Pillar guide
Building a Modern CAS Practice
CAS is the highest-margin opportunity inside most accounting firms. Here's how to build it.
Productize first
Every successful CAS practice sells a tiered, productized offering. Three SKUs with clearly different deliverables. Don't sell custom; sell packaged.
Tech stack matters
The right stack is a GL (QuickBooks/Xero), an advisory layer (ADK Intel), and a meeting cadence. That's it.
Price it right
Top-tier CAS should run $1,500–$5,000/mo per client. If you're under $1,000, you're selling glorified bookkeeping with a meeting.
FAQ
What's a typical CAS client size?
$1M–$25M in revenue is the sweet spot — large enough to need help, small enough not to have a full-time CFO.
What's the right team size to launch CAS?
2 senior staffers minimum (1 lead + 1 deputy) plus partner sponsorship. Beyond that, scale headcount with client count.
How long until CAS is profitable?
Most firms hit positive contribution margin inside 6 months and 25%+ firm-wide margin inside 18 months.