Improve Communication in Your Firm

As we survey firm team members and ask them what leaders could do to improve culture and engagement in their firm, the overwhelming #1 response we hear is “we need better communication”. The response I get from leaders is “we have been working on that every year, will it ever be good enough?”  My answer…

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Be the Firm You Want to Be

Every organization is perfectly designed to produce the results it’s producing. If you want a different result – you must change something. The originator of this phrase is debatable. Its premise is not. The business case for change is that firms that continue to do things as they have always done at some point will…

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People at the Center of CPA Firm 2015 Top Issues

The CPA Consultants’ Alliance (CPACA), a group of thought leaders working together to further leadership within the CPA profession, recently held its annual meeting to discuss the most pressing leadership challenges facing the CPA profession and identify solutions to address these challenges.  Following the meeting, CPACA members were asked to comment on the single most…

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Your Thoughts = Your Results

While each of us thinks we live in the “real” world, we actually live in a self-created, mental world of perceptions. At some level we know this is true, yet we continue to believe, based upon a lifetime of evidence, that our view is THE reality when in fact, it’s simply OUR personal reality. If…

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You May Be Your Firm’s Biggest Differentiator

Who are your favorite vendors and business partners? Are they the ones with the best professional pedigrees and impressive lists of degrees and designations? Or are they the ones you look forward to seeing, whom you trust implicitly and just plain enjoy talking to, and for whom you have some personal context like family situation,…

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Counter-Intuitive Must-Dos To Manage Time And Reduce Stress

Inhale deeply through your nose, hold for a few seconds, and exhale completely. Inhale deeply through your nose, hold for a few seconds, and exhale completely. Repeat a couple more times and then notice how much quieter your mind is and how much more relaxed your body is. This tried and true stress buster works!…

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AAA 2015 Paperless Benchmark Survey Results… Bleeding or Stable Digital Edge?

The Association for Accounting Administration recently completed the 2015 Paperless Benchmarking survey to find out the status of paperless office practices in accounting firms this upcoming busy season. The survey has been conducted every two years beginning in 2003 to help identify trends in adopting “less paper” processes.  Seven NEW questions were added this year…

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Staying Focused in 2015

The beginning of the year is time of renewal for everyone. We set resolutions and goals and swear this will be the best year yet. Then reality sets in. Day-to-day pressures take over, and we get derailed. Your well-intentioned goal to get out there during tax season is stifled by the client work and the…

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Why are you Changing?

I recently had the honor of presenting on the topic of change management, with my friend and fellow industry consultant Guy Gage of Partners Coach, at the Accounting Today Growth and Profitability Summit.  For those who know me well and have been following my writing over the last seven years, I often like to combine…

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What Will You Give Up in 2015?

When New Year’s Eve rolls around every year, I get energized about the new version of me that will emerge in the next year. Yes, I am one of those annoying people who do this. I am always open for a chance at a new beginning. I am just wired that way. I did the…

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