Last week we were informed we had been selected by Accounting Today as one of the top accounting firms  to work for in the United States.  I understand there will be an article published in January, 2009.  How did we go from being a firm that had the universal difficulty of other accounting firms – attracting and retaining top talent – to being named to such a prestigious club in four years?: We changed our business philosophy, and consequently our overall approach to providing service, after following the traditional accepted approach for 25 years. Read more…

Several years ago when our team members collectively drafted our mission statement,  one of the underlying principles defining who / what we are was “We strive to do more than our clients expect”.  Subsequently published on our web site as part of our culture, we endeavor to live up to it – not always as successfully as we would like, but nonetheless always attempted.  Unfortunately in our society the value of exceeding expectations is more often forgotten or ignored than practiced.  There aren’t a lot of great examples of companies or organizations who do this.  Two years ago, on yet another honeymoon, I experienced it first hand. Read more…

In a recent post on Trendlines, Gary Boomer held forth on the staffing crisis in our profession.  Succinct and to the point, Boomer lists four reasons.  While all four are valid, my experience over the past five years has identified one as being most significant – Firms with low retention and high staff turnover work their associates too many hours.  It’s not rocket science. Read more…

“Thank you” goes a long way. Many firms have survived their “busy season”  (whatever that is)  and I’m sure management planned some food n’ booze event to thank their staff, but I just want to remind people that saying “thank you” can go a long way for morale, and it’s free. So don’t wait until the end of next busy season to say it again.

There are numerous posts on this site that begin to break the surface of the difference in culture at our firm, but one of the biggest things I’ve noticed is communication. The partners in this firm reach out to us on a daily basis; simple things like, “how’s it going, “hey, nice work on that…” or “I just want to thank you for all your hard work on this.” Or sometimes they just tease me but they know I can handle it. Read more…

I hailed from a large international accounting firm and like most of my coworkers there I became sick of the long work hours and never ending cycle of stress and emotional guilt tripping that comes with trying to justify going home after just ten or twelve hours. Searching for another job was difficult, as I rarely had a minute that wasn’t filled by working, commuting or sleeping. But the most substantial barrier to quitting my big accounting firm job was the myths that circulated concerning small firms. Read more…

Did you suck at ‘Economics’ in college.  I did.  So when my friend and mentor, Ron Baker, recommended that I read The Economic Naturalist by Robert Frank, I smiled politely, assured him I would, and then blew it off.  (I did buy it, just so I could document my intent and not feel entirely guilty for lying through my teeth.)  Last week, I again found myself in an airport, having mistakenly thrown this tome in my computer case, thinking it was an adventure novel.  With no other entertainment, besides trying to determine which passenger had the worst hang-over in the Las Vegas airport, I read the book. Read more…

Recently, Bob Nugent the Chief Financial Officer for Scolari’s Markets, a chain retail grocer in Northern Nevada and one of our favorite and most valued clients, gave our firm a compliment that created a HSD for me. (HSD is the acronym for High Satisfaction Day – a phrase I first heard from author Ron Baker.) We had recently completed several projects for Scolari’s, which had involved several of our team members. Bob, not known for lavishing unsolicited praise in the thirty years I’ve known him, told me how impressed he was with the knowledge, professionalism and service level he had received from our associates. Read more…

In a post by Rita Keller on CPA Management she advocates the practice of publishing rankings of the firms associates. It would seem this is a practice of Moss Adams, a large national firm. The post titled Ranking Your Individual Team Members doesn’t provide specifics as to what the criteria that were used in the ranking scheme by Moss Adams. They state that you should rank people by the criteria that are important to your firm. The article goes on to state that the staff felt it was a positive motivator and “no one quit”. (Yet!) Read more…

It’s the little things that make “work” an enjoyable place to be. Since the average American spends more time at work than at home, I think it should! So many companies “budget-cut” the small things and perks that many employees enjoy. Is it really worth the happiness of the staff to save a little? Some little things I appreciate having at work:

• coffee with “flavored creamer”
• as many “post-its” as I need, or other office supplies
• snacks
• flexibility in coming and going to work
• wearing what I want to wear
• no time sheets/ punching in, punching out
• good health benefits

What makes it worth it for you to spend most of your life at work? What “little” things do you appreciate?

We have two staff rooms in our offices in Reno. One on the accounting and assurance side of our house, and the other on the ‘Dark Side’. The refrigerators in each are bulletin boards for pictures, insults, jokes and matters of other significance. Typically you hope not to find comments, pictures or references to yourself or something you’ve done.This week, a Senior Assurance Manager posted an article that appeared in the December issue of the Journal of Accountancy Tax Corner titled How to Ease the Burden of Busy Season .The focus of the article is on what some firms have done to make the busy tax season more ‘palatable’, e.g. paying for dinner on Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays and Fridays. (Apparently Wednesdays are required family nights.) While lunch isn’t paid for, they do have a delivery service so you can eat at your desk. And my personal favorite ‘vending machine snacks reduced to twenty-five cents’ ! Are you kidding me?!! Read more…