This is a busy time of year for the employees of Citrin Cooperman and Company LLP, but the New York-based accounting firm finds ways to keep its employees, including the 23 who work at its Norwalk office, from burning out even when they’re burning the candle at both ends. Both the professional and support staff get paid for overtime hours, food is brought in several times a week, and they even make time for fun.
“Before the Super Bowl, people were allowed to wear their team jerseys to work,” said Renata Howard, a CPA who joined Citrin and Cooperman last year after it merged with her previous firm. “We also had a photo contest that was a lot of fun.”
The winning shot, which carried a $500 prize, showed an employee sprawled on the floor, surrounded by files and tax forms, and was entitled “Death by Taxes.”
The firm strongly encourages professional development beyond the continuing education credits required to maintain a CPA license, said Mark L. Fagan, managing partner for the Norwalk office. A new leadership program indentifies core competencies for each employee level and offers programs such as conflict resolution and prospecting for new clients to help employees attain those necessary skills. Professional staff members also have an opportunity to serve on the firm’s marketing committee, attend trade shows, and write articles and blog posts, Fagan said.
An incentive program offers the professional staff a one-time, one-month paid leave of absence after they have been with the firm for at least six years. “They can use the time any way they want,” Fagan said. “A lot of people use it for a honeymoon or when they have a child, for example. The only requirement is that they come back with a 1,000-word essay on things the firm can do to improve and another on where they see themselves professionally in five years.”
Citrin Cooperman also focuses attention on helping the community, Howard said. Participating in Toys for Tots and a holiday coat drive fosters friendly competition among the firm’s five offices, and employees who donate $5 to charity are allowed to wear jeans on designated Fridays, with the firm matching those contributions. A system-wide effort called Citrin Cooperman Cares has sent staff members to New Orleans to build homes through Habitat for Humanity, and the White Plains office recently shut down for the afternoon to allow employees to volunteer at a local food bank, Fagan said.
Another program that is popular with employees offers college scholarships to two students per office, focusing on schools where large numbers of students are disadvantaged.
“A committee goes to the school and interviews the candidates, then chooses two recipients,” Fagan said. “It’s always a tough choice, but once you get on the committee, you never leave because it’s so rewarding.”
The firm’s culture is a major reason employees are happy there, Howard said. “It’s a big company that has a small-firm feel. Everybody can call anybody else at any time for help.”
Fostering a positive environment begins with actively listening to employees and trying to meet their needs, Fagan said. Inside the office, each professional has a double monitor to cut down on the need to toggle between screens, but that wasn’t the case when they were working off-site at their clients’ offices. During an annual post-tax-season debriefing, employees broached the idea of providing a second monitor for off-site work, and the new equipment arrived within three weeks, he said.
“We recognize how valuable our staff members are, so we’re very open with them and really encourage them to tell it like it is.”
