Culture Matters: Building the Wise Firm

2020 has been a year like no other. The way we work, live and look at the future changed drastically. But as we look back, one thing was clear – culture mattered more than ever. Thankfully, our team members didn’t shy away from hard topics and felt empowered to share their personal stories.

Growing up, there are a number of activities that, quite frankly, were not very exciting — cleaning the room, folding laundry. Things that never disappear entirely but do become more tolerable. As an adolescent, though, there was only one word to describe how I felt about these little, unending maintenance activities: Hate. 

If you feel like there is no way for you to focus on your job right now, you aren’t alone. It’s perfectly sensible to feel like you’re unable to focus on pressing through normal, routine tasks when things feel so… abnormal.

I’ve never lived through a pandemic before. I’ve never lead a team or company through so much unknown or during such an unprecedented time.

Almost 10 years on the journey of building the Wise Firm —what we call our culture — and it is still the common denominator of why team members choose HORNE. It is a culture that, to many, seems unrealistic until they experienced it for themselves. It is a culture that we all feel connected to. Driven by a common purpose and mission — to create value and make a difference. It’s how we know we are a part of something bigger than ourselves and that we’re leaving our mark on the world.

A few years ago, my husband was offered a promotion in another state, in a location that did not have a HORNE office. This promotion was a wonderful opportunity for him, but not great news for me. Just a year before this news hit, I transitioned to a new director/performance advisor and I was just now hitting my stride. Moving was not in my plans, but I knew it was best for our family and that we had to take it. 

In my coaching interactions throughout the firm, I am often asked about the concept of fierce ownership. Some seem to grasp the concept intuitively, while others may struggle to come to grips with how to live out this commitment. To me, fierce ownership is showing up every day with uncommon discipline and acting on every action, opportunity or request as though you personally, literally owned your practice group, even as though you owned the firm! It is putting the needs and best interests of your clients, colleagues and the firm before your own.

If a new year isn’t inspiration enough, we’ve gathered our most-read blogs from 2019 to motivate you toward greatness in the year ahead. You’ll find plenty of inspiration in our team member’s transparency and willingness to share their personal stories. Some are funny, some are heartwarming, but the most impactful were clearly the blogs where our team members didn’t shy away from hard topics and felt empowered.

Building powerful relationships and partnerships is the very essence of the popular business term NETWORKING. But, too often, young (and sometimes old) professionals think of networking as transactional. “I need to meet you so you can help me be successful.” This folks, is a losing strategy.