Bissett Bullet: The Mindset Curve
Today’s Bissett Bullet: “How long does it take for a technical professional such as an accountant to move out of their comfort zone and build business development habits?”
By Martin Bissett
By Martin Bissett
Taking steps “little and often” works, but you have to get started.
By Martin Bissett
Passport to Partnership
A big concern in recent years has been how the incoming partners will purchase equity or fund the capital account and exit of a retiring partner.
Much has been written that examines the mathematical complexities of this topic but the bottom line is simple. Would-be partners in the age demographic of 28-42 are part of a generation who are already heavily borrowed in the form of credit card debt, mortgage debt and other forms of personal loans.
Their capacity to borrow in the current economy is extremely limited and it would appear that this will be the environment for the foreseeable future. In turn, banks’ willingness to lend has also been largely withdrawn in recent years.
This has produced a cash impasse that has forced partners to consider gifting equity, especially on the basis of time served in the firm. There is not scope within this piece to give full examination of best practice within this area except to highlight that 72 percent of partners surveyed highlighted that a senior manager’s ability to “buy in” to the firm and assume responsibility for funding the retirement plans of exiting partners was among their top three concerns about passing their practice on to existing employees.
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By Martin Bissett
By Martin Bissett
We all have to do it.
By Martin Bissett
Passport to Partnership
When challenges come our way, regardless of what shape or form they arrive in, our world seems to lose a bit of brightness, there’s a little knot in the gut and a sense of peace broken.
MORE: The Real Math Behind the Sales Pipeline | Five Questions for Grading Prospects | Be Clear About Your ROI Proposition | Keep Business Development Going During Busy Season | Health, Wealth, Stealth: Challenges on the Path to Partnership | Don’t Let Recurring Fees Kill Your Practice | Rate Your Personal Purpose | Five Ways to Make Selling Easier | Six Keys to Getting a Proposal Accepted | Tell the World Your Worth
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The question is, if we were watching our own responses to these trials, would we appoint ourselves as the next partner of the firm?
Let’s examine five checkpoints to test your own, or your staffers’, abilities to overcome challenges.
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By Martin Bissett
Four business development steps that are worth your while.
By Martin Bissett
Business Development On a Budget
I’ve taken many accounting firm partners through this process, and it’s quite common for them to balk a little at the pipeline idea when they see the amount of work involved.
MORE: Five Questions for Grading Prospects | Be Clear About Your ROI Proposition | It’s Time to Prepare the Next Generation | Who Are You More Committed to, Your Firm or Your Clients? | Nine Checkpoints Before Every Prospect Meeting | Three Questions about Conversion | Six Keys to Turning Prospects into Clients | Don’t Overlook Internal Communication | Four Reasons People Struggle with Communication
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They see it as just another call on their time when they already have far too much to do, and they ask me why they can’t just write down a list of prospects and go to work on them.
Is that what you’ve been thinking? Well, here’s why that doesn’t work.
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By Martin Bissett