leadership must focus on talent, talent, talent

red rocket rising above white hot air balloonsacquisition vs. recruitment.

by anthony zecca
leading from the edge

in my recently published book, “leading from the edge – creating a standout, high-performing organization,” i focus on the leadership accounting firms need to succeed in a future driven by seismic disruptors.

more: teamwork drives firm success | the two sides of the culture coin | four accountability steps for firm success | how to build a standout team | five keys to becoming a high-performing firm | assessing your firm | the 4 traits of great cpa leaders
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leadership has a responsibility and impact on creating the standout, high-performing talent necessary to drive the firm’s long-term strategy. we all understand and believe that at the end of each day, the firm’s greatest asset walks out the door (or in today’s world, disconnects). the quality of a firm’s talent directly relates to the success and performance of the firm.
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teamwork drives firm success

underview of 6 businesspeople in a circle with hands in center in teamwork gesturea team can’t become a standout team by dictate.

by anthony zecca
leading from the edge

leadership has responsibility and impact on creating a powerful and united team throughout the firm and an environment that motivates every single team member to their highest level of performance for the benefit of the firm, and not their own career advancement. teamwork and not individualism is a cornerstone of a strong culture that results in achieving the level of a standout, high-performing firm.

more: the two sides of the culture coin | four accountability steps for firm success | assessing your firm | incremental vs. exceptional success | is your leadership team at the edge? | leadership must drive culture
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in fact, a strong culture cannot thrive in an environment where silos exist, and individuals are more focused on what is best for their career versus what is best for the firm. teamwork is not only a key aspect of the firm’s culture, but a key factor in driving the firm’s performance to become a standout, high-performing firm.
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the two sides of the culture coin

three business colleagues arguing while seated at tableand how they relate to strategy.

by anthony zecca
leading from the edge

as we focus on the leadership of accounting firms need to succeed in a future driven by seismic disruptors, we must address leadership’s responsibility, and impact on creating a culture that results in an environment that motivates every single team member to their highest level of performance.

more: four accountability steps for firm success | how to build a standout team | five keys to becoming a high-performing firm | assessing your firm | the 4 traits of great cpa leaders | why leaders must ensure clarity | incremental vs. exceptional success | do you lead or just manage? | managing vs. leading | is your leadership team at the edge? | 6 leadership challenges through covid and beyond | edge leaders share 7 strengths | leadership must drive culture | leading from the edge
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there are two great quotes that i would like to start with to frame this discussion. the first is from bryan walker (partner and managing director at ideo), who stated that “culture is like the wind. it is invisible; yet its effect can be seen and felt” in every single organization that exists from the family to the biggest company on the planet. the second quote is from author tanya mann: “your organization’s culture is either an asset or a liability; either helping business performance or hurting it.”
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four accountability steps for firm success

plus four challenges to address.

by anthony zecca
leading from the edge

i’ve been focusing on the leadership accounting firms need to succeed in a future driven by seismic disruptors. we began with strategy, then empowerment. this third post will address the critical element that makes empowerment work – accountability.

more: the art of leadership: empowerment | the art of leadership, lesson one: strategy
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a characteristic of a great “edge” leader is the ability to empower everyone and understanding that as a leader, your responsibility is to lead and not manage. if you are the type of leader that manages, you own accountability since you can’t manage and empower at the same time. as i defined it in my previous post, a simple definition for empowerment that applies to all organizations is, “authority or power given to someone to do something.” 
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the art of leadership: empowerment

but there has to be accountability.

by anthony zecca
leading from the edge

editor’s note: zecca’s new book, “leading from the edge – creating a standout, high-performing organization,” focuses on the leadership needed for accounting firms to succeed in a future of seismic disruptors. in this special series, he addresses key aspects of “edge leadership” and the challenges most accounting firm leaders (all leaders for that matter) are facing today. the first article in this series focused on strategy because leading a firm without a strategic roadmap is like walking on a treadmill – no matter how fast you move or how long you tread, you end up just looking at the same wall.

a characteristic of a great “edge” leader is the ability to empower everyone, understanding that your responsibility is to lead and not manage as a leader. if a leader does not have the confidence in their leadership and/or their leadership team to empower those who they lead, the result is managing everything versus leading everyone.

