Interview Prep

Question 1

OFO (and its 3 end goals)

Answer 1

We are formally aligning administrative operations, roles, and processes to:

1) increase collaboration across the firm

2) effectively scale our business operations to support our growth and our clients

3) enrich employee experience and improve quality control

implementing standard business processes and aligning our CSS Operations structure

Question 2

Business Services team

Answer 2

Our Business Services team will oversee our core tax and assurance administrative processes to drive consistency and improve the quality of client deliverables.

Question 3

Business Services team will focus on

(2)

Answer 3

1) The core business processes that can be standardized at a firm level to allow for scalability, improved quality controls, and increased efficiencies.

2) Continuous process improvement for both internal and external customer service and efficiency

Question 4

How does the standardization of business services support the shift to a CCA firm?

(3)

Answer 4

1) Will reduce inefficiencies
by minimizing the confusion and disruption of navigating inconsistencies and different processes.

2) This will enable CS teams to focus on their clients and increase the firm’s ability to leverage our resources.

3) Ultimately, we will have increased opportunities to innovate and provide value-add services.

Question 5

MAPS

Answer 5

A power apps platform our business services workflows are being built on

Question 6

Benefits of MAPS

(3)

Answer 6

1) This system not only integrates with some of our current programs but has been designed to provide an enhanced user experience for both CS and CSS.

2) Moss Adams builds and maintains the platform, enabling us to adapt the platform to our current and future needs.

3) It will provide the stability and bandwidth needed to effectively manage the high volume of tasks during our peak times.

Question 7

Who we are as a firm

(3)

Answer 7

goes deeper than the accounting, consulting, and wealth management services we provide

Our identity is rooted in:
1. our core values
2. how we treat each other
3. how we serve clients

Question 8

The key elements of our firm’s DNA

(4)

Answer 8

1. Our mission
2. Pillar values
3. West mindset
4. Four cornerstones

Question 9

Our Mission

(3)

Answer 9

Empower every client to embrace opportunity

Our mission is our ongoing purpose, our reason for existing as a firm.

Every day, we aim to arm our clients with the insights and tools they need to be successful, however they define it​​

Question 10

Our Pillar Values

(6)

Answer 10

1. passion for excellence
2. integrity
3. lifetime learning
4. leading by example
5. accountability
6. respect

These values shape how we approach our business and our interactions with one another

Question 11

Our Brand and West Mindset

(5)

Answer 11

AKA our principles or how we live our values

1. we cultivate possibility
2. we’re all-in
3. we’re industry obsessives
4. we’re one firm
5. we develop the best

Question 12

Our Cornerstones

(4)

Answer 12

We focus our energy on these four cornerstones in our strategic planning and throughout our operations.

1. Growth
2. Clients
3. Safety
   ​​​​​​​4. People

Question 13

TCE (The Competitive Edge)

Answer 13

Our Vision 2025: Be a client-centric advisory firm. 5 year plan.

Question 14

Strategic Priorities (How we’ll achieve our CCA vision)

(4)

Answer 14

1. Our people: develop amazing professionals
2. Our clients: collaborate to grow
3. Our firm: pursue operational excellence
4. Our community: explicitly live our pillar values

Question 15

Strategies & Success measures for Our People/ developing amazing professionals

(3)

Answer 15

1. Build collaboration and business skills on top of deep technical knowledge
2. Foster an adaptable workplace and workforce strategy
3. Increase focus on customized learning to grow uniquely skilled professionals

Question 16

Strategies & Success measures for Our Clients/ collaborating to grow

(3)

Answer 16

1. Extract value from industry and client data
2. Identify and pursue multidisciplinary needs of new and existing clients
3. Invest in new services that help our clients prosper

Question 17

Strategies & Success measures for Our Firm/ pursuing operational
excellence

(3)

Answer 17

1. Continually assess organizational design to modernize and
   align as one firm
   2, Increase strategic alignment by cascading the firm’s strategy through all goals and activities
2. Optimize and standardize key processes

Question 18

Strategies & Success measures for Our Community/ Explicitly living our Pillar values

(3)

Answer 18

1. Embrace our environmental responsibilities
2. Be leaders in our profession, serve the public interest, and demonstrate a commitment to professionalism
3. Be an anti-racist firm

Question 19

What does Pillar stand for?

