The Blueprint for a High Performing Accounting Firm

Sam Allred is a qualified CPA and founder of Upstream Academy. He has been regularly recognized as one of the major influencers in the accounting profession and has been listed as one of Accounting Today’s Top 100 Most Influential People in Accounting and as one of IPA’s Most Recommended Consultants. He is one of the most sought-after speakers in the accounting profession and is viewed as one of their top strategic thinkers. Shownotes:

• What separates the good accounting firms from the great, especially in tough times
• What a strong culture of high performance and a staff of raving fans looks like in a good accounting firm
• Question answered: do high performing firms recruit high performing people or develop good people into high performers?
• Shoutout to 'The Ideal Team Player - How to Recognize and Cultivate the Three Essential Virtues' by Patrick Lencioni (and what those essential values are)
• What defines high performance or 'best in class' in professional firms and what research data supports it
• The 6 areas of discipline demonstrated by all high performing accounting firms
• Why financial performance is only a small part of what makes an accounting firm successful and high performing
• Why every firm and every accounting partner can be high performing - it's not the normal distribution curve of poor, average and good
• How the covid pandemic and remote working has exposed some accounting firms who lack a high performing culture and strong processes
• What high performing leaders in an accounting firm set examples and drive culture in caring for their people and clients
• Why it's almost impossible to be a high performing professional in a low performing accounting firm over any length of time
• The dilemma for accomplished partners fighting against poor performance who are too invested in a poor firm to contemplate leaving
• How to properly discern whether an accounting firm is worth joining or working for before you're hired
• The signs from the outside that an accounting firm is high performing
• The main thing accounting firms and accounting individuals need to start down the road of becoming 'best in class'
• Critical questions accounting professionals and leaders should ask themselves to assess whether they are or could be considered a high performer
• The kind of results high performing firms have achieved in a pandemic year and how they will continue to dominate in 2021
• What all accounting firms are most looking forward to as they emerge from covid restrictions

Sam and his wife, Marlene, live outside of Park City, Utah. His hobbies include spending time with his family, fly fishing and golf. Sam and Marlene have seven children. Contact him here:

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