how the best managing partners gain commitment.
by robert j. lees and august j. aquila
creating the effective partnership
in the very best firms, the partners debate the options and, while it is incredibly rare for every partner to agree with every single aspect of the vision and strategy, the partners agree to line up behind the ultimate decisions. read more →
by marc rosenberg
author of how to bring in new partners
most firms vote on a one-person, one-vote basis despite varying ownership percentages. there’s good reason why. read more →
by marc rosenberg
author of how to bring in new partners
how will the duties and responsibilities of a manager change when he or she becomes a partner in the firm?
unfortunately, this is one of the grayest areas in bringing in new partners. common sense must prevail. ideally, there should be a gradual transition for new partners from their last two to three years as a manager to the first few years as a partner. during their last few years as a manager, they should:
how to create a fair and effective comp plan that unites partners and pushes the firm forward.
by robert j. lees and august j. aquila
creating the effective partnership
the right partner performance bonus plan encourages and rewards partners for achieving firm, team and individual goals, enabling the partners to see a clear cause-and-effect relationship between what they do, what it means to the firm and how they get rewarded.
unfortunately, in too many firms, partners can’t see these linkages. the compensation system is a failure.
consider, for a moment, these six questions for your firm: read more →
and the difference between smaller firms and larger firms.
by marc rosenberg
author of how to bring in new partners
maybe you’ve noticed this too: many midsize and larger firms retire partners at one times annual fees or less, while smaller firms are often sold for well over that.
how can you reconcile those two very different valuations? the answer, of course, is in the math.
here are the nine essential calculations… read more →
dealing with dysfunctional partners: the six-step process.
by august aquila
creating the effective partnership
as much as you would like to, you cannot ignore them; nor can you accept them as they are. doing that would be unfaithful to your core principles and ultimately cause more harm to the firm than any one of them is worth.
that leaves us with three options: rehabilitate them, fire them or place them outside of the firm. but first, be sure it’s not you.
and the two methods used by the smartest firms.
by marc rosenberg
author of how to bring in new partners
regardless of whether it is a corporation or a partnership, there is a substantial amount of accrual basis capital in a cpa firm. all the partners “own” some portion of that capital.
there are at least three methods for determining how much capital each individual partner “owns.” one of them should be avoided like the plague. read more →
how to become and remain competitive in the marketplace.
by robert j. lees and august j. aquila
creating the effective partnership
the challenge in designing the right system for the firm’s context is ensuring it motivates the partners to deliver the initiatives the firm needs to be successful.
if compensation is supposed to motivate and reward productive behavior and outcomes, and discourage non-productive behavior and outcomes, then you must ask yourself, “how well are we doing?”
we don’t claim that our recommended system is perfect since we know that the perfect compensation system does not exist. we do feel, though, that it encompasses the critical elements needed for leaders to better engage and reward partners.
we believe that if a firm wants to maximize its performance and keep its partners motivated and engaged, then it needs to design a compensation plan, which includes the following elements: read more →
five issues that should never be part of the calculation.
by marc rosenberg
author of how to bring in new partners
contrary to popular wisdom, the most successful cpa firms are finding that the fundamental and critical tactic in bringing in new partners begins with severing, as much as possible, the link between the ownership percentage and these five issues: read more →
today’s 5 essentials.
when cpas are invited into a firm’s partnership, their natural first question is, what’s in it for me? marc rosenberg, author of how to bring in new partners, reveals how the best firms are responding with five key deal points. read more →
the old formulas don’t work anymore.
by marc rosenberg
author of how to bring in new partners
at one time, calculating and structuring the buy-in for a new cpa firm partner was fairly simple and uniform across the profession. but things have changed. until recently, you’d start with the total value of the firm, defined as accrual basis capital, and then add goodwill, commonly expressed as a percentage of fees.
so, let’s run the numbers and see why firms are looking for alternatives and what they’re finding. we’ll look at trends in personal risk profiles, ownership percentages, how the buy-in is paid, guarantees to banks, the number of years to pay the buy-in, who the buy-in is paid to, and last, but not least, sweat equity.
goals alone won’t won’t get you there.
by robert j. lees
and august j. aquila
creating the effective partnership
many leaders believe that people remain focused and committed to their performance goals if the goals are clear and compelling. however, that’s not our experience with accounting firms.
according to franklin covey’s “the 4 disciplines of execution: achieving your wildly important goals,” team engagement and accountability are necessary to maintain commitment to goals and we are firmly in this camp. read more →
by marc rosenberg
cpa firm management & governance
no organization can flourish over the long term without effective communication among the leaders. cpa firms are no exception. here are four signs your firm probably has good communication among partners: read more →