Today's Partners Must Be Accountable
Source: CPA Practice Management Forum
According to August Aquila, firms cannot afford to have underperforming partners in the current economy. To improve partner accountability, firms should develop expectations or written guidelines clarifying partner responsibilities. Whether or not partners are performing up to standard, Aquila says, is an issue of firm survival.
Firms should create standards for partners in four areas:
- Ability to develop business. Partners should be involved in marketing for the firm, personal marketing, cross-selling, and bringing in new business.
- Relationships with clients. Partners should adhere to the firm's client acceptance policy; be willing to transfer clients to members of the team who are best-suited to serve those clients; and be committed to exceptional, proactive customer service.
- Strength as a business manager. Partners should be able to meet standards of client profitability, timely billing and collecting, leverage, and billable hours.
- Ability to lead. Partners should take part in firm-wide social activities, be willing to invest in the growth of individual team members, be able to trust and be trusted, and have a greater concern for the firm as a whole than for themselves.
To ensure that partners meet their responsibilities, firms must 1) clarify partner expectations, 2) measure whether those expectations are being met, and 3) create a direct connection between work performance and compensation.
For the complete article, read “The Brave New World of Being a Partner.”
From CPA Practice Management Forum, CCH Incorporated, 800-449-8114, February 2012, p. 10.