Accounting Today - July 2012

ing one firm in Arkansas as an example. “They had the mentoring program in place, but not the discipline. The partners were supposed to meet with the managers and staff on a monthly basis, but I’d say 80 percent of the partners had not met with staff in over a year.” Road FROM PAGE 1

sional one. “A good mentor does not do business things for a staff member,” Waugh said. “They invite them in their home, do social things with them, invite them to parties at their house — include them on a personal basis, not just the business side. To truly be a mentor, you’re helping that person grow in all aspects of his or her life — personal and professional.” This is what separates the mentors from the coaches, he added.

At Akron, Ohio-based CPA and consulting firm BCG & Co., both are needed for its Future Leaders initiative. The program starts with the partners spending a day going through everyone in the firm and assessing bench strength. Potential future leaders are identified and then placed in one of two groups: those who are five to seven years away from partnership, and those on a longer track, often because they are newer to the firm. Those on the shorter track are assigned both a mentor outside their department who focuses more on personal development, and a more techni-cal-minded coach within their department.

This identification process can be con-
trary to the thinking in some firms, said BCG
managing partner Dave Brockman. “Firms
in the past have been very concerned that
they don’t single people out to do something
special, that someone will be upset from not
having the same treatment,” he said. “We
adopted a philosophy where we really have
to throw that out the window and work with
each individual, and see what their future will
look like. Should future leaders get extra perks
and attention? Absolutely. Our job is to bring
them along as quickly as possible.”
What makes someone a future leader? Ac-
cording to Waugh, there are five things these
prospective “business owners” should be able
to ensure for their firm:

;Clients are well-served;

;Staff members grow and develop;

;Partners attract new, quality clients;

;The risk profile is maintained; and, ;The firm profits.

The one underlying skill required to achieve all five is good communication, Waugh added. “With communication skills, it’s not just talking — it’s crucial that person is a good listener, and can frame really good questions,” he explained. “If a person is a high potential and struggling with communication skills, get them in Toastmasters for a couple of years.”

MATCH GAME

Commitment is integral, but so is a good
match. Deloitte partner Paul Silverglate con-
firmed this from the research he conducts,
both as national director of the firm’s initia-
tive for the advancement and retention of
women, and as co-developer and partner
lead for the firm’s women-as-buyers train-
ing program. “You have to create the mentor
environment where there’s a mutual respect
— and like — for the mentor and mentee,” he
said. “There can be a formalized program in
place to get it kick-started, but you have to feel
comfortable that if a match didn’t happen,
you can keep going until you find a match.”
This was the case for one employee of Sara-
sota, Fla.-based Kerkering, Barberio & Co.,
which was recently named to the American
Society of Women Accountants and Ameri-
can Woman’s Society of CPAs’ 2012 Account-
ing MOVE Project list of the Best Public Ac-
counting Firms for Women, in part because
of its ratio of female partners (seven out of 13)
and managers (78 percent).

“We’ve only had a couple of people ask to
make a change, and it’s because something in
their life changes and a different person might
be more responsive to that,” explained chief
administrative officer Tracy O’Neill. “One
request came from someone who knew they
were planning to have a family. [She] asked
for a mentor who had become a shareholder
while she raised her children.”
A personal fit is just as vital as a profes-

BOOKS ON LEADERSHIP

We asked readers on Twitter and Facebook for their choice tomes on the subject of leadership. The response:

;Dustin Hostetler (@Flowtivity): The Advantage: Why Organizational Health Trumps Everything Else In Business, by Patrick Lencioni

;Jesse Kinch (@jesse_kinch): You Can Negotiate Anything, by Herb Cohen

;Michael Elliott (@GeaugaCPA): The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership: Follow Them and People Will Follow You, by John C. Maxwell

;Jason C. Thompson: Let My People Go Surfing: The Education of a Reluctant Businessman, by Yvon Chouinard

;The Godwin Group: Spirit of Leadership: Cultivating the Attitudes that Influence Human Action, by Dr. Myles Munroe

MEET AND GREET

Speaking engagements outside the walls of the firm are a requirement of BCG’s other leadership and business development program, BCG Leads.

The two-year program identifies one or two people from each department and brings them together for monthly meetings to discuss management skills, review books on the topic, and centralize participants’ commitments to outside boards and organizations.

“People skills are really critical, and an ana-
lytical ability,” explained Brockman. “Critical
thinking is very important, and communica-
tion skills — written and verbal. Being able
to communicate ideas and thoughts is very
important.”
In addition to the personal development
aspects of community involvement, up-and-
coming employees can benefit from BCG
Leads’ networking element. “Right now, I’m
on four different boards and committees,”
said Jennifer Hertzig, BCG’s marketing man-
ager and a recent graduate of the program.
“It’s more exposure for the firm and myself.”
Western New York firm Freed Maxick CPAs
sponsors and encourages employees to join
the local Chamber of Commerce’s Buffalo
Niagara 360 program for young profession-
als. Michael VanRemmen, a tax supervisor
who has been with the firm nearly four years,
participates in the program’s educational
events, networking opportunities and com-
munity outreach. “When I started here, most
partners sat on a board of a local charity,
which led me to believe it was going to add
value somehow,” VanRemmen said, adding
that through the program, he is establishing
long-term business relationships with future
decision-makers.

Both of BCG’s programs were established to satisfy the firm’s succession plan, along with its less formalized retention goals. Young, high-talent employees “want personal attention, and for us to take interest in their development and growth,” Brockman said.

“I’m pretty needy,” Hertzig agreed, explaining that she is on the cusp of Generation X and Y and has found reason to stick around. BCG Leads “helps me have more commitment to the firm,” she continued. “I see the rough parts and I want to stick it through. They have the future mapped out for you.” AT