You know I care about you

TAX PRACTITIONERS NEED TO THINK MORE ABOUT EACH OTHER, NOT JUST THEIR CLIENTS’ ACCOUNTS AND RETURNS, SAYS RICHARD CURTIS

I don’t know if we’ve told you this lately, but we care about you guys you know. Perhaps we haven’t said it enough recently, but you understand how we’ve all been busy.

And just ‘cos we might have been a bit too busy to tell you that, it doesn’t mean that we don’t respect you and appreciate all the hard work that you’ve been doing. I know, why not come over here and we’ll have a group hug, you know you’ll feel a whole lot better after that, didn’t it help the last time?

I didn’t go over the top there did I? Apologies if I did, but you have to admit that it’s difficult, showing that you care nowadays? And, if not in your business life, I’d lay odds that you will have come in for some criticism in the past in your personal life for not taking the time to show someone that you care about them. If not your significant other, then I’d guess probably your mum.

Caring people

It’s just as difficult – if not more so – when we are at work. And added to that, we’re British aren’t we? We don’t really do all that touchy, feely stuff like on the continent or in the States. Let’s face it; a lot of us don’t even really like people suggesting that we ‘have a nice day’. But perhaps we have been going wrong all these years. After all, we do like to be told by our loved ones that they care about us, and we know how much you care about tax – you wouldn’t be reading this if you didn’t, would you. So perhaps it’s just a small step to bring those two worlds together.

What’s the first thing someone says when you tell them you work in tax? ‘Oh, you must be good with numbers!’ But it’s very difficult to become emotionally attached to figures – and I’m talking numbers here, not those figures you see in other magazines! Professionally, we may ‘care’ about a column of figures – OK, let’s say numbers if it’s going to stop your mind wandering off again – but what we are really interested in is how much we care about each other.

A caring environment

The McLane Group is a consultancy specialising in people, transformation and breakthrough performance, working with some of the world’s top organisations. One of the things that they have learned through their work is that a caring environment can pay dividends as far as staff motivation is concerned.

Given the current economic climate where pay rises and bonuses are scarce, it is no surprise that companies are looking for alternative but equally powerful ways of getting the best out of their staff and improving their productivity. Even if there is not a surplus of cash available that can be dangled in front of the tax department as an incentive, firms can still invest in appreciation and acknowledgment and letting their staff know that they care about them.

Dominic Turnbull, managing director of The McLane Group says: ‘one of the most important techniques involved in increasing productivity is to appreciate and acknowledge your staff. Regularly doing so will help increase the overall feeling of being valued and therefore how the work gets done.

‘What we have seen through our executive coaching activities is that people in business are not necessarily only motivated by pay structures or performance management systems; more often we see that a sense of being positively engaged is more appreciated. Put simply, people want to feel valued, stretched, important and part of something bigger.

‘For example, a highly regarded senior executive realised he had spent little time and energy on acknowledging his team for what they had accomplished and that he had instead been concentrating on what was failing and remained undone. Although he had been doing this with a genuine intention of driving the team forward to the future and to prevent it from resting on its laurels, it was not achieving the desired effect. He decided to change tack and started to acknowledge their commitment and what had been accomplished.

Making sure he was genuine and specific when giving praise, he noticed that the effects were spectacular. The enhanced energy and spirit of his team, combined with a new belief and confidence enabled him to identify what needed to be done and push for even more stretching targets. He had discovered that when his group practised sharing in their success, the individual and team acknowledgement became part of its culture and the normal work ethic.’

Alternative achievements

Oliver Benbow, north-west tax specialist for Michael Page Taxation agreed that, during this economic downturn, managers and partners within tax and accountancy practices are looking at alternative ways to recognise their employees’ achievements, which are not purely bonus driven. After speaking to a number of clients on this subject, some practices are now putting recognition schemes into place.

‘If employees have done well at work it is most likely they will receive a pat on the back from their immediate manager, which can be good for the ego’, said Oliver.

‘However, a recognition scheme allows peers to acknowledge outstanding achievements. Such transparent recognition is more valued by a worker and creates an environment in which others can aspire to obtain recognition as well. Getting a phone call from a managing partner to say well done will make an employee feel a more valued part of the firm and motivate others, which in turn helps with productivity.’

A sense of security

One of the obvious effects of a recession and the tough times that go with this is that staff morale can suffer. What is of no use to either employer or employee is if this has a knock-on effect into the tax work. Consequently, anything that the employer can do to help to allay fears must be to the good, and simply providing employees with a sense of security can help.

Without this reassurance, some employees may feel that their positions are under threat. There might then be an odd situation where it is not only redundant employees who are looking for new jobs, but also those who believe that if their position is uncertain, they might as well look for a new role while they have a job rather than when they do not.

Much has been written about redundancies and their effect in the current recession and how employers deal with this. But just as important – and perhaps to state the obvious – is the fact that employers and managers could be well-advised to reassure those employees that the firm are retaining that they are not under immediate threat of redundancy and are an integral part of the firm’s future plans.

Research shows that unappreciated employees are the ones who are more likely to start casting around for a new position and this has a consequent effect on the firm’s costs in areas such as recruitment, training, absenteeism and lack of motivation.

Valuing employees

Especially in times of change, showing employees that they are valued and that you care about them and their position in the organisation is important. This is also true if, perhaps as a result of personnel changes, the roles of employees within, say, the tax department have changed.

Most people want to know that they are doing a good job, so ensuring clear guidelines for new work and making sure that they know how and where they can access assistance and resources should all help show employees that their work and role is valued.

Perhaps times of change can also give employers and managers a chance to show that they care about their staff. If there is a new project or way of working, make sure that employees’ responses are listened to and that their needs are addressed and reviewed. By the manager showing that they are interested in the views of employees, and that these are appreciated and respected, this can in turn generate appreciation and respect from employees, which should improve the tax department’s overall performance and productivity.

So ‘care’ isn’t just something that should make people feel better about each other – not that that’s a bad thing in itself – but is something that should bring all round improvement for the department and the firm.

Appreciative comments

Don’t forget that simple solutions are often the best. Just saying ‘thank you’ for a job well done and showing that you really mean it can prove that you care. And not only for jobs well done; raising concerns, making suggestions, showing initiative, getting on with work, can all be deserving of praise. Letting people know that you value them and their work, should improve their self-esteem and job satisfaction.

So does this mean that the group huddle like we see on the football pitch at the start of a big match has no place in the office? Well, you have to be careful about this sort of thing nowadays you know. Oh come on then, give us a hug; remember, this care thing isn’t a one-way street.