The world of professional services — law and accounting — is being propelled into an entirely new landscape as a result of a turbulent economy, a tangle of new regulations, and the internet.
These challenges also pose powerful opportunities.
What are the hottest trends transforming the professional landscape for 2012 and beyondand how can they be leveraged for greater success, growth and profitability?
NANCY FOX, President of The Business Fox Coaching and Training, a leading business coach and renowned author, and speaker to the professional services arena for over a decade, and
PHIL WHITMAN, CPA, President of Whitman Business Advisors, former COO of Berdon LLP and leader of his company specializing in talent and public accounting mergers & acquisitions,
have teamed up to create a unique event — a virtual conference presenting the wisdom of the best and brightest minds in the professions. Fourteen top industry experts will be discussing the key trends impacting professional services today and their insights for how these opportunities can be leveraged for success, growth, and profitability.
Welcome to Transformational Trends in The Professions Telesummit: Insightsfor Accelerated Growth & Profitability
What is a telesummit?
This event is a complimentary virtual conference, conveniently presented over a conference call telephone line or via webcast.
Each panelist's presentation will be recorded and made available to all registrants.
This virtual telesummit packages all of the most relevant and impactful trends in the industry today and brings it right to your desktop.
Registrants may partake by listening on the phone, by webcast, or receive recordings and listen later.
Who Are Our Panelists?
Our panelists are industry luminaries from the following areas of expertise:
Managing partners in law firms and accounting firms, C-level executives, practice leaders and partners, and consultants serving top-tier professional clients, and more.
NANCY FOX, President, The Business Fox Coaching & Training
PHIL WHITMAN, President, Whitman Business Advisors
Hear the top minds in the professional services arena giving enlightening interviews sharing their knowledge and providing important strategies, ideas, and experiences to assist professionals and firms boost their results.
When is the telesummit?
The telesummit takes place over 9 days in September: September 19 — Sept 27. Sessions will be broadcast 2 times per day for 45 minute sessions at 11 AM Eastern and 4 PM Eastern. And the sessions are all recorded so they may be listened to for 24 hours following the session. All sessions will be available for sale after the event is over.
There is no cost to attend. There is no cost to register. All sessions are complimentary.
Who should attend?
Lawyers
Accountants
Managing partners of small to mid-size firms
Managing partners of emerging firms
Professionals who are interested in a trajectory career path
Leaders of financial advisory firms
Professionals in banking and investment banking
Vendors to the professional services fields — consultants, training companies
Referral sources to the legal and accounting industries
Insurance specialists
This is a unique opportunity to gain the wisdom and thought-leadership and be ideally prepared to be ahead of the curve during these transformative times.
Join us the week of September 19 — Sept 27, 2011.
To register, enter your name and email below
ARI KAPLAN, Ari Kaplan Advisors, and author of Reinventing Professional Services (Wiley, 2011) and The Opportunity Maker
WHY PROFESSIONALS & SERVICE FIRMS NEED TO REINVENT THEMSELVES: 5 KEYS TO TRANSFORMATION
Monday, September 19 11 AM EASTERN
Driven by the dramatic shift in the manner in which professionals practice, value their effort, and deliver their services, there is a new model of creating opportunity, rather than simply making rain, that will propel each industry forward. It is a culture supported by collaborative tools, a flatter global landscape and an increasingly rapid pace of business analysis. In this discussion, Ari Kaplan will guide participants through the catalysts for the change and the techniques and tools they can use to reinvent their profiles and practices in the recovering economy, including:
Ways to exceed client expectations
Considerations for enhancing your strategic value
Techniques for realigning your business strategy
A sincere approach to acknowledging your clients, colleagues and prospects
Ideas for raising your profile in the recovery
The New York Law Journal called Ari Kaplan's first book, The Opportunity Maker, a "must-have treasure box of marketing ideas," and CEOs have described his new book, Reinventing Professional Services, as "an essential guide" that "expertly showcases the multitude of opportunities the digital age has brought to the professional services market." After nearly nine years practicing with large law firms in Manhattan, Kaplan, recently named to the Fastcase50 as one of the legal industry's top innovators, has become the go-to copywriter and industry analyst in the legal community. He is also a dynamic public speaker, serving as the keynote for the 2010 ABA Techshow, and has been crisscrossing the country empowering thousands of students and professionals with creative ideas for standing out in today's stagnant economy.
