The word change pops up in nearly every article we read, conference we attend, internal planning meeting we hold, or client conversation we participate in. In some, it elicits a feeling of excitement. For others, it is uncomfortable or downright scary.
Our world is certainly moving, and change has become a part of the everyday landscape. One way we can calm uncertainty is through knowledge and an action plan. Let’s look at a few changes coming our way and the positive steps you can take to prepare proactively.
Changes in leadership
Concern: Transition of leadership
What to do now: Face reality and ensure that all your current partners, principles and senior managers develop a personal plan for their transition out of the firm. Plans should include not only how they will transition clients but also their plans for the next phase of their lives. The most successful changes happen when individuals are comfortable about not only what they are leaving but also what they are headed to.
Changes in talent
Concern: A shortage of mid-level superstars
What to do now: The war for talent is no secret in our profession. Your checklist should include a 365-day-per-year recruitment plan, a strategy for developing talent quickly, including an intern program, onboarding to build engagement from their first day and individual training plans to let them grow at a pace that will motivate them to stay for the long term.
If you haven’t guessed, that means FAST. Your best defense is to focus on the current superstars and sponsor them. That means give them your wisdom, time and talent daily. If they feel connected, essential and challenged, you will retain those superstars you’re trying to find.
Changes in growth
Concern: The incredible shrinking world of compliance work
What to do now: You may not feel the loss yet, but you will. Given the new technologies in play and the comfort of the next generation with those technologies, we must begin making changes now that will protect our growth goals in the future. An excellent place to start is by finding a peer network that will walk with you as you educate yourself, identify how to use process and technology more effectively and build a true advisory practice.
Many seasoned leaders already feel they are conducting advising or consulting-type work with their clients. However, partners are often the only ones providing these services, and they tend to be one-off engagements rather than a fully fleshed-out service line.
Advisory services should be a firm-wide initiative that includes training on new skills, pricing, packaging, strategizing and implementing at all stages of the firm’s strategic plan.
Changes in technology
Concern: Preparing for emerging technologies to become the norm
What to do now: The best thing to do now is educate, educate, educate. If you’re unsure what artificial intelligence is or how your firm can use it, read about it, listen to podcasts, and watch videos that describe new technologies in completely understandable terms.
Then, surround yourself with a community of the brightest people you know to get a head start on taking technology in exciting new directions in your firm.
Change doesn’t have to be scary; it can be your protective shield for a fantastic future. The choice is yours. Embrace it and be prepared or ignore it and fall behind.
Sandra Wiley, Shareholder, President of Boomer Consulting, Inc., is a leader in the accounting profession with a passion for helping firms grow, adapt and thrive. She is regularly recognized by Accounting Today as one of the 100 Most Influential People in Accounting as a result of her expertise in leadership, management, collaboration, culture building, talent and training.
Sandra’s role at Boomer Consulting, Inc. includes serving as co-director of the Boomer Leadership Academy as well as the Boomer Managing Partner Circle, the Boomer Talent Circle and the Boomer Learning & Development Circle. Her years of experience and influence as a management and strategic planning consultant make her a sought-after resource among the best and brightest firms in the country.
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