Pete’s Blog

Getting Creative

From the desk of Peter Margaritis

Silhouette People Meeting Team Creative Process ConceptWhen asked what you do for a living, what do you answer? Accountant or business manager or maybe partner in a CPA firm? That may be what your business card says, but in reality what you should say is “I am a problem solver”. That’s the value you bring to clients: you make their businesses run more smoothly by resolving problems that create obstacles to success.

The best problem solvers are also very creative. They look beyond the obvious job duties and investigate opportunities. Rather than complete the tasks assigned by clients (or bosses), creative problem solvers look deeper into the project. They identify potential liabilities, brainstorm potential solutions, do their research and discuss the options with their client.

Now you may say that you just aren’t creative, that it’s right brain versus left brain, that it’s something you are born with or you aren’t. Not true. Creativity can and should be nurtured and developed in every person. Even accountants!

Most business leaders are driven by the bottom line. Investing in developing creativity in your staff has to yield dividends, and it does. Here are the facts*.

•  Companies that embrace creativity outperform those that don’t 1.5 to 1
•  58% of those who foster creativity increased annual revenue by 10% or more. Only 20% of less creative companies had similar growth.
•  82% of companies believe there is a strong connection between creativity and business results.
•  60% of companies who foster creativity in their team have received award and recognition as a “best place to work.”
•  Despite the facts, 61% of senior managers do not describe their companies as creative!

So what does it take to bring out the creativity in your team? Start with yourself.
•  As the leader of your team, are you open and receptive to new ideas?
•  Is brainstorming a part of the process – actively soliciting ideas that challenge the norm.
•  Is your team encouraged to try something new, to avoid SALY (Same As Last Year).
•  Are you a “Yes, but…” leader or a “Yes, and…” leader?

If you answered no to any of these points, you may be the problem. The solution: get professional help. Let’s talk – you can be a creative, problem solver.

 

* Results from a Forrester Consulting Survey

Getting Social

From the desk of Peter Margaritis

FB-f-Logo__blue_144Like many of you, I wasn’t sure about the value of social media for business, and I really wasn’t sure how to approach it. So I took my time, talked to colleagues and marketing professionals, and came to the conclusion that getting involved in social media was an important tool in communicating with clients and business friends.

I started with LinkedIn, probably the easiest entry point. It offers a platform for sharing information and is pretty easy to manage.

I’ve been posting on Facebook for quite a while, but as Peter Margaritis the person, not Peter Margaritis, The Accidental Accountant. This week all that changed – I launched my Accidental Accountant Facebook page. Please stop by and Connect on LinkedIn and Like on Facebook, and I will do the same with you.

 

 

 

 

It May Be Time To Reinvent Your Firm

From the desk of Peter Margaritis

Bad news, layoffs or bankruptcyAn article in this month’s Accounting Today, The Keys to Transforming Your Firm, that talks about some of the steps a firm can take to ensure long-term success. Things like have an updated annual plan for success and creating and communicating the firm’s vision.  While I agree with all the points, there is one that I see as a major hurdle for many firms: developing leaders and successors.

Ongoing leadership skills education encourages your staff to learn to communicate more effectively with clients and co-workers, to approach issues from many angles and to solve problems in new ways. As with technical skills, improving and honing professional skills takes education and experience.  Critical thinking and working creatively to solve problems are not intuitive for many of us. But they can be taught.

While a great many firms want their staff to grow into leaders, they do not encourage thinking differently. I call this syndrome SALY – Same As Last Year. SALY impedes growth and creates barriers to critical thinking and creative problem solving. The antidote for SALY is to introduce new ideas and approaches, to empower you staff to make well-thought out decisions without hearing “we don’t do it that way here.”  Ongoing professional training and exposure to new leadership concepts, like improvisation for business, will help your firm move forward.

The real risk you run if you choose not to change, adapt, reinvent and grow? The real risk is turnover of high potential staff who are not engaged in what worked last year, last decade and definitely not last century.

Exciting News

From the desk of Peter Margaritis

AIW_PeterMargaritisI am very happy to announce that my first book is nearly finished, and we are looking at an April 2015 release! The title isn’t solidified yet but the theme of the book is how business leaders can use improvisation to create positive outcomes.

Last week I spent time in Charleston with the Advantage Media Group, who is publishing my book. There is a lot that goes into writing, publishing and marketing a book.  Just to give you an idea of the scope of this project, my time at Advantage Media was shared with:

  • Harper Tucker, Chief Sales Officer – welcome and tour
  • George Stevens senior graphics designer discussing the front cover design
  • Scott Neville Editorial Manager and Nate Best, Editor working on the copy for the back cover and discussing various book titles
  • John Witty, CFO – we discussed a wide variety of topics from The Advantage Media philosophy to the Civil War
  • Allison Looney, Client Marketing Associate discussing ways to market my book.

I also spent an hour recording my book trailer which will be reduced to about three minutes.   What a great experience!  Look for more “behind the scenes” action and updates on the book title and release.