five conclusions from a new report.
by 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间 research
the accounting talent pipeline problem isn’t going away. it isn’t even improving.
but it isn’t hopeless.
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a recent report from the pennsylvania institute of cpas points out that, though the problem is big and the obstacles many, cpa firms can, with enough effort, hold on to the talent they’ve got.
and retaining talent is a lot less expensive than trying to attract it.
be warned
the report, “cpa talent retention 2024: keeping your best performers,” pulls no punches.
“readers be warned –” the executive summary says. “some of our findings point directly to the need for firms to make difficult and transformative changes to their practices. the inconvenient truth we uncovered is that the challenges that have contributed to severe pipeline constraints are also forcing the profession’s best talent out the door.”
the report looked at two large groups:
career changers – cpas and other accounting professionals across the nation who had 0-15 years of experience before they left a firm or the whole profession within the last five years.
current talent – cpas and other accounting professionals in pennsylvania with 3-10 years of experience, a cohort that has a high potential for leaving a firm or the profession.
the challenge, the report says, is to keep current talent from becoming career changers.
the report came to five crucial conclusions:
- there’s no quick fix, no silver bullet. jacking up salaries might help, but firms need to look at “whole person retention.” professionals, especially the younger ones, want flexible work options, a balanced workload, better benefits, more time off and professional development.
- most current talent – but far from all – would like to stay in the profession and with their current firms. more than 73 percent give their current jobs an approval rating of five or better on a scale of one to seven. still, that leaves a quarter of them at least a little shaky.
- workload management is broken. unreasonable and unsustainable expectations are obstructing the incoming pipeline while leaving the outflow spigot wide open.
- salaries are lower for accountants than for positions with comparable education requirements. so yeah, jacking up salaries is a big part of the solution. but with 54 percent of cpas in pennsylvania wanting to stay in the profession but not become a partner or principal, a good half of them are looking for something other than, or in addition to, money.
- firms need to re-evaluate and modify their business models. and they need to do so now, with urgency. next year, 27 percent of the workforce will be gen z, with their historically unprecedented expectations about workplace environment, culture and support. antiquated business models won’t give them what they want.
focus on retention
a focus on talent retention must be a cornerstone of any new business model. the average cost of replacing an employee in any industry is about half of the employee’s annual salary. the more skilled the position, the higher the cost. for a supervisor, it could be as much as 150 percent of an annual salary. in some cases, recruiting, hiring and onboarding a new employee can cost as much as $240,000.
retention: it may be the most important management challenge for every cpa firm. it deserves the utmost attention.