TheLeadershipNotebook

Collaborating to Make a Difference

 

Coming together is a beginning, staying together is progress,

and working together is success.

~Henry Ford

Yesterday, The CPA Consultants’ Alliance (CPACA), an alliance I helped cofound earlier this year, published our first white paper:  CPA Firm Leadership: Communication Drives New Possibilities. This white paper is the outcome of a research study we undertook that focused on the CPA profession's current and future leadership opportunities and challenges in the accounting profession.

The white paper took an incredible amount of time and effort, but in the end, the document and all it represents, is a source of tremendous pride.

When we formed the CPACA, each of us members understood the power of collaboration. We knew that in theory, “the sum of the parts was definitely greater than the whole.”  And over the last six months, we practiced what we preached, working together each step of the way for the ultimate purpose of making a difference in the accounting profession.

It wasn’t always easy. Each of us has incredibly busy schedules and businesses that need our full attention. Each of us has our particular personality, background and experience that add perspective and opinions on how things should work. But we made time. We debated the issues. We dealt with challenges head on, with honesty and openness and a willingness to listen to and support each other.

As I embark on the next leg of my career journey and say farewell to the members of the CPACA, I know I will miss this group, their passion for CPAs, and all that I learned from them through our collaboration.

The CPACA’s mission is “to explore leadership issues facing the profession and develop and share solutions that benefit practitioners.  CPA Consultants' Alliance members support each member’s growth and collaborate to make a difference in the communities we serve.”

 

We did just that.

 

I’m proud of our work and I know that the CPACA, through all of our amazing members, will be an example of outstanding thought leadership in the accounting profession for years to come.

 

So collaborate and make a difference.

 

To your success,

 

Mary

 

Your First 90 Days....

 

“Failure to prepare is preparing to fail.”

~John Wooden

 

In last week’s post, I shared the news that I’ve accepted the position of President of Toledo St. Ursula Academy and Junior Academy. My start date is October 1st. I’m excited to jump right into my new role and hit the ground running.

But as a leadership development coach who has worked with many leaders during their transition into new roles, I have to remind myself to practice what I preach. What do I mean?

According to research and best practices on leadership effectiveness, the first days in a new position are critical because small differences in a new leader’s actions can have a huge impact on long-term results.

Whether you’re a hire from the outside, as I am, or an existing employee who has been at an organization for a while, it’s important that the new leader take the time up front to quickly diagnose a your situation, understand its challenges and opportunities, establish priorities and manage the key relationships that will help you succeed.

 

So my real start date was the minute I accepted my new position.

 

There are two resources I have utilized with my coaching clients who are entering new roles. The first, Michael Watkins’ The First 90 Days, provides an excellent roadmap for a new leader. The second, The New Leader’s 100 Day Action Plan by Brandt et. al. offers a similar blueprint that includes practical tools to help you implement your plan.

 

Here’s a very brief summary of the concepts that Watkins shares in The First 90 Days. He outlines 10 key transition challenges that will help you navigate your road ahead. They are:

 

 

1. Promote Yourself — get yourself mentally ready to step into your new role. Shift your mindset and perspective and embrace your new position.
2. Accelerate Your Learning — figure out what you need to learn and identify up front your best available sources of insight and information and learn what you need to learn in the shortest amount of time.
3. Match Strategy to Situation—not every situation is the same. This transition challenge requires you to assess just what you are facing. The book outlines four different business situations that will allow you to match the appropriate focus and response to needs of the organization.
4. Secure Early Wins—in this step, the new leader tailors early initiatives to build personal credibility, establish key relationships, and identify and harvest low-hanging fruit-the highest –potential opportunities for short term improvements in organizational performance.
5. Negotiate Success—proactively work to understand with your new boss just what success looks like. You will have greater clarity and a sense of focus for your efforts.
6. Achieve Alignment—this step requires a focus on analyzing the architecture of your organization. Assess alignment among strategy, structure, systems and skills. You will likely not be able to do this immediately but it should be included in your 90 Day plan.
7. Build Your Team—begin by assessing your team, looking for congruence with strengths and needs of the organization. Then work to build team trust and cohesion. You will also need to put in place goals, incentives and performance measures that will propel your team in the desired direction.
8. Create Coalitions—consolidate existing sources of support while developing relationships with those whose resources or connections you need to succeed.
9. Keep Your Balance-- build your support systems and keep your personal disciplines. Starting new is challenging and stressful. It’s important to remember to keep this important balance.
10. Expedite Everyone —if there are other new leaders in your organization, share these steps with them. Share your plan as well.

