today's features
leadership

every partner’s first question: ‘what’s in it for me?’

 

by august j. aquila and robert j. lees
creating the effective partnership

although the whole purpose of engaging the partners is to commit them to the firm’s future, they also have to see a personal upside in the final destination. that upside can take many forms but it has to be spelled out. it’s critical that the descriptions are honest. smart people quickly stop trusting their leaders if they believe they are being lied to or the downsides glossed over.

creating the effective partnership:   the 9 building blocks of a winning vision that the big four have discovered  |   the politics of an accounting firm partnership  |  nine rules to creating highly effective partnership teams   |   audacious vision and grand purpose prove essential to cpa success | are you creating a sustainable firm? | the debilitating effects of denial at accounting firms | the five psychological hurdles that cpa firms must confront today

if, for example, achieving scale is achievable only through a merger, the likely impact of the merger on partner earnings must be addressed. smart people know that earnings may be flat, or even drop, in the short term. the key thing is that the upsides to both the firm and the partners make the initial sacrifice worthwhile. read more →

outlook & analysis

research update: working la vida 24/7

it’s the last week of august. are you working?

see the complete research update newsletter

rick telberg
rick telberg

the answer is probably, according to our surveys. working out of the office, on the go, in the car, remotely, virtually, 24/7/365 is very much a reality. (well, except for that one cpa we know whose standing out-of-office message reads: “i don’t open my email. call me if you send me something.”)

but for many accountants, working outside of the office is no longer a matter of getting more work done. it’s about improving life.  “being connected through a smart phone and e-mail allow me to work toward achieving that ever-elusive work-personal-life balance,” one senior staffer told me.

get the “seven tech tools for work-life balance,” then find out how others are managing by joining the survey, “how do accountants stay connected?“

– rick telberg
president / ceo
management

crowdsourcing for accounting practices

going beyond outsourcing and virtual workers.

by sandi smith, cpa
accountant’s accelerator

the days are long gone when the only way to build your business was by hiring full-time employees. now there are so many more choices. many employees are interested in part-time work. some prefer to work virtually, which frees a company up from being limited to local talent. and then there’s crowdsourcing, a whole new way to tap into talented labor on a project-by-project basis.

crowdsourcing is a special way to outsource a task. with outsourcing, you know exactly who will be doing the task. with crowdsourcing, you don’t; people just show up and contribute. wikipedia calls it “distributed problem-solving.” read more →

management

partners demand accountability, except….

except when it affects themselves.

by marc rosenberg
author of how to bring in new partners

partner accountability addresses what is expected of each partner, how partners will be managed so that the expectations are met and what the consequences will be for failure to meet these expectations.

i have interviewed hundreds of partners on partner accountability.  i frequently ask them if they would like the firm to have partner accountability.  the most common response i get, somewhat apocryphal, is:  “yes, i’m all for partner accountability (long pause) as long as it doesn’t affect me!” read more →

charts & graphs

top ten best places to find an accounting job

finance sector jobless rate falls to 4.7% from recession high 7.7% with the job market strengthening, career opportunities for finance, tax and accounting professionals are widening to places like seattle and phoenix, beyond traditional financial industry centers like new york according … continued
leadership

the 9 building blocks of a winning vision that the big four have discovered

learn more about the research findings

and that you can use too.

by august j. aquila and robert j. lees
creating the effective partnership

what should a compelling vision contain?

while we still see some visions that talk about becoming the leading player in a state or region, we are seeing a real recognition that a vision is a lot more than the statement we used to see firms use across accounting and the other professional services firms sectors.

more creating the effective partnership: the politics of an accounting firm partnership  |  nine rules to creating highly effective partnership teams   |   audacious vision and grand purpose prove essential to cpa success | are you creating a sustainable firm? | the debilitating effects of denial at accounting firms | the five psychological hurdles that cpa firms must confront today

consider, now, the common ideas from the visions of the big four firms:

read more →

management

staff training starts with doing something

ed mendlowitz, cpa, abv, pfs
author of “the 30:30 training method“

question: thanks for the training memo. although i requested your memo because i know i need help with improving efficiency and the like with my practice, many of your thoughts and ideas i have already thought of but simply did not implement them.

response: i think you hit part of the nail on the head in what you wrote – you’ve had many of the ideas and “simply did not implemented them.” you need to make changes or things stay the same. read more →

outlook & analysis

research update: your clients don’t care

view the complete newsletter online

rick telberg
rick telberg

in comments, joanie mann at cooper mann kicks off a conversation about what small business owners really want from their accountants with, “accounting professionals: you’re right – your clients don’t care about the numbers.”

bob woosley at frazier deeter agrees, saying “we are in a unique position to add value.” soloist bill mcallister says accountants have a duty “to serve clients by teaching them how to use technology.” frank stitely remains skeptical, suggesting “a gap between what clients say they want and what they’ll pay for.”

if you’re intrigued by that discussion, then you might also like this week’s small business clients clamor for technology advice. let us know what you think. your colleagues are listening.

– rick telberg
president / ceo

 p.s.: please join us for “the top ten trends that are changing everything“ at the florida institute of cpas’ annual accounting show sept. 25 in ft. lauderdale

outlook & analysis

how to survive as the future unfolds

are you ready for the new age of professional services marketing 3.0?

by bruce w. marcus
professional services marketing 3.0

professional services marketing 3.0? this from someone who has written, spoken, railed against jargon and gimmicks?

well, yes, because in this rapidly changing economic environment, intensely competitive landscape, and highly charged computer age, it’s the best way to define significant evolution from one distinct period to the next. but, that’s exactly what’s happened – and is happening – with cpa firms. and in management practices, business models, and structure as well. read more →