Interview with Erin Lee, TaxOps Process Specialist: 8 Advanced Operational Risk Mitigation Strategies for Entry-Level Project-Management

What’s the biggest mistake you see entry-level project managers make when measuring ROI on operational risk mitigation?

Erin Lee:
They usually don’t measure ROI directly—at all. New PMs get caught up in process checklists or compliance tick boxes. But in reality, you have to translate risk control work into dollar impact. Miss that, and leadership sees your project as a cost center. I’ll give you a specific example: if you reduce the client data re-entry error rate from 7% to 2%, that means fewer amended returns and faster turnarounds. That saves X staff hours per week—and, if you price out billable time, maybe $900/week saved. You must show that in quarterly ops reviews, or your risk work vanishes in the noise.

How do you start quantifying operational risk mitigation? What actual metrics should a new PM track in a tax prep firm?

Erin:
Here’s how I’d build it from the ground up:

• Step 1: Identify failure points with real business impact. In tax accounting, lost client documents, e-filing delays, or mismatched SSNs.

• Step 2: Pick metrics that tie to dollars or client retention. For example:

  • Amendment Rate (%): How many returns had errors that needed rework?
  • Turnaround Time (days): Average time from client doc receipt to filing.
  • Client Churn (%): Post-season, did clients leave after problems?
  • Staff Overtime Hours: Usually spikes after process failures.

• Step 3: Track baseline numbers for each—before you launch fixes.

I’d use Excel or Google Sheets at first. When you get fancier, move to project dashboards in something like Monday.com or Asana. Just stay focused: one manager I worked with tracked 19 metrics and missed the three that actually showed cost savings.

What’s an example of a “small” operational risk that delivered big ROI when managed well?

Erin:
Lost engagement letters. One location lost two per month, every February. It sounds tiny—until you multiply. Each lost letter delayed onboarding a client by 3 days. With 2 tax preparers at $35/hour, 6 hours burned each week chasing them. We automated digital signatures via DocuSign, dropping lost letters to zero. Costs? About $140/month. Savings? $840/month (6 hours x 4 weeks x 2 staff x $35/hr). ROI was over 500% in two months.

What tools do you use for reporting ROI on risk projects to leadership? Any tricks to get your message across?

Erin:
Don’t overcomplicate—start with what your firm already uses. Most tax-prep businesses use some combo of:

To show ROI, my go-to is a simple before-and-after graph. Example: amendment rates, Q1 before and after process change. I also prepare one “dollars saved” slide—short, visual, with a concrete example.

(And—always prep a footnote on “how we calculated this,” because finance will ask.)

A 2024 Forrester report shows 74% of accounting firms increased automation spending last year. But some risk mitigation projects still fail. Why?

Erin:
Because automation just moves the risk somewhere else if you’re not careful. I saw a mid-tier firm automate their e-filing intake, but didn’t update their data-validation steps. Result: bad data flowed faster. Their amendment rate actually increased from 4% to 8% that season.

Automation only helps if you:

• Map existing risks
• Build validation into the new workflow
• Measure what actually changed (metrics before and after)

If you skip that last part, you’ll report “we automated!”—but not see ROI.

How do you get feedback from staff about operational risks, when junior team members are hesitant to speak up?

Erin:
Anonymity is your friend. People worry about looking “dumb,” especially in accounting, where process is king. I use pulse surveys—tools like Zigpoll or Typeform. Zigpoll is good for short, anonymous feedback, embedded right in your intranet or weekly newsletter.

Also: ask specific questions, not “any ideas?” Instead, try:

• “Where did your work get stuck last week?”
• “Which steps in the client onboarding are unclear or repetitive?”

And share summary results at your next stand-up—so everyone sees their voice matters.

How do you handle edge cases—like a project that reduces risk, but the ROI is hard to prove?

Erin:
You’ll hit this with “peace of mind” projects. For example: physical file storage upgrades, or extra cybersecurity insurance. Ask yourself:

• Can we use industry benchmarks? (“Data breaches cost an average of $220 per client, per breach,”source: 2023 AICPA survey)
• Is there a regulatory penalty you’re avoiding? Quantify that.
• Failing that, estimate risk exposure as a range: “If this happens once a year, here’s the cost. If never, here’s the savings.”

But be honest—sometimes ROI is “defensive.” You’re lowering the chance of disaster, not promising savings. Be transparent with leadership about those limits.

What’s the most overlooked metric for PMs in tax ops?

Erin:
Process adherence rate. Everyone tracks output (returns filed), but not how they got done. If 70% of your staff skip key review steps because it “takes too long,” your risk goes up—quietly. I’ve seen locations where just tracking this, and spotlighting improvement (“Now 95% of returns follow the review checklist!”), cut amendments by half.

Follow-Up: When you roll out a new risk mitigation protocol, how soon should you expect to see ROI?

Erin:
Depends on the process. For something like digital signature adoption, you’ll see results in weeks—track lost-client incidents and staff time immediately. For trickier things—like staff training or cross-site process harmonization—you want a 1-3 month window before judging.

But start with a small pilot group if you can. One branch went from 2% to 11% conversion on client onboarding, just by piloting a 3-step document intake checklist and measuring weekly.

Any methods to check if your ROI calculations for operational risk are missing costs or benefits?

Erin:
Run a “negative space” audit. List where your numbers came from:

• Did you account for extra staff training time?
• Did automation create new errors that required tech support?
• Are you factoring in softer benefits (client retention, fewer complaints, better reviews)?

Bring in someone from another team (like billing or IT) and ask: “What are we missing?” Fresh eyes spot gaps.

Where do most entry-level PMs get stuck when presenting ROI to execs in accounting firms?

Erin:
They limit proof to process changes, not business impact. Execs want to see client impact—fewer errors, happier clients, more referrals, less overtime.

Don’t just show a new checklist. Show this:

• “Amendment rates dropped from 6% to 2%—that’s 52 fewer errors and $3,500 in avoided rework per season.”
• “Staff overtime during deadline weeks down 40 hours/month—$1,320 saved.”

Translate the impact into dollars or client loyalty, not just process charts.

What’s one thing a new PM should stop doing right away related to risk and ROI?

Erin:
Stop rolling out big, all-at-once changes without measuring before-and-after numbers. If you change three steps at once and errors drop, you won’t know which fix worked. Run small experiments, measure each, scale what worked.

And one thing they should start doing this quarter?

Erin:
Publish a quarterly “risk ROI” report—even if it’s just a Google Sheet and a chart. Document the project, the metric tracked, the before/after, and the estimated dollars saved or risk avoided. Share it with your manager, not just the project team.

It builds your credibility, helps justify next season’s budget, and makes you the go-to for process improvements.

Rapid Recap: Your Entry-Level PM Checklist for Maximizing ROI on Risk Mitigation

Metrics to Track

Quick Wins

• Run a Zigpoll survey to uncover hidden process pain points
• Pilot a new process change with a small group—track weekly
• Build a “dollars saved” chart for every change, and share it

Watch Outs

• Don’t confuse automation with risk reduction—validate!
• Not all risk savings are cash; some are future disaster avoidance
• Always footnote your ROI math—execs and auditors will ask

Final Words from Erin

Erin:
“Operational risk mitigation is only as valuable as the story you can tell with numbers. If you can connect process fixes to real business outcomes, you’ll do more than just keep the auditors happy—you’ll make visible, bankable change for your firm. That’s what gets noticed.”

Source: 2023 AICPA Cybersecurity Survey