Get  Ready  for  the  Fast  Future  The  An3cipatory  CPA  Firm  

Tom  Hood,  CPA,CGMA,CITP  June  29th,  2016  

Your Learning Journey

Download today’s slides at …

www.SlideShare.net/thoodcpa

Vote for a question

Respond to Poll

Ask a Question

BLI.CNF.IO Select your sessionand join the conversation:

CPAFMA  –  Get  Ready  for  the  Fast  Future  –  The  An3cipatory  CPA    

1.  Finding  the  right  people  2.  Talent  reten3on  3.  Being  reac3ve  versus  

proac3ve  4.  Engaging  our  People  5.  Partner  alignment  &  buy-­‐in  

Top  5  Challenges  Facing  CPAFMAs  

Top  5  Skills  Needed  

1.  Communica3on  2.  Strategic  &  cri3cal  thinking  3.  Analy3cal  skills  4.  An3cipa3ng  and  serving  evolving  needs  5.  Inspiring  and  mo3va3ng  others  

Did  you  know  that  the  Business  Learning  Ins3tute  specializes  in  these    ‘  success  skills’  and  can  help  you  build  a  curriculum  based  on  your  firm  strategy?  

www.blionline.org    

The # 1 Challenge

0 2 4 6 8

Poor reputation

No personal relationship

Inadequate staff to meet needs

Not using state-of-the-art technology

Fees were too high

Expertise of former CPA was lacking

Referral to a new firm from someone I trust

CPA had poor responsiveness

CPA didn’t give proactive advice, only reactive service

reactive service

Why SMBs Leave Their CPA / Accountant

Borrowed from the US Army War College, VUCA was coined by The Institute for the Future to describe the rapidly changing and complex business environment since the Great Recession of 2008.

VUCA – CPA Style

Lose perspective, ‘Hunker down’

#FutureReady!Is the capacity to be anticipatory (aware, predictive and adaptive) of emerging technology and trends in business, demographics, and the social environment impacting your organization and industry.! Source: CPA.COM Insight into the

CPA of the Future Study 2014

92% of CPAs !Not #futureready!

The Overwhelmed Employee

The  Faster  you  go,  the  Farther  Ahead  You  Have  to  Look  

Leading in VUCA Times1. Context 2. Certainty3. Capacity4. Competence 5. Core Purpose

& Beliefs

Context

“We stand on the brink of a technological revolution that will fundamentally alter the

way we live, work, and relate to one another. In its scale, scope, and complexity, the transformation will be unlike anything

humankind has experienced before.” - Klaus Schwab - WEF

More Uber cars than yellow taxis on the road in NYC

Race Against the Machines?

Source: Frey & Osborne – The Future of Employment – Oxford University

What does the future hold? Technology is changing and disintermediating many trades and professions •  Medical, Legal, Accounting

Patterns and Trends •  Automation replacing routine tasks – higher order (soft skills

and analytics) necessary to survive •  Alternative options to services and knowledge – automated or

otherwise – Tax and Audit implications •  Globalization, specialization and consolidation changing the

landscape. •  Domain expertise matters

Innovation Priorities in Firms1.  Developing new offerings that expand the value we

provide to our existing clients 2.  Implementing a new offering for a specific market

segment we believe has growth 3.  Developing new offerings or approaches to the market

that attract new clients 4.  Realizing value to the firm from existing innovation

investments5.  Updating current offerings to be more competitive6.  Deciding and moving forward on what our innovation

priorities should be7.  Implementing a cloud-based accounting system

2015 Innovation in Public Accounting Survey – CPA.COM

Certainty

Hard Trends

Four Hard Trends:1. Government Regulation2. Technology3. Demographics4. Globalization

The Shift Change

1. Leadership!2. Learning!3. Technology!4. Generations!5. Workplace!

The challenge & opportunity is to make the shift from the first curve to the second curve at the right time and with the

right strategy

Top Ten Things Next Gen leaders Want You to Know!