ALAN VITBERG - Vitberg, LLC
THE REAL DEAL ON WEBSITES: Is Your Website an Online Brochure or a Powerful Business Development Tool?
Monday, September 19 4 PM EASTERN
The days of websites that you could set and forget are coming to a close. Today, websites need to be powerful magnets that are constantly changing, with the capability to convert site visitors to leads. Alan Vitberg, Chief Marketing Guru of VitbergLLC will present an overview of websites, from design considerations to the behind the scene strategic and configuration work that needs to be done in order for your website to become a dynamic business development tool. Among the topics Alan will discuss:
Setting objectives for your website - why change?
Key components of a state of the art website
Key elements of a web page
How websites convert visitors to leads
Why search engines hate your website
6 website metrics that really matter
Re-design or re-engineer? - how to determine what's best for your firm
Selecting a designer and platform for your website
Alan Vitberg is a nationally recognized marketing executive specializing in helping professional services firms get more leads, and convert those leads to engagements. His work has resulted in significant top line growth for niche practices, and long term, sustainable competitive advantages.
Prior to becoming the Chief Marketing ROI Guru and Owner of Vitberg LLC, Alan was the Director of Marketing for a Top 100, mega regional CPA firm (The Bonadio Group). During his tenure, the firm grew from a $12 million/110 person company to a multi-disciplined, $43 million/6 location firm employing 350 people. During his tenure, in addition to branding, strategic and tactical activities that helped secure a position as the market’s dominant leader for describe the imageaccounting, consulting, and financial services, he developed and installed a closed loop inbound lead generation marketing system – one of the first of its kind in the nation for professional services firms.
MAKING THE BUSINESS CASE FOR WOMEN'S INITIATIVES IN PROFESSIONAL SERVICE FIRMS
TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 20 11 AM EASTERN
The creation and progression of women's initiatives in professional service firms have been on the rise over the last several years. Despina Kartson, Chief Marketing Officer of Latham & Watkins LLP worldwide has been advanced the results of the Women's Initiative within her firm. Her views on why Women's Initiatives are a key trend in law and professional service firms looking forward will be a key focus of her session in this telesummit, and particularly how firms can ensure these initiatives are truly business-minded in structure, actions, and results for the firm.
Ms. Kartson will be discussing the business case for women's initiatives and discussing:
Establishing a Mission Statement leading to success and productivity
Why it is important to have buy-in from the men in the firm, and how that is achieved.
Success Case Studies
Pitfalls to avoid
Despina Kartson, based in the firm's New York office, leads Latham & Watkins' global business development and marketing strategies across 31 offices spanning the United States, Europe, Asia, and the Middle East. She oversees an 90+-strong business development department, which includes strategic planning, marketing, practice development, client development, public relations, creative services, internal, external and online communications.
Prior to joining Latham & Watkins in 2004, Ms. Kartson worked for two decades both inside law firms and in the professional services industry. Prior to joining Latham & Watkins, she was Vice President of Business Development at Bowne Business Solutions, a provider of outsourcing services to the professional services and financial industries. She has also worked for global law firms in senior technology positions, including at Cravath, Swain & Moore and White & Case LLP.
Ms. Kartson is a noted speaker and author. Her national and local speaking engagements have included several Legal Marketing Association and Marketing Partner Forum conferences on various topics including alumni programs and Web sites and a conference workshop for new marketing partners, directors and CMOs. She is active in legal marketing organizations and initiatives.
