Advisory Engagement — Year One

Your Advisory Roadmap

A plan for our first year working together — what you'll see, what we'll do, when we'll do it.

Client: [Client Name] Advisor: Rob Foncannon, CPA Engagement begins: [Start Date]

What's now true

You've signed the engagement agreement and your first payment has been received. As of that moment, you're an advisory client. This roadmap is the plan for our first year working together — what's coming, when, and what each of us is doing along the way.

The roadmap is a living document. We'll both reference it; we'll both update it as things shift. It's not a static deliverable that sits in a folder — it's how we keep the work coordinated.

The first 7 days — Welcome

Within 48 hours of your payment being received, you'll get two things from us:

A welcome email

Confirms the engagement, names what you'll receive next, and previews the kickoff meeting we already booked together during our second pre-engagement call. No forms attached, no documents to chase down — just a clear picture of what's coming.

A welcome video

About 5 minutes from Rob. Covers how we'll work together throughout the year — meeting cadence, the artifacts you'll see, who to reach for what, and how decisions get made between us. One-time orientation; re-watch any time.

Both come before any document collection, portal access setup, or technical handshakes. The first thing you'll receive as a client is not a form to fill out — it's a clear preview of how this engagement runs.

The first 30 days — Your first win

Target by Day 30

A measurable reduction in your next quarterly estimated tax payment, identified at our kickoff meeting and implemented within 30 days. We'll show you the specific dollar amount at kickoff — based on your numbers, not a generic estimate.

Example of what this looks like in practice: a $15,000 estimated payment that gets reduced to $7,000 through a specific tax-planning strategy. Your number will be different — we'll show you what's possible for your situation at kickoff.

How we'll get there

What the firm does

Identify the specific tax-planning strategy that produces your first win, based on your current numbers and structure.

Walk you through the implementation steps at kickoff — what needs to happen, by when, and what proof we'll need at the end to substantiate it.

Provide a living tracker showing where you are in the implementation, so nothing falls off the radar.

What you'll do

Complete the implementation actions within the 30-day window. Most strategies have a short list of actions — we'll make this as simple as possible.

Provide the supporting documentation we'll need to confirm completion (we'll specify what at kickoff).

Tell us early if you hit a roadblock. The window is short — don't sit on a question for two weeks.

The year on the calendar

Your seasonal advisory meetings are booked at onboarding — before the work begins. The dates flex if life intervenes, but they're on the calendar from day one. This keeps the year predictable for both of us.

Up to three tax-planning strategies are implemented per year in this engagement. Anything beyond that is a separate project — we'll discuss together if more comes up.

What's in your engagement, what's separate

Service Status
Year-round tax planning (up to three strategies)Included
Quarterly estimated tax planningIncluded
Year-end tax projectionIncluded
Annual personal and business tax returnsIncluded
Seasonal advisory meetings (4 per year, pre-scheduled)Included
Investment management / portfolio advisoryReferred — separate arrangement
Bookkeeping cleanup (if needed before engagement)Separate project
Major life events (sale of business, equity transition, multi-state moves)Separate project

For services marked as separate projects: we'll scope and price these when they come up. They're not surprises — they're predictable categories that warrant their own scope rather than being bundled in.

How we'll know onboarding is complete

Onboarding is complete when all four of these are true. At that point, we move from the onboarding rhythm into the steady-state engagement.

We'll check in together at the July meeting to confirm onboarding closed cleanly — if any of the four is still open at that point, we resolve it then.

Your accountable people

At Foncannon Tax, you'll work with a small, named team. You'll know who to reach for what.

Your advisor

Rob Foncannon, CPA

Primary contact for tax-planning strategy, advisory meetings, and decisions about your engagement.

Operations + scheduling

Caitlin, Operations Manager

Oversees the operational flow of your engagement — keeping milestones on track.

Natalie, Executive Admin

Handles scheduling, follow-ups, and the operational touchpoints between your meetings.

Daniel (tax prep + accounting) and Barbara (bookkeeping) work on the production side of your engagement; you'll see their work even if direct communication runs through Rob, Caitlin, or Natalie.