When I talk with members as they work their way through this pandemic and all the adjustments, challenges, uncertainty they face, I hear some recurring themes. And, one of the biggest concerns I hear over and over has to do with staff development. Without the one-on-one time in person, without the lunches or the watercooler talk, they feel there is a deficit in the development of staff in understanding the business. How can they continue to grow the skills of their team?
At the Society we have been working on projects that address these needs. While we started pre-COVID we made quick changes to make things work in our new primarily virtual world to help your team meet other people, learn new skills and have fun. Below are easy steps you can take to help with staff development.
Free Leadership Courses. We offer a series of free, short leadership courses that don’t include a micro-credential but are a great start for someone who isn’t really sure what “leadership training” would do for them or someone who just wants a general introduction to leadership.
Micro-credential. Are you thinking, what does “micro-credential” even mean? If so, I understand. It means not only do we have organized quality education in the areas of leadership and technology, but that we provide a credential (digital badge) following completion of the courses. While I hate painting with a broad brush when I talk about groups of people, I will say that we know, more and more, younger professionals are eager to learn, and they are also eager to document what they’ve learned and be able to refer back to it. This is what a micro-credential does. It can be shared online and provide a history of the kinds of continuous learning the person is interested in. Whether you are in a firm, business and industry or have a passion for tech there is a micro-credential that will fit your needs.
Young Professional Resources. We are still holding fun events for Young Professionals! We can’t wait to get together in person again, but until then we’ll continue to gather young pros together for some creative, networking events. Have a young pro on staff? Be sure they join our INCPAS Young Pros Facebook Group to get the most up to date event information.
We continue to look for solutions to your biggest challenges so we want to keep hearing your most important concerns—call us at 1-800-272-2054, email or use our online community, the CPA Center of Excellence.
