News: Performance Management
Ongoing professional development meets 'ever-changing' client needs
14 August 2008
Assessing individual training requirements should be fundamental to an accountancy firm's human resources operation, it has been claimed.
The director of accountant adviser Kato Consultancy, Andrew Jenner, told Accountancy Age the continuing professional development of staff to maximise their potential will maintain and advance "the ever-changing needs" of clients - as well as workers' personal aspirations.
"It should be part of the firm's human resources function to consider personal career development paths and needs," he confirmed.
Mr Jenner continued: "It is particularly important that both partners, and prospective partners, are equipped with the necessary skills to manage the business successfully."
Key areas for ongoing development outlined by the expert range from soft skills and management skills to networking and closing new sales, as well as technical updates centring on account management and auditing.
"Everyone in the firm is involved in the business of accountancy and all require skills to manage, whether it be people, situations, assignments or clients," he concluded.
Mr Jenner's comments come on the heels of research by management consultants the Hay Group, which suggested that managers and training directors must ensure performance management initiatives are engineered to keep "the right people in the right roles".
