Source: Partner Insights

CNBC commentator Douglas Kass combined the words depression and recession and came up with “Decession.”

In this article, reproduced with permission, August Aquila gives some sage advice on how to cope with it. Included are excerpts from the article titled “Tips for Making it through These Economic Times.”

1. While you can promise that no one will be laid off, you can be honest with them. Tell them what you know and what you don’t know.
2. Communicate your message with consistency. If you change it every week, no one will believe anything you say.
3. Review controllable expenses. While no one ever built a practice by cutting expenses, you can help your bottom line by watching expenses more carefully. The firm won’t explode if it uses computers for an additional year or postpones non-essential partner travel.
4. Don’t stop marketing. But spend marketing dollars wisely. Clients don’t buy your services because you have fancy brochures; they buy because they trust you can solve their problems. Spend your marketing dollars on seminars and one-on-one calls.
5. If you want to have a successful marketing effort, get your partners out of the office.
6. Now is the time to take a closer look at under-performing partners. In good times, most firms carry them without any problems. These are not good times, so take a good look. You will be surprised when your staff asks you, “What took you so long?”
7. Put a hold on some initiatives. If you were going to make a major investment this year, you might want to reconsider it, especially if it does not have a positive effect on current results.

For the complete article, click here.

From Partner Insights, Aquila Global Advisors, LLC, February 10, 2009, www.aquilaadvisors.com.

Measuring CPA Leadership Effectiveness