Learning From A Great Accounting Firm

Developing the Next Generation of Rainmakers Learning from a Great Accounting Firm Plante Moran is an accounting firm headquartered in Michigan. It is the 11th largest accounting firm in the United States. It has been ranked as one of the top 100 places to work in the United States for the last eight years. That is quite a feat. I had read that the firm is one that actually lives its core purpose and values rather than just having a document on the wall. Their core purpose is to be a caring, professional firm, deeply committed to their clients’ success. Their core values are: In an e-newsletter called, “Reading for Leading,” Michigan’s First Gentleman Dan Mulhern wrote an article he titled: “Plante Moran: Caring makes it a great place to work.” In his article Michigan’s First Gentlemen states: “The values, principles, and commitments are not just discussed.   They are lived.   ‘Caring’ is something they recruit for, interview for, and even use their staff psychologists to test for.   They have long had a ‘Jerk free’ environment, and if a jerk slips through the selection process and acts in a way that violates the golden rule, they will be counseled, and if they don’t change, they will be moved out.” Plenty of law firms have mission statements and core values. They usually speak about providing extraordinary service for clients and providing maximum opportunities for lawyers and staff. Not all firms actually live these core values like Plante Moran does. They seem to get lost in the ever increasing theme of making more money and getting hours. Just suppose your firm focused being a great place for lawyers to work and develop their careers and focused on client service and put the clients’ interests ahead of profits per partner considerations. I think profits per partner would increase over time and clearly the career satisfaction would be enhanced. I practiced law for 37 years developing a national construction law practice representing some of the top highway and transportation construction contractors in the US.