Name Days aren't really a thing in the US, but maybe we should mark the occasion for accounting firms since so many have been changing theirs in recent years. Mergers, acquisitions and rebrandings all give firms a fresh start with a look and maybe a lot fewer letters.
The latest is RSM (aka McGladrey) whose new monker becomes official today. We've covered quite a few name changes for them over the years. I even wrote about them jumping on the bandwagon trend of switching an accounting firm's names to initials when they first announced the change:
What's fascinating about this is that accounting firms need to differentiate themselves, yet, they can't help but copy each other. They talk the same (e.g. integrity! client service! diversity!) They do the same things (e.g. audit, tax, consulting). The career opportunities are the same. Oh yes, you can go on about "the people" but these people are the same people, too.
New and growing firms would be smart to brand themselves in a completely different way. Whether that's through design, niche services or clients, or a website that simply doesn't suck, it doesn't matter. The accounting profession is desperate for some originality (aside from shirtless men) and we won't get it from the alphabet soup of firms at the top.
Hopefully this one suits them for awhile. Have a great week.
For any of you