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Business development coaching at Ernst & Young

Background


Ernst & Young is one of the world's big four accountancy firms. It has over 100,000 staff worldwide and 7,200 staff in the UK - of whom 430 are partners. They deliver a variety of audit, tax and risk management services to a range of large and small, public and private sector organisations including many FTSE 100 companies.

The firm operates in an increasingly competitive environment and there is a need to develop business relationships by extending the services delivered to existing clients and to win business with new clients. Significant changes in the policy environment are driving this requirement for effective business development. In the 10 years since the introduction of a programme for business development, several changes in approach have been made, and in order to meet the still changing demands of the business, more will be made in the future.

Simply being a company's auditor will no longer generate additional business. The introduction of Sarbanes-Oxley Legislation in the United States and some hard questions arising from corporate failure, for example Enron, means that there is a wariness about using the same organisation for formal auditing and business advice. New business development skills and awareness are required from all staff who have client contact.

Culture and identity


Peter Matthews, the Ernst & Young Partner who leads the Business Development effort, characterises the underlying challenge in the following way 'Most importantly it's about identity and beliefs - particularly the individual's opinions of themselves'. In his view many of the skills that are needed in business development are the same that are required for a technical role (audit, tax and risk management). What is at issue is to recognise that they are important skills, should be developed, and should be deployed effectively. For this reason the solution does not rest solely with training.

Fortunately the business development efforts are recognised as a priority by the leadership of the firm and Ernst & Young has, unusually, an open points system where all partners are aware of the income (based on points) awarded to their colleagues. Successful business development is increasingly visibly rewarded in this way. As a result the type of person who is held up as a hero or role model has changed. These are no longer just the people who have achieved excellence through detailed knowledge of a technical area; the person who has built up the business stream from small beginnings to significant earnings receives recognition has become a figure who is generally admired.

In Peter Matthews's view the nature of the shift towards more effective business development can be a subtle process, but to re-emphasise, it is about culture not skills. He cites the occasions when it is sensible for an Ernst & Young employee to admit in a meeting that he or she simply does not have the answer to the client's problems at his or her fingertips. There are times where such openness is appropriate, and indeed the client will be impressed; however an admission of a lack of comprehensive knowledge does not fit easily into the traditional audit or tax culture.

Developing the skills


A change of mind-set is essential, but so also are the deployment of appropriate skills. These must be delivered within the business and at the appropriate time. The learning environment has become broader. Therefore Ernst & Young has adopted a coaching solution but, in Peter Matthews view, coaching will take many forms. However, in his words, 'coaching works when the recipient feels that it helps them achieve their goals'. It cannot be an imposed solution delivered irrespective of the feelings of the recipient.

The current structure of coaching support was developed following a mapping exercise of skills undertaken jointly by Business Development and Human Resources in the Ernst & Young Southern Region. It was at this point that it was recognised that the relevant skills were generic (life skills was the term adopted) and topics like effective questioning and listening could be developed in any situation. Although they still form part of business awareness training many relevant skills could also feature in a recruitment interviewing training event.

There are now some 150 staff involved in business development. With the exception of a small team involved in collecting information, these staff all give coaching support. Some will deliver support on individual pursuits or pitches to clients; others will work within business or service areas; others will work on designated accounts. They will work with individuals or with teams but with all try to capture the 'teachable moments' when recipients are most receptive to guidance or support. Most of these business development coaches have been recruited from outside Ernst & Young, but have to pass through an assessment centre which investigates their capacity to coach others. Increasingly it is hoped sales coaches will be recruited from within the business.

The future


Peter Matthews highlights three areas where he feels the programme will continue to evolve. First, there is still work to be done in positioning coaching within the range of training on offer. This will involve communicating the benefits to senior managers who may still regard coaching as a soft option. Secondly, the coaching itself needs to be more pragmatic and focus on specific events and targets. Thirdly, there needs to be a greater link with HR, working around transferable life skills.

 
 
 
 
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