As I prefaced a few weeks ago, I’m starting a series of podcasts with people I find fascinating and those who are doing great things as innovators. It will be an eclectic mix designed to broaden the mind and to help professionals think about different aspects of what it means to be a professional services provider in the 21st century.
Last week I recorded a conversation with my long time friend and colleague Vinnie Mirchandani. Regular readers will know that he was once an SAP implementer at PwC, then became a fearsome Gartner analyst, had his own business in partnership with others who remain colleagues and now is a negotiator for large IT contracts. Add author to that track record. He recently published The New Polymath, a fresh take on the use of compound technology innovations. It is packed with hundreds of examples documenting how some of the best businesses in the world are taking a fresh approach to creating and running successful and sustainable businesses. If that sounds completely off topic then hang on.
I was interested in Vinnie’s take on the notion of a polymath in the context of professional firms. As someone with well over 20 years’ experience in the field Vinnie has plenty to say. It’s fascinating stuff and should inspire those who know that running a professional services business is changing.
I had intended to run the recording for 15 minutes. It turned into more like 45 minutes. Knowing that people won’t listen to that amount of recorded material, I edited it. In this 15 minute 14 sec show, Vinnie talks about the opportunities that exist but also warns about how professional services businesses often seem mired in the past.
It’s a long time since I edited and reformulated a podcast so please bear with me on the slightly out of whack sound levels. It will get better.
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I really liked Vinnie’s comment about social networking actually reducing the breadth of our experiences. For years I have told people that computers and the internet are more than games platforms.
Dennis, I really enjoyed this interview. It was great. I am amazed at the breadth of the content. My wife was a journalist and I’m a chartered accountant. Words and numbers are poles apart but when you and Vinnie discuss education words and numbers meet (although she’s far more intelligent and better educated than me!
I really liked Vinnie's comment about social networking actually reducing the breadth of our experiences. For years I have told people that computers and the internet are more than games platforms.
Dennis, I really enjoyed this interview. It was great. I am amazed at the breadth of the content. My wife was a journalist and I'm a chartered accountant. Words and numbers are poles apart but when you and Vinnie discuss education words and numbers meet (although she's far more intelligent and better educated than me!
I listened to the podcast twice making notes on both occasions.
I was especially impressed by Vinnie saying:
[PSF's] services are very narrow compared to the range of knowledge of the firm (geographical, vertical and process)
I knew he was right but couldn’t immediately apply it my firm. The next day, however, I was completing a set of accounts for a client who uses Winweb but I couldn’t produce an aged debtors summary (something about it being out of memory) so I asked the client to do it for me and e-mail me a copy.
The finance manager replied saying that she wasn’t able and hadn’t been able to produce the report for the same reason and sent me a spreadsheet which she was using to list her debtors as the accounting program couldn’t do it!
It hit me like an express train!
1. Why did I only discover the problem when I was completing the accounts?
2. Why am I allowing my clients to reduce their efficiency by having to accept second best (a spreadsheet). Worse still, when I suggested using a different program she leapt at the chance.
3. What other problems does she have which I don’t know about?
4. Why am I only preparing annual accounts and a corporation tax return for this client when I could do so much more?
I now some of the answers but dealing with them here will only distract from Vinnie’s quote.
Thanks for showing me the light.
I listened to the podcast twice making notes on both occasions.
I was especially impressed by Vinnie saying:
[PSF's] services are very narrow compared to the range of knowledge of the firm (geographical, vertical and process)
I knew he was right but couldn't immediately apply it my firm. The next day, however, I was completing a set of accounts for a client who uses Winweb but I couldn't produce an aged debtors summary (something about it being out of memory) so I asked the client to do it for me and e-mail me a copy.
The finance manager replied saying that she wasn't able and hadn't been able to produce the report for the same reason and sent me a spreadsheet which she was using to list her debtors as the accounting program couldn't do it!
It hit me like an express train!
1. Why did I only discover the problem when I was completing the accounts?
2. Why am I allowing my clients to reduce their efficiency by having to accept second best (a spreadsheet). Worse still, when I suggested using a different program she leapt at the chance.
3. What other problems does she have which I don't know about?
4. Why am I only preparing annual accounts and a corporation tax return for this client when I could do so much more?
I now some of the answers but dealing with them here will only distract from Vinnie's quote.
Thanks for showing me the light.
Get into the conversation