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THE LAST WORD / Steven Harris, CPA, CGMA

Steven Harris, CPA, CGMA,
is the partner-in-charge of
RubinBrown’s Entrepreneurial
Services Group and a partner
in RubinBrown’s Assurance
Services Group in St. Louis.

Favorite movie: The Godfather.
Favorite app or technology: OneNote.
Favorite item to travel with: AirPods
and phone charger.

‘We need a conversation about collaboration …’

Forming connections builds trust: Early on, I struggled Filling the pipeline: We need [to give young people] a better
in connecting with people. To overcome it, I had to open up. introduction of what we do and what our profession is evolv-
I had to let people get to know me. I let my fun side come ing into, and we need to do it earlier. Competition is so fierce
out, but I also showed my vulnerability. That developed better for career paths. Entrepreneurship is huge. So many young,
pathways to connect and helped me build a foundation of talented individuals feel they can go out and do it on their own.
trust. I could give feedback, and I received feedback at the We need to market the entrepreneurial spirit of our profes-
same time because I let myself be vulnerable. That built my sion. We don’t do the best job of telling our story. People see
confidence, and now I’m involved with organizations and and experience it in internships, but we need to tell the outside
getting on boards. I’m not afraid to raise my hand. And that world. We must be excited about being in accounting and all
gets you noticed. the things you can do with an accounting major — show them
they will set themselves up to be on a tremendous trajectory.
Engagement, retention, and maintaining productivity:
Flexibility is almost a guarantee now. But we need a con- Recognizing racial justice issues: There’s a tremendous op-
versation about collaboration and engagement and how we portunity right now to really leverage the current environment
make that happen in a hybrid environment. We’re fortunate in regard to heightened awareness of racial justice issues in this
that our people are even more productive in this environ- country. Firms can teach our people about what’s going on and
ment. At the same time, our profession is losing some of do self-assessments as an organization. People are looking at
the cultural battle — what makes firms unique. Firm culture who they identify with and what the firm they work for identi-
is, in part, about connecting with people. We’re working fies with. Organizations need to be courageous about what they
to find that balance. It’s not just the responsibility of the stand for and make statements. Not saying anything says a lot.
leadership and partners. The engagement piece comes when We also need to be united as a profession. There should be more
everyone makes it intentional. A lot of organizations are collaboration to solve some of these issues rather than going it
scaling down their physical footprint. Our firm is consider- alone. We’re not going to win that way. It’s not about who’s first;
ing a similar approach across many of our locations, but we it’s about how we all finish as we go through this together, try-
are focused on enhancing the connectivity among our team ing to open minds and change hearts rather than just get results. PHOTO BY WHITNEY CURTIS/AP IMAGES
members and will utilize our new office layouts to make this
a priority. I want us to continue to be known as an organi- — As told to Lea Hart, a freelance writer based in Virginia. To com-
zation that values our people and the relationships that exist ment on this article or to suggest an idea for another article, contact
within the firm. Courtney Vien at Courtney.Vien@aicpa-cima.com.

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