Accounting
Art of Accounting: How to be a great employee, manager, partner, advisor and team member
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Being a great resource is quite easy. Just do what the person you report to needs you to do. Do it when you say you will do it and better than anyone else could do it. Also, never, ever upward delegate.
This should be a standard operating procedure but it rarely occurs except by exceptional people. The more exceptional people an organization has, the more successful it — and everyone there — will be.
I modestly suggest that a major reason for my success has been adhering to due dates and trying to do the work better than anyone else. Also I had a resolve to never leave my boss (when I started out) or client where they had to do something. It has always been my firm or me that had to follow through and never the boss or client. Additionally, when I was a staff member, I always tried to anticipate what my boss would do with what I was doing, and then tried to do some of that too. I never left part of what I had to do for my boss to clean up or complete. Likewise with clients I always tried to assume the responsibility to do as much of what the client would do as I could.
Whether you are the lowest-level employee or highest-level CPA firm owner or partner, your job is to provide services for the person hiring or engaging you. Those services include, and really demand, that the right work gets done at the right time in the right way. It cannot be simpler than that. Do what you are supposed to do without error while meeting the time commitment. And then anticipate the use of that information and try to do something extra to save the effort of the person above you, i.e., your boss or client.
Anticipating means two things. Understanding the purpose and use of what you are doing, and how it could meet or exceed that purpose, and/or whether alternatives might be more appropriate. This is how you become a trusted advisor.
My first boss told me that, since I was just starting out, I was not expected to know too much, but I was expected to do what I was told to do and to get it done on time without careless errors. He told me that as he would gain confidence in me, I would be given more responsibilities and higher-level work that I could grow from and advance my career with. This is a lesson for all of us. Prove your ability by doing the right at the right time in the right way.
Clients need you, and expect you, to suggest alternatives to their plans, better ways of doing things, with methods that will help the client accomplish their objectives more reasonably, efficiently and effectively. That’s what made me successful.
I also taught this to my staff, i.e., my team, and those who learned were permitted to continue working for me. They made my job easier, more valuable and more fun…and I reciprocated by doing the same for them.
Today there is a big emphasis on advisory services. The advisory services are not new, but the recent (in the last 10 or so years) emphasis on this is new. I always did that. If I did not, then you would never have heard my name or read anything I wrote because I would have had nothing new or different or innovative to write about. I also would not have had the clients that were open and receptive to what I had to offer them, and who recognized this. The recognition was not with accolades but with quick acceptance of, and payment of, my fees.
I also loved being an independent CPA, but I loved being a businessperson more. That is because if I could not succeed in my own practice, I would cease being a businessperson, but I would never cease being a CPA; my role would just have shifted to being an owner to an employee of a better businessperson’s CPA business.
I accomplished a lot and still do, but it has never been alone. I had partners, staff, support people and clients wanting to be exceptional and who wanted to work with exceptional people. I never compromised by doing less than the best anyone could do, and then some, and never accepted anything less from anyone working with or for me.
Anyone can do what I did. Just do what you say you will do, when it has to be done and the way it needs to be done. That’s all. That’s the secret sauce. If you are the leader of your firm, then lead with this standard. If you are a staff person, then everything you do should be following this standard. Whatever your position, you are part of a team. Be aware that no team could rise above the attitudes, skills and desires of its weakest members.
If you agree with what I just wrote, then do it. Start now. You can get started by using this standard and making any necessary adjustments or changes in your practice as the opportunities arise. Give yourself a year to get things working right. But get started.
If you do not agree with what I wrote, then email me and provide your phone number. I’ll call you and give you an opportunity to tell me why I am wrong and how it should be done. I am not too proud to ignore adapting better ways of doing things. After all, that’s how I grew.
P.S.: My checklist file for managing a practice and tax season is being added to, updated and completed. Information about how to receive it for free will be in my column next week. Look for it. If you want to request it now, send an email to
Do not hesitate to contact me at
Sweeney Kovar was founded in 1984 by Kevin Sweeney and Joseph Kovar. Their firm’s wealth management business had approximately $180 million in assets under management as of Sept. 30, 2024, while the tax and accounting business processed 2,000 tax returns annually. Kovar and the firm’s staff of 12 became Avantax employees as part of the deal, and are continuing to operate from their current offices in Danville, California, east of San Francisco. Sweeney continues to work with the wealth management business, supported by his wealth management assistant who joined Avantax as an employee.
“We’re proud of the business we built, but we wanted succession to be about more than just our future retirement,” Sweeney said in a statement. “Our main goal was consistency for our clients, many of whom have been with us for 35 years, and our staff so selling to Avantax was the right choice. Choosing anyone but Avantax could mean a drop-off in service for our clients, and changes for our team that probably wouldn’t be a good fit. With Avantax, it’s the same level of client service and the same culture for our staff — it’s a real blessing.”
The Sweeney Kovar founders approached their succession plan with comprehensive tax-focused financial planning services in mind.
“Adding wealth management to our practice many years ago made us better CPAs because we go beyond the tax returns, we know more about the client’s family and what’s important to them so we can plan for their future and help them get in the right place to achieve their goals and objectives,” Kovar stated. “We looked at other firms, but sticking with Avantax was better all the way around.”
“Joe and Kevin sought out our Corporate Development team at our National Conference to discuss creating a succession option that checked all their boxes while keeping their truly outstanding business within the Avantax Community,” Watts said. “I know Joe and Kevin would agree that it’s best when advisors start thinking about succession planning many years before they want to retire so the process can happen thoughtfully, with every detail covered, enabling us to collectively create the best possible outcome for the advisors, their teams and their clients.”
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