Vol. 7 No. 3, March 2015
The Leadership Forum is a panel of the most prominent thought leaders in the profession. Each month we ask them to respond to a question dealing with CPA firm management and leadership.
This month's question is:
What ONE change do you recommend that firms undertake to make their firm culture more engaging and attractive to the next generation leader?
Consultants and Other Prominent Observers
| August Aquila | AQUILA Global Advisors, LLC | www.aquilaadvisors.com [email protected] |
| I don't think there is just one thing a firm has to do. Think of a firm as an eco-system. There are many parts and they are all interconnected... More | ||
| Ron Baker | VeraSage Institute | www.verasage.com [email protected] |
| Get rid of their timesheets. | ||
| William Carlino | Transition Advisors | www.transitionadvisors.com [email protected] |
| ...Developing a challenging atmosphere where young talent is given a higher degree of responsibility and make them part of the process a assigning them to committees and projects in lieu of consigning them to cubicles doing Type A work indefinitely... More | ||
| Rex P. Gatto, PH.D. | Gatto Associates, LLC | www.rexgatto.com [email protected] |
| Create an open communication and transparent firm culture that supports mentoring of the next generation of leaders... More | ||
| Rita Keller | Keller Advisors, LLC | www.ritakeller.com [email protected] |
| ...Teach them about stats that you follow. Tell them why you care about realization and utilization. Educate them on how a CPA firm makes money. Share how your compensation process really works. Can you easily tell them how they can become a partner?... More | ||
| Adelaide Ness | The Rainmaker Companies | www.therainmakercompanies.com [email protected] |
| The MP of one of the firms I work with once told me "We're really good at delegating work, but we're terrible at delegating leadership." I think that sums up the one change that every good firm should undertake... More | ||
| Terrence Putney | Transition Advisors LLC | www.transitionadvisors.com [email protected] |
| ...Emerging leaders that are not retained or that do not develop to their full potential often cite a lack of involvement and understanding about their firm's future. Better communication through mentoring and involvement... More | ||
| Joel Sinkin | Transition Advisors LLC | www.transitionadvisors.com [email protected] |
| I have found certain firms who run a very "open" practice have attracted young talent. Their environment makes everyone part of the process... More | ||
| Rick Telberg | CPA Trendlines Research | www.cpatrrendlines.com [email protected] |
| ...If the prime directive of leadership is to create more leaders, then assume the role of follower. Leaders will emerge... More | ||
| Jennifer Wilson | ConvergenceCoaching, LLC | www.convergencecoaching.com [email protected] |
| Involve their next generation in strategic planning, vision planning and form an advisory board and then listen to them!... More | ||
Firm Leaders
| Paul Regan | Hemming Morse | |
| Be transparent about the firm's financial circumstances and distribute profits based on performance not seniority. | ||