Building a culture of growth starts early

Just like we all have personalities, every business has a unique culture. However, we don’t often talk about how to change, improve or grow that culture. When I speak with partners about growing their firms, the conversation almost always goes to bringing in more business. And while I don’t disagree that is a key component to growth, I often have to step back and ask why the problem exists in the first place. Many times its because the firm doesn’t have a culture of growth. Rather, you are expected to work hard, meet your billable hours and get your continuing education. Sometimes the firms tell their younger staff you need to network and build business. In rare cases, firms might even have this written down. However, what I find is that many firms don’t give their people enough time or more importantly opportunities to develop the skills they will need to be a rainmaker and thought leader in their firm.

Start early

Building a culture of growth needs to start long before they become a partner and even longer before they are a step away from being a partner. It has to start from the second they walk in the door. Building a culture of growth means you set the expectation that this is important and provides them with the tools, resources, training and mentoring to develop the skills appropriate for their level. This can mean everything from networking to getting them involved in speaking and writing.

I was thoroughly pleased to run across How resturaunts can use data to improve customer relationships this morning by a young Senior Manager at BDO. This is a great example of getting your next generation of leaders involved.

While we see more firms encouraging their staff and managers to become involved in business development activities, it is much rarer to see them involved in writing. Consider this the next time you are struggling to find time to write.