Consulting and Advisory Services Checklist

Partner or senior manager runs the call. Capture the business problem in the client's words, the decision that needs to be made, and the deadline driving urgency. Common gotchas: a vague ask like 'help us with cash flow' usually masks a specific decision (refinance, hire, raise) — keep probing until you have the decision.

Check the client and related entities against the firm's independence database. Advisory work for an attest client (audit, review, or compilation with assurance) breaches AICPA independence rules under most state-board interpretations. Flag any related-party overlap before signing the engagement letter.

If the client is an existing attest client, the managing partner decides whether to decline the advisory engagement, restructure the attest relationship, or document a permitted-services exception under SSARS / PCAOB rules. Do not proceed to engagement letter without this decision in writing.

Write the in-scope and out-of-scope lists explicitly. Name the deliverables (e.g., 13-week cash flow model, KPI dashboard, board memo) with format and number of revisions included. Scope creep on advisory work is the #1 reason realization rates collapse — a tight scope statement is the prevention.

Choose fixed-fee, hourly, or value-based per firm policy. Build the hours estimate by phase (discovery, fieldwork, deliverable, review, presentation) and by staff level. Include partner review hours — these get under-budgeted on advisory engagements.

Use the firm's advisory-engagement template in Practice Ignition or DocuSign. Confirm the letter names the responsible CPA, scope, deliverables, fee, payment terms, and limitation-of-liability language. Advisory letters should explicitly disclaim assurance — this is not an audit, review, or compilation.

Create the work item in the practice-management tool, assign the engagement partner and lead manager, and set the budget hours by staff level. Link the signed engagement letter and link to the client portal folder.

Tailor the prepared-by-client request list to the engagement: GL export, trial balance, prior-year financials, bank statements, debt schedules, cap table, customer/vendor lists. Send via Suralink, SmartVault, or Liscio with named owners and due dates so the controller knows who is on the hook for each item.

Per firm policy, advisory engagements require a retainer or first month paid before fieldwork starts. Confirm receipt in QuickBooks before assigning staff. Skipping this is the most common realization-rate killer on advisory work.

Walk through scope, deliverables, timeline, communication cadence, and the PBC list. Confirm the client-side single point of contact. Set the standing weekly check-in on the calendar — usually 30 minutes, same time each week.

Reconcile the trial balance to the GL detail; trace bank balances to statements; tie debt to lender statements. Document data-quality issues in the workpaper — advisory recommendations built on bad books are worse than no recommendations.

Build the cash flow forecast, KPI roll-up, valuation model, or whatever the deliverable requires. Source-link inputs to the GL export so refreshes are mechanical. Save versioned copies in the engagement folder; do not work off email attachments.

Translate the analysis into 3-5 prioritized findings with quantified impact and a recommended action for each. Generic findings ('improve cash flow') are not deliverables; specific findings ('renegotiate net-30 to net-45 with top 5 vendors to free $180K') are.

Partner reviews the model, ties, and recommendations before anything goes to the client. Address review notes before drafting the deliverable. Per Circular 230 §10.36, the partner is on the hook for a system of review — document the sign-off.

Resolve every open review note in the workpaper, update the model, and resubmit for partner re-review. Do not move to deliverable drafting until the partner clears the file.

Write the report or board memo in the firm template — executive summary, findings, recommendations, supporting analysis, appendix. Lead with the decision the client needs to make, not with methodology. Include the standard advisory disclaimer language.

Engagement partner reviews the deliverable as the client will see it. Check numbers tie back to workpapers, recommendations match the analysis, and disclaimers are present. Partner signs off in Karbon before anything goes out.

Walk the client through the findings and recommendations live — do not rely on emailed PDF. Capture decisions, follow-up questions, and any out-of-scope requests that surface. Send the deliverable through the client portal immediately after the meeting.

Log every 'while you're at it' request from the presentation. Any item beyond the engagement letter scope gets a written change order with revised fee — never absorb scope creep silently.

Draft a change-order amendment to the engagement letter listing the new scope, fee, and timeline. Send through Practice Ignition or DocuSign for client signature before any work begins on the new items.

Bill out remaining fees per the engagement letter. Reconcile WIP in the practice-management tool to zero — unbilled WIP at engagement close is realization left on the table. Confirm the AR is current before closing.

Move the engagement folder to the firm's archive in SmartVault or ShareFile per the document retention policy (typically 7 years for advisory). Confirm the signed engagement letter, signed deliverable, partner sign-off, and supporting workpapers are all included.

Engagement partner and lead manager debrief: actual hours vs. budget, realization rate, what to keep / change for similar engagements. Capture lessons learned in the firm's advisory playbook so the next engagement starts smarter.