1.  Look Beyond the Billable Hour2.  More Focus on Career Development3.  Engage Us in your Vision and Purpose4.  More Coaching and Mentorship5.  More Frequent Feedback6.  More Leadership Development7.  More Transparency8.  Thank You!9.  More Collaboration10. More Focus on the Future

The  New  Big  Six  

Source: Gallup

Capacity

You must make room for the future!

The Top 6 Ways to Create Capacity in your Firm

•  Maximize software & tools you have•  Use the latest and most efficient technologies•  Workflow & Process Efficiency•  Focus on your best ‘A’ clients•  Communicate your services (cross-sell)•  Engage your people

Competency

Disrup'ons      before  they  disrupt  Problems      before  you  have  them  Customer  Needs    before  they  have  them    New  Opportuni'es  before  the  compe33on  

An3cipate  

Source:  Daniel  Burrus  

The ResearchThe latest research inside and outside the CPA Profession re-affirms the Top Competencies and Skills needed by Accounting and Finance Professionals

Top Skills Needed for Accounting and Finance Professionals !

BLI Research in 2015 with over 1,000 responses from all segments of the CPA Profession identified these top skill needed to be successful in these rapidly changing times. This confirms and reinforces the research from the Conference Board, AICPA CPA Horizons 2025 report, Bersin, and Burrus Research..

75% covered by these Top 5

Skills

•  An3cipa3on  •  Strategic  

Thinking  •  External  

Awareness  •  Vision  •  Con3nuous  

Learning  •  Innova3on  •  Crea3vity  •  Problem  Solving  •  Priori3za3on  

•  Business  Acumen  •  Decisiveness  •  Influencing/

Persuading  •  Emo3onal  

Intelligence  •  Consensus  

Building  •  Collabora3on  •  Inspira3on  •  Risk  Management  •  Communica3on  

http://www.blionline.org/ao

•  Trust•  Integrity•  Objectivity•  Excellence •  Lifelong Learning

Core Purpose & Values

Protect the Core & Stimulate Progress

CPAs…Making sense of a changing and complex world.

The VUCA LeaderV – Vision & PurposeU – Understand contextC – Co-create & collaborateA – Anticipation, introducing and managing changeA Leader’s job is to set context and direction

and provide hope and inspiration.

The ‘new’ Big Four1.  Purpose Driven workplace2.  Great leadership – trust &

transparent3.  Culture of growth4.  Inspiring workplace – flexible

and inclusive

The Magnetic FirmPurpose Driven Great

LeadershipCulture

Of GrowthInspiring

Workplace

Vision, Purpose and Values based

Transparent and Inspirational Leadership

Learning Culture- Self and Formal Development

Flexible and Open Work Environment

Focus on Strengths and Positivity

Build Consensus and Commitment

Career & Growth Orientation – Career Paths

Work/Life Balance

Inclusive and Diverse

Leadership Development at all levels

Customer focused

Coaching and Feedback

High Performance – Insight to Action

Anticipatory and Proactive

Collaborative and Team based

Effective Technology Tools - mobile

5 Steps to be Future Ready & Lead in VUCA times

1. Context 2. Certainty3. Capacity4. Competence 5. Core Beliefs

Disruption and RONI���The gap is widening, faster!

Source: Clayton Christensen, “Innovation Killers”

We think this is trade-off

Your turn!

“You can’t stop the waves, but you can learn how to surf.”

– Jon Kabat Zinn

Oceans of Opportunity

If there is a conversation about the future of the profession, you're bound to hear Hood's name mentioned as one of the people leading the way. – Accounting Today

Tom Hood, CPA, CITP, CGMA

CPA Practice Adviser Accounting Hall of Fame Named the Second Most Influential in Accounting by Accounting Today Magazine 2013 - 2015 Top 150 Influencer by Linked-In Top 25 Influencers in Learning & HR - HR Examiner Top 25 Public Accounting Thought Leaders - CPA Practice Adviser Co-founder of the Business Learning Institute

CEO Maryland Association of CPAs (MACPA) www.macpa.org Business Learning Institute (BLI) www.blionline.org

http://www.linkedin.com/in/tomhood/