Tax season aftercare: How to recover after the busiest time of the year

Tax season can feel like a sprint, a marathon, and a rollercoaster all in one. And while it’s tempting to jump straight back into ‘business as usual,’ what comes after tax season is just as important as what happens during it.

Post tax season staff retention is serious. In fact, public accounting turnover spikes between 40-60% right after tax season.

Now is the time to show up for your team more than ever, not pull back. Here are three practical steps you can take to help them recover, and come back stronger.

How to help your team recover from busy season

1. Celebrate (properly)

After all those late nights, frantic email chains, and hours poring over spreadsheets, it’s no surprise that most of your staff will be tired, homesick, or anxious about the to-do list that they’re about to come back to. 

They need more than just a pat on the back. Take the time to plan and prepare a celebration that truly counts.

Here are a few examples of how to celebrate your team members:

• Rewards: Whether it’s time off, or a company retreat, or a visit from a therapy dog, repay your team for their hard work with something they’ll genuinely look forward to.

• Recognition: Share the wins with personalized thank you letters, a company-wide update overflowing with praise from clients, or both.

• Reset: In other words, have fun. Host a team lunch (virtual lunches can work for hybrid teams), but don’t be afraid to think outside the box. Axe throwing, escape rooms, online trivia—any non-work activity that brings people together will only make your team stronger.

Celebrations don’t have to be expensive or over-the-top. The key is to do something—and mean it.

2. Debrief with your team

Every tax season reveals friction points. From inefficiencies to persistent sore points like late client submissions and flooded inboxes, if there’s a problem with your workflows, your people will have felt it during tax season.

Now, it’s time to address them.

Hold a structured debriefing session with your team to discuss what worked and what needs to change to create a smoother, more supportive experience next year. 

Common frameworks to guide the conversation include:

• PMI: Discuss the Plus, Minus, and Interesting takeaways from the past season.

• Stop, Start, Continue: What are the strengths and weaknesses of your current systems?

• 4Ls: What was Liked, Learned, Lacking and Longed for? 

Most importantly, create an action plan from your debrief and follow through. Be proactive about delivering solutions now, and you can avoid unnecessary problems (and headaches) down the line.

3. Set goals—and don’t hold back 

Once you’ve recalibrated after busy season, start planning for the next. Now is the time because the realities of the past season are still fresh in your mind.

When choosing a focus area, use the Practice Excellence framework as a guide:

• Growth. Do you want to scale your business? Depending on what that means for you, that might mean investing in recruitment, offering new services, or preparing your firm for acquisition.

• Efficiency. Consider how you could reduce bottlenecks. A well-integrated accounting firm tech stack can streamline your workflows. How can your team leverage AI to increase productivity?

• Strategy. It’s time to examine your business approach. What are your metrics for success? How are you meeting them?

• Management. Reflect on your leadership so far. What have you learned from the past tax season? Where is your team falling short? Invest in professional development, for yourself and your firm, and spend some time thinking about your succession plan.

Develop a list of SMART goals based on your focus area and collaborate with your team to start actioning them. Don’t be afraid to be bold. Giving your team something genuinely meaningful to work towards, and that they can rally behind, will inspire a greater sense of ownership in your firm’s success.

Aftercare is a must

Tax season tests every firm. But it also reveals the strengths, opportunities, and resilience of your team. 

The firms that thrive long-term don’t just move on. They move forward. They come together. They take stock. They learn. And they lay the groundwork for even greater success next time around.

So take a breath. Recalibrate. And then keep up the momentum—with the right aspirations, and the right aftercare in place, your quiet season could be your most productive season yet.