the partnership

16 items that don’t require formal votes. 7 that do. and 25 best practices.

by marc rosenberg
the role of the managing partner

there is no better way to start this post than with a quote by tony kendall, managing partner of mitchell & titus, a large cpa firm with offices in new york, philadelphia, chicago and other cities. tony said:

“i can’t manage this firm if i have to take a vote every time i want to make a decision.”

for managing partners to be effective, they must have the authority and flexibility to make decisions without first getting approval and without subjecting those decisions to the nitpicking and negativity that may occur when management decisions are open for debate and discussion.

more: exceptional managing partners offer their advice | why management is the #1 key to the firm’s success | herding cats: advice for managing partners
exclusively for pro members. log in here or 2022世界杯足球排名 today.

there are two caveats to this:
read more →

they also work for new solo practitioners.

by ed mendlowitz
the 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间 practice doctor

question: a few months ago i became a partner in my firm but i don’t seem to know what to do as a “partner.”

more: before you sell your practice | price your practice by gross | advising estate executors: the newbie guide to getting started | how’s your overhead?
exclusively for pro members. log in here or 2022世界杯足球排名 today.

nothing seems to have changed except my title and compensation arrangement, which hasn’t even started yet. do you have any suggestions of what i should do?
read more →

also: the job description in 14 points.

by marc rosenberg
the role of the managing partner

i always tell new clients that i’m “one firm smarter than the last firm i worked with.” that’s because i learn something from each firm i work with, one of the great joys of my 20-year consulting career. i’ve worked with many of the most talented, accomplished managing partners in the u.s. and canada and meticulously observed their style. no two managing partners are the same. each brings a unique style or attribute to the table.

more: why management is the #1 key to the firm’s success | herding cats: advice for managing partners
exclusively for pro members. log in here or 2022世界杯足球排名 today.

as a result of these observations, i’ve pieced together the optimal job description for a managing partner, posted below. though i first put this together 10-15 years ago, i fine-tune it every year as times change and differences in managing partner duties are observed.
read more →

do you want to get by, or be the best possible?

by marc rosenberg
the role of the managing partner

there are three critically important words in the title of this post:

• management
• #1 key
• success

more: herding cats: advice for managing partners
exclusively for pro members. log in here or 2022世界杯足球排名 today.

this post drills down on each of these words to help drive home our central theme: why management is the single most important factor in a cpa firm’s success. it matters even more than bringing in business, more than having great clients and staff, more than doing quality work.
read more →

“effective leaders get people to follow without making them feel they are being told what to do.”

by marc rosenberg
the role of the managing partner

“few things are more important to human activity than leadership. it helps countries prosper. it makes businesses successful. parents help children become successful adults.

exclusively for pro members. log in here or 2022世界杯足球排名 today.

“the absence of leadership is equally dramatic. without leadership, organizations move slowly, stagnate, and lose their way. we are taught that if decision-making is timely and correct, things will go well. yet a decision by itself changes nothing. more important is implementation, and that’s where organizations often fail.

“implementation is about how leaders influence behavior, change the course of events, and overcome resistance. leadership is crucial in implementing decisions successfully.” – quinn mills, harvard business school professor

read more →

it’s time to herd your highly compensated cats.

by bill penczak

the managing partner was trying to contain his frustration, but it was evident, even on a zoom call. we had been reviewing the status of a focused market blitz, in which each of the partners was to come up with only three targets on which they would focus development efforts. when we reviewed the aggregated list, one-third of the partners had not responded to the request.

more: re-thinking today’s firm with five global leaders | 5 things your firm should do differently this summer | do you have the guts to beat the covid crisis? | how to inoculate your firm against covid competition | ‘found money’ delights clients | don’t buy a rolodex, buy a process | the three r’s for beating the corona crisis | 6 reasons why your marketing sucks
exclusively for pro members. log in here or 2022世界杯足球排名 today.

he was pissed, and i felt bad for him. neither the carrot nor the stick approach had worked. and he was facing another example of lack of partner accountability, which i’m finding is one of the most common frustrations of firm management, regardless of size or specialty.
read more →

there’s a better way.

by marc rosenberg
the rosenberg practice management library

it may seem intuitive to use ownership percentage to decide important financial and governance issues.

more: why billing less may mean earning more | what smaller firms must do to become firms of the future | the 13 signs you have a partner problem | covid-19, adversity and innovation | how covid impacts partner retirements |  three tough questions in partner buyouts | reward partners for performing like partners | 7 points of a well-crafted partner buyout agreement | smart tech tips from top cpa firms
exclusively for pro members. log in here or 2022世界杯足球排名 today.

here are three common reasons why… and one important reason why not.

read more →

here’s the proof.

by marc rosenberg

question from a client: “as the firm’s mp, i’m trying to encourage our partners to delegate as many billable hours as possible to the staff instead of doing it themselves. what is the benchmarking metric for how much of partners’ billing responsibility should be performed by themselves?”

more: what smaller firms must do to become firms of the future | when managing partners can’t | covid-19, adversity and innovation | is mandatory retirement a best practice? | merging in sellers: what you need to know | take yoda’s advice on strategic planning
exclusively for pro members. log in here or 2022世界杯足球排名 today.

rosenberg response: there is a natural tendency for partners to perform high levels of billable hours, perhaps in the 1,200 to 1,500 range annually.
read more →

four ways to make sure managing partners will fail.

by marc rosenberg
the rosenberg practice management library

there is an intuitive notion that comes to partners that goes something like this: “let’s all get together and form a firm that will make us all more successful than any of us could be individually. we’ll follow the principles of democracy by dividing up the management duties so that no one is overburdened. the partners will make decisions as a group, thereby avoiding vesting too much power in one person.”

more: don’t let exiting partners double dip | the 13 signs you have a partner problem | covid-19, adversity and innovation | how covid impacts partner retirements |  three tough questions in partner buyouts | is mandatory retirement a best practice? | covid-19: how your firm can respond
exclusively for pro members. log in here or 2022世界杯足球排名 today.

management by committee is doomed to fail. this list refutes the excuses partners often give for favoring management by committee.

read more →