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LaBella Associates staff participating in a fundraising ride in support of Roswell Park Cancer Institute.
accomplished, so it requires a strategic plan with phases and milestones that is proactively managed. TZL: Research shows that PMs are overworked, understaffed, and that many firms do not have formal training programs for PMs. What is your firm doing to support its PMs? SM: There are a few things. The first is a formal training program, which is really designed to give the foundational knowledge emerging PMs need to be successful. Following that, one of the best ways we can support our PMs is by investing in tools and processes that genuinely increase efficiency. As LaBella grows, we’re consciously striving to avoid unnecessary bureaucracy. Lastly, continuously overworked PMs simply cannot deliver the client experience that we want to provide. Because it can be hard to spot in the thick of it, we have a client experience manager who captures client feedback and helps us make adjustments to each client’s expectations. Knowing what matters to each specific client allows our PMs to spend less time on what doesn’t. TZL: In one word or phrase, what do you describe as your number one job responsibility? SM: Cultural steward. TZL: A firm’s longevity is valuable. What are you doing to encourage your staff to stick around? SM: Above all else, we want to be a great firm for our employees. If we can maintain a culture and a workplace where our employees feel professionally fulfilled, valued, and provided with growth opportunities, they will perform at their highest potential, and there is little incentive to leave. We work hard every day at doing just that.
CULTURAL STEWARD, from page 7
several ways employees can earn recognition for exemplifying them. We believe what’s celebrated gets repeated, so our recognition programs are designed to reinforce what’s culturally important. “If we can maintain a culture and a workplace where our employees feel professionally fulfilled, valued, and provided with growth opportunities, they will perform at their highest potential, and there is little incentive to leave.” TZL: Ownership transition can be tricky, to say the least. What’s the key to ensuring a smooth passing of the baton? What’s the biggest pitfall to avoid? SM: There are two connected pieces to this: Ownership transition and leadership transition. Leadership transition should occur every day; we challenge our leaders to approach “training your successor” as a primary job responsibility. This is necessary to allow for the growth that LaBella has experienced and it’s essential to providing a career path and opportunity to the talented employees we want to retain. Ownership transition, or the buying and selling of shares, is easy when you have employees committed to the firm because you’ve done a good job at leadership transition. There may be timing or legal considerations that play into how this is
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THE ZWEIG LETTER FEBRUARY 7, 2022, ISSUE 1427
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