STAFFING & RECRUITING

Profit Squeeze: Billing Rates Rebound, but Staff Costs Are Rising Faster

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Accountants show renewed pricing power as rates gain 5.7%.

Mind the gap: CPA firms are raising billing rates at about a 6% rate, not quite enough to match the rising costs of staff.

By CPA Trendlines

CPA firms are raising prices again as they enter 2026, even as hiring remains weak and wage pressures show little sign of easing. The combination is tightening margins across the profession.

MORE Outlook 2026, Pay, Hiring, Pricing

A CPA Trendlines analysis of new pricing data shows that billing rates for core CPA firm services are rebounding sharply, reversing an earlier soft patch and vaulting fees to near record highs. At the same time, employment growth across accounting firms has stalled, while wage growth remains elevated, underscoring the growing imbalance between pricing power and labor costs.

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Use Workflow Apps to Pump Up Profits

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You’ve been reinventing the wheel. Why?

By Jody Grunden
Building the Virtual CFO Firm in the Cloud

As a business grows, it becomes necessary to systemize the processes in order to increase the team’s efficiency and deliver a consistent experience for clients.

MORE by Jody Grunden
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One of the challenges that comes with creating systems can be getting every team member on board with the process you want to put in place. For example, Joe may have one way of doing things, while Karen does them another way and Susie yet another.

Creating a system will likely require all of them to make some changes in their own day-to-day workflows.
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Epp and Schrock: Firms that Listen Keep Their People | MOVE Like This

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Paychecks and perks are no longer enough to retain talent.

This is a preview. The complete 1-hour video episode, with commentary and transcript, is first available exclusively to PRO Members | Go PRO here
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MOVE Like This
With Bonnie Buol Ruszczyk
For CPA Trendlines Research

In this episode of MOVE Like This, Bonnie Buol Ruszczyk sits down with Kristi Epp, a tax partner, and Amber Schrock, an advisory partner and Las Vegas market leader at Frazier & Deeter, explore how the accounting profession is evolving and how firm leaders can better support their people. Both guests share their career journeys and how they found long-term professional homes at the firm, emphasizing mentorship, growth opportunities, and a culture that values people as much as performance. 

MORE MOVE

Epp and Schrock note that the past five years, particularly the post-COVID period, have fundamentally reshaped accounting. Remote work, automation, and regulatory complexity are now the norm, while consolidation and private equity activity are accelerating change across the profession. Frazier & Deeter’s recent growth initiatives, including acquisitions, reflect this shifting landscape and the need for firms to think differently about scale, talent, and integration.  READ MORE →