develop your employees or suffer the consequences

businesspeople discussing chartsevery employee, for developmental purposes, needs to directly report to somebody.

by bill reeb and dominic cingoranelli
卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间 / succession institute

you may have established a competency model for your firm, but how do you use it to develop your people? let’s walk through what an action plan might look like to drive that development.

it is common for firms to have talented partners and principals.  depending on the firm’s size and organization structure, things start getting fuzzier from a competence perspective from there on down the organizational chart.

more on performance management: cpa firm performance assessments: 15 core competencies, 21 questions | how to target what skills to develop now | what having your employees’ backs means | 5 harmful management attitudes (and how to fix them) | do cpa firms need management or leadership? |  job 1 for the practice owner: client management

for example, some firms have a strong management group with a gap in talent starting at the senior or supervisor level. others might experience their talent gap at the manager level because everyone who shows any self-starting initiative or promise is moved to a principal position early on. it doesn’t matter the size of your firm, you will likely be feeling a big gap or drop in talent somewhere in your organizational chart.

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today’s top six partner compensation trends

money in hand

why so many pay-for-performance plans are a flop.

by august aquila
creating the effective partnership

many of us, including myself, thought that the right compensation plan would solve the answer to underperformance and motivation. over the last ten years or so, firms have moved from a formula-based plan to a pay-for-performance plan which takes into consideration, production, business development, value enhancement and behavioral factors. and, while this has helped place more emphasis on performance, it hasn’t been a magic bullet. why are so many firms still missing the boat when it comes to motivating partners and staff to perform at a higher level?

more on leadership: 5 questions about your firm’s direction | 6 reasons to keep partners from retiring | 6 reasons why cpa firms fail in innovation | 6 steps to handle staffing problems in a merger | 7 signs your firm is headed for an implosion | it’s not always about money: 16 tweaks for your comp system | eight key goal areas for partners | like herding cats: partners must ‘walk together’ | managing partners must remember partners’ needs | new times call for new cpa firm metrics | partners have love-hate relationship with leadership | 6 things leaders must do | 8 financial ducks to line up now| partnership is about persuasion

janice kaplan, in the new book, “the gratitude diaries: how a year looking on the bright side can transform your life,” refers to a survey on gratitude in which some 80% americans say that receiving gratitude makes them work harder, but only 10% of the survey respondents managed to express gratitude to others on a daily basis.

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cpa firm performance assessments: 15 core competencies, 21 questions

reeb-and-cingoranelli-with-cpatr-si-logo-200checklist: how to fine-tune your own firm’s performance management systems.

by bill reeb and dominic cingoranelli
卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间 / succession institute

when evaluating people within a firm, “relative importance” is a way to differentiate expectations regarding the same competency for various levels within your firm. we decided the best way to drill down even further into a competency model was to share some of the details of our competency model with you.

more on performance management:how to target what skills to develop now | what having your employees’ backs means | 5 harmful management attitudes (and how to fix them) | do cpa firms need management or leadership? |  job 1 for the practice owner: client management

it considers the following six levels within a cpa firm (each firm needs to choose whatever breakdown works best for them):

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how to target what skills to develop now

reeb-and-cingoranelli-with-cpatr-si-logo-200bonus checklist: 12 competencies everyone in the firm needs.

by bill reeb and dominic cingoranelli
卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间 / succession institute

in discussing how to become a more effective people manager and developer, the first question we ask is, “what skills and aptitudes are you trying to develop?”

more on performance management: what having your employees’ backs means | 5 harmful management attitudes (and how to fix them) | do cpa firms need management or leadership? |  job 1 for the practice owner: client management

in other words, just saying to someone, “you need to improve” is weak advice.

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new survey: cpa firm growth rates hit a wall

organic growth drops under 5% while mergers surge to 30% of new revenue per firm.

rosenberg map 2005 to 2014 growth rates
growth rates level off for cpa firms to 6.7% (rosenberg map survey, firms over $2 million/year)

by 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间
annual map survey

the new 2015-2016 annual map survey presents news both good and bad—and more of the latter than the former.

  • the good news: cpa firms revenues and profits increased last year.
  • the bad news: the increase in revenues was less than in the previous year, a lot of it was only due to mergers, and growth was lowest for the smallest firms. and the increase in income per equity partner was especially sluggish.

most worrisome was the finding that organic growth— which is to say real growth not generated artificially by mergers—was actually a bit lower than in 2013, dropping from 5.2 percent to 4.7 percent, according to the new rosenberg map survey, available exclusively from 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间.

more on the  2016 outlook & forecast: cpa firm growth rates hit a wall  |  the five treacherous factors hobbling today’s cpa firm  |  sam allred: change agents needed  |  tamera loerzl on growth, succession plans critical for firms  |  allan koltin on talent wars go from white gloves to boxing gloves  |  get the full report: the rosenberg map survey

is this really the end of the golden age for the profession?

