leadership

what having your employees’ backs means

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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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what should cpa firms discuss at retreats?

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businessman writing on clipboardbonuses: 15-item checklist to help set an agenda. and a participant questionnaire to learn what they believe should be discussed.

by marc rosenberg
cpa firm retreats

most firms spend their time at retreats planning for the future, forming goals and addressing pressing issues and problem areas.

ideally the discussions won’t concern day-to-day issues such as purchasing a new copy machine or revising the policy on sick days.

related: why do cpa firms conduct retreats?

the topics considered are strategic: morale issues, recruiting problems, profitability, etc. here are 15 specific examples:
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partnership is about persuasion

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aquila
aquila

being a partner means convincing people to join you in building a better firm.
bonus checklist: 5 questions to consider.

by august aquila
more creating the effective partnership in the store

just as the partners need to engage with the firm’s vision so do the firm’s people. but, like everyone, they actually engage with people not words. so, effective partners continually engage with their people, regardless of their level and role. they go out of their way to create a personal bond, sharing personal information and operating with honesty and integrity in all of their interactions.

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 | 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 | the 8-point financial tune-up for your accounting firm | three ways to run a firm: but only one is sustainable

one of the great truisms is that you can’t be a leader if you don’t have followers and effective partners create strong relationships with their people. they are accessible and have highly tuned antennae that enable them to know where their people “are” and how and when to act to ensure they remain committed to the firm.

five questions to consider:

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women leaders provide 6 market advantages

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businesswoman standing on outdoor bridgebonus checklists: 4 benefits for organizations and 9 benefits for sponsors.

by ida o. abbott
sponsoring women: what men need to know

most male leaders today under­stand how important it is to keep high-performing women in the pipeline and help them achieve their potential within the organization.

these men are genuinely concerned about their firms’ inability to retain and advance the women they hire because having a substantial number of women leaders is a demonstrably significant benefit to the company, while a lack of gender diversity at the top of organizations can be very costly to the bottom line.

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learn more

more on sponsoring women for leadership: why cpa firms need more women | beyond mentoring to sponsorship | how to keep sex from derailing a sponsorship | ‘soft skills’ advice needed, too | use others to promote your protégée | 8 ways sponsors can highlight opportunities | 3 ways to open a sponsorship conversation | what sponsors need from protégées | 3 ways to derail sponsorships | 4 reasons women hold themselves back | 4 ways sponsors can help women seek power | bias about women with families lingers | judged on performance, not potential? must be a woman | why women are overlooked (and how to fix it) | 3 ways men are favored in the workplace | women need promotions, not just advice | mentor or sponsor? how to distinguish roles

in an increasingly competitive market for talent, retaining the best people and placing them in executive roles where they can have the greatest impact is a business imperative. abundant research shows that companies with higher percentages of women leaders and senior-level managers tend to outperform their competitors.

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5 harmful management attitudes (and how to fix them)

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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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when partners stop growing

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bonus checklist: nine things needed for firm growth.

by ed mendlowitz

question: i am the managing partner and run a tight ship, however, some of my partners do not appear to be growing and on some level that is holding back the firm’s overall growth.

more practice doctor q&a: billing procedures make collecting easier | there’s more to growth than marketing | how to make staff a team again | before you even think about selling your practice | how to make annual staff evaluations work | it’s not sales. it’s your duty | when staffers stagnate | quote with care when asked for valuation | how much should you pay to buy, sell or merge an accounting practice? | when fees don’t keep up with cost increases | 10 (nearly) painless ways to keep up to date with technology | 44 critical criteria for accounting staff performance evaluations | 5 time management tips for an overworked accountant | running an accounting business

any suggestions or is this just the way it is? read more →

6 things leaders must do

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aquila
aquila

it’s about accountability, not politics.

by august aquila
creating the effective partnership

every book you read on leadership will tell you certain things you need to do to become a good leader. however, you can do these things and still not be someone who people want to follow.

why? leadership is all about trust. if you cannot trust me, then you will not follow me or believe in me.

