learning

how to build a powerhouse learning team for your cpa firm

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create competitive value by combining practitioners and educators on the same team.

by michael ramos and cate miller

cpas bring a diverse range of skills to any business problem. at small firms, partners wear many hats, including management of the learning function. but as firms grow, it soon becomes apparent that one of the firm’s partners – no matter how talented he or she may be – is not functioning at their highest and best use if they have to manage the entire learning function on their own.

training and development  part 3 in a 3-part series: run training like a business

     part 1: 4 steps to get more from your training budget

     part 2: how to manage cpe by the numbers

     part 3: how to build a powerhouse learning team 

 

with size comes a diversity of learning needs and management of the learning function becomes more complex. the opportunity cost of having firm partners and managers limit their billable hours to coordinate training begins to outweigh the costs of engaging the help of a learning professional.

thus is born the need for a learning team.

read more →

how to manage cpe by the numbers

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developing and monitoring learning metrics. by michael ramos and cate miller accounting is the language of business. cpas help business owners understand and manage their business by analyzing financial and non-financial metrics. to improve the results of the firm’s professional development efforts, … continued

4 steps to get more from your training budget

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how to run your training like a business. by michael ramos and cate miller with cpa firms spending 1.5 percent to 2.0 percent of revenue on learning, budgets can be hundreds of thousands of dollars even for a modest-sized firm. but firms invest … continued

when accountants don’t know they don’t know

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blindfolded at computer by sandi smith leyva
the accountant’s accelerator

early in my career, one of my favorite things to teach was maslow’s four stages of learning.  i still think it’s one of the most valuable and profound pieces of information i have come across in my learning.

maybe you recall, too:

  1. unconscious incompetence.
  2. conscious incompetence.
  3. conscious competence.
  4. unconscious competence.

here’s how it applies to accountants: read more →

high-impact learning: 4 ways to maximize cpe roi

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and the fatal mistake cpa firms make in their training budgets.

by michael ramos

for years cpa firms have tried to measure the roi from their learning and development spend, an effort that has produced mostly unsatisfactory results.

standard learning and development metrics provide some insight into the training function, but firm partners are more interested in measuring something much more elusive: tangible economic benefit from training spend.  what the profession has struggled with is, while measuring costs is easy, measuring direct return has proven to be quite difficult.  faced with an incomplete roi model, firms turn to the only side of the equation they can control, the cost side, which leads them to take the only option that seems viable – cutting costs as a way to drive roi.

the problem is firms are asking the wrong question. instead of focusing on precise measures of return on training dollars, cpa firms would be better served by asking the more subjective question, “what should we do to make sure our training dollars are being spent wisely?”  the answer to that question may lack the precision firm leaders desire, but it does have one distinct advantage over precise objective measures: it is a question firms can answer.  and the answer, if thoughtfully considered, may achieve the ultimate goal: providing high-impact training at an affordable cost. read more →

survey: top 10 ways firms tutor top talent

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screen shot 2014-05-21 at 12.52.39 am

no. 1 method: ‘give them challenging assignments.”

by 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间 research

it may sound harsh to the uninitiated, but the most common way for firms to turn talented staffers into future managers and leaders is to make their lives a little more difficult, according to a new 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间 multi-year study.

the questionnaire for “talent strategies: how to identify and develop professionals for management and leadership responsibilities” remains online and open as 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间 continues to collect data and refine its analysis.  read more →

cpa talent: how to identify future leaders early

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screen shot 2014-05-20 at 6.58.19 amwho gets promoted and why in accounting: join the survey; get the answers.

by 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间 research

tax, accounting and finance professionals don’t agree on everything. but they do seem to agree on the key traits needed to succeed in the profession, according to a new 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间 multi-year study.

the questionnaire for “talent strategies: how to identify and develop professionals for management and leadership responsibilities” remains online and open as 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间 continues to collect data and refine its analysis.  read more →

there’s only a 20% chance you’ll remember this

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bob dean, a veteran accounting firm chief learning officer, knows what’s wrong with cpe today and he’s on a mission to change it. read more →