 

Regardless of the tools or resources you use, if you are anticipating a promotion or a move to a new assignment, planning your first three months in your role is a must. I’ve completed a first draft of my 90 Day Plan and have already accomplished some of my action steps.

 

What do you think? What has worked for you when you transition into a new position? I’d love to hear about strategies you have used in your first days and months in your new job.

 

To your success,

 

Mary

Same Journey, New Path...

 

“Go confidently in the direction of your dreams. Live the life you’ve imagined.”

~Henry David Thoreau

 

Dear Friends,

 

Over the last six years, I’ve had the privilege to work with many outstanding leaders and teams, helping them to reach their highest potential. My work has been about the positive aspects of change:  personal growth, learning, building resilience and increasing emotional intelligence.

 

Coaching my wonderful clients and meeting all of you have been so rewarding and a very natural expansion of my previous career as a practicing CPA and management consultant. 

I now have a fantastic opportunity to continue my career journey along a different, yet exciting path. I will be assuming the role of President of my alma mater, St. Ursula Academy and Junior Academy.  SUA is Toledo, Ohio’s oldest all-girls Catholic high school and is built on a foundation of educating the whole young woman: academically, spiritually, physically and emotionally.

I’ve been passionate about the mission and vision of St. Ursula since my high school graduation nearly 40 years ago. Each of my three daughters is an alumna. I’ve been a volunteer, booster and former board chair. So when the opportunity to lead the school as its President arose, I felt a calling to serve.

 

My financial background, leadership development coaching, and consulting expertise, along with my love of the school, was a combination I couldn’t resist. And the opportunity to make a difference in the lives of nearly 600 young women is foundational to my decision.

 Mary Conlisk ‘74

St. Ursula Academy

 

I will begin my role October 1^st and will honor all my coaching and commitments through January 2013. Although my external coaching will end, I intend to continue this blog, The Leadership Notebook.

How lucky I have been to have met each of you along this leg of my career journey. I hope our paths cross again soon but please accept my sincere gratitude for all I have learned from you along the way.

To your success,

Mary

The Truth About Leadership

 

“If your actions inspire others to dream more, learn more,

do more and become more,  you are a leader.”

~John Quincy Adams 

 

Great leadership doesn't require a diploma or a degree. It's not reserved for some elite group of people. Leadership can be something for everyone to embrace, from administrative assistant to janitor to manager to CEO.

Leadership is about so much more than strategy, operations and marketing. It's about discovering and understanding each team member's potential (as well as your own) and finding ways to tap into that resource, something many managers neglect to do.

On leaders, wise man, Lao Tzu suggests:

"A leader is best when people barely know he exists. When his work is done, his aim fulfilled, they will say: we did it ourselves."

It sounds simple and it is. But no one said it was easy. For many people, leadership based on inspiring and encouraging others requires a shift in mindset and perspective. It requires a shift to a mindset and perspective that fundamentally believes in their employee’s capability, value and ability to positively contribute to the organization.

And it also requires a focus on channeling their employee's intelligence and passion to engage them in accomplishing their goals; goals that are aligned with the goals of the organization.

Whether you’re the boss or the employee, in order to inspire leadership, try these simple (but not easy) suggestions:

 

1. Establish trust. Leaders need to create it and employees need to, well, trust. If your words and actions are just lip service, employees will know and steer clear. Do what you say you will do. It is the foundation for all leadership. When trust is built, employees can move forward with confidence knowing that they are on a solid foundation.

2.  Build understanding. Employee empowerment is not an event. It’s a philosophy with specific strategies that allow staff to make decisions that directly affect their job. Employers need to be in it for the long term and employees need to consider how their decisions may affect the company.

3. Establish clear boundaries. When the leader is away, what decisions can staff make? Remember, assigning responsibility without authority can be a leadership killer. Make sure everyone knows who is leading whom. If you're an employee, make sure you get clear direction before assuming responsibility. Knowing your boundaries allows you to be proactive in your actions and decisions.

 

4.  Encourage. Second guessing the decisions of staff that have been given the authority to make those decisions undermines the entire process. Will mistakes be made? Of course. But shoot down an employee and see if anyone ever steps up with a critical idea or decision that takes the company's success to the next level.

Empowering employees is a powerful way to motivate staff. It allows them to get passionate about challenges and inspires them to step up with new ideas. It's a win-win situation. Left uninterrupted, this cycle repeats, encouraging passionate and skilled people to step up and make decisions about how to best serve customers or clients, which ultimately benefits the bottom line.

Knowing and believing you can lead regardless of your level is an incredibly powerful feeling. What do you think? How do inspire those you lead to lead as well?

To your success,

Mary