Are You Using the Right Bait?

In truth, I’ve never cared much for fishing. Having cast out my lines on riverbanks and various boating charters to much frustration, I can assure you I will never wind up on the cover of Field & Stream.

One time, a grizzled veteran of the sport subtly suggested my poor fortunes were the result of not using the right bait. Even a change in lures and night crawlers did little to improve the quantity of my catches. I did however manage to hook one of nature’s least attractive creatures – a horse shoe crab – which I had no regrets about immediately dumping back in the drink.

But I thought about the wrong bait analogy and strangely saw how it applied colloquially to CPA firms with regard to recruiting and retention.

While the search for high potential employees remains elusive for many firms, arguably the best place to begin reversing that trend is to take a holistic view of your practice and ask yourself, “would I want to work here?”

Does your firm employ the trends that are defining the 21^st century CPA practice or is it stuck in a time warp?

If it’s the latter then you need to do something about it – and quickly.

First and foremost, Millennials look for a culture that embraces both technology and flexibility. Are you paperless and on cloud applications or are there endless rows of file cabinets adorning your walls and hallways? Do you offer your employees the opportunity to work remotely and B.Y.O.D. – bring your own device or are they tethered to the office?

Are the newer employees indoctrinated quickly to meeting with clients or are they relegated to a cubicle and saddled with basic Type 1 work for the first year or so?

Subsequently, how would you answer the following should they be asked by a potential hire?

Does your firm offer unique client niches or just plain vanilla tax and audit services?

Is staff evaluated on the basis of billable hours or rather on the successful completion of the engagement?

Do you have an open door policy and is there a formal mentoring program?

Outside the office, are you actively involved in the community in terms of charitable or environmental causes?

If you answered no to any of the above, that signals that changes needs to be made if you hope to compete for the Holy Grail of young talent who may form the nucleus of your firm’s future leaders.

If not, you’ll invariably create hiring opportunities for competitors much further ahead of the curve and ones surely using more attractive bait.