Our part-time staff member lucked out with her first visit to a client, and learned some valuable things during the day on the trail.
Tales from the Trail
Taste of the Audit Trail
Long hours on the audit trail cause our team members to work up an appetite. And though our team is always hungry for accuracy, these are a few of our favorite places to sate our hunger for good food and a good time.
Overstressed
Our team has worked with many different people over the years, as teams change and our client list grows, which means we’ve had the opportunity to experience a wide range of personalities as we lead others through the audit process. But sometimes we misjudge others’ comfort zones and push personalities that need a little more help.
Closest to the Problem
It’s not always worth the advice to take your problem to the top, especially when the people who can best solve it are the ones who work on the issue day after day. The people who add the most value to a company are always the ones who work directly with the end customer, adding value to them adds value to the whole organization.
“Not My Responsibility!”
It’s the classic bureaucratic run-around: “That’s not my job. Go see someone else.” The same frustration that plagues anyone who walks into the BMV also exists in our companies when employees seek to do the bare minimum of their job description, rather than serve others well.
Experienced Errors
No matter how long you’ve been doing your job, or how well-qualified you are for your responsibilities, there’s always room for error. LaTesha discovered this on a recent trip to a client who has always been reliable, yet made an elementary mistake.
Defying Gravity
On a recent client visit, our team witnessed something curious: the organization’s staff was courteous, sharp, and proactive despite the manager’s poor leadership. This experience reinforces the necessity of 360-degree leaders to make the team’s work more effective, and their clients more satisfied.
Interrupting an Introvert
People with quiet, introverted exteriors are often just waiting for the chance to share their valuable thoughts, but never seem to find the chance in a room full of intimidating personalities. As auditors, we try to open the floor for everyone involved, and we sometimes hear the best stories from those who have said the least.
Layers of Learning
When you learn something new, you not only gain new understanding, but you also become aware of just how much you still don’t know. We think learning drives hunger for more learning, which is why we value teaching our people beyond the scope of their accounting profession.
Seeking Mentor Businesses
David is known for connecting with others beyond the numbers, and that doesn’t just apply to our clients. As we visited another Indiana accounting firm, this relational impulse took on additional importance, as we learned from their ways of doing things and began implementing change at home.