Back to Case Studies
    Accounting · Mid-Market

    Real-Time File Monitoring for a Westchester CPA Firm

    Google Apps ScriptMake.comGoogle DriveSlack
    The workflow, visualized

    From friction to flow.

    Watch the work re-shape itself — the same steps, restaged so the team can move.

    ~1 hrSaved Per Person, Per Day
    Clicking through client folders
    drive · client folders
    • Client A!
      • ····-10.pdf
      • ····-11.pdf
      • ····-12.pdf
    • Client B!
      • ····-20.pdf
      • ····-21.pdf
    • Client C!
      • ····-30.pdf
      • ····-31.pdf
      • ····-32.pdf
    • Client D!
      • ····-40.pdf
      • ····-41.pdf
    • Client E!
      • ····-50.pdf
      • ····-51.pdf
      • ····-52.pdf
    scanning…
    Reading one Slack summary
    file-monitor
    morning summary
    • Client A · Open Slack at the start of the day.
    • Client B · Read one summary message listing every new upload by client.
    • Client C · Flag any clients still missing requested documents.
    • Client D · Move straight into billable work.
    posted 8:00 AM✓ all clear
    drive · monitored
    • Client A
    • Client B
    • Client C
    • Client D
    • Client E
    monitored
    live
    stackGoogle Apps ScriptMake.comGoogle DriveSlack
    Before
    60 min/day
    Clicking through client folders
    After
    2 min/day
    Reading one Slack summary
    The challenge

    Where the friction lived.

    Staff at a CPA firm in Westchester, NY were spending 15 minutes to an hour every day clicking through client folders in Google Drive. They were checking one thing: did the client upload what we asked for? During tax season, with dozens of active clients, this turned into a daily time sink. Nobody had a reliable way to know what came in and what was still outstanding.

    The team now starts their day knowing exactly what came in overnight. Instead of clicking through folders one at a time, they check one Slack message and move straight into billable work. The managing partner has become the automation's biggest fan. He brings it up on calls with vendors, clients, and anyone who will listen.

    Implementation

    How we built it.

    1. 1Mapped every active client folder in Google Drive to define the monitoring scope
    2. 2Built a custom Google Apps Script to scan folders and detect new file uploads
    3. 3Connected the script to a Make.com scenario that formats and delivers the results to Slack twice per day
    4. 4Organized notifications by client name so the team can scan in seconds
    5. 5Tested across file types, folder depths, and edge cases like bulk uploads
    6. 6Deployed to the full team and refined the format based on their feedback
    The result

    What changed.

    ~1 hr
    Saved Per Person, Per Day
    • Each team member saves 15 minutes to an hour per day that was previously spent checking folders
    • New client documents are surfaced automatically without anyone opening Google Drive
    • The managing partner actively shows the system off to external contacts
    • Follow-up prioritization improved because the team always knows what's missing

    “I show this to everyone. Every call we're on, I pull it up. It's so easy to read, I look forward to reading it every day.”

    Managing Partner
    CPA Firm, Westchester, NY

    Want your workflow to click into place?

    Tell us where the friction lives. We'll map a path through it.