mergers & acquisitions

what’s in a (firm) name?

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post with two signs, "same" and "change"there are reasons to change, but don’t do it without reflection.

by marc rosenberg

this will be short because this area is cut and dried. let’s focus on how a firm’s name affects the way it is managed.

more: a crash course in partner retirement/buyout plans | 5 key reasons to have a partner agreement | protect your business with a solid partner agreement
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there are two primary scenarios to examine.
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dean quiambao: ‘if you’re not disrupting, you’re not doing it right’

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portrait of dean quiambao
quiambao

tip you can use: an integration team for mergers.

by kayleigh padar
the radical cpa guide

dean quiambao, a cpa and business development partner at armanino llp, a top 25 firm, works hard to incubate revolutionary ideas within his firm to help it grow and modernize as the world around him changes.

more on radicalism: karbon builds a practice management platform on steroids | firm product management is the way to the future | 10 steps to start innovating | the value of new ideas | the radical road to (business) transformation | the radical cpa: always changing
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“do your activity, because activity breeds activity,” said quiambao. “and i say this all the time, you keep hitting singles and the next thing you know you’re going to pop a triple out of nowhere. you’re going to make your own luck, you’re going to make something happen because you’re constantly doing something.”
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the top 11 reasons cpa firm mergers fail

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four businesspeople, left handshakeplus: four questions to self-assess your due-diligence efforts.

by domenick j. esposito
8 steps to great

even as mergers and acquisitions among cpa firms are moving at a hectic pace, many, if not most, are falling short of expectations.

more: new year’s resolution: solve the partner comp problem | 21 questions to help unlock accelerated growth | m&a candidates: valuations and vetting | ai likely to accelerate merger mania | get your money’s worth from non-billable time | stay independent but keep looking upward
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some are even winding up in divorce, with costly breakup costs as morale drops, go-to-market opportunities fail to materialize, and key partners and potential partners leave for other opportunities.

for every transaction that actually does happen, it is also apparent that handfuls of potential deals die at the altar.

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the three laws of physics in accounting firm mergers

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pendulum desk toywhat led to the succession crisis? inertia.

by r. peter fontaine

sir isaac newton was truly a genius for the ages. he lived 85 years, worked his way through cambridge, invented calculus, had a seat in parliament, was knighted by queen mary and now rests quietly in a prominent westminster abbey crypt.

more: a lawyer’s guide for spring cleaning your accounting firm | 6 types of due diligence procedures | cultural optimization: making mergers successful | why due diligence is done | what to ponder before issuing a letter of intent | the four ways ‘non-competes’ #fail in the social media age
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while best known for the unsubstantiated tale about a falling apple that led to his theory of gravity, newton’s three laws of motion have withstood the test of time. these principles are remarkably applicable to modern-day accounting firm mergers.
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7 steps to take as your firm grows

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a bigger firm needs bigger thinking.

by steven e. sacks

there has been talk about consolidation within the accounting profession for the last several years. will the big 4 become the big 2, or will there be the big one (from a non-nuclear perspective, of course)?

more: today’s workplace challenge: communicating across generations, cultures, and diversity | the damocles sword of staff retention | does your board know its role? | five powerpoint rules to live by | your firm’s biggest assets walk out the door every day | can we please refer to accounting as a profession?
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or, on the other hand, will there be a combination of regional firms whose size will be in the neighborhood of the top 10 or top 15 firms that are considered super-regional firms – and who may consider themselves direct competitors to the big 4?
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m&a candidates: valuations and vetting

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overhead view of people solving a large jigsaw puzzleplus consultant fee structures and integration committees.

by domenick j. esposito
8 steps to great

last year alone, over 200 firms merged up and this year is tracking the same. at this pace, a very large percentage of the approximately 14,000 multi-partner cpa firms (about 90 percent of which are under $10 million in revenue) will be looking at an upward merger in the next few years.

more on strategic planning: m&a: sometimes bigger is better | use compensation to shape partner behavior | the importance of m&a culture due diligence | are you attracting the new breed of equity partners? | quality work, quality service not the same thing | who will be the next category killer? | why is strategy execution so difficult?
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so let’s take a deep dive into what you need to know about merger combinations, which are as much about the addition of talent as they are about the addition of clients.
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yes, bigger is better

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businessman hand holding puzzle pieceslike it or not, size sells.

by domenick j. esposito
8 steps to great

while conventional wisdom tells us that better is better, it’s plain and simple nonsense when it comes to midsized cpa firms and a convenient excuse for a less than stellar growth by a firm’s partner group.

more on strategic planning: use compensation to shape partner behavior | ai likely to accelerate merger mania | get your money’s worth from non-billable time | stay independent but keep looking upward | the dangers of low-hanging fruit
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just look at “better” through the lens of the marketplace for both existing and prospective clients and talent.

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how artificial intelligence will drive the next wave of merger mania

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large fish eating medium fish eating small fishit may be time to prepare a plan b.

by domenick j. esposito
8 steps to great

we are halfway into the year 2017 and the frenzied pace of cpa firm mergers and acquisitions – when compared to the years 2015 and 2016 when there were over 100 and over 200 transactions, respectively – has not slowed down one bit.

more on strategic planning: what a value proposition truly is (and isn’t) | the importance of m&a culture due diligence | are you attracting the new breed of equity partners? | quality work, quality service not the same thing | who will be the next category killer? | why is strategy execution so difficult? | time running out for succession planning | the benefits of a client situation review
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we continue to witness a perfect storm caused by:
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when the inmates are running the asylum

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crazy doesn’t get better by adding more crazy.

by dom cingoranelli

“we can’t really enforce this because we don’t want to risk having him (or her) quit.”

i can’t tell you how many times we hear something to this effect when we talk with cpas. we hear this at small firms and we hear it at large firms. we hear it from partners, from directors, and from managers. it doesn’t matter what size firm they’re in, nor does it matter what level or position they hold.

it’s always the same line. it reminds me of the old adage, “the inmates are running the asylum.” and, it raises the question of who actually is running the firm. who’s in charge?

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the two most common management styles

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senior businessman with his team at officedo cpa firms need management or leadership?

by bill reeb and dominic cingoranelli

let’s start out with a straightforward question. what is the difference between management and leadership?

more on performance management: 8 ways to manage clients | the limitations of rainmakers | firms only grow when partners play their roles | the four basic parts of cpa firm partner agreements | younger partners see succession differently | how to compensate your managing partner | the job of managing partner: empowered or emasculated? | how the best managing partners turn ideas into reality
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from one point of view, leadership is far different than management.
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8 ways to manage clients

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two men shaking hands across a tablethis is job 1 for the practice owner.

by bill reeb and dominic cingoranelli

whether you simply desire to improve your firm’s operations or identify and implement a new long-term strategy, you need to be clear about the role that the owners, partners or shareholders should be playing in your firm.

more on performance management: the limitations of rainmakers | different roles for different partners | how big ‘books’ hurt firms | developing a three-year vision [video] | more merger questions than you imagined | mps: how to elect them … and fire them | partners as role models: the good, bad & ugly | managing the managing partner
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to be sure, the roles and responsibilities of a cpa firm owner or owners will vary from firm to firm, based on that firm’s needs and circumstances, and you need to adapt any recommendations to fit your firm’s situation.
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