TheLeadershipNotebook

A Pre-Holiday Reminder

 

“I have come to the frightening conclusion that I am the decisive element. 

It is my personal approach that creates the climate. 

It is my daily mood that makes the weather. 

I possess tremendous power to make a life miserable or joyous.”

~Goethe

 

Thanksgiving is almost here. And (if you ask the retailers), the Christmas holiday is right around the corner. Great times to spend with family and friends. And yes, time for increased “to-dos” and often self-inflicted stress.

 

The quote above is one of my favorites. It reminds me that my emotions are contagious. That I am in charge of what I think and how I behave. It reminds me that having my family all together at Thanksgiving is a joy and one I look forward to each year, even if the turkey doesn’t come out perfectly.

 

So when you feel like getting irritated with your Aunt Jane who always comes late to dinner or make yourself crazy by adding one more (unimportant) task to your list, remind yourself that you are instrumental in creating your climate.  And how you choose to behave will have lasting impact on those who mean the most to you.

 

You possess the power to make a life miserable or joyous. Which one do you choose?

 

 

To your success,

 

Mary

Objects in the Rear View Mirror May be LARGER Than They Appear…

 

“In order to plan your future wisely,

it’s necessary to understand and appreciate your past.”

~Jo Coudert

 

This is a guest post by my daughter, Lisa Werner, a first year MBA student at University of Virginia’s Darden School of Business.

 

“Have you prepared the Finance Case? Are you ready for your mock interview? What is the next race you’re training for? Where are we going out on Thursday night?”

 

The Future.  It’s something we are always looking forward to, dreading, or maybe in some situations, just bracing ourselves for.

 

As a first year student at Virginia’s Darden School of Business, so much of our time is spent preparing, getting ready, and in the case of a random “cold call” in Accounting,  just bracing ourselves for the inevitable. Believe me, I’m a full proponent of planning and looking ahead. 

 

In high school I studied hard and involved myself in athletics and activities to prepare myself for college. While at college at Villanova, I forged my way through a Liberal Arts education, new activities, and lasting friendships to arm myself with the tools I thought I would need for the real world.

 

That “real world” of a corporate job (Capital IQ) and big cities (NY and Chicago) proved to be no different. Always pushing ahead with my eye on the next big client, bonus, (or in some cases vacation was great fuel), I saw many successes and yes, plenty of failures. 

 

The future can be a powerful thing. It can motivate you to reach new destinations, challenges, and opportunities. Seeing the possibility of a new career track is what led me to apply to business school and eventually to Darden, and for that I will forever be grateful. 

 

Sometimes, however, I think a little peak into our past can be just as powerful. It can remind us of how far we’ve come, and yes, a sense of appreciation and pride in how much we’ve learned.

 

As I sit here writing this post, my table is covered with notes, binders, and one, oh wait, two Diet Cokes. Deep into what is lovingly called “Black November” here at Darden, we are swamped with school work, recruiting events, student activities, and yes plenty of social events (don’t let any MBA students tell you otherwise).

 

Having been deemed the “constant planner” by friends and family, I am now surrounded by 319 other “constant planners” who have incredible goals and aspirations.  But what’s even more incredible are some of the things we have already accomplished.  

 

Each day we push through another case, another class, another cold call, and sometimes we succeed; many times we fail, but every time we learn. We learn about new concepts, new frameworks and new perspectives. With the pace we move it’s often impossible to see the changes each day, but I know they are there.

 

They’re in the DCF model I was able to build from scratch in Finance Class (but never could imagine doing as an undergrad English major); in the Aggregate Supply and Demand curve I drew last week, and in amazing friendships I’ve built in a short amount of time.

 

The future is important, but sometimes appreciating and being proud of how you got there is just as important.

 

It’s November 17^th and finals and interviews loom in the near future. But as I try to stay grounded and sane over the next few weeks I hope I can remember how far I’ve come, how hard I’ve worked, and I can be proud.  At least while I wait for that next Darden “cold call”….

 

Thanks, Lisa, for that great reminder to all of us.

 

What about you? What have you learned? What are you most proud of? How often do you step back and reflect, appreciating that “objects in your rear view mirror may be LARGER that they seem?”

 

To your success,

 

Mary

 

 

Executing Strategy: We Want the "Pitbulls"

 

 

“If you want “management pygmies,” restrict your people to “small conversations.” On the other hand, if you want them to do extraordinary things – and if you want to raise your organization’s “strategic IQ,” invite them into the “big conversations.”

They’ll grow faster than you imagine – and they’ll contribute more than you expect!”

