Accountants are renowned for being the first advisors to business leaders. But when in addition, they train as coaches, their impact is increased tenfold. Morgane Marc, Absoluce associate, accountant and coach, testifies to its journey and the benefits that managers derive from it.
To get a review, benefit from advice, report a difficulty, the first instinct of a business manager is to call his accountant. With the Covid crisis, the need that managers had to know the rules they had to put in place for their employees, how to get help, the urgent need they felt to reassure themselves, to identify what they could predict, or not, to consider “plan B”, led to hours and hours of discussion with their accountants. Beyond management consulting, they provided significant human support to their customers. This period was the trigger for Morgane Marc : “For years, supporting managers has been my favorite subject, and I frequently prescribed coaches for them. At the time of confinement, we discussed strategy topics with my clients, of management, of ethics… I decided to take the plunge and follow training as a coach”. Morgane Marc selected the Coaching Academy, recognized organization which has been at the origin of the development of coaching in France for thirty years, to train for fourteen months, two days a month, not counting personal work and group work. Today, she is a certified coach and she has started her first missions, which can be carried out either for the clients of its accounting firm, or for other customers. This strategic choice to broaden its skills was made in consultation with its partners., to enrich the firm’s offering, and more broadly of the national Absoluce network of which it is a member.
Advice or coach : in every situation, the correct posture
Remember that consulting consists of providing solutions to your client., whereas coaching is intended to help the client find solutions for themselves. The posture is different, it is essential to be aware of it and embody it. The manager may need to take stock of the productivity of his company, its cash flow, its management and in this case the advisory posture will be the most appropriate. On the other hand, if we take the example of strategic thinking, it is the coaching posture that can be the most effective. Morgane Marc testifies : “One of my clients had three development projects that could not be carried out simultaneously, it was a matter of defining which one had priority. I start from the principle that the manager is in the best position to know what is good for him and for his company.. I therefore offered him coaching support which turned out to be very fruitful.. Indeed, “advice” can be quite relevant, but it happens that the manager does nothing about it. Coaching puts the manager into action, because the solution comes from him. »
Coach and accountant : a plus for the manager
Obviously, the main asset of a chartered accountant is knowledge of SMEs through the prism of management and finances, while most coaches come from the world of human resources. As for the consultants, when they are former business leaders or former managers, they generally provide operating solutions, such as improving production processes. This knowledge enriches the approach of the chartered accountant coach, who can thus take his client further in his evolution. Morgane Marc recently observed this in a coaching mission with a management committee. The manager complained that the meetings led to nothing concrete. His intervention as a coach with the various associates and then in collective work, which resulted in much better collective efficiency, was strongly legitimized and reinforced by his skills as an accountant. Furthermore, the coaches, just like accountants, are subject to a Code of Ethics, to professional secrecy, and the obligation to train throughout their professional career.
