Case Study
Automating Operations for a Fast-Growing Accounting Firm
2025
60+
Hours per week saved
42%
MRR growth in one month
55%
Reduction in software costs
The Client
Ciera + Co.
Ciera + Co is an accounting and consulting firm specializing in cashflow management, bookkeeping, and financial operations for small business owners. As the firm scaled, manual onboarding, unclear internal workflows, and inconsistent communication created unnecessary strain on the founder and team.
Team
Founder, operations manager, executive assistant, and accounting contractors
Industry
Accounting + bookkeeping
Financial Consulting
My Role
I partnered with the founder as a Creative Operations Consultant, rebuilding the firm’s client and internal workflows from the ground up. My work focused on automation, workflow design, template and asset system creation, and reducing operational overhead as client volume increased.
Creative Operations Lead
Designed the operational structure needed to reduce manual work, improve clarity, and create a predictable client lifecycle during a period of rapid growth.
Art Director
Mapped the full client lifecycle across lead intake, onboarding, document collection, and recurring service delivery.
Systems & Automation Architect
Built the automation and CRM infrastructure that moved clients seamlessly from sales , onboarding, to accounting systems with minimal manual steps.
Workflow Strategist
Mapped the full client journey, identified bottlenecks, and rebuilt workflows to reduce emergencies, eliminate guesswork, and improve internal communication.
Operations Partner & Change Facilitator
Collaborated closely with the founder and operations manager to ensure systems aligned with team capacity, reduced stress, and were easy to adopt and sustain.
The Project
The Operational Problem
Ciera + Co was experiencing strong demand, but internal systems hadn’t matured with the business. The team was relying on manual work, inconsistent workflows, and unclear communication patterns that made onboarding unpredictable and fulfillment more reactive than planned.
manual, multi-step onboarding that required constant oversight
unclear internal workflows across sales, onboarding, and service delivery
a CRM setup that didn’t reflect the client lifecycle
urgent requests and emergencies caused by missing or incomplete client information
no standardized templates or email flows
scattered documentation across multiple platforms
high founder involvement in tasks that could be automated
Goals + Success Criteria
The goal was to replace manual, stressful workflows with a structured system the team could rely on. Success meant automating onboarding, clarifying internal processes, and creating an operational foundation that supported growth without adding to the founder’s workload.
The Work
Solution
My approach focused on bringing clarity to the client experience, automating repetitive tasks, and creating structured workflows the team could rely on.
By building systems that reduced manual workload and improved communication, the team gained more predictability, less stress, and the ability to scale.
Process
1.
Audited client lifecycle
2.
Mapped
workflows end-to-end
3.
Identified bottlenecks
4.
Designed automations
5.
Built templates + SOPs
6.
Refined systems with team
Workflow System
I rebuilt the client workflow to create clarity and predictability. These workflows allowed the team to deliver consistently without constant manual management.
structured stages across sales, onboarding, document collection, and service delivery
CRM pipeline and dashboard that showed client status at a glance
clear responsibilities and pacing across team members
reduction of emergencies by ensuring tasks triggered at the correct time
Automation & CRM Buildout
Automation created the largest impact, dramatically reducing manual effort across onboarding and ongoing service delivery. This reduced the founder’s workload to one manual action and saved the firm more than 60 hours per week.
automated client onboarding from contract → welcome email → information request
built the bridge between the CRM and accounting service platform
triggered recurring and situational internal tasks
set up internal task-routing automations based on client actions
created nurture flows and segmentation for workshops and resource downloads
automated affiliate system notifications and payouts
SOPs, Templates & Asset Systems
SOPs for onboarding, offboarding, scheduling, invoice adjustments, and internal communication
kickoff and information request email templates
standardized internal and client-facing Drive structures
page templates for workshops and resources
automated Zoom recording workflows/libraries
comprehensive financial forecasting and profit-tracking spreadsheet covering metrics like MRR, profit, expense breakdowns, contractor costs, recurring expenses, and YoY growth
Workshop, Website & Lead Systems
I developed automated workshop and resource funnels that strengthened marketing efforts and resulted in opt-in rates well above industry benchmarks.
built registration pages workshops
created automated show-up and follow-up sequences
set up reusable workshop and resource pages
connected lead actions to segmentation and follow-up paths
Tools Used
Google Drive, Monday, Zapier, Twilio, Otter.ai, Zoom, ChatGPT, Canva, Adobe Creative Cloud, Double (formerly Keeper)
Metrics & Optimization
As systems were adopted, I refined workflows, tightened automations, adjusted pacing, and improved communication paths. These optimizations resulted in smoother operations, stronger team alignment, reduced emergencies, and more predictable delivery across the business.
Results
Predictable workflow
Reduced founder workload
Clearer team communication
Consistent internal processes
Fewer emergencies
Reliable client experience
60+ hours saved weekly (~2 FTEs)
Near-complete automation of onboarding
Founder involvement reduced to one manual step
42% MRR growth in a single month
Recurring software costs reduced to 55%
34–50% resource opt-in rate
Zero back-and-forth on onboarding steps
Firm-wide adoption of all new systems
“Brittany made everything feel clearer and more organized. She gave me structure I didn’t realize I needed, and it made onboarding and our whole process so much easier. I felt genuinely supported the entire time, and it completely changed how we worked.”
Alyssa Ciera
Summary
By rebuilding Ciera + Co’s operational foundation, I created a scalable, predictable, and automated system that allowed the team to work with more ease and less manual effort.
These improvements empowered the founder and team to focus on high-value client work, support more clients without burnout, and grow their revenue with confidence.
See how it works with real teams.
If you want to understand how these systems come together — and the impact they have — the case studies below walk through the process, decisions, and results in detail.
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