more: the art of leadership, lesson one: strategy
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why is empowerment the second leadership concept in this series? a characteristic of a great “edge” leader is the ability to empower everyone, understanding that, as a leader, your responsibility is to lead and not manage. if leaders do not have the confidence in their leadership and/or their leadership team to empower those who they lead, the result is managing everything versus leading everyone.
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the art of leadership, lesson one: strategy

the “best” isn’t enough. “unique” is the secret ingredient.

in his new book, “leading from the edge – creating a standout, high-performing organization,” anthony zecca focuses on the type of leadership that accounting firms need to succeed in a future driven by seismic disruptors.  this is the first in a series of articles that will focus on key aspects of “edge leadership” and the challenges most accounting firm leaders (all leaders for that matter) are facing today. the next article will focus on “the art of leadership – empowerment”.  empowerment without accountability is like making ice without water – can’t be done.

by anthony zecca
leading from the edge

strategy: so much has been written about it and how to create it. harvard’s michael porter famously said strategy is best based on being unique, and not being the best.

more on the edge leader: is your team climbing the right wall? | how to build a standout team | competing for talent in a private-equity world | five keys to becoming a high-performing firm | assessing your firm | the 4 traits of great cpa leaders | why leaders must ensure clarity | incremental vs. exceptional success | do you lead or just manage? | managing vs. leading | is your leadership team at the edge? | 6 leadership challenges through covid and beyond | edge leaders share 7 strengths | leadership must drive culture | leading from the edge
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sounds crazy but the following quote (slightly modified) is what i think aligns with how an edge leader will think about strategy:

“strategy starts with thinking the right way about competition. many managers (leaders) compete to be “the best”—but this is a dangerous mindset that leads to a destructive, zero-sum competition that no one can win. competing to be unique, on the other hand, is the basis of a sound business strategy…”

how many firms go through the annual ritual of budgeting and partner retreats that in the end, at best, create some tactics that might improve the firm’s results incrementally?  how many leaders at these firm retreats focus on tactics versus strategy?  how many leaders think that developing long-term strategies (3 to 5 years) is unproductive given the challenge of thinking about the future so far down the road?  finally, how many leaders, when strategy is discussed, focus on being the best versus being unique?

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is your team climbing the right wall?

five ways to stay focused on the most important, not the most urgent.

by anthony zecca

do you evaluate the effectiveness of your team by what they get done or on what they get done that matters?

more zecca: how to build a standout team | competing for talent in a private-equity world | five keys to becoming a high-performing firm | assessing your firm | the 4 traits of great cpa leaders | why leaders must ensure clarity | incremental vs. exceptional success | do you lead or just manage? | managing vs. leading | is your leadership team at the edge? | 6 leadership challenges through covid and beyond | edge leaders share 7 strengths | leadership must drive culture | leading from the edge
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simple question and for most firms, the answer is a focus on getting things done.  however, getting things done too often does not align with putting effort into getting things done that matter. read more →

how to build a standout team

why everyone has to get on board.

by anthony zecca

“coming together is a beginning. keeping together is progress. working together is success.” – henry ford, inventor, founder and ceo of the ford motor company

more: five keys to becoming a high-performing firm | assessing your firm | incremental vs. exceptional success | is your leadership team at the edge? | leadership must drive culture
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let’s follow mary as she works through the first principle – creating a firmwide, standout team.
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competing for talent in a private-equity world

why your firm’s compensation and ownership model just became obsolete.

by anthony zecca
leading from the edge

talent has been one of – if not the – biggest bottlenecks blocking growth at accounting firms.

more on private equity for cpa firms: analysis: private equity the new source of growth capital for cpa firms?  |  analysis: how outside capital will remake cpa firms  |  exclusive:  ceo charly weinstein explains the private equity deal   |   flash briefing webinar: a “call to arms” after eisner private equity deal   |  eisneramper gets private equity backing |

in my strategy work with accounting firms, i hear over and over how firms can’t attract talent, how talented individuals are being recruited away to other firms or other industries with significant salary increases. i hear managing partners telling me that their marketing teams and partners are afraid to bring in new clients since the staff they have are already stretched beyond what is reasonable to expect.

now with private-equity investments in accounting firms, this fight for talent will only get more intense.

