more big firms shut their doors to new college grads

some 88.7% of top firms rate problem-solving skills among the most important criteria in hiring new college grads. technical skills rank fifth, at 67%. (nace)

firms that overhired in the covid-19 boom are now trimming their ranks.

by 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间 research

despite widespread concerns in the profession about a talent shortage, the largest accounting firms in a new survey are cutting back on their hiring of new college accounting graduates by 16.1 percent this year.

more in staffing & recruiting: employee retention is easier than attractionpayroll leads job gains in tax & accounting sector |  disruptors: talent crisis? what talent crisis? |  letting staff go after tax season? bad idea |  firms culling clients as staffing woes persistcompensation’s up, but up enough to retain staff?

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reflecting broader economic uncertainties and budgetary constraints, half of all the biggest firms surveyed are gearing down for a recession, marking a sharp turnaround from the hiring spree sparked by a global pandemic that forced industries across the globe into transformational change, often staffed and driven by the biggest accounting and consulting firms.

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employee retention is easier than attraction

four people seated around table

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.

more: let interns fix the staffing shortage? | disruptors: talent crisis? what talent crisis? | 3 ways to raise the bar for your business | accountants’ advice: be careful, quick, creative … and lean | seven steps to a stronger future | accountants bullish locally, bearish nationally | top performers lead in leverage, culling, outsourcing | auditing standards ‘yellow book’ updated | firms culling clients as staffing woes persist | revenue up at 59% of accounting firms … and more good news | compensation’s up, but up enough to retain staff?
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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.
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let interns fix the staffing shortage?

source: iia

critical demand for data analytics, cybersecurity, and artificial intelligence skills.

by 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间 research

internships could play a pivotal role in addressing the talent needs of the profession, according to a new study.

more in talent & career development: talent crisis? what talent crisis? | why would anyone become a cpa? | five questions about facing challenges | it’s time to prepare the next generation | fifteen strategies for first-time supervisors | measure knowledge gaps (then close them)

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with 74 percent of internships designed to lead to permanent employment, these programs are not just supplemental but foundational to preparing students for professional roles.

still, only 28 percent of college programs make internships integral to the curriculum. read more →

accountants’ advice: be careful, quick, creative … and lean

businessman giving advice to female coworker

survey respondents look beyond tax season.

by 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间 research

just about every small business has an accountant, and smart business owners tap their accountant not just for tax prep but for general business advice.

and smart accountants offer smart advice. because what’s good for the client is good for the accountant.

more: seven steps to a stronger future | accountants bullish locally, bearish nationally | firms culling clients as staffing woes persist | are accountants charging too little? | revenue growth is top priority for small firms | is the cpa business model the clog in the pipeline? | accountants cozy up to clients with cas
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the 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间 2024 busy season barometer has harvested quite a bit of smart advice with an open-ended question about the best advice for small businesses.

responses bounced all over the business ballpark, but a lot of them warned of change and economic turbulence.
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seven steps to a stronger future

six people in business clothing lined up at start of athletic track

fees and business lines of course, but what about an operations person?

by 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间 research

the aicpa’s national management of an accounting practice (map) survey took a good look at a lot of data – revenues and profits, staff turnover and professional salaries, services and fees.

more: accountants bullish locally, bearish nationally | top performers lead in leverage, culling, outsourcing | revenue up at 59% of accounting firms … and more good news | chatgpt for the reluctant accountant | survey shows challenges, priorities shifting | accountants torn over 2024 economy, offer advice | survey: are you offering the right services?
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and then, toward the end, it says, “but all the data in the universe won’t do you any good if you don’t do something with it.”

it then calls on cpa firms to evolve if they want to survive and thrive through seismic shifts in technology and marketing.
read more →

accountants bullish locally, bearish nationally

one-quarter of accountants see trouble ahead for the source of their bread and butter.

by 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间 research

the trendlines 2024 busy season barometer is unearthing a perplexing paradox.

it seems that most cpas think their firm and their clients will do better this year – or at least no worse than last year, which itself was a pretty good year.

more: top performers lead in leverage, culling, outsourcing | auditing standards ‘yellow book’ updated | compensation’s up, but up enough to retain staff? | cpas needed to help small biz adopt ai | survey shows that tech remains the great divide | will unclogging the accounting pro pipeline kill mobility? | accountants bullish on income | survey: which niche’s the best niche?
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at the same time, they tend to see things getting worse for the national economy and small businesses in general.

what’s going on?
read more →

top performers lead in leverage, culling, outsourcing

two hands on keyboard, two hands doing other work with calculator

the causative difference? look at the amount of work delegated downward.

by 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间 research

the aicpa’s 2023 national management of an accounting practice (map) survey has detected some of what distinguishes firms that stand out as top performers.

the survey defines top performers as the top 25 percent of firms based on net remaining per partner.

more: business booming, but not as much as last year | busy season barometer offers clues for better business | end tax season meetings with clients … seriously | ftc nails turbotax for ‘free filing’ scam | can’t irs online accounts be more useful? | taxpayer assistance centers: a good idea that should be better | tax pros are expanding and earning more
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more, more, more

what makes a cpa firm a top performer? in a nutshell, more:

  • more leverage of partner expertise
  • more culling of clients
  • more cpas in the firm

read more →

business booming, but not as much as last year

how does your firm compare?

by 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间 research

if the early results from the 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间 2024 busy season barometer: emerging issues, opportunities, and trends hold true through april, this will be a pretty good year for the vast majority of accountants and tax practitioners – not quite as good as last year, but still, pretty good.

