The Radical CPA: 3 Words That Will Kill Your Talent Search
The other day, as I was browsing LinkedIn, I saw a job advertisement for a tax manager. Now I can honestly say I know nothing about the firm or even the location, but the first three words in the ad made me stop dead in my tracks (and no, I’m not looking for a new job.)
“Beautiful Downtown Office.”
I read those three words as stifling, painful, and horrifying.
But what shocked me the most is how “old school” firm management believes this is important. Important enough for it to be the first three words in an ad intended to catch a new hire. What is wrong with this picture, firm, and our profession?
Regular readers of my column know work is no longer a place you go.
It’s what you do, who you are, and a lifestyle.
A job is not “location based” - especially at the manager level. Yet, this “old school” firm believes that a downtown office is something a “tax manager” level professional would choose.
Are you kidding me?
WOW! What a disconnect.
I run an extremely progressive firm and I understand that I am not the norm, however, I believe most professionals would agree that flexibility, technology, and culture are far more important than a “beautiful downtown office.”
How do we bridge this widening gap?
How do we help the “old-school” firm owners understand that work happens, everywhere, anytime, and all the time - not just when you are sitting in the downtown office with your butt in a seat on a Saturday during tax season.
That firms need to rebuild their infrastructures because even if they are a completely virtual office or not, their process and their team members can work virtually at least part of the time.
That the “butt in seat” mentality no longer works from an employee recruitment or engagement standpoint and that results should matter more than hours worked.
Isn’t this common sense given the way our culture and business environment keeps evolving?
The talent wars are heating up, so how are we as a profession going to engage our future and current employees in a work lifestyle that grows more progressive? A work lifestyle that acknowledges the deep change that is taking place?
Waterfront views and a beautiful downtown office, though nice looking through a window, just aren’t going to cut it anymore. Who’s with me?
Originally posted on AccountingToday.com on August 11, 2015.
Operations manager | Customer Service | Process improvement | Project Management | Planning | multilingual
9 年If it means that people won't be commuting for hours each and every day then I can understand why they consider it to be a major advantage.
Using my proven knowledge/expertise in Administration to the advantage of a Great Employer. Unfluencer??
9 年Just like you I get sick of the adverts which try and build the firm up with meaningless phrases like "Blue Chip company", "Prestigious", etc. which give no real indication about where the company is located or what it is like to work for them. After all if this companies are such great finds -- why are they using recruiting agencies - after all if 75% of jobs in these companies are referrals - why hasn't it got filled. Good article.
Wild Card - draw me for a winning hand | Creative Problem Solver in Many Roles | Manual Software QA | Project Management | Business Analysis | Auditing | Accounting |
9 年Remember, the "beautiful" office is very important since you'll be working 80 hour weeks there, so it is your new home. Oops, did I just translate JobAdese into English? :)