What needs to be considered?

This article will address the issues which should be considered when creating a new position in your tax department.

When creating a new position:
1.  You will NOT have the benefit of historic information that you can tap into as when hiring for an already-existing position.
2.  You will NOT have the advantage of input from an exiting employee regarding their experience in the position.
3.  You will NOT have feedback from others with respect to their interaction with the position.

On the other hand:
1.  You will NOT have the negatives which exist when refilling a position such as personality conflict issues from the past, political turf battles, preconceived notions as to the nature of the position or the profile of who should fill the position.
2.  You will NOT have bad PR from an exiting employee.

In many ways you will be blazing a trail to create something new which will, hopefully, be a benefit to your fellow employees, department and company.

GOAL:  Make sure there is a real need and then define how this need can best be met.

SEVEN STEPS MUST BE FOLLOWED TO ACCOMPLISH THIS GOAL:

I.	IDENTIFY/UNDERSTAND/PRIORITIZE THE NEED WHICH JUSTIFIES THE CREATION OF A NEW POSITION. All significant parties must agree that there truly is a need. There must be consensus on this issue. Therefore, you will have to do your homework and talk to a variety of people who will have an opinion. You will want to consult with the obvious "hiring authorities," such as the CFO (or whomever is over Tax), clients of the tax department such as Legal, Strategic Planning, Accounting, Finance, etc. Get input from key players in these departments who have interaction with Tax. Do they see a need which justifies a new position and what is that need specifically? Talk with appropriate individuals within the tax department. Do they see a need? Again, have them define it specifically. If for some reason the creation of this job must be kept confidential, you will have limitations as to who you can talk to, but you must get the broadest consensus available. After you get input from all parties, define the need by listing and prioritizing the various details of the need. Put it in writing and circulate it to those who participated. Get agreement from all or, revise until you do. Also, be sure that Human Resources is included in your conversations and all appropriate policies are being followed. One final point...when the need is clearly defined, you should also ask whether this need can be handled by existing staff or by outsourcing. Is it the best choice to create a new position or does another option make more sense? Some issues to consider are: What are the economics of creating a new position? Is this need permanent, or is it potentially short-term? Will this new position interfere with succession planning of existing employees?
II.	CONSULT WITH OUTSIDE SOURCES FOR GUIDANCE ON JOB PROFILE, CANDIDATE PROFILE AND REPORTING STRUCTURE Go to TEI or other tax organizations (such as IFA, ABA Tax Section, COST, local tax clubs or roundtables) to network with other tax professionals who have similar positions in their departments...or have created a similar position themselves. Their feedback could be invaluable as you formulate your job profile, candidate profile and reporting structure. Seek out experts who can offer helpful insight such as consulting firms or search firms with expertise in the tax field. You may want to have a formal study done which will offer comparative information about your competitors or similar companies.
III.	DEFINE JOB PROFILE - OBJECTIVES & RESPONSIBILITIES A.  What are the position objectives? What is to be accomplished in this position? How will your company benefit from this position operating effectively? Define the objectives of the position for: 1.  The first 12 months 2.  The second and third years B.  What specific responsibilities are required to achieve these objectives? Responsibilities must also be defined for two separate time frames: 1.  The first 12 months 2.  The second and third years Define how the job will evolve over these time frames. If the employee's role will change, how will all responsibilities be covered? (Example: If an employee will do 50/50 compliance/planning the first year, and then shift to 100% planning the second year, who will handle the compliance function when this change occurs? ... another staff person in the department? outsource to a CPA firm?) These factors must be taken into consideration to avoid a problem in the near future. Define: --Technical work (prioritize specifications and always break down into percentages). Example: 1st 12 months - 100% international tax 60% research & planning (30/30 transactional/operational) 20% compliance review 20% audit related work after first 12 months - 100% international tax 80% research & planning (40/40 transactional/operational) 10% compliance review 10% audit. --Interaction of this person with others; who will this person need to interact with in order for them to achieve the objectives of this position? What are the personality characteristics needed to interact with these specific individuals? --Hours/Travel: Be conservative. It is better to overestimate the average work week and percentage of travel. If weekend travel is required, be sure to quantify as well as define domestic vs. international travel (2 to 3 day trips vs. 2 to 3 weeks in duration).
IV.	DEFINE CANDIDATE PROFILE: 1.  Describe what criteria you want to use in developing your profile. --Years of experience in tax --Years of experience in specialty areas of tax (International, State & Local, Federal, Benefits, etc.) if applicable --Specific technical areas of expertise required (i.e. State Income, Sales & Use, Federal Consolidated return preparation, 482 Transfer Pricing, etc.) --Educational background (does the position justify needing an MS Tax, JD, LLM, etc.) --Personality (outgoing, laid back, assertive, leader, support person) --Aggressiveness in career aspirations (fast tracker/medium tracker/slow tracker) --Organizational experience (industry, public accounting, law firm) Always check the "whys" behind what criteria you think you need. (Example: If you think you need at attorney with 7-9 years of experience, always know WHY. Does this profile really make sense for the needs of the company? ) 2.  Define your ideal candidate profile using the criteria in #1. 3.  Define your least acceptable candidate profile using the criteria in #1. (both on the heavier and lighter profiles) 4.  Define "non-negotiables" -- those things you cannot live with or live without.
V.	DEFINE WHAT THE COMPANY AND OPPORTUNITY HAVE TO OFFER. Keep in mind, this is a two way street. Each candidate is going to be evaluating what the position and company have to offer him or her. You must define: A.  Quality of technical work (during 1st 12 months; after the 1st 12 months) B.  Career track (within tax and out of tax) - short term and long term C.  Management opportunities; Technical development opportunities, etc. D.  Compensation - base, bonus potential, stock plan E.  Other benefits - savings plans, pension, health club, child care F.  Corporate culture G.  Quality of life issues H.  Travel I.  Location
VI.	CONTRAST NUMBER III JOB PROFILE WITH NUMBER IV CANDIDATE PROFILE WITH NUMBER V WHAT YOU HAVE TO OFFER. Do they match? Or are you planning to hire someone who isn't the best fit for the job? Are you under hiring? ... over hiring? Do you want a tax attorney when a pure accountant would be a better match for the technical work? Do you want to hire a 10-year person when you don't have an appropriate career track to offer them? Are you thinking of hiring an A+ fast tracker when you won't have a career path to meet their expectations? Are you hiring at the right level for the money you have to offer? Is the profile personality type in line with your firm's management style? AGAIN, ALL THREE AREAS MUST COMPLIMENT EACH OTHER! (1) Job Profile (2) Candidate Profile (3) What you have to Offer.
VII.	DO A REALITY CHECK! A.  Is the match you are seeking REALISTIC in today's market? Will you be able to attract the ideal person (candidate profile) to do the job you want done (job profile) considering what you have to offer? Is the match you want realistic or do you want something unattainable in today's market? Here is how to find out: Consult with experts - get their opinion: 1.  Other high level tax professionals who have hired for a similar position in their departments 2.  Search firms who specialize in Tax 3.  Tax-Talent.com's Comparative Salary Analysis (http://www.tax-talent.com) 4.  Professional Tax organizations (TEI, COST, IPT, etc.) 5.  Your local Tax Club(s) B.  Get all other decision-makers (See #II) to "sign off" (literally) on the following, prior to interviewing candidates. 1.  Job Profile 2.  Candidate Profile 3.  What company/department has to offer?

If you follow the seven-step analysis above, you will be much more likely to hire a "good match," both from a short term and long term perspective. As is the case in most endeavors, extra effort on the front end will avoid excessive effort on the back end to correct the mistakes made from taking short cuts.