Rick Telberg

Seven Secrets to Keeping Good Staffers

What you can do today for recruiting and retention. How to succeed in accounting? Join the survey. Get the answers.

June 7, 2007
by Rick Telberg/For the Finance Executive

You shouldn’t have to guess what job-seekers are looking for in an accounting career. And now you don’t have to.

The AICPA has conducted a survey of accounting firms to learn what non-partner employees are looking for in their careers and their chosen jobs. The results may surprise some CPAs. Among the top reasons cited for joining a firm, salary ranked only third. Career growth opportunity was first, and time off was second.

The survey also revealed why you need to know this. Because even though the number of accounting majors at universities increased 17 percent from 2000 to 2004, the demand for recent graduates rose 19 percent in 2005 alone.

Career Strategies 2007: What does it take to succeed as a CPA?

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Meanwhile, though 63 percent of CPAs said they had no plans to switch careers, 29 percent said they were thinking about it.

The study was conducted by the AICPA’s Private Companies Practice Section, but it seems applicable to anyone seeking to recruit and retain the best and brightest these days. “The PCPS Top Talent Study: Gaining a Strategic Advantage in Recruiting and Retention” is free to PCPS members and available for sale to non-members.

So don’t sit there imagining a third of your staff walking out and signing up for plumbing school. Better to sit there imagining what you can do to keep your people not only in the profession, but in your firm.

Maybe we can help with that. The AICPA survey found that the top seven reasons professionals stay with their firm are:

 
  1. Respect for company mission statement
  2. Career growth opportunities
  3. Salary
  4. Open-door/accessible management style
  5. Interesting/challenging projects
  6. Flexible work schedule
  7. Paid time off
 

Those are seven things they want. Here are seven things you can do about it.

 

1. Know and share your mission and goals. You and your partners need to establish your core values and strategic goals. Then you need to share them with your staff on a regular basis. And then you need to practice what you preach. That’s the only way your respect for the mission and goals will become theirs.

2. Offer attractive salaries and benefits. Know what others are paying — not just accounting firms but companies that use accountants. Let employees know what determines their salaries. Let them understand the relationship between your costs and your pay. And give them choices: days off, cafeteria plans, better insurance, cash bonus, and, well, whatever it is they think they want.

3. Pay for what you want. Compensate people who help you reach your goals. If you’re after aggressive marketing, reward those who foster client relationships. If you need an upgrade in IT, slip a bonus to those who learn or teach new skills. Need new staff? How about a recruitment reward?

4. Facilitate growth. Don’t just tell staff they can grow in the firm. Show them the path. Outline short-term and long-term steps. Make sure they see it happening.

5. Keep the door and the dialogue open. Make it clear that you want to listen. Ask for feedback. Involve all staff in decisions. Hold group discussions about problems and possibilities. Solicit suggestions, and when you can’t use them, explain why.

6. Keep them challenged. Offer all the training they can absorb. Give them intriguing projects and the time to do them creatively. Encourage people to broaden their job descriptions. Get everyone involved in client relationships and hiring decisions. And remember the difference between challenging someone and just making them work harder.

7. Be generous. Pass out more than money. Praise is free. Spontaneous celebrations are fun. Let people be funny, or younger than their age, or a little weird, or a little obsessed. Figure out what your staffers want and give it to them. And what they want, mostly, is time.

 

Good partners don’t let good professionals become plumbers. Not that we have anything against the people who keep the water running, but our job is accountancy, and we need all the accountants we can get.

LEARN MORE: The PCPS Top Talent Study: Gaining a Strategic Advantage in Recruiting and Retention is free to PCPS members and available for sale to non-members.

NOW IT'S YOUR TURN: How to succeed in accounting? Join the survey. Get the answers.

COMMENTS: Rants, raves, idle thoughts or questions? Contact Rick Telberg.

Copyright © 2007 Bay Street Group LLC. All Rights Reserved. Used by Permission.