LARRY BODINE, Founder and President, Law Marketing Channel
USING THE WEB AND SOCIAL MEDIA TO BRING IN NEW CLIENTS
Tuesday, September 20 4 PM EASTERN
There are fewer topics that are "hotter" than the topic of social media and marketing in the legal and accounting professions. There are fewer topics that cause as much uncertainty and confusion. We are fortunate to have a true legal marketing expert covering the topic of social media today and with a view to the horizon - Larry Bodine, founder of Law Marketing Channel and a law marketing consultant to over 250 law firms.
Larry will be discussing how using the web and social media can and should be used by professional service firms to generate new clients.
He will review the following sites: Linked In, Facebook, YouTube, Twitter, and Google+
Give a birds eye view into the possibilities for video
Blogging as a business development tool
Social media marketing strategies for firm success and which to avoid.
Larry Bodine is a business development trainer who has helped more than 250 law firms generate revenue and get new business. A former litigator, Mr. Bodine has served as an expert witness in litigation involving Internet marketing disputes. He writes daily on the LawMarketing Blog at http://blog.larrybodine.com and operates the all-video LawMarketing Channel Web site, www.LawMarketing.com.
Larry began his career as Director of Communications of Sidley, Austin Brown & Wood based in Chicago for eight years in the 1990s, and has15 years' experience as a journalist, serving as Editor and Publisher of the American Bar Association Journal and other news publications.
Mr. Bodine conducts online Web Seminars on business development and marketing. See www.PBDI.org. He is a cum laude graduate of both Seton Hall University Law School and Amherst College.
BOB GREEN, Partner, SingerLewak Accountants & Consultants
CLOUD COMPUTING: PRACTICAL IMPLICATIONS & ROI FOR PROFESSIONAL SERVICE ORGANIZATIONS - IT'S MORE THAN HYPE
Wednesday, September 21 11 AM EASTERN
You're a lawyer: you litigate, negotiate, and arbitrate. You're a CPA: you calculate, analyze and audit. None of these activities include "manage the IT department." So, why do professional leaders in your firm spend lots of time, energy, and productive time worrying about your IT staff, network upgrades, and trying to figure out how to allow partners to work from their vacation homes? Do you or your partners know "how" to manage an IT Manager, really? In this session we'll introduce concepts, benefits and risks of off-premise computing - leveraging the Internet, also known as the "Cloud". Cloud Computing allows businesses to reduce risk, utilize anytime/anywhere functionality, create reasonable budget expectations, and, if you're ready, allows professional teams to manage your IT for you, rather than relying on people you may not be in a position to manage, after all.
Bob Green, a leader in Risk Management and IT services and consulting, and a partner in SingerLewak's Enterprise Risk Management Services, will be discussing:
Best practices for assessing needs and making decisions regarding cloud computing and IT in firms today and tomorrow
Successfully implementing systems and gaining facility and success within firms
Pitfalls to avoid
Return on investment - how this is not hype and the ways to optimize cloud computing ROI
Bob Green is Partner for SingerLewak's Enterprise Risk Management Services area. He specializes in strategic IT planning and helping businesses select, implement and manage accounting and other business. Bob oversees practice and service lines that involve outsourced IT leadership, advisory, and technology-based solutions for growing businesses. In 2010, Bob established SingerLewakSystems - a service area that specializes in advisory and implementation surrounding Cloud Computing.
Bob has authored numerous articles that have been published in (among others) FEI's Financial Executive, California CPA, National Litigation Consultant's Review and the San Fernando Valley Business Journal. In March 2011, SingerLewak was the firm profiled for the cover story in Accounting Today, recognizing the firm and Bob for successfully bringing Cloud Computing and other IT advisory services into a traditional CPA firm.
His professional experience started with 7 years as an auditor with Price Waterhouse, followed by serving for 6 years as a CFO/EVP of a growing business, and has been practicing IT advisory services since 1997.
LOU GRASSI, Managing Partner, Grassi & Co.