Answer 19

It symbolizes the values that guide us in all that we do at Moss Adams.

It represents the qualities the Firm looks for in the people we hire, our beliefs about how we should conduct our business, and how we always aspire to do our very best work.

Question 20

Passion for Excellence

(6)

Answer 20

1. We set high goals and standards for ourselves.
2. We have a positive outlook and are passionate about our work, our clients, and our profession.
3. We are motivated to do our best and often do more than is expected.
4. We are dedicated to high-quality work and the value we bring to the Firm.
5. We seek opportunities for more responsibility on an office-, industry group- or Firm-wide basis.
6. We are passionate about our shared values and our Firm’s mission.

Question 21

Integrity

(6)

Answer 21

1. We understand that integrity is the bedrock of trust and that trust is fundamental to our role as client service professionals and to serving the public interest.
2. We are honest and ethical in all of our business relationships.
3. We at all times maintain our objectivity of thought and action.
4. We maintain high standards of personal and professional conduct.
5. We hold the affairs of our clients in strict confidence.
6. We hold steadfast to the form and spirit of the technical and ethical standards required for our profession by the AICPA, State CPA Societies, state boards of accountancy, and other regulators.

Question 22

Lifetime Learning

(6)

Answer 22

1. We seek opportunities for professional and personal growth.
2. We continually develop our knowledge in new areas.
3. We persistently work on our own areas that need development.
4. We demonstrate a high interest in new Firm initiatives and services.
5. We remain abreast of important technological advances within the Firm.
6. We are intellectually curious about our profession and our clients’ business issues.

Question 23

Leading by Example

(7)

Answer 23

1. We do not ask others to do what we are unwilling to do ourselves.
2. We act as mentors for others in our offices.
3. We embrace innovation and new ideas because we know that growth and progress will not occur without change.
4. We look for the natural skills and talents in other people and encourage them to use them.
5. We exhibit a positive attitude and seek solutions to challenging situations.
6. We respond to requests in a timely manner and we honor our commitments.
7. We initiate ideas to help the Firm and our clients and are willing to help with their implementation

Question 24

Accountability

(10)

Answer 24

1. We agree to appropriate performance standards.
2. We monitor self-performance against goals.
3. We seek feedback on what is expected.
4. We accept responsibility for outcomes of actions.
5. We maintain a balanced life.
6. We understand that balance is different for each person.
7. We are flexible in our approach to our professional lives.
8. We take an appropriate amount of time off.
9. We participate in family and outside activities.
10. We devote extra time to work when necessary.

Question 25

Respect (6)

Answer 25

1. We act professionally and responsibly during stressful situations. 2. We respect the time of others and avoid last-minute requests. 3. If we have a difference of opinion with someone, we respectfully talk with that person rather than complaining to others. 4. We do not interrupt other people when they are talking. 5. We encourage other people to express their ideas and listen to them with an open mind. 6. We believe that our differences can make us stronger.

Question 26

Our brand helps us do what?

Answer 26

Leveraged effectively, our brand is an asset and competitive advantage that can help us stand out in a crowded, decidedly uniform marketplace. It helps create a connection in the hearts and minds of potential clients and employees.

Question 27

We're All-In

Answer 27

Rabidly client-focused, we develop deep, collaborative relationships to understand our clients' businesses, lives, and needs.

Question 27

We Cultivate Possibility

Answer 27

With optimism and enterprise, we're committed to helping our clients achieve prosperity - however they define it.

Question 28

We're Industry Obsessives

Answer 28

We bring deep industry expertise and technical skill to our clients, allowing us to offer both foresight and insight

Question 29

We're One Firm

Answer 29

We're keen, integrative problem solvers, bringing our whole firm to each client.

Question 30

We Develop the Best

Answer 30

We're dedicated to developing the best client advisors in the profession, within a culture of collegiality and authenticity.

