1. Build your own Rainmakers!
Presented by: Art Kuesel
HK Alliance Annual Roundtable
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2. Art Kuesel, President Keynotes, Presentations, Workshops on Growth
EXPERTISE (Cont.)
Keynotes, Presentations, Workshops on Growth
Growth Plan Development/Implementation
Managing Partner Coaching
Sales & Marketing Recruiting
STREET CRED
Top 100 Most Influential Person in Public Accounting: 2014
In-house and external experience
Clients include scores of T250 Firms including a third of the T100
Frequent writer and blogger for Accounting Today
Accomplished speaker and presenter on growth trends
EXPERIENCE
Sales Executive
3 years inside $60M CPA firm
5 years inside $25M CPA firm
6 years at PDI/Koltin Consulting
2.5 years at Kuesel Consulting
EXPERTISE
Sales Coaching
Sales/Marketing Training

4. Discussion Outline Confirming the Need What’s a rainmaker?
Skill Building
Supporting your Rainmakers

5. Top Five AICPA/PCPS Issues 2015
Retaining Staff
Finding Staff
Partner Accountability and Unity
Seasonality/Compression
Succession Planning (tie)
5. Finding New Clients (tie)
Source: AICPA/PCPS

6. 6.3% Average Firm Growth 2014 This INCLUDES: Rate increases
Cross-Selling
New clients
Mergers

7. Average Firm Growth 2014
Could 6.3% fulfill your succession plan? We need more R-A-I-N!

8. What’s a Rainmaker?
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9. Partner Job Description
Technical Knowledge
Client Service
2008-Present
Technical Specialty
Client Development
PLUS
Staff Development
New Business Development

10. Types of Partners in 2015 Client Service/Technical Partner
Manages book inherited or grown
Client maintenance and development ($25-50k)
No new business goal
Small loss annually 
Annual Goal $25-50k

11. Types of Partners in 2015 Mistmaker Manages book inherited or grown
Client maintenance and development ($25-50k)
New business ($25-50k)
Minimal practice growth – may feed others
Annual Goal $50-150k

12. Types of Partners in 2015 Rainmaker Manages book inherited or grown
Client development and new business
Feeds others
Annual Goal $ k

13. Types of Partners in 2015 Business Developer Manages no book
100% Client development and new business development
Feeds a lot of people
Annual Goal $BIG

14. Types of Partners in 2014 Rainmaker
Manages a book of business inherited/grown
Responsible for client development and new business ($ k)
Feeds others
Annual Goal $ k
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15. 30% 60% 1% 9% Types of Partners in 2014 Rainmaker
Manages a book of business inherited/grown
Responsible for client development and new business ($ k)
Feeds others
Annual Goal $ k 1% 9%
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16. New Business by Partner Type
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17. New Business by Partner Type
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18. New Business by Partner Type
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19. Necessary Skills in a Rainmaker
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20. How do they DO IT???

21. Rainmaker Skills Quadrant 1: Client Development Quadrant 2:
Referral Source Development
Quadrant 3:
Personal and Professional Brand
Quadrant 4:
Prospecting and Sales

22. Niche Practice Growth 80% + 60% + Source: Accounting Today

23. Building Rainmaker Skills – Like Building a House
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24. #MSCPAMAP14

25. #MSCPAMAP14

26. Step 1: Plans, Goals, Expectations
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27. Plans: Setting Goals & Expectations
Future Partners:
To be a partner in this firm, you need to be able to bring in new revenue in the form of cross-selling and new clients.
Current Partners:
To keep your compensation at the level to which you are accustomed we need you to “up your game” in new business development.
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28. Plans: Setting Goals & Expectations
What are reasonable goals and expectations for a future rainmaker?
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29. Plans: Setting Goals & Expectations
Future Partners:
To be a partner in this firm, you need to be able to bring in new revenue in the form of cross-selling and new clients.
Current Partners:
To keep your compensation at the level to which you are accustomed we need you to “up your game” in new business development.

30. Step 2: A Foundation of Client Development
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31. Foundation: Client Developmentx
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32. Foundation: Client Development
Need to be Given the opportunity with existing clients
Requires Relationship Development
Make Clients into Friends
Need to Understand the Building Blocks of Trust
Need to Know Firm Services

33. Foundation: Client Development
Need to be Proactive with Ideas
Need to Believe that selling is helping
Need to be Comfortable asking for Referrals
Have Confidence in knowledge and expertise

34. Step 3: Frame it up with Referral Sources
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35. Frame: Referral Sources
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36. Frame: Referral Sources
Need a Diverse Population of Referral Sources
Need a Network Capable of Providing 12+ Referrals/year
Need to spend time maintaining and developing these referral sources
Need to begin to reciprocate

37. Step 4: Internal Build out with Personal and Professional Development
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38. Internal Build-out: Personal/Professional Development
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39. Internal Build out: Trade/Business Group Involvement
Membership in 2-3 Active & High-Quality Groups
Active Participation in Meetings
Involvement in Committees, on the Board, etc. Wherever the Influential People hang out!

40. Step 5: Creating Curb Appeal – Understanding what Sells!
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41. Landscaping & Creating Curb Appeal

42. Landscaping & Creating Curb Appeal
Clear understanding of the Sales Process
Know all firm services
Understand and recognize clues and triggers
Effective discovery process
Winning value propositions
Effective Proposal/Orals
Do-Loop to Win

43. Step 6: Ready for the MLS – Who’s my buyer?
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44. Ready for the MLS: Who’s the Target Buyer?
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45. Ready for the MLS: Who’s the Target Buyer?
Does this potential rainmaker have a specialty/niche focus?
WHY is this so important?

46. Ready for the MLS: Who’s the Target Buyer?
Think about this:
Firms are growing their niche practices much faster than their compliance practices
Wedge services open doors where compliance services do not
A specialist beats a generalist in value every day of the week
A specialist can create fame
Famous people can charge more!

47. Nurturing these skills to grow your rainmaker
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48. How do you Nurture Skills Development in your Rainmakers?
Patience
Goal Setting
Motivation, Rewards & Encouragement
Skills Training
Personalized Coaching to Overcome Obstacles
Opportunities for Practice
Repetition, Repetition, Repetition
Measurement and Accountability

49. Tax Partner Joe
120 Person Firm, Midwest 2008 $750K 2015 $1.3M Realization: 89+% Hours Worked: Same Average Client Size: Up $10K

50. Tax Senior Manager Kristi
75 Person Firm, 7/2014 $0 New Business 7/2015 $35,000 New Business Closed Hours worked: Same Revenue Source: Current Client Referrals and one Top Referral Source

51. Summary

52. THANK YOU! Art Kuesel, President Kuesel Consulting, Inc. 312.208.8774