Staff training and professional development are an essential part of a firm’s work – or at least they should be. Tax adviser Holger Bodmann understands the impact that the coronavirus pandemic and increasing digitalisation are having on this, and how best to ensure staff are on board.
During the „hsp live at 11“ discussion, hsp Managing Director Paul Liese and Holger Bodmann from HSP STEUER in Hanover – which is neither related to nor affiliated with hsp – exchanged views on the training and professional development of practice staff. Holger Bodmann, a tax adviser and solicitor, plays a key role in organising training and professional development at the Hanover-based firm. He is an expert in this field – particularly with regard to the Digitalisation in education As far as that is concerned. After all, his practice is highly digitised; ring binders and the like have long since become a thing of the past here.
Digital resources for trainees
Accordingly, Holger Bodmann relies on digital resources for his trainees. „These are integrated into our day-to-day digital collaboration,“ explains the tax adviser. It is no longer essential for staff to be physically present at the practice, which also helps to ensure that work processes continue smoothly during the pandemic. Of the 20 available workstations, just four are occupied during the live talk – yet this does not affect the firm’s operations; quite the opposite, in fact.
So what schools are struggling to achieve is being picked up by the law firm in Hanover. „Digital teaching in schools got off to a bumpy start,“ reports Holger Bodmann. „And it’s still like that.“ This is another reason why the firm’s own digital services are so important. Two trainees are currently employed here. Just recently, they attended a training session on the NWB database. Holger Bodmann also took extra time to conduct an intensive hour-long database search with the trainees. The questions that arose during this session were: Which keywords are useful? How do you narrow down a search effectively? The focus was on using the database and the methodology behind the research. „By the end of the hour, there was a great deal more clarity regarding the digital way of working,“ explains Holger Bodmann.
Collaboration system also appeals to long-serving staff
But it is not just the trainees who are receiving digital training; staff members, many of whom have been working at the firm for many years, also need to be brought on board. „Digitalisation causes anxiety, creates uncertainty and leads to resistance to change,“ says the tax adviser. How does he counter this? „We’ve had a collaboration system in place for years.“ In this system, staff and partners work together on projects – which offers many advantages to everyone involved. Knowledge is accessible to everyone, and specific topics can be searched for. And anyone who still has a question at the end can ask it via chat. „Knowledge is available in unlimited quantities today. The problem is structuring that knowledge and making it accessible,“ says Holger Bodmann. The collaboration system achieves precisely that.
Digitalisation therefore offers staff enormous benefits in their day-to-day work. If they recognise these benefits, they will embrace digitalisation – even if it initially brings about changes. Documented knowledge stored in a database is also of great benefit to new recruits, as it enables them to settle in much more quickly and independently. At HSP STEUER in Hanover, a new employee joined during the pandemic – at a law firm where almost the entire workforce was working from home. Thanks to the existing knowledge management system, however, he quickly found his feet and the induction process went smoothly.
Regular dialogue is the foundation for sustainable working practices
However, according to the tax adviser, staff training is not a one-off event, but an ongoing process. Regular training for individual staff members and regular discussions about this are essential. Even minor changes to day-to-day operations must be communicated regularly to everyone. At Holger Bodmann’s practice, this is achieved in part thanks to weekly digital team meetings. Regular and in-depth communication between all those involved is a top priority at the practice.
This enables the firm to keep up with the times and not to fear change in the tax consultancy sector. Holger Bodmann takes a far less pessimistic view of this change than others, but he also recognises: „Our numbers will dwindle. And those of us who remain will focus on other areas.“ Understanding clients’ business models and processes will become increasingly important for firms. Those who know and understand these processes can provide targeted support and advice to their clients – thereby opening up a new field of activity.
Three unfinished sentences for the person you’re talking to
Towards the end of the live talk, Paul Liese asked his guest to finish three sentence starters. Here are the fascinating statements:
To me, digitalisation means „an ongoing, disruptive transformation“.“
Training or further education is „absolutely vital if we want to keep our profession going.“
I expect tax practice firms to show „a much greater willingness to embrace change.“
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