Question 31

What is a brand position? (3)

Answer 31

1. It informs our point of view. 2. It must represent who we are, emphasize what makes us unique, and be both meaningful and authentic. 3. We use this to differentiate ourselves amongst our competition

Question 32

What is our brand position?

Answer 32

For organizations that realize greater potential, Moss Adams brings "West" to business. With an abundant spirit of optimism, openness, and enterprise, we integrate specialized accounting and advisory services to help mid-market clients grow, manage, and protect their prosperity. Unbound from industry orthodoxy and big-firm conventions, we personally engage to help clients explore, understand, and embrace emerging opportunity.

Question 33

AOP (annual operating plan)

Answer 33

- Not separate from the TCE, just specific to the next 12 months - What do we specifically need to focus on in order to drive towards that 5 year plan

Question 34

2024 AOP

Answer 34

"Back to Basics" after all the growth the firm has experienced

Question 35

5 2024 AOP Objectives

Answer 35

1. Client-Centric Advisory (develop and embody the CCA mindset and behaviors at all levels to advance our CCA vision) 2. Client Focus (prioritize client focus through a reduction of operational demands) 3. Growth (achieve firm growth expectations) 4. MAI (accelerate MAI adoption and integration into the firm's operating structure) 5. Operational Excellence (increase operational efficiency and effectiveness through a focus on foundational activities)

Question 36

AOP: CCA Objective (3)

Answer 36

Develop and embody the CCA mindset and behaviors at all levels to advance our CCA vision. 1. Achieve: 5% increase of multi-service clients (looking at engagements over 3 years) 2. Show: differentiated client service by increasing level 3 & 4 clients in the annual client survey from 64 to 68% 3. Increase: industry concentration ratio ("Client Industry Group Concentration") for Managers+ by 5 percentage points

Question 37

AOP: Growth Objective (2)

Answer 37

Achieve firm growth expectations 1. Grow firm revenue by 8.8% 2. Achieve $546M in sales

Question 38

AOP: Client Focus (4)

Answer 38

Prioritize client focus through a reduction of operational demands 1. Increase ratio of billable to non-billable time from 59% to 63% 2. Reduce the number of active firm initiatives (Enterprise Transformation Office portfolio) by 50% 3. Increase CS to CSS headcount ratio from 3.8 to 4 4. Increase good/ excellent rating in 2024 National Office Customer Survey by 5 percentage points (67.1 to 72.1%)

Question 39

AOP: MAI Objective (2)

Answer 39

Accelerate MAI adoption and integration into the firm's operating structure 1. Achieve planned hours (312,000) and 60%+ utilization for MAI team 2. Maintain our increase MAI engagement survey participation and engagement over December 2023

Question 40

AOP: Operational Excellence (4)

Answer 40

Increase operational efficiency and effectiveness through a focus on foundational activities 1. Achieve targeted global utilization per 2024 firm financial plan 2. Achieve targeted realization per 2024 firm financial plan 3. Reduce LTM Net Days Sales Outstanding (DSO) to 70 days or less 4. Reduce the number of under-performing client hours by 20%

Question 41

CCA as defined by Eric Miles

Answer 41

If I'm a client of Moss Adams, when we work with them, does the client feel like you're just there to perform a defined task? Or does the client feel like you're approaching them more holistically, trying to understand what their needs are beyond maybe the consulting engagement, or the tax return, or the audit? That's what we're trying to do. That may lead to additional work with the client or not, but it's how the client feels, it's the experience they have by working with us.

Question 42

3 buckets for CCA per Eric Miles

Answer 42

1. Being very clear on expectations and accountabilities. What are the behaviors we expect to see, what is the client--when they think of CCA, what do they expect to see? (CXL vs Client Owner) 2. Across our major service lines: assurance, tax consulting, we're thinking about again the methodology that we're using to deliver our engagements. 3. I think everyone needs more and more skills. The ability to engage with a client on broad areas of business is a skillset in and of itself. Soft skills no one is born with (Adelaide Ness hired to help)