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five keys to becoming a high-performing firm

transformation must come at all levels.

“the world accommodates you for fitting in, but only rewards you for standing out.” – matshona dhiliwayo, author, “the art of winning.”

by anthony zecca
leading from the edge

after your assessment of the leadership team, and the assessment of your own leadership, we move on to the challenge of answering the key question – what steps need to be taken (the road map) to move the firm from where it is today to a standout, high-performing firm?

more on edge leadership: assessing your firm | the 4 traits of great cpa leaders | why leaders must ensure clarity | incremental vs. exceptional success | do you lead or just manage? | managing vs. leading | is your leadership team at the edge? | 6 leadership challenges through covid and beyond | edge leaders share 7 strengths | leadership must drive culture | leading from the edge
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the call to action and question for you as the edge leader, for your leadership team, for your partners, and in fact for the entire firm to answer is, do you just want to fit in or are you willing to do what it will take to stand out? if you want to move to the top of the pack, what does the firm need to accomplish and how does leadership drive that transformation?

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the 4 traits of great cpa leaders

key leadership attributesdo they have these attributes?

by anthony zecca
leading from the edge

as the leader of the firm, as important as it is to complete a comprehensive assessment of your leadership team, it is equally if not more critical to assess your own leadership. what are the key leadership attributes that reflect great edge leadership?

more on edge leadership: assessing your firm | the 4 traits of great cpa leaders | why leaders must ensure clarity | incremental vs. exceptional success | do you lead or just manage? | managing vs. leading | is your leadership team at the edge? | 6 leadership challenges through covid and beyond | edge leaders share 7 strengths | leadership must drive culture | leading from the edge
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how can you get a meaningful and comprehensive assessment of how well you are doing as the leader of the firm? the trap to avoid is to just listen to yourself and your own self-assessment. to really understand how well you are performing, you need multiple checkpoints.
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assessing your firm

diagramfor a true baseline, bring in a consultant.

by anthony zecca
leading from the edge

now that we have completed an assessment of your leadership team and your leadership, the third leg is assessing the overall performance of the firm. this assessment, coupled with the assessment of the leadership team and your leadership, provides a strong foundation upon which to build the roadmap (strategies) for moving the firm from where it is today to a standout, high-performing firm. the underlying objective for this assessment of the firm is to have a factual basis for establishing a myth-free and accurate baseline of the firm by analyzing a number of key characteristics.

more on edge leadership: assessing your firm | the 4 traits of great cpa leaders | why leaders must ensure clarity | incremental vs. exceptional success | do you lead or just manage? | managing vs. leading | is your leadership team at the edge? | 6 leadership challenges through covid and beyond | edge leaders share 7 strengths | leadership must drive culture | leading from the edge
goprocpa.comexclusively for pro members. log in here or 2022世界杯足球排名 today.

what are the major areas of focus for the firm assessment? in center-led firms, the assessment of how well the firm is doing is generally focused around financial metrics. how much profit did we make? what was our growth? what was the change in average partner compensation? what profit percentage to revenue did we achieve?
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why leaders must ensure clarity

large group of people gathered into an upward arrow shapeyour team wants to know their purpose.

by anthony zecca
leading from the edge

many of you who are reading this might be too young to appreciate the story i share below about my childhood.

more on edge leadership: assessing your firm | the 4 traits of great cpa leaders | why leaders must ensure clarity | incremental vs. exceptional success | do you lead or just manage? | managing vs. leading | is your leadership team at the edge? | 6 leadership challenges through covid and beyond | edge leaders share 7 strengths | leadership must drive culture | leading from the edge
goprocpa.comexclusively for pro members. log in here or 2022世界杯足球排名 today.

i have always been a huge football fan. i played football in high school until a knee injury cut short my road to the nfl (just kidding), but my love of the game continues to this day. when i was a kid, there was a football game that i received one christmas that i spent countless hours playing. the game was powered by electricity. the game board was designed as a football field, and there were 22 little plastic players that would form two teams. the players were about 2 to 3 inches tall, with a rubber piece on the bottom that had two flanges that you could move directionally and in theory affect how the piece would move on the board once the power button was hit.
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