Leadership

"A Snowball Started in Malibu"

Unofficial slogan of CROP - so named as we first met in Malibu, California. Our hope is that a "snowball" will have begun that day......

Have you ever been say walking in the woods - where the air is silent,
the wind was silent, nature hadn't quite stirred in the early morning
light? And, during these times have you ever just sat and pondered?
Pondered about important questions of the day - consider what it must
be like to hold that responsible position - to represent your
community, your family, your profession? And, if you held one or more of
those positions - what would you do differently, based upon what you
know up to that moment, to improve the situation before you?

The fact is none of us have all of the answers - nor do we have all of
the history and knowledge. We are limited by our own experiences, our
observations, and our conclusions drawn from inference, analogy, and
interpretation of what we can see, read, hear, touch, and smell.

Hypothetically - if "leaders" outside your purview were to have pushed
for certain amendments or changes within the administration of an
organization to which you belong - (and lets say that these proposals
were consistent with your own philosophies for argument sakes) but
essentially never spoke about them, never published their actions (nor
the result of their actions) or if they did they were so summarized
and/or untimely as to their dissemination as to be irrelevant - would
that alter your perception as to the value received from the
aforementioned leadership? In essence, the good deeds of people -
working the benefit of the many - are unknown to the masses - and
therefore under appreciated.

And, continuing with this hypothetical for a while -- When the
unknowing awake and see the apparent disarray and they begin to believe
those at the rudder have missed their "mark" and are sailing towards the
ends of the earth - and begin to work to re-trim the sails, slow the
speed, and attempt alter the balance of power in order to point out a
better direction - those that were/are piloting - how should they
react?

Hypothetically - should they (the current leaders) simply walk away
from their post. A post that maybe the unknowing actually placed these
leaders in? Or - should they defend their selected course? Should they
attempt to educate the unknowing to make them knowing? Should they
engage in discussion and debate about the best course to reach the
desired port? Should they shift any debate away from the question at
hand and speak bravely about "tradition" "honor" and "purpose" or should
they attempt to listen more, understand more, and acknowledge more --
that the view of the unknowing has value? And, if these leaders are
actually doing those things that the unknowing might want - but are not
proactively disseminating what they are doing - is the fault of the
unknowing that the unknowing might feel abandoned and ignored?

End of Hypothetical -

The questions of today - about our Profession - are important. The
questions of today -- about our Profession - are urgent. The questions
of today - about our Profession - require all of us - whether formal
leader, informal leader, knowing and unknowing alike - to recognize
that in many ways we have left our chartered course. And in many other
ways - we haven't even left the safety of the port. Our vessel
appears to me to be somewhat split. Our crew may not have a
consolidated mission.

It seems to me that many people essentially agree as to the few primary
course corrections that are necessary to avoid future disasters. None
can see past the horizon, however, recognizing that still waters run
deep - also means that shallow waters run fast. We need to scout out
our future directions. We need to have more member input - not just
state society leaders - but everyday members. We must begin to gather
their intellectual capital - in order to collectively improve our
Profession - not just our current reputation blemishes - but where is
our Profession headed? Where do our members want the Profession to
head? How do our members think about the Profession? We must know it
by as many ways as possible. New members and tenured members,alike.

The AICPA Council appears to have a dilemma. I really don't know of
course, since I am not a member - simply an observer. The AICPA Council
needs to determine its core purpose. Is its purpose to be a mostly
social mechanism that during the course of a year they attend 2 full
meetings, and some regional meeting(s) to affirm the decisions
previously made by either the Board, respective AICPA Committees, or the
paid Leadership? Or, is the Council purpose to determine and set the
strategy for the AICPA and then charter the Board to work with the paid
Leadership to develop the tactics to implement the Council vision? If
it is the first case then I wonder if a Council is necessary - if the
Council is impotent to rise up and halt that which is being done - then
the AICPA's Council has the approximate value of little or nothing. If
on the other hand, the Council has the character to rise forth - and
flex its collective muscle and start leading in the best interests of
the membership - the Council is worth its weight in precious metals.

I fear that the AICPA Council acts more like a rubber stamp than I would
like. That decisions aren't debated with them (the Council) but are
debated long before the Council meets. I recognize that people are
social by nature, that any of our organizations are social by default
and with social we have politics and trading of power and influence to
achieve goals and objectives. That doesn't bother me. What bothers me
is my concern that AICPA Council members may not actually have the
ability to govern - and that bothers me greatly.

We - the unknowing but very concerned -- must start speaking with and
interacting with our AICPA Council delegates. We must find out where
they stand on these important issues - we must find out why they are
there, what makes them want the job? Are they willing to do the job?
Will they attend the meetings in physical and mental capacities. Will
they voice the "minority" opinion when it matters. Or is it simply a
paid vacation to a nice resort - where they can mingle with other fun
colleagues, where they listen to talented speakers, and where they can
escape their day to day lives?

For people to be on the AICPA Council - I would think that they should
be on the demand curve of the Council. That means they should be
"willing" and "able" to do the job. We must be wary of sending people
to the Council that only fit one of the two criteria: they may be
"willing" but simply unable to perform the tasks or they may be very
"able" but are unwilling to put in the time.

I am sure that being on the AICPA Council is a great honor to serve the
Profession. But the honor must be more than a vacation. It must be a
duty that requires time and energy - time to learn the issues at hand,
energy to invest in comprehending how decisions made today will affect
our collective futures. The AICPA has many challenges and many
opportunities. The Membership has more than enough talent to find
solutions; deliver tangible targets, and measure results.

Trust the Membership - those 350,000 people that everyday perform their
duties, honor our Professions traditions, help their customers achieve
phenomenal results, and recognize they have an ethical duty to be
Professional.

Everyone - if you have read this far - thanks for reading and have a
great weekend.

Dan

Daniel D. Morris
Morris + D'Angelo
Not Just Another CPA Firm
1011 W. Taylor Street
San Jose, CA 95126
Voice - 408-292-2892
Fax - 408-793-2832
www.cpadudes.com