Culture

Culture is a critical component of any professional service firm. Staff morale is an important driver of overall effectiveness, and a positive, strong firm culture is an enormous contributor to staff morale, as well as work ethic, quality focus and client service attitude. On the other hand, a demoralized staff can lead to a death spiral in which lower and lower productivity reduces client satisfaction which reduces revenue and profits which causes cutbacks in staff which leads to negative culture and the repetition of a vicious cycle. Building and maintaining a good culture is important and must be proactively managed whether it is the responsibility of the office manager or another individual. In fact, culture is clearly a shared responsibility. Many activities can lead to a positive culture. There are four types of events commonly found in a professional service firm:

1. Reward events: The firm acknowledges individuals for outstanding service.

2. Social events: The firm promotes activities outside the office so that team members can bond outside the office.

3. Team-building events: The firm sponsors activities that promote team building.

4. Information sharing: These events allow specific units in the company to find out the latest information on the firm.

The most important aspect of this role is for the office manager to work with the firms principals to determine a schedule of events on an annual basis.

These typically include business update meetings, annual meetings, semiannual state of the firm meetings. Whatever the appropriate slate of meetings, the office manager must develop a schedule of the monthly, quarterly and annual activities that will help define firm culture and execute them on a routine basis. Additionally there are quarterly and annual activities that are important both for the business and for the history/culture. Many companies also have annual retreats or company meetings that typically have the following agenda:

Introduction of key people Update on business performance Recognition of top clients and team performance Discussion on one to two year strategic plan Breakout sessions for practice areas

Finally, the a host of less significant, but equally important activities such as birthday celebrations, office decorations, holiday parties, charitable support activities, and pro bono work all contribute to the culture of the company. These activities are typically managed or coordinated by the same person.

Historian

The responsibility of maintaining the history of the firm is most often assigned to the office manager as well. This role is very important as it defines and promotes culture and draws employees to the legend of the firm. Critical components include assigning responsibility and agreeing to proper storage, retrieval, and use of firm history. Additionally, a written background of the company should be maintained and approved periodically for inclusion in proposals, recruiting materials and so on. The background should include information on key events in firm history, founders, and firm values statements. The administrative team should take pictures at company events and save these in albums, online storage, and frames for the reception area.

Hiring an Office Manager

Not all firms can afford to hire an office manager. However, at some point during the growth of the business, having a full-time dedicated office manager may actually increase the profitability of the business by reducing the burden of billable staff of these functions, and by coordinating all the activities mentioned in this chapter. Additionally, a good office manager can improve overall productivity by streamlining and efficiently running the office. A typical job description follows:

Office Manager Job Description: The role of an office manager is to organize and supervise all of the administrative activities that facilitate smooth running

of an office. The office manager may report to the CFO, managing partner, director of human resources, or Chief Administrative Officer, depending on the organization. If the organization has multiple offices with enough scale, the office manager in each location will have similar job functions and report to the same person. Exhibit 20.1 demonstrates the typical firm-size to office-manager requirements.

The office manager is expected to carry out a wide range of administrative and facility-related tasks. The office manager is ultimately responsible for ensuring the office runs smoothly:

Typical Responsibilities

Manage and organize administrative staff (include hiring and firing). Manage meeting space and scheduling.

1 per 1,000 hereafter

0 20 50 100 200 300

Number of employees

400 500

Exhibit 20.1 When to Hire an Office Manager

Manage copy services. Manage travel. Managing office budget. Conduct administrative appraisals. Manage building maintenance.

Meet with senior professionals on office projects and prioritization. Manage work space.

Others (mentioned previously in chapter). Characteristics

Salary: office managers. Depending on firm size salary will range from $40,000 to $90,000 per year. For most firms hiring their first office manager, the salary will be in the $40,000 to $55,000 per year range.

Work hours are typically 50 to 55 hours per week.

Dress is appropriate to professional staff.

Career path can include promotion to full-time position, promotion to management of entire function for firm, and graduation in Human Resources or Finance.