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 | 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 | 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 is my short checklist for the things good leaders need to do:

1. always tell the truth. this is the basis of trust. just remember the story of george washington and the cherry tree – “i cannot tell a lie.” leadership is not about politics, it’s about clear and honest communication with your partners, employees, clients and referral sources. leave the double talk to the politicians who populate the sunday morning tv talk shows. read more →

why cpa firms need more women

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two women shaking hands across a tableto recruit the best, you must sponsor women for leadership.

by ida o. abbott
sponsoring women: what men need to know

smart accounting firm leaders want to be in the forefront of efforts to advance women.

as the global economy continues to become more competitive, firms need to use all the talent they can muster — and more and more of that talent will be women.

more on sponsoring women for leadership: beyond mentoring to sponsorship | ‘soft skills’ advice needed, too | use others to promote your protégée | 8 ways sponsors can highlight opportunities | 17 ways sponsors can help protégées | 3 ways to open a sponsorship conversation | what sponsors need from protégées | 3 ways to derail sponsorships | 4 ways sponsors can help women seek power | bias about women with families lingers | judged on performance, not potential? must be a woman | gender bias still a problem | why women are overlooked (and how to fix it) | 3 ways men are favored in the workplace | women need promotions, not just advice | mentor or sponsor? how to distinguish roles | 4 ways women leaders improve firms

companies that successfully tap into the full potential of women will be far ahead of their competitors. the key to doing it is to identify women who are likely to succeed and sponsor them, so they reach the top levels of leadership. that requires direct per­sonal involvement by leaders, particularly leaders who are men.

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do cpa firms need management or leadership?

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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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get radical about pricing

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two happy businessmen looking at digital tablet at desk in officeforget about measuring by time.

by jody padar
the radical cpa

“forget about pricing and think about what people buy.”

customers are not buying our time. they may be buying our expertise. but they’re really buying a solution to their problem. famed management consultant peter drucker says, “a customer never buys a product by definition, the customer buys a satisfac­tion. satisfaction of a want, he buys value.” he’s buying a good feeling.

more on radicalism: make radical connections | let’s get radical about content | each social channel has a language | get ready for radical transparency | 5 radical ways to be social and strategic | how social media transforms firms to their core | 10 radical steps into the cloud | six competitive advantages for the radical cpa | radical customers are on their way | 5 radical transparencies; are you ready? | 4 questions radical firms must face | being radical is all about your customer | going radical: the 4 tenets of a ‘new firm’ | why should cpas be radical?

when lipstick leaves the manufacturer, it’s a solution. when it crosses the counter in a department store, it’s hope. from this perspective, how do we make our services into products or solutions? that’s essentially what you are doing with bundling and packages. you are productizing a service. read more →

make radical connections

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you don’t define your brand, your customers do. by jody padar the radical cpa social media is great for connecting with clients and prospects, but it also makes it easier to get published in the real media and that will … continued

beyond mentoring to sponsorship

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young businesswoman working at laptop while businessman looks onbonus checklists: 6 ways to evaluate your firm.

by ida o. abbott
sponsoring women: what men need to know

sponsorship is a personal undertaking. a man who sponsors a woman takes it upon himself to advance her career. he puts his reputation on the line for her and tells the world she is worth it.

learn more
learn more

more on sponsoring women for leadership: protect your protégée from flextime saboteurs | ‘soft skills’ advice needed, too | use others to promote your protégée | 8 ways sponsors can highlight opportunities | 17 ways sponsors can help protégées | what sponsors need from protégées | 3 ways to derail sponsorships | 4 ways sponsors can help women seek power | bias about women with families lingers | judged on performance, not potential? must be a woman | gender bias still a problem | why women are overlooked (and how to fix it) | women need promotions, not just advice | mentor or sponsor? how to distinguish roles | 4 ways women leaders improve firms | cpa firms must ‘man up’ and get women on board

she still has to earn that promotion, but his solid, public vote of confidence – and the power he puts behind it – at least gives her a fair chance to get it. read more →

how to make staff a team again

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bonus checklist: 5 steps you can take today.

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

question: my staff seems to have “wandered” away from feeling this is a firm – that we are all in this together – to becoming a bunch of people who happen to work at the same address.

more practice doctor q&a: how to make annual staff evaluations work | when staffers stagnate | 7 ways to lose a client’s trust | 18 ways to blow a partnership opportunity | when a staffer stops listening | making meetings more productive | 44 critical criteria for accounting staff performance evaluations

do you have any suggestions to get them to pull together?

answer: yes… read more →