NEW SEATS IN THE C-SUITE: NEW ROLES AND POSITIONS IN THE PROFESSIONS
Wednesday, September 21 4 PM EASTERN
Professional service firms have traditionally relied heavily on partnership structures in leading and decision making. As the industry has evolved and the landscape has become ever more competitive and complex, the need for a change in the kinds of roles and skills has evolved for firms seeking to grow and become more successful. Thus, new roles and positions such as Chief Executive Officer, Chief Operating Officer, Chief Talent Officer, etc. are being created and filled both from within the firms and now from the corporate environment as well.
Lou Grassi, Managing Partner of Grassi CPA's has taken this strategy to task within his firm. In this session he will be discussing:
The new role and expectations for the Partner Executive Committee in professional service firms
New leadership roles necessary now and new ones on the horizon
How to determine and develop these roles
How the talent is best sourced and integrated
How to effect change in leadership in professional service firms while still preserving what works well.
Louis C. Grassi is the managing partner and driving force behind the firm's growth. He began his career in 1977 and has extensive experience in tax, accounting and consulting. Lou's counsel has proven instrumental to the success of many companies in the construction, real estate, architecture & engineering, manufacturing, and professional service industries. Lou takes a proactive role with clients, performing such value-added services as profit-enhancement studies, operational reviews, performance benchmarking, forensic accounting, cost analysis, incentive compensation programs, estate and succession planning, corporate restructuring, and corporate retreat facilitation. Under Lou's guidance, Grassi & Co. has been ranked one of the Top 25 Best Managed Firms in the country and Top 5 in the Northeast for the past five years.
A nationally recognized expert, Lou is frequently called upon as a lecturer and business advisor for companies and industry trade organizations. He has authored numerous local and national articles, also serving as a contributing editor to the Corporate Controller's Manual and was the Editor of the Journal of Construction Accounting & Taxation. Lou is also an adjunct professor at Columbia University teaching a graduate level course in finance and accounting for construction contractors.
Lou has received numerous professional awards and accolades. Actively involved in his community, Lou holds board positions with several civic and philanthropic organizations.
PAUL BURTON, Quiet Spacing
SIX KEYS FOR REGAINING COMMAND OF YOUR DAY
Wednesday, September 21 7 PM EASTERN
The modern world spins faster and faster. You work at a hyper-kinetic pace and yet you seem to finish each day right where you started. You are treading water in a vast ocean of streaming data – emails, texts, phone calls, meetings, etc. – with land never quite appearing on the horizon. That's about to change. Six Keys for Regaining Command of Your Day delivers a host of best practices for staying focused, getting more done, and enjoying greater personal and professional satisfaction. Not a single magic trick is involved. These are straight forward tips that put you back in charge of your work and your success.
The math is compelling: +6 minutes of productivity each day = +24 hours of productivity each year. Imagine how successful you’ll be and feel with 24 more hours produced each year?!
By attending this presentation you will receive a list of six recommendations to regain control of your day and be more productive. Specifically, you will:
Make a direct connection between productivity and its relationship to success.
Receive six suggestions for increasing productivity and command over work and life.
Become motivated to achieve greater career and personal success.
Paul is a recovering corporate finance attorney, software executive, and serial entrepreneur. As a nationally recognized time management expert, he helps people regain control of their day, get more done, and enjoy greater personal and professional satisfaction. When not delivering presentations filled with time making suggestions, Paul is training and coaching people on how to customize his revolutionary QuietSpacing® productivity method into the way they like to work. Paul has spoken at numerous Perkins Coie events and worked with many of our attorneys and legal professionals. You can learn more about Paul and his practice at www.quietspacing.com.
BOB EBERS, Workplace Stars
HOW TO MAKE YOUR CLIENTS STICK LIKE GLUE THROUGH EMPLOYEE ENGAGEMENT
Thursday, September 22 11 AM EASTERN
The economy is different, client demands have increased and staff feels more uneasy, uncertain and insecure. For your clients, your firm and staff it's no longer "business as usual." Many clients find themselves in a more crowded market space with shrinking profit margins and where price increasingly drives buy decisions. These realities are impacting clients regardless of size or sector. Clients no longer expect a good job every time-they demand it! How professional firms deliver service given these pressures must be reexamined. Your workplace has changed, and so have your people - the same people who make decisions every day that make or cost you profit. Leaders of professional services firms need to understand how changing workplace expectations impact service to clients. To grow and remain profitable you identify and embrace the drivers of "owner" level service.