~Tony Manning

 

In last week’s blog post, I mentioned that I was facilitating a CPA Firm’s upcoming strategic planning Summit. During the Summit, members will be crafting the goals, priorities and activities that the Firm should focus on over the next 3 years to achieve their shared vision.

 

In preparation for the Summit, I’ve been gathering data, reviewing employee survey results and learning key insights from members of the Firm’s management team. The firm has many strengths. And it also faces some real tough challenges.

 

Crafting a solid strategy to capitalize on Firm strengths and opportunities and address Firm weaknesses and threats will be our priority. Focusing on putting action steps, timelines and accountability in place to execute the strategy will also be key.

 

But do the members of the Firm have “the winning spirit,” a critical element of strategy execution that Tony Manning describes in his great book, Making Sense of Strategy?

 

Great Strategy + Winning Spirit = Pitbulls

In fact, Manning sets up a wonderful visual description for the results that can occur when great strategy and a winning spirit combine or when one or both are missing. As you read these descriptions, imagine where your firm members fall:

 

No-Hopers: They either have no strategy or it’s not a great one and their spirit is weak.

Nerds: They apply their minds to creating a precise and detailed strategy but they don’t have the spirit to drive it. The lack of spirit shows up in a plan that fails to be executed.

Partygoers: They have lots of spirit but lack the solid strategy. They’re very busy but directionless, flapping around, going nowhere.

Pitbulls: They’re working with a solid strategy. They’re clear about where they’re headed and ferocious about getting there. They fix on the target identified in the strategy and go for it!

 

Manning states: “Competitiveness demands both a clear strategy and a winning spirit. You should naturally strive for a strategy that’s superior to anything your competitors may dream up. But even the best strategy in the world will have a short shelf life if it’s not driven by extraordinary human spirit. If your people aren’t passionate about your corporate quest, you’re unlikely to either get ahead or stay there.”

 

In short, we want a firm full of lots of "Pitbulls!"

 

Leadership is Key

The real measure of the Firm’s leadership will be in executing the solid strategy with a winning spirit. Firm leadership must harness the “Pitbulls” to relentlessly focus on the desired strategic objectives. Involving team members in developing the strategy is the first step.

 

In addition, Firm leaders must inspire and motivate members to stretch when they need to and to bounce back when they have a setback. They must share information, responsibility, power and accountability. Successful execution will come when members embrace the strategy and are totally committed to achieving the results.

 

What about your firm? When it comes to strategy execution, who dominates the attitude and culture of your firm? What do you do to unleash that “winning spirit” in your firm?

 

To your success,

 

Mary

 

The Time is Now

“Change almost never fails because it's too early.

 It almost always fails because it's too late.”

~Seth Godin

 

The CPA Horizons 2025 Report was just released last week. Following up on the CPA Vision Project tackled over 10 years ago, the Report is a culmination of study and strategic planning completed over the last six months by a wide variety of thought leaders and members in the profession.

The Report identified the core competencies necessary for CPAs to compete in the marketplace including:

 

• Communication Skills
• Leadership Skills
• Critical Thinking and Problem Solving Skills
• Anticipating and Serving Evolving Needs
• Synthesizing Intelligence to Insight
• Integration and Collaboration

 

In summary, the roadmap drawn for the profession calls on CPAs to be open to change, be nimble and adapt, be collaborative and forward thinking.

 

Frankly, the CPA profession isn’t alone in requiring its members to embrace change, seek collaboration and look beyond today. And the competencies above are the same I see required in virtually all of my executive coaching clients.

 

Regardless of the profession or industry, these skills are mandatory for leadership right now.

 

What Are Your Sacred Cows?

 

I’m facilitating a CPA firm’s Strategic Planning Summit in a couple weeks and this report will provide the Firm’s leadership team with insight into the future of the profession and also a reminder of the core skills needed for the team in the future.

 

In planning the Summit, the Managing Partner is committed to putting everything on the table. “Same old, same old” will no longer work and “We’ve always done it this way” will no longer be a valid excuse for not changing an ineffective office practice, policy or behavior. The leadership team is focused on challenging their “sacred cows” and moving beyond the status quo. That’s great news and a cornerstone of their strategic intent.

 

The attitude of challenging your sacred cows applies both at the organization level and at the individual level. How are your own beliefs and perspectives getting in the way of embracing change, of collaborating or of anticipating your client’s needs? How are you holding yourself back from becoming the effective leader your firm needs you to be?

 

The CPA profession has done a tremendous job of identifying the key challenges and required skills needed over the next 15 years. And CPAs have always been great problem solvers. But the real growth and development opportunities for members in the profession lie squarely in the leadership and change realm.

 

The time is now. We can’t afford to wait until 2025.

 

To your success,

 

Mary