Do CPA Firms Need Management or Leadership?

Differentiating between the two, and the two most common styles of management.

By Bill Reeb and Dominic Cingoranelli
CPA Trendlines / Succession Institute

Let’s start out with a straightforward question. What is the difference between management and leadership?

From one point of view, leadership is far different than management. For example, leadership might be all about developing a vision for the organization, being innovative, motivating others, empowering those around you, focusing on developing the people around you instead of just developing yourself, looking for positive ways to change, doing the right thing, and keeping the forest in view and not just see the trees.