The “Aha Moment” in CPA Firm Leadership

Are you leading, or merely managing or administering?

by Marc Rosenberg, CPA
Author of “CPA Firm Management and Governance”  

When attending conferences, we love “aha” moments.  Those are moments when a speaker says something so profound that it causes a sudden understanding of a major issue and captures our imagination.  We can’t wait to get back to the office, share it with our partners and start implementing the idea.

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Marc Rosenberg
Marc Rosenberg

I had an “aha” moment not so long ago.  The speaker was Bob Bunting, long time managing partner of regional firm  Moss Adams, a leader in our profession par excellence.   He delivered a very simple but powerful statement that described a value system at Moss Adams:

  • Leadership is worth more than your billing rate.
  • Management is worth your billing rate.
  • Administration is worth less than your billing rate.

My take on this is: