most firms spend their time at retreats planning for the future, forming goals and addressing pressing issues and problem areas. the problem areas aren’t day-to-day issues such as purchasing a new copy machine or revising the policy on sick days. the problem areas are more strategic: morale issues, recruiting problems, profitability, etc.
how the best set direction, gain commitment, execute on plan and lead by personal example.
by robert j. lees, august j. aquila and derek klyhn
rob lees
professional services is one of the most critical sectors in all western economies and an increasingly important one in every other world economy. but, the usual measures of scale, like revenues, the number of firms or the number of professionals, don’t adequately reflect the importance of the sector. what makes professional services so critical is the influence professional firms have on their clients’ activities.
whether the influence comes through strategic advice, legal opinion, transaction origination and support, tax minimisation, or an audit opinion, every business we know is reliant, in some form, on the opinion of a professional service firm.
august aquila
in addition, and at least as important given the move away from self-regulation, there is the critical regulatory role of the accountants and lawyers tasked with ensuring the probity of the world’s financial markets. all of which makes the task of ensuring that each of the firms is a role model of its profession’s expertise, values and ethics absolutely key.
when firms were relatively small, that wasn’t a difficult task. however, as firms have increased in scale, geographic reach and service offerings, the task of running a professional service firm has become extremely complex. and that’s without considering changing client expectations, increasing competition between firms, threats to the traditional business model from offshoring and the increasing number of virtual firms, the increasing number of western economy-based firms operating in countries with social and business norms sometimes far removed from their own, the arrival of a generation with very different expectations than their predecessors, and calls for greater transparency and regulation in the light of the financial meltdown.
derek klyhn
in our twenty year association with professional service firms (psfs), every one of the hundreds of firms we have worked with around the world has seen the number, scale and complexity of the challenges they face increase significantly. being a managing partner, never the easiest of roles, is now one of the most complex and challenging roles in any organisation in any business sector anywhere in the world.
and yet, every managing partner we know admitted that they took on the role without any real understanding of what the role entailed and without being sure if they had the capabilities to do it effectively. they also described how the typical high need for achievement culture within professional service firms, with its intolerance of perceived failure, made it almost impossible for them to ask for help when they needed it and for their colleagues to offer it.
rob lees is a founding partner of moller psfg ltd and consultant to professional service firm leaders worldwide. he is also co-author of the best-selling “when professionals have to lead.”
august aquila is an internationally known speaker, writer and consultant to professional services firms. he is ceo of aquila global advisors. he is also the co-author of “compensation as a strategic asset” and “client at the core.”
derek klyhn is a founding partner and director of møller psfg cambridge ltd and consultant to professional service firm leaders and their teams. he is chartered accountant and has an mba from london business school.
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it starts with how to make a successful senior manager.
by marc rosenberg, cpa
how to bring in new partners
how are the duties and responsibilities of a new partner different from those of a manager? this is one of the grayest areas in bringing in new partners. read more →
most of us are thrust into the managing partner role in our firms with little or no training or coaching. who teaches you to be an effective mp? how do you know if you’re performing well?
your partners won’t tell you. if you’re new to the job, do you just do it the same way as your predecessor? is that the best approach for the firm? who will mentor you?
as i can attest from experience in running my firm for over 20 years, it is a thankless job. i just took a deep breath and jumped in. the best feedback that most of us get is from other managing partners and from benchmarking ourselves against other firms. there are not too many places to turn for help.
whether you are new at the job or a veteran, here is an approach to organizing the job into six buckets that will help you. it is how i approached the responsibilities and it lends itself to dividing and conquering with the ability to delegate some responsibilities.
early returns from the new 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间 survey into identifying and managing high-potential professionals suggests that, beyond ability, firms are more intent than ever on finding well-rounded individuals capable of taking initiative and developing new business.
above is a word picture of some of the verbatim responses we’re capturing. what are the traits you look for in new hires? here are a few of the more interesting answers: read more →
there is a constant topic of conversation both inside firms and at almost every conference. it is the age-old question of partner compensation and “how do you do it”. as our firm grew, we evolved from everyone is equal, to the “slip of paper” approach, to a more goal driven, performance based system. every firm is a little bit different but the issues surrounding how you split the pie are pretty consistent.
start with a vision for the role your business plays in your life. by rick telberg it’s said that most small businesses don’t last five years. but kudos to them; at least they tried. what concerns me are the nine … continued
[jwplayer mediaid=”19373″] here the legendary practice management guru paul dunn previews his planned talk at the aicpa pracitioners conference in june. and here he is delivering a ted talk: [jwplayer mediaid=”19374″] an engineer by training who quickly discovered people were … continued
does your firm get “it”? quiz your partners and staffers. by edi osborne mentor plus everywhere i go, experts in the profession have a debate about what percentage of the profession really gets “it?” the veritable “it” is the future … continued
there are some pretty tough jobs out there. sword swallower. repairman at a nuclear plant. dentist for alligators. but being a change agent could top the list.
when you mention change agent, the term “cultural change” is usually close behind. change agents change the way things are being done on two fronts:
1. structurally/organizationally within a business and
2. change employee’s thinking, and how they do things.
orchestrating change is a firm-wide responsibility.
by ira s. rosenbloom
succession planning and the stress that comes along with it are quite the rage in the world of public accounting. when it comes to recruiting a firm’s next managing partner, the challenge may be enormous.
in a restructuring designing for agile maneuvering and rapid growth, tulsa, okla. accounting firm hogantaylor has reportedly named a new ceo, promoted a new tax practice leader and created a new board. the new structure, very different from that used in many accounting firms, mirrors the corporate structure found in most businesses. hogantaylor is the largest public accounting firm in the oklahoma and northwest arkansas region with more than 160 employees and two offices in tulsa, and offices in oklahoma city and fayetteville.
a new movement is stirring within the cpa profession, led by a new tech- and social-savvy generation. last week in a chicago suburb, we met for a first-of-its-kind un-conference, organized by jody padar of new vision cpa group and titled i c … continued