During this telesummit session, Bob will discuss:
Critical practical actions to create consistent and memorable service experiences.
4 motivators for how your firm can provide essential "hunters" and "skinners" in a recession economy.
3 proven ways to get everyone involved in improving client outcomes.
Robert Ebers has been a performance consultant for more than 25 years. He has trained and consulted to service, information and manufacturing businesses of all sizes, from start-ups to Fortune 50's. Robert has extensive experience successfully navigating the complexity of cross-functional teams, partnerships and family businesses. Whether on the platform presenting to a group of hundreds, or facilitating a business planning session with CEOs and leadership teams, or coaching 'close-in', he has a talent to quickly guide clients to the root problem and practical solutions. He is a recognized expert in taking underperforming teams or conflicted businesses and re-energizing them for higher achievement and measurable results.
Robert's work has involved accelerating businesses through the change process, combining his skills as a vision/strategy champion and professional facilitator to assist individuals and teams with performance measures, conflict resolution and implementation support. He is highly skilled as an executive coach, believing that organizations transform only to the extent that the individuals within them embrace their own learning. Bob's firm, yet supportive style has helped many clients achieve higher levels of learning and measurable business outcomes.
DAVID WOLFSKEHL - Founder, The Micro Niche Method
CREATING RICH NICHES IN PROFESSIONAL SERVICE FIRMS
Thursday, September 22 4 PM EASTERN
Successful micro-niches are built around the specific expertise and experience of a single professional or team. The focus is chosen because a particular professional is uniquely qualified to claim expertise in a narrowly define area of one of the firm's existing niches. When a micro-niche is chosen correctly, there will be no competition in the market.
Because there is no competition and because they require expertise, the professional is able to charge premium prices for work in this area - hence the term "rich niche". This presentation will explore:
Benefits of a micro-niche vs. a general practice or a niche
How to choose a micro-niche
How to begin to "own" your expertise and the micro-niche
How to maximize revenue opportunities
Common mistakes to avoid
David Wolfskehl is President and CEO The Practice Building Team, The Micro-Niche Method. The Practice Building Team is a consulting firm dedicated to helping professional services firm accelerate their growth through new twists on traditional marketing methods as well as innovative approaches. He is the author of The Micro-Niche Method: The Pathway to Premium Pricing and Increased Profitability for Today's CPAs. The Micro-Niche Method has become the cornerstone of his business development philosophy. It is currently helping CPAs breathe new life into existing careers and jumpstart new careers. Because micro-niches are built upon the experience of a single professional, they stand alone in the marketplace and justify premium pricing for services.
JOEL COOPERMAN, Managing Partner, Citrin Cooperman
CREATING A FIRM CULTURE: LEADERSHIP STRATEGIES FOR GROWTH AND PROFITABILITY
FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 23 11 AM EASTERN
Establishing a "culture" used to be a concept embraced primarily by corporations and startups.
With the tremendous shifts and changes in professional services over the last several years, leadership and developing a firm culture is not simply a nice idea but an essential endeavor.
Joel Cooperman, Managing Partner of Citrin Cooperman, founded and led the firm from its inception over 30 years ago to a Top 30 Accounting Firm nationally with over 100 partners. His brand of leadership encompasses a large dose of entrepreneurial spirit and a culture much like a large extended family.
Joel will share his views on how this was accomplished and continues to be maintained in the face of significant growth. He will discuss why establishing a firm culture is essential for growth and profitability and how that culture can either make or break the success of a firm.
He will be discussing:
What is a firm culture?
How a leader should express this culture and see that it is disseminated throughout the firm
Pitfalls or challenges in building a firm culture
How leadership is best developed
The benefits of the right culture to the bottom line
An eye to the future of leadership in public accounting and the professions.
