Build a culture around what happens outside the office

Most people will tell you I am passionate about craft beer. In addition to being a partner at Tri-Merit, I am a partner at The Beer Temple in Chicago, a highly regarded craft beer bar and store. When I travel the country speaking, attending conferences, or meeting with CPA firms, the topic of craft beer inevitably comes up. I love making it, sampling it and teaching others about it. It has also helped my career.

This non-tax-related passion of mine immediately resonates with people. I can tell by the look on their faces that they see me in a completely different way once they associate me with craft beer instead of just tax regs. It makes them more comfortable with you. I can’t tell you how many people I’ve met in professional settings who contact me later to ask for recommendations about other craft beers to try — or to see what I think about one they’ve just tried.

And I try to learn about their passions as well. One CPA told me about her 700-bottle wine cellar; a CFO told me about his goal of visiting every Major League Baseball stadium. I never would have guessed this about them, and the subject wouldn’t have come up had I not mentioned my craft beer passion. It’s a great way to build rapport and break down walls when you get to know a person beyond just their job title.

Most professionals have a hobby or passion outside of work. That means that the stereotypical accountant is actually unique. Go figure!

As professionals, we often spend more waking hours with our co-workers than we do with our families, but we don’t really get to know them.

Zoomification of workplace relationships

If there was anything positive from the pandemic, it’s that we learned more about our colleagues’ spouses, kids, pets and home decorating tastes thanks to Zoom and other connectivity tools than we ever did working side by side in the office. That’s had a very positive impact on morale.

Ours is a high-stress deadline-focused profession. The focus has always been on tracking billable hours, clearing WIP and analyzing realization. The idea that you would spend time learning about others’ hobbies and passions seems superfluous to meeting deadlines and improving the company’s bottom line. But it shouldn’t. The strength of your firm is its people. And people are not just boxes on an org chart; they’re unique and diverse personalities who just happen to have financial acumen in common.

Passions outside of work
So, how do we build a culture around what happens outside the office? How do we celebrate it? How do we encourage our people to share what makes them unique outside the office? Every culture is different and what works at one firm may not work at another, but my friend John Garrett, a former Big Four auditor, and professional comedian before becoming a podcast host and culture-oriented management consultant once told me: “You’re not just your job.” You have many other interests and activities outside of work that make you unique and memorable.

Garrett, who wrote the book What’s Your “And”?, has dedicated his life to blending his passions and career. Believe it or not, so can you.

How do you really get to know your people? How do you show a genuine interest in the people around you? And how do we make that normal? You won’t become friends with everyone at your workplace, but if you can be friendly and caring to each other, that goes a long way. Friends want to help each other and don't like to disappoint one another.

Breaking out of permission-based thinking
Garrett told me that when you take the time to ask the people around you about their passions, their eyes light up and they become animated — just like I do when talking about craft beer. How often do you see people’s eyes light up when talking about a spreadsheet, tax return or internal audit report?

I’m very fortunate to have found an organization that lets me meld craft beer with specialty taxes. And we’re having a lot of fun hosting virtual happy hours with our clients, explaining the nuances of different types of beers with them, and exposing them to a whole new world that they probably wouldn’t have explored on their own.

Don’t underestimate what that’s done for our team’s and client’s morale.

For too long the “churn and burn” stereotype prevailed. The thinking was that accounting firms didn’t have to worry about work-life balance because as soon as one team member burned out, we had plenty more new grads coming in to fill their slots. Not anymore. Accounting talent is at an all-time premium. You really must love the people that you have, and not just love the work they’re doing, but the life they’re living outside of work. It’s part of your job to learn about their other dimensions.

You should be asking potential employees about their “and” when you’re recruiting, onboarding, and training. By building that empathy into your culture, people will stay longer and spread the good word to others outside the firm.

It’s one thing to give an employee a Starbucks gift card. But suppose they love dogs? Wouldn’t a gift card to PetSmart be more meaningful? Suppose they play an instrument. How about giving them a gift card to their favorite music store instead of Starbucks? These small gestures show you care about the employee experience at your firm. You’ll not only have better retention, but employees will be more engaged when they feel like they matter. On our firm’s website, we include a fun fact about each employee at the end of their professional bio. Don’t underestimate the value of that “and” for the employee whose bio it is — and for prospective employees checking out our website to see what we’re all about.

Garret told me it’s not about your technical skills; it’s about your people. And it’s not just about your people — it’s about their passions.It could be motorcycle racing, powerlifting, even home brewing. And it doesn’t have to be an all-consuming pursuit. Maybe someone simply does a 5K walk for a charity every year or likes to make kombucha or watch horror movies or sip wine. It’s all a unique window into their lives.

Garret told me he once ran into a former co-worker from his early days at a Big Four firm. He hadn’t seen the man in over a dozen years, and they weren’t very close since they worked on different floors in different departments. But the man came over from across the room and exclaimed, “Oh you’re the guy who does comedy at night!”

There’s another important reason for pursuing your passions — having something to do once you retire. Partners and executives confide in me all the time: “I’m going to retire in three years, and I don’t know what I’m going to do.” That’s when it gets scary. Because if it’s all work all the time, with stress and anxiety through the roof, you won’t be able to make a smooth transition to your non-working years. Sadly, that’s why there’s very little succession planning at firms. Partners don’t want to leave because they have nothing to go jump to. And it’s not healthy.

You need to develop your “and” as early in your career as possible. Keep developing your “and.” Don’t be shy about sharing that side of you with colleagues and clients. Chances are they’ll do the same with you. There are no if’s, but’s or and’s about that.