Overview
Varney & Associates, a full-service accounting firm with 60 employees across Manhattan and Emporia, Kansas, found themselves in crisis mode when their newly adopted practice management system announced an abrupt shutdown. With just four months to find and implement a replacement, the leadership team needed a solution that would unify their workflows, integrate time and billing, and offer hands-on support every step of the way.
After evaluating multiple platforms, they chose Firm360 for its intuitive design, all-in-one capabilities, and standout customer service. The result? A smooth transition under pressure, a major boost in internal efficiency, and a client experience that’s never been stronger.
Challenge
The unexpected announcement that their current platform would be discontinued came at the worst possible time — right on the heels of tax season. “We were told in April that the company was closing the doors, and by August, the system would be shut down completely,” recalled Principal Amanda VanKleeck. “It was shocking.”
Only two and a half years prior, the firm had already gone through a difficult system migration. Despite adopting new workflows and communication tools, they never fully integrated time tracking with billing — a critical shortfall that had become increasingly frustrating. “It’s hard to bill when your time isn’t attached to the project,” Amanda explained.
With just four months to find a new platform, implement it, and retrain their staff, the firm had to act fast. Their top priority: a unified system that could handle workflow, time, and billing in one place — and a support team they could rely on through a high-pressure transition. After evaluating six platforms and narrowing the list to three, they found what they were looking for in Firm360.
Solution
Varney & Associates chose Firm360 for its all-in-one platform, ease of use, and excellent customer service. The implementation was fast-tracked to meet the firm’s tight timeline. Amanda noted, “The Firm360 onboarding team was really willing to work with us on what we needed and when we needed it. It was very structured, which helped a lot.”
In addition to the structured approach, Amanda highlighted one of the most decisive factors in selecting Firm360: the dedicated 1:1 customer service.
“We looked at other systems, but the level of personalized support we got from Firm360 really stood out,” she said.
This hands-on service reassured the team that their needs would be met quickly — a critical consideration in such a high-stakes transition. Internally, the switch was remarkably well-received. “Change is hard for everyone,” Amanda admitted. “But the owner group was unified.
We knew this was fast, we knew we were just changing again, but we had to be rowing in the same direction or we were going to be dead in the water.”
Results
The adoption of Firm360 led to noticeable improvements in both internal operations and client experience:
- 10+ hours/week saved by Amanda personally due to platform stability and reduced support burden
- Significant reduction in internal support emails, from 5–10 per week to virtually none
- Wider client adoption of the portal, with many clients logging in independently for the first time
Internal Efficiency
Amanda personally saves an estimated 10 hours per week, largely due to the stability of the platform. “There are zero times that an issue is a Firm360 issue. It is always user error,” she noted. “We used to get 5–10 internal emails a week about something not working. Now, if we get one a week, that’s unusual.”
Training has also become easier. “The Knowledge Base was a huge feature. Before, we had to create our own videos and documents, which took so much time,” Amanda explained. With Firm360’s built-in training resources, onboarding new staff and supporting clients has become significantly more efficient.
Client Experience
Clients are embracing the new portal in greater numbers than ever before. “We’ve had clients find and log in to the portal on their own — without even being onboarded by us,” Amanda said. “That never happened before.” The password-free login, streamlined interface, and mobile accessibility have all contributed to a smoother user experience and reduced support burden for staff.
Business Resilience
While Amanda says it’s still too early to measure long-term growth impact, Firm360 is already enabling new processes. “We’re developing a streamlined onboarding system for new clients, and Firm360 gives us the tools — like the leads feature — to support that,” she said. “We’re on the right path.”
