Week 6 of 12 · Professionalize
Client service & data security
Milestone: Mock client intake. Format: Intake simulation + security briefing.
Persona side project — your client list
Run a structured intake on one live prospect (or a fully documented equivalent if no prospect is ready). Capture scope, timeline, and how you will receive files. Add the outcome to the roster.
Learning objectives
- Run a structured intake: discovery questions, scope, timeline, and next steps.
- Explain engagement boundaries: what you will do, what you will not do, what requires a credentialed tax professional.
- Handle files with privacy: naming, storage, sharing, and retention basics.
- Demonstrate listening and note-taking that the client could recognize as accurate.
Core instruction
Intake arc
- Welcome and purpose of the meeting (two minutes).
- Discovery: entity, software, pain points, deadlines, who else is on the team.
- Scope draft: deliverables, frequency, client responsibilities (documents on time).
- Security: how you will receive documents, who can see them, how long you keep them.
- Close: recap, written follow-up, calendar hold.
Data security (non-negotiable)
- Training uses fictional or de-identified data unless a proper agreement exists.
- No client files in personal chat threads or unlocked USB drives.
- Strong unique passwords; no shared logins in class exercises.
- If you lose a device, you report it immediately to the instructor.
Communication
Clear, respectful, concise. You adapt to the person in front of you without pretending expertise you do not have.
This week’s work
- Complete a timed mock client intake (live or recorded) using the class persona.
- Submit a one-page intake memo and a draft scope paragraph.
- Complete the file-handling checklist for a sample document packet.
How we know you are ready
Intake is structured. Scope is bounded. Privacy steps are visible in the memo. You do not over-promise credentials.
Apply to a cohort Persona track
