The End?

Conclusion

This is part 6 of a 6 part series

At the start of this project, the idea was to offer you, as a Partner in a firm, an understanding around how to attract the best people for your business. We ascertained that people are crucial to the on-going success of your business and therefore, bringing the best people for you, into your firm is crucial.

After speaking with a few Partners of firms and Advisors to firms across the Eastern Seaboard, they mentioned that whilst articles talk about the importance of having the right people on-board, nobody discusses strategies to source and select these people.

And that’s how this blog series started.

Over the course of the past eight weeks, we looked at:

1. Gap Analysis in conjunction with your goals

Understanding that you need another set of hands on deck is only part of the formula. We walked through firstly understanding what the goals of your business are, and then subsequently seeking to fill the skills gaps that arise.

Do your people have the skills to complete the engagements you’re undertaking?

Having a clear vision for your firm, that can be articulated to people seeking to join, will increase your opportunity to secure them. People want to buy into the vision of the practice. They want to see how this firm will expedite their growth and how it fits with their personal vision.

2. Defining Culture and EVP

Culture is probably the greatest defining factor for your firm. It needs to be more than words on a piece of paper. Your culture should flow through every aspect of the firm, from the way people dress each day, to the way you interact with clients, to the way your marketing materials are promoted. Your culture is a combination of your vision, values, and accepted actions within the firm.

The actions you encourage should support your values and work towards your vision

Your Employer Value Proposition (EVP) is your unique differentiator in a market where there is a war for talent. With the onus on flexibility around working arrangements, many firms are starting to articulate the offerings they provide. What are you doing to get your message to the market? Can you clearly articulate why you’re a better option to a candidate?

3. Person Description vs Position Description

Position descriptions are great at conveying what the candidate will be doing today, however, a lot of people want to know where this role, and more importantly firm, will take them. What do the growth and future look like?

Position descriptions define what. Person descriptions define who.

A person description offers more value to you and the candidate. Person descriptions outline the type of personality that would succeed in this role, the growth and where it would potentially take them, and why this role is suitable to them. This allows you to really narrow down the type of person you need and ensure that you’re hiring people who suit your culture.

 

4. 365 Day Recruitment

Good people are hard to find. Good people who match your culture and are aligned with your vision, are harder to find! 365 Day Recruitment involves a constant search to find the right people for your firm. Having constant conversations with the right people means that you’re in the box seat to attract these people to your firm as the timing eventuates.

The constant search allows you to bring in people who buy into your vision and purpose

People will leave. As a business owner, you should always account for staff turnover. It may not necessarily be because they’re unhappy. Life happens and this could mean that they need to urgently tend to other matters. Constantly searching for the right type of people means that you have some hope of being able to replace them sooner rather than later.

 

The premise on which a professional services firm works is “we have the people who possess the required skills to undertake this engagement as required”. Accounting and Legal firms are not necessarily selling a tangible product that a client can hold, touch, or feel. What they are selling is the capability to complete accounting and legal work as required.

Building a People Strategy for your practice offers you a competitive advantage in the war for talent. Understand what your goals are, define your culture to the point that it oozes out of every part of your practice, target people with the right attributes, and keep searching and maintaining conversations.

 

This has been a fun journey. You are not the only one thinking that it is hard to find the right people. Many firms, big and small, and across the Eastern Seaboard, have been in touch to see how we can help them grow. Now, it is a matter of building a bespoke strategy to help these firms grow.

Thank you to all those who’ve read and commented on the blog posts to date. Big thanks to Richard, Nick, Jarvis, Sam, and Gary for taking the time to review, edit, and proof read these prior to posting. You have been great sounding boards and your time and input has been appreciated.

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