AT Think

Here's a smart idea for all you financial planners out there. Target the children of your Baby Boomer clients.

There is no time like the present for firm leaders to take a very hard look at their current team—from entry-level to senior manager and even at newer partners and ask: Are they adequately equipped to market, sell and provide the kind of relationship-building environment to acquire and keep new clients (and new staff)? Firms have been extremely busy in recent years simply serving clients, that more or less fell into their lap. Little effort has been expended to obtain new clients because the phone has just kept ringing. The bigger problem has been finding enough people to serve clients, not finding enough work to keep people busy. Firm leaders are beginning to acknowledge that even their young partners have never honed their skills in marketing and actively pursuing new business. Current leaders in many firms will naturally ask, “Did we make too many technicians partners?” Change is real. It always provides opportunity for those who have ambition, drive and the desire to take their career to new heights. Now is the time to refocus firm efforts from frantically hiring and training technicians to building a team that possesses professional relationship-building skills. Now is the time to instill more discipline and structure into your marketing, branding and sales efforts. The best part of all this is the fact that the next generation is waiting in the wings for opportunity and guidance from established firm leaders. The next generation, young Gen-Xers and Millennials, are looking for mentors and coaches who can help them achieve quickly. They have been asking for more direction and attention from firm leaders for several years. Now, firms have the critical need to pay attention and develop training programs to enhance smart skills like communication, business etiquette, listening, speaking, writing, marketing and selling. This next generation is also asking firm leaders to develop a more collaborative firm culture. It’s easy to get started, but remember, it takes discipline from firm leaders to keep it alive and healthy inside your firm. Here are some ideas:

Here's a smart idea for all you financial planners out there. Target the children of your Baby Boomer clients. Read more on the Accounting Tomorrow blog.

Accounting Tomorrow extends its deepest condolescences to the family, friends and classmates or Xin Yang, 22, an accounting student at Virginia Tech who was decapitated on Jan. 21. For more on this story, go to the Accounting Tomorrow blog.

Accounting Tomorrow extends its deepest condolences to the family, friends and classmates of Xin Yang, 22, an accounting student at Virginia Tech who was decapitated on Jan. 21.

Coming back from Washington D.C. for Barack Obama's historic inauguration validated what I already knew about this election: the youth most definitely rocked the vote.

An increasing number of companies are promoting social responsibility in the form of volunteering in their local communities. One of the Big Four accounting firms is giving high school accounting students a chance to help the United Way with what they learned in class.

An increasing number of companies are promoting social responsibility in the form of volunteering in their local communities. One of the Big Four accounting firms is giving high school accounting students a chance to help the United Way with what they learned in class. Read more on the Accounting Tomorrow blog.

Coming back from Washington D.C. for Barack Obama's historic inauguration validated what I already knew about this election: the youth most definitely rocked the vote. Read more on the Accounting Tomorrow blog.

PricewaterhouseCoopers offers “10 Tips to Recession-Proof Your Job Search” on PwC.tv.The tips target recent college grads, but can really apply to anyone who is trying to get a fresh start on their career. Read more on the Accounting Tomorrow blog.