and maintained
• Improve visibility into task assignments across the team
• Lay the groundwork for a smooth timesheet rollout in XPM

The solution came through a hands-on AccountKit session, where Caitlyn and the team explored filtering tools, task planning features, and the Outlook add-in to streamline data capture.

Tackling repeat-job clutter with filters, tags and structure

The team’s first challenge was managing multiple services for the same client, such as business year-end jobs alongside individual tax returns.

“We’ve got a bunch of people who are individual clients, but also part of a company or trust. I just want the repeats split out properly so we’re not seeing all their jobs lumped together,” Caitlyn said.

Using AccountKit’s advanced repeat filters, Collective Financial can now segment recurring jobs based on:

• Client structure, such as companies versus partnerships
• Tags, like ‘payroll weekly’ or ‘bookkeeping monthly’
• Scheduled days, such as only generating payroll tasks on Tuesdays

These filters allow the team to keep workflows clean and ensure job triggers are more targeted. For example, a weekly payroll job now only repeats on Tuesdays for clients tagged with weekly payroll, preventing unnecessary noise in the system.

One workflow template can now support multiple client groups, reducing setup time while maintaining flexibility.

Improving visibility into task ownership without extra admin

The next priority was understanding what work was already on team members’ plates.

Previously, Caitlyn had to dig through emails or switch tools to find out who was working on what. With custom views in AccountKit’s workflow tab, the team can now:

• Instantly see which jobs are assigned or unassigned
• Filter tasks by owner, priority or workflow type
• Bulk assign tasks quickly
• Drag and drop jobs into daily task lists or long-term project boards

This gives Caitlyn and her team a clear, real-time overview without the need for micromanagement.

“This is going to save so much time. I love that I can just go in, find what’s unassigned and reallocate work on the spot,” Caitlyn said.

Now she can focus on priorities without having to jump between systems.

Preparing for timesheets and tracking WIP in XPM

From 1 July, the firm will fully transition to timesheeting through AccountKit’s integration with Xero Practice Manager.

The team has started preparing by learning how to:

• Post time directly from job cards
• Include detailed notes and context
• Edit or delete entries as needed
• Push time directly into WIP in XPM

“I love that it links straight into WIP. We’ve wanted better visibility over our WIP for ages, so being able to post from the job and see it all sync across is really useful,” Caitlyn said.

This setup supports both annual job models and continuous engagement workflows, giving the firm flexibility to adapt over time.

The outcome is a more accurate view of where time is being spent and a more efficient approach to tracking billables.

Centralising tax data for individuals using the Outlook add-in

Individual tax return (ITR) season had long been a source of manual work, with critical data often stuck in inboxes. The rollout of AccountKit’s Outlook add-in has helped the firm centralise incoming correspondence and attachments.

Now, team members can:

• Attach client emails and documents directly to their workflow
• Link emails to existing jobs or trigger new tasks
• Alert colleagues to incoming data
• Drag and drop files straight into SharePoint or FYI Docs

“It just makes it so much easier, if a client emails you directly, you don’t need to forward it or save it somewhere else. You can upload it straight into the system.”

The result is fewer dropped files, less duplication and a clearer, auditable trail of client communication.

What’s next?

With filtered workflow repeats live, individual tax data centralised, and a firm-wide rollout of timesheets under way, Collective Financial Partners is setting up for a more efficient financial year.

“We’re not reinventing the wheel, we’re just using what we’ve already got more effectively. And that’s what we wanted.”

They’ve removed the manual friction, gained real visibility over their work, and found ways to make their existing systems work harder for them.

Could your firm benefit from smarter workflow filters and simpler task management?