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what having your employees’ backs means

why failure is a value proposition.

by bill reeb and dominic cingoranelli
卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间 / succession institute

i want to start by talking about the phrase “having your employees’ backs.” so what does this mean? simply that, as the boss, you will take the bullets publicly for your people’s mistakes. this is such a rare phenomenon that many of you have never experienced what i am referring to – a boss taking the heat for his or her people.

more growth & succesion: 5 harmful management attitudes (and how to fix them) | do cpa firms need management or leadership? | job 1 for the practice owner: client management

most of the time, when problems are uncovered, company cultures are “at the ready” to quickly identify someone to blame regardless of the situation. in these organizations, those with exceptional cya skills are the most highly valued. no, i did not misspell this acronym as it was not meant to be cia (as in the government intelligence agency or certified internal auditors), but rather those good at covering their butts (i guess i should have referred to it as cyb).

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industry employment surge shows no signs of slowing

chart showing number of employees in the accounting industry according to bureau of labor statistics
all employees in the accounting and bookkeeping industry; numbers reported in thousands

record highs seen in overall employment, staff wages, cpa firm employment and staff, and more.

by 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间 research

the u.s. tax, accounting and bookkeeping industries show no signs of slowing down, according to 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间 sources.

here 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间 reports on:

  • current hiring trends in each of the bookkeeping, tax, payroll and cpa segments of the industry.
  • average hourly wages for key segments.
  • typical hours worked per week.
  • and trends concerning women in the accounting workforce.

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5 harmful management attitudes (and how to fix them)

how common management pitfalls hurt firms and employees.

by bill reeb and dominic cingoranelli
卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间 / succession institute

how do attitudes, misconceptions and bad habits get in the way of our learning to be better managers?

related: do cpa firms need management or leadership? | job 1 for the practice owner: client management

here are five common attitudes, practices and perceptions we find:

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do cpa firms need management or leadership?

differentiating between the two, and the two most common styles of management.

by bill reeb and dominic cingoranelli
卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间 / succession institute

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

from one point of view, leadership is far different than management. for example, leadership might be all about developing a vision for the organization, being innovative, motivating others, empowering those around you, focusing on developing the people around you instead of just developing yourself, looking for positive ways to change, doing the right thing, and keeping the forest in view and not just see the trees.

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it’s not always about money: 16 tweaks for your comp system

aquila
aquila

when you’re weeding out, make sure you’re asking the right questions.

by august aquila
creating the effective partnership

if your partners are putting up a fight to keep clients who should be let go, take a look at your compensation system. it’s not just about billable hours.

more on leadership for pro members: 5 questions about your firm’s direction | 6 reasons to keep partners from retiring | 6 reasons why cpa firms fail in innovation | 6 steps to handle staffing problems in a merger | 7 signs your firm is headed for an implosion | eight key goal areas for partners | like herding cats: partners must ‘walk together’ | managing partners must remember partners’ needs | new times call for new cpa firm metrics | partners have love-hate relationship with leadership | six tips for leaders in tax and accounting | the 8-point financial tune-up for your accounting firm | three ways to run a firm: but only one is sustainable | what does being a partner mean?

here are 16 tweaks to your firm’s compensation system. while the list is not exhaustive, it does provide criteria that firms can consider beyond revenue. read more →

how mergers impact a firm’s retirement plan

plus how to handle partners who want to opt out.

older businessman sitting at desk smiling as wall clock indicates 5 minutes to retirementby marc rosenberg
retirements & buyouts

how do mergers impact a firm’s partner retirement plan?

more on buyouts: why 30% of cpa firm retirement plans are defective | are partner buyout plans just ponzi schemes? | clawback and how to handle it | can partners compete after they leave? | disability is far more complex than death | mandatory retirement? 4 reasons the firm comes first | how to transition clients from retiring partners | vesting can cover part-timers, too | eat what you kill? then maybe ‘book of business’ is for you | the multiple of compensation method, fully explained | 5 points to consider when paying out goodwill | how to set terms and limits for goodwill payouts | 4 ways to decide how to pay out capital

these suggestions propose verbiage that could be included in the firm’s partner agreement: read more →

why 30% of cpa firm retirement plans are fatally flawed

senior businessman holding briefcasemake provisions, or state partnership laws may do it for you.

by marc rosenberg
retirements & buyouts

twenty to thirty percent of all accounting firm partnership agreements have no provision for goodwill-based retirement payments to partners departing due to death, disability, retirement or withdrawal.

more on retirement: the top 10 mistakes in partner retirement plans | 20 new, essential keys for today’s partner retirement plans | you want goodwill payments? give proper retirement notice | compromise is in order for some goodwill payouts | three ways to calculate goodwill payable in partner buyouts, none of them great | the ins and outs of aav for goodwill | 5 points to consider when paying out goodwill | how to set terms and limits for goodwill payouts

they’re in for a rude surprise. read more →

why even the best and biggest cpa firms are losing their best and brightest talent

despite paying top dollar for top talent, old-line firms are losing gen y staffers with bigger ambitions.

derek davis, the shared economy cpa, talks about launching the first app-first cpa firm

by rick telberg
卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间 research

with cpa firms locked in a battle for top-level talent, wages are advancing at record rates in desperate efforts to both retain and recruit highly-prized professionals, according to 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间 research.

partners and staffers alike, feeling stifled and underused at their current firms, are finding a broad array of new opportunities at other firms. and where they can’t find the right position at another firm, they are creating their own.

los angeles cpa derek davis, for example, left a career at a big four firm to start his own practice. but his first hire wasn’t an assistant. and his first partner wasn’t another cpa. instead, davis teamed with a software designer. and they didn’t open an office, they launched an iphone app.

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