regional cpa firms go head-to-head with big four in talent wars

highly rated for ‘quality of life:’ moss adams, plante moran, friedman, bpm.

by 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间 

deloitte, kpmg and moss adams are gaining ground in the recruiting wars, according to a new survey of more than 8,000 accountants.

while pwc maintains its hold as the best brand in the business, second-ranked deloitte is closing the gap, and kpmg jumped one spot to fourth place, in the latest vault accounting 50, a ranking of the best accounting firms to work for.

even though the big 4 firms rank highly in the formal training category, mid-sized firms are big winners in quality of life rankings.

• michigan-based plante moran ranks no. 1 in 11 categories, including culture, overall satisfaction, informal training, business outlook, and firm leadership.
• new york city-based friedman ranks no. 1 in hours, work/life balance, and relationships with supervisors. and,
• san francisco-based bpm ranks no. 1 in overall diversity, minority diversity, and lgbt diversity.

meanwhile, chicago-based grant thornton got knocked back to fifth and west coast firm moss adams leaped three spots to no. 8, moving back into the top 10.

the top 10 firms in the survey are:

1. pwc
2. deloitte
3. ey
4. kpmg
5. grant thornton
6. bdo usa
7. plante moran
8. moss adams
9. crowe horwath
10. rsm

in another major move in the rankings, moss adams rose three spots, with strong showings in the benefits category (ranking no. 1 overall) and compensation category (no. 3).

according to one moss adams professional, “the overall compensation package is very generous: free public transportation, free food and drink, great health benefits, 401(k) match, maternity and paternity leave, and the list continues.”

mid-sized firms dominate the quality of life rankings

quality of life winners:

benefits: moss adams
business outlook: plante moran
client interaction: plante moran
compensation: brown smith wallace
csr initiatives: brown smith wallace
culture: plante moran
diversity (overall): burr pilger mayer
diversity (minorities): burr pilger mayer
diversity (women): frank rimerman + co.
diversity (lgbt): burr pilger mayer
firm leadership: plante moran
formal training: deloitte
hiring process: plante moran
hours: friedman
informal training: plante moran
internal mobility: plante moran
promotion policies: plante moran
relationships with supervisors: friedman
satisfaction: plante moran
travel requirements: plante moran
vacation policies: plante moran
work/life balance: friedman

still, accountants at peer firms tell vault that pwc is “the gold standard,” “the best brand of the big 4,” and “a great place to start your career—with lots of training.”

meanwhile, pwc insiders raved about the “tremendous support and very helpful advice from senior managers and partners,” “the incredibly helpful coaching system,” “the great company culture that’s built around very smart and motivated people,” “the endless learning opportunities,” the ability to “work with large clients on complex issues and get a ton of responsibility at an early age,” and the “flexible hours and ability to work from home.”

“pwc is still considered the best accounting firm to work for,” says derek loosvelt, vault’s senior finance editor. “this is the fifth straight year that pwc took the top spot in the accounting 50. it also again ranked no. 1 in the so-called prestige rankings.

however, deloitte, the no. 2 firm in the accounting 50 and in the rankings, is gaining ground. this year, in the accounting 50, there was only a 2 percent score differential separating pwc and deloitte, while last year that gap was 4 percent. and in the prestige rankings, there was just a 1.4 percent score differential this year separating the two, versus a 3 percent difference last year. this means that pwc and deloitte are just about neck and neck when it comes to offering the best place for “young accountants to begin their careers.”

this year, accountants at peer firms say deloitte is a “very strong global firm with smart, good people,” and it has “spectacular perks and a spectacular reputation.”

here’s one deloitte insider talking about the career development opportunities at the firm (deloitte again ranked no. 1 in the formal training category): “deloitte ensures that its professionals are developed through formal and informal training programs, client opportunities, and leadership roles. deloitte’s partners are very supportive of any learning and development programs or initiatives. managers are good about finding the right opportunities for staff and seniors, and they try to give the professionals diverse career experiences to build their knowledge base.”

researchers were also impressed by kpmg’s rise to no. 4 this year. last year, kpmg fell one place to no. 5, but this year the firm regained its place among the top four. helping it rise a spot, kpmg ranked no. 2 in formal training, only trailing deloitte, and kpmg ranked better than all other big 4 firms in promotion policies.

here’s a kpmg insider speaking about the firm’s excellent career development opportunities: “kpmg provides a great foundation for your career. from giving you the opportunity to lead an engagement early on to letting you be hands-on when it comes to complex areas of accounting, kpmg does a great job in developing new hires and employees at all levels. everyone in my office is super friendly and supportive and willing to help and explain things whenever necessary.”

 

posted on april 18, 2017