Joel is the founding and managing partner of Citrin Cooperman. For over 35 years, he has been providing clients with high-level consulting services. He is a recognized expert in the fields of mergers and acquisitions, profit enhancement, employment compensation, corporate financing and strategic planning.
Joel's industry expertise includes food services, entertainment, staffing, manufacturing and distribution. He is a regular speaker on business and financial topics in and around New York City.
Joel is a member of the New York and New Jersey Society of CPAs as well as the American Institute of CPAs.
MARCIA WASSERMAN, President, Comprehensive Management Solutions, Inc.
RE-ENGINEERING OF PROFESSIONAL SERVICE FIRMS: FEES, OUTSOURCING AND TALENT STRUCTURES
Friday, September 23 4 PM EASTERN
Professional service firms are being transformed due to increased client sophistication, more movement to technology and towards the paperless office, the globalization of business, outsourcing, project management and the need for talent management. Increasingly clients are less concerned about relationships and more interested in: What can you do for me? When can you get it done? What will you save me? What will it cost me? Both law firms and accounting firms need to re-engineer their business model and business processes to respond to client demands while at the same time finding a way to be profitable. We will explore these trends and cover:
The globalization of business
Project management and flat fees
Commoditization and differentiation of professional services
How technology is changing the way we do business
Legal process outsourcing, tax preparation outsourcing, and business process outsourcing
Talent management - how to compensate, motivate and staff professional service firms
Marcia W. Wasserman is the President of Comprehensive Management Solutions, Inc. and has over 25 years of experience in law practice management, human resources, financial, general operations and administrative management consulting to lawyers, law firms and other professional service firms. She most recently served as Chief Operating Officer for a national law firm with 6 locations for 3 ½ years and was previously employed as a law firm Executive Director of several major local and national law firms. Earlier in her career, she was Director of Law Firm Services and Director of Client Advisory Services for two mid-sized CPA firms. Her typical C.O.O. To Go TM engagements include strategic planning; retreat facilitation; succession planning; cash flow projections and financial management reports; mergers/lateral hires; recruitment of administrators, managers and paralegals; management training and mentoring; compensation and benefits administration; and development of employee handbooks and job descriptions. Marcia has also project managed multiple start-ups and relocations of law firms.
Since 2002, Marcia has chaired the monthly law firm Managing Partners' Roundtable. She previously served on the Executive Committee and as an advisor on the State Bar of California's Law Practice Management and Technology Section Executive Committee for 7 years. She was recently appointed to the Law Practice Magazine Board of the American Bar Association's Law Practice Management Section for 2011-2012. She has taught management courses at USC and UCLA. Additionally, she has lectured on management issues at local, regional and national educational conferences. Marcia has authored numerous articles on management and operational topics in legal trade publications.
STEVE ERICKSON, Steve Erickson, LLC
OVERCOMING THE COMMODITIZATION OF PROFESSIONAL SERVICES/PUBLIC ACCOUNTING
Monday, September 26 11 AM EASTERN
Competition has heated up during this recession as clients have demanded more services for the fees they are willing to pay. Don't let your services be valued solely upon price. Learn how to stand out from your competition while at the same time getting a fair fee for your services. Here's just a few of the topics that will be covered during this session:
Differentiate yourself from your competition.
What it takes to become a trusted advisor to your clients.
Methods to determine a client's value proposition.
Delivering the value.
He works with both partners and employees in public accounting to achieve personal & professional success, which leads to stronger firm unity, accelerated growth and better bottom line performance.
Steve Erickson is a nationally recognized consultant to accounting firms. He specializes in resolving the partner and people issues that limit the success of professional service firms. Steve’s hands-on and results-oriented approach helps firms to identify, establish and achieve their goals.
Coaching and mentoring managing partners, other partners, and firm staff members to achieve organizational goals through personal development is Steve’s passion. Through his programs, he guides the development of leadership among firm members to build strong firm profitability and long-term value.
