Episode 56: Renovating Our Firms and Careers in 2021
In Episode 56, the first episode of 2021, Sam explores the renovations we need to make as accountants in our day to day, and as an industry. She touches on what 2020 highlighted for us as changes that are needed in our industry, and how we can use what we’ve learned to be a catalyst to renovate our practices and our businesses going forwards.
Sam explores what we can learn from outside our industry about the drivers of efficiency and productivity, and why BlueprintHQ focuses on the foundational behaviours and soft skills that underpin systems, processes and technology when we are working on renovating with firms.
Sam then shares what the persistent enemy of excellence is, not just for our industry but for all humans, and some recommendations to help your productivity and efficiency in 2021.
Finally, Sam covers the problem with how our industry often implements new technology and any changes, and the power of renovating things slowly and sustainably over time.
Listen to an excerpt
What we cover in this episode
What 2020 has highlighted for changes that need to be made in our industry
How we can use what we’ve learned in 2020 to be a catalyst to renovate our practices and businesses going forward
What we can learn from outside our industry about what drives efficiency and productivity
Why BlueprintHQ focuses on the foundational behaviours and soft skills that underpin systems, processes and technology when we are working on Renovating with firms
How to approach these skills, mindsets and behaviour changes while not dropping our productivity
The persistent enemy of excellence, for humans and for our industry
Sam’s recommendations to help with your productivity and efficiency 2021
The problem with how our industry often implements new technology and any change
The power of renovating our mindset and renovating our practices slowly and sustainably over time not just a once-done approach
An invitation to you to be proactive for 2021
Quotes
“There's a big push, and particularly after 2020 it's gotten louder, for actually renovating our businesses to be more based on human businesses with human skills. So what that actually means is that we have a lot more communication, and while technology is fantastic, and absolutely part about every day, a lot of people really want to have more connection—more connection in the workplace, more connection with their clients, and clients want to have more connection [with us].”
“Accountants are so well suited for these more connection- and relationship-based businesses, because we actually do have connection with most SME owners.”
“Without this shift, without [our industry] getting our every day a lot more efficient and productive, we can't make change because we just don't have the time. We are still very much a time-based style of business.”
“Like any kind of renovation, you actually want to be able to work around what you already have. So accountants have such a lot of really, really good parts of our businesses and our industry, and we need to be able to keep these. But we need to be able to renovate those foundational skills and those efficiency pieces, and we need to be able to do it as we work.”
“To get that real benefit out of any kind of change—particularly technology—we really need to get into the behaviour behind what we're already doing, before we add anything else to it.”
“Because we can talk about dropping timesheets we can talk about [why] productivity should not be measured—and I talk about that myself too—but right now, it is still central [to our work]. So how can we develop the skills and the mindset and the behaviour changes that we need while not dropping our productivity?”
“[Our industry must] really start looking at what we're focusing on and discussing. We need to broaden the range of things that we're discussing and we definitely need to increase the conversation around soft skills and implementing this in what we do every day.”
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