more: busy season barometer offers clues for better business | tax practitioners say happy days are here … again | brandon hall: firms try to make too much on tax prep | if only the irs’s tax pro were useful | id theft a problem for irs even when it doesn’t exist | irs still falling short on service | eight ways the irs can speed up processing tax returns | treasury ig sees progress at irs | how tax practitioners became cybersecurity risks
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despite difficulties finding staff and professionals, 45 percent of respondents say they have increased their client list by at least 5 percent. (last year, it was 65 percent.)

in fact, 14 percent have seen an increase of over 10 percent. good, but not as good as last year’s 22 percent.
read more →

busy season barometer offers clues for better business

workers in busy office

take a tip from a peer.

by 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间 research

the 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间 busy season barometer: emerging issues, opportunities, and trends is more than just a survey of the state of the industry at cpa firms across the nation. it also offers clues to what firms are doing to make the busy season better, easier and more profitable.

the clues are in the comments – open-ended answers where practitioners tell us what they’re doing, how they’re feeling and where they’re going.

more: tax practitioners say happy days are here … again | the irs is coming! get your clients into compliance | end tax season meetings with clients … seriously | brandon hall: firms try to make too much on tax prep | eight steps to getting started with ai: a guide for tax professionals | ftc nails turbotax for ‘free filing’ scam | if only the irs’s tax pro were useful | id theft a problem for irs even when it doesn’t exist
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one of the best questions is “what are you doing differently this year?” each answer reflects an attempt to make the best of a stressful situation – the annual tax season.

here are a few quotes to think about, categorized by how well various respondents’ seasons are going this year. each is an idea that might make your year better.
read more →

auditing standards ‘yellow book’ updated

words "time for an update" on clock face

the changes are more than just technical.

by 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间 research

america has a wealth of governments. they’re all over the place. municipal governments. county governments. parishes, boroughs, villages, hamlets. special purpose local governments. school districts, fire districts, tax districts. independent authorities, tribal councils and councils of governments. state governments, territorial governments and, of course, the big one in washington, district of columbia, with its thousands of branches, arms and agencies.

love them or hate them, there they are. tens of thousands of governments. and they all have one thing in common: they need to be audited.

more: firms culling clients as staffing woes persist | revenue up at 59% of accounting firms … and more good news | chatgpt for the reluctant accountant | survey shows challenges, priorities shifting | can big data spot financial fraud? | accountants torn over 2024 economy, offer advice | survey: are you offering the right services? | survey: 42% of accountants turn away work over staff shortages | talent gap widening: be very scared
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or, to put it another way, they need auditors.

being governments, their accounting and auditing standards are different from those of nongovernmental entities.
read more →

firms culling clients as staffing woes persist

man in suit exiting office building

others tap outsourcing, training clerical staff as solutions.

by 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间 research

early results from the 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间 2024 busy season barometer: emerging issues, opportunities, and trends are showing a painfully persistent problem with staff shortages, though it seems the hardship may have improved a bit since last year.

more: revenue up at 59% of accounting firms … and more good news | compensation’s up, but up enough to retain staff? | are accountants charging too little? | chatgpt for the reluctant accountant | cpas needed to help small biz adopt ai | revenue growth is top priority for small firms | is the cpa business model the clog in the pipeline?
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this year, like last year, survey respondents are reporting staffing as the second most common concern. last year, it was reported by 47 percent, almost tied with the main concern: late or unprepared clients.

this year, uncooperative clients still rank first, at 50 percent, but staffing concerns have dropped to 37 percent.
read more →

revenue up at 59% of accounting firms … and more good news

financial graph on blackboard

technology is key for competitive advantage.

by 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间 research

the 2024 accounting industry report from wolters kluwer cuts through a lot of the underbrush of sentiments and anecdotal evidence about the state of the accounting business today. backed by statistical data, the report presents a some significant truths about the state of the industry.

more: compensation’s up, but up enough to retain staff? | are accountants charging too little? | revenue growth is top priority for small firms | is the cpa business model the clog in the pipeline? | accountants cozy up to clients with cas | survey: cpas culling clients for better work-life balance | women-owned businesses upbeat but need help | accountants to the rescue as startups struggle | looking for recent grads? good luck | what the corporate transparency act means for accountants | understanding the full cost of a data breach | why the u.s. must act now to protect our online privacy
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and the general state is good. most firms are growing, profitability is up, new services are surging, and serious practices are making efforts to improve the quality of client experience.

here are some of the most notable facts.
read more →

compensation’s up, but up enough to retain staff?

young woman seated at laptop counting money

people are leaving the profession. more money is one solution.

by 卡塔尔世界杯常规比赛时间 research

the aicpa’s 2023 national management of an accounting practice (map) survey came up with an odd statistic. kind of hard to believe until you get the context.

the finding: the median employee turnover rate across all cpa firms is … 0 percent.

yes, that’s a zero.

more: are accountants charging too little? | chatgpt for the reluctant accountant | survey shows challenges, priorities shifting | can big data spot financial fraud? | accountants torn over 2024 economy, offer advice | survey: are you offering the right services? | survey: 42% of accountants turn away work over staff shortages | talent gap widening: be very scared | cpa biz is booming, but for how long? | the 7 categories of cybersecurity solutions firms need
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but wait. a median, as they say, is only half the story.

the bigger story – the broader context – is that more than half the responding practices had zero turnover, so the median fell at zero percent. but that goose egg doesn’t reflect the reality of firms at the other side of the spectrum.
read more →