DAVID SCHNURMAN, CEO, Lawline.com
PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT IN THE DIGITAL AGE & E-LEARNING STRATEGIES FOR LAWYERS & ACCOUNTANTS
Monday, September 26 4 PM EASTERN
Developing your professional career is very different from 10 to 15 years ago. In fact, it's very different from just a few years ago. Professionals, specifically lawyers and accountants, are now able to reach an audience which wasn't realistic or feasible before to showcase their expertise.
David Schnurman, Founder and CEO of Lawline.com has revolutionized the way lawyers and accounts are able to enhance their professional career. David has provided a platform which empowers these professional to reach client's nationally and internationally by a click of a button.
David will discuss what lawyers and accountants gain from presenting a CLE or CPE and he will provide unique tips and strategies of how lawyers and accounts are able to effectively communicate their messages. David will also discuss where the future of E-Learning and where it is going and why professionals should start getting involved now. He will cover:
The importance of professional development
The new Essential Professional Development Skills
The significance of e-learning format
How e-learning enhanced one's career as a professional
The future of e-learning - what's on the horizon and how will it impact the professions
David Schnurman is the CEO of Lawline.com, the leading provider of online Continuing Legal Education in the country and founder of TrueNYC.com, an online website for entrepreneurs. In addition, he is a frequent lecturer on entrepreneurship, marketing, networking and building a brand. Becoming an entrepreneur and running a business has always been a subject of intense interest to David. While in law school, he started TrueNYC to help others learn how to become a successful entrepreneur. After law school he built Lawline.com to become the most recognized platform for online continuing legal education and it is currently expanding to other verticals. David's success has not gone unnoticed and he has been featured in NY Crain's, The Wall Street Journal, Inc. Magazine, Entrepreneur.com, New York Post, Law.com, The Legal Times, & the NY Enterprise Report. He also has a love for adventure and discovery. He has paraglided in the Colorado Mountains, gone skydiving, and taken flying lessons. David currently lives in Park Slope, Brooklyn with his wife Kelli and twins Joshua & Leila.
NANCY FOX - President, The Business Fox Coaching & Training
GOT BRAND? KEY STRATEGIES FOR BRANDING YOUR FIRM AND PERSONAL BRANDING FOR YOUR PROFESSIONALS
Tuesday, September 27 11 AM EASTERN
Information? We're on overload. Competition? Intense,fierce. Professional services? Clients often are confused about how to choose one provider or firm over another. Never before has branding - firm branding, and now, personal branding as well - been more instrumental to the success of the firms' business and to the success of each and every professional within.
Nancy Fox will address the keys to branding success in today's digital and highly competitive economy. She will discuss what it takes to build a successful business brand, a powerful and memorable personal brand, and how every single person in a firm can and must be instrumental in carrying this branding message out into the marketplace.
Nancy will cover:
What the key elements in business and personal branding are and how to approach the development of a brand
Managing expectations - what we as business professionals can expect a brand to produce and what it cannot accomplish.
The rise of the personal brand - how each professional can and must create his or her personal brand, and how this impacts the bottom line of the business - whether we realize it or not.
Delivery of the brand - new ways the brand can be communicated and broadcast - powerfully, inexpensively, consistently
Marketing strategies for 2012 and beyond -where we are going and how this can impact growth and profitability
Nancy Fox is the founder and president of The Business Fox, a business coaching and training company specializing in helping service-focused businesses and professionals with high-level client attraction, and business and marketing strategy. She is an engaging, energetic and inspirational coach and speaker. Nancy has brought her business development and marketing expertise to professional service firms and organizations including Sheppard Mullin Richter & Hampton, Latham & Watkins, Citrin Cooperman, ERE-CPAs, Farkouh, Furman & Faccio LLP, Great Banc Trust, Whole Foods Market, Betsey Johnson, The Toy Industry Association, Bayer, and The City of New York.
