In the next twelve months, if we can show them the benefit, they will be. The portal also has enlisted some of the brightest minds in CPA consulting to put together programs. It hired Wayne Harding, the flamboyant CPA who headed Great Plains' CPA programs for many years, as director of product marketing. It also hired Bill Reeb, a Texas CPA and business consultant, to develop CPA programs, and contracted with Jim Metzler of Gaines, Metzler, Kriner of Buffalo, a well-known technology consultant, to enlist firms in the test drive of the portal during the spring. Prager has no doubt that to succeed, things have to work out of the gate.
Most observers feel the sense of urgency is justified.
The race may already have been decided, according to Derek Doke, chairman of Pro2Net, a Seattle-based company that provides news and services to the accounting community. Doke believes the online approach may not work for anyone in the near future, but he's placing his money on Intuit as the winner. You look at Intuit's history. Doke acknowledges that Intuit is a major investor in Pro2Net, but on the other hand, Pro2Net recently agreed to provide online information to FiNetrics, an SAP service provider, and Intuit rival. CPA2Biz is also not alone in its efforts to serve the CPA market via an online portal.