Nancy has been featured in Business Week, The Journal News, Accounting Today, Law Practice Magazine and appeared on Learning Annex's OneMinuteU.com,Fox Business News Online, and has been quoted in The New York Times, The Daily News, Moneywatch.com, and WebCPA. She has broadcasted The Rainmaker Review radio segment on WGCH AM1490 on client attraction and networking wisdom. Nancy is the author of two books -- "Making Rain Without the Pain" and "THE SIXTY-SECOND COACH: Transform Yourself Into An Outstanding Coach and Transform Your Life" and is currently working on a new book on networking.
ROBERT FLIGEL - RF Resources LLC - Talent Search & Mergers & Acquisitions and PHIL WHITMAN - President, Whitman Business Advisors
SUPER-CHARGE YOUR FIRM: TO MERGE, NOT TO MERGE, OR TAP THE SECRET TALENT MARKET FOR GROWTH & PROFIT
Tuesday, September 27 4 PM EASTERN
The right top people are any firm's secret weapon for growth and profitability in an era of slower organic growth. Finding top people can be the managing partner's secret weapon and new growth strategy in this era of slower organic growth. Business development efforts and mergers are fruitful paths but they do not take the place of savvy talent acquisition. How to source the right people and ensure they are successfully integrated are essential skills for the future of professional service firms who want to grow and be more successful.
Robert Fligel, a veteran expert in talent and accounting firm development will share essential insights on:
how to determine whether merger or new talent is the better approach
how to identify the qualities and skills of new talent best suited for the firm - i.e. areas of specialization, niche expertise etc.
how to interview and decide upon the right candidates/pitfalls to avoid
how to create an integration/orientation process for new partners-onboarding success
building talent from within? how to do this successfully
Some deals just seem to go on forever. After six months or a year you walk away from what was seemingly a great deal. The only thing we know for certain is that time moves very fast. Phil Whitman will guide you through the Four C's (like buying a diamond) and the Five Critical Factors of every M&A deal. Stop wasting precious time!
The four most important components of every M&A deal
Why M&A should be part of your Growth strategy
The five critical factors of every deal
Don't do Due diligence until you've done this...
Robert Fligel is the Founder of RF Resources, LLC. He is a CPA in the State of New York; Graduate of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. His career began with six years providing audit and tax services at a New York City CPA firm. He became an Audit Manager at a Fortune 500 firm and an associate at a national search and recruiting firm. He is Director of Human Resources for a "Big 4" accounting firm. He was co-founder and Senior Partner of what would become one of New York's largest and most successful executive search firms. Robert is active in The New York State Society of CPAs, the National Conference of CPA Practitioners and other professional organizations. He has placed countless partners and senior professionals in CPA firms, Fortune 500 and privately held companies.
Philip J. Whitman, CPA, is the President of Whitman Business Advisors LLC, a national consultancy that specializes in succession planning strategies for CPA Firms. Whitman Business Advisors provides merger and acquisition, strategic talent acquisition and practice management consulting services to small, medium and large firms; from sole practitioners to world-class global firms. Prior to establishing Whitman Business Advisors, Whitman spent 18 years in Practice Management of professional service firms. As the Chief Operating Officer he has worked with top management in overseeing day-to-day operations and ensured efficiency and profitability at firms ranging from three partners, twelve employees, and $2 million in annual revenues to working with one of the Top 30 CPA firms in the Nation, with 48 partners, 400 employees and almost $100 million in annual revenues. Prior to his transition into practice management, Whitman spent almost six years as a multi-unit owner-operator of a National restaurant franchise, which is where he began honing his knowledge of labor law, human resources management and organizational leadership. His accounting firm experience includes audit work at Price Waterhouse, and tax work at Spicer & Oppenheim.
Whitman has authored articles and has been a featured speaker for the Association of Legal Administrators NYC Chapter and the New York State Society of CPAs, where he is immediate past Chair of the Practice Management Oversight Committee.
NANCY FOX, President of The Business Fox Coaching and Training, a leading business coach and renowned author, and speaker to the professional services arena for over a decade, and 
PHIL WHITMAN, CPA, President of Whitman Business Advisors, former COO of Berdon LLP and leader of his company specializing in talent and public accounting mergers & acquisitions, 
