TALENT & CAREER DEVELOPMENT

Penny Breslin: How to Face Hiring Challenges Head-On

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The Disruptors: Penny Breslin says don’t blame robots.

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With Liz Farr
for CPA Trendlines

The accounting profession has faced staffing issues for years now and, especially post-pandemic, the problem has compounded. Penny Breslin, CPA Trendlines contributor and the founder of MoneyPenny, talks about how firms are facing the hiring challenges and popular solutions that seem to be working, including using predominantly cloud-based apps for collaboration and engagement and taking a true evaluation of the talents and skills needed for each position.

MORE DISRUPTORS: Blake Oliver: Why Tax Work Yearns To Be Free | Private Equity Explodes in U.K. | Brannon Poe: The Status Quo Must Go  |  Accounting Nerds, Unlock Your Super Powers  | Private Equity vs. the CPA Firm Partnership The FinTech Flood: Accounting Will Never Be the Same  |  Think Small to Think Big with Matt Wilkinson | Your Sales Tax Headaches Are Only Just Beginning | When Financial Statements Go Extinct with Corey Schmidt  |  Can Geraldine Carter Save Accountants from Themselves? |  Re-Inventing Accounting with Tyler Anderson |  Turning Client Service into New Revenue

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Breslin says firms need to look at the talent they have and realize that not everyone has to be “a duplicate of yourself.”

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Better Ways to Attract and Retain Talent

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New staffing strategies for the next-generation accounting firm

By Hitendra Patil
Client Accounting Services: The Definitive Success Guide

Topmost thought leader Ronald J. Baker said, “The World Bank reports that 80 percent of the developed world’s wealth resides in human capital, illustrating that we’ve been in a knowledge economy since the 1950s. Yet most accounting firms are utilizing a business model developed during the Industrial Era, with a relentless focus on efficiency and a ‘we sell time’ mentality.”

MORE: Clients Have Higher Expectations | 8 Ways to Create Your CAS Practice | The Big Money in CAS for Small Firms | What CAS Is and Isn’t | Do You Value Your CAS Value? | The Mindset You Need for Client Accounting Services
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In his succinct and soul-searching praise for “Accountaneur: The Entrepreneurial Accountant,” Baker urged, “from changing your business model to focusing on developing your firm’s human capital, and more – will keep your firm relevant as we encounter an increasingly turbulent and changing marketplace.”
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Four Ways to Propel New CPAs into Growing Your Firm

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Young businesswoman talking to her client and using tabletPractice makes progress.

By Sarah Johnson Dobek
Inovautus Consulting

It’s no secret most accounting firms are facing partner succession and will continue to do so for years to come. The most common area of concern is how to involve new CPAs in your firm’s growth activities.

MORE: Five Better Ways to Say No | Six Ways to Engage Young Managers, Staff in Firm Growth | The Right DNA for Growth | How Crisis Illuminates Your Biz Dev Skills | Business Development and Sales Aren’t Scary
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The short solution is young staff members should be involved in anything that will help them learn the business and develop the skills they need to lead one day, whether that means the partner track or some other role. It’s never too early to start. In fact, immersion should be expected from the first day they walk into the firm.

Here are four instant and easy ways to get your young people involved in the business:

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CPA Hiring Rises as Number of New Grads Continues to Decline

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Plus: Where the new entry-level jobs are.

Source: IDEPS, AICPA

By CPA Trendlines

The accounting industry has long worried about the gradual disappearance of the profession – not for lack of need, but for lack of professionals.

MORE on STAFFING: When an Employee’s Growth Has Gaps  |  Private Equity Shakes Up U.K. Firms  |  My First Trainee  |  Unlock Your Accountant Super Powers  |  From Senior to Manager in 12 Quick Questions  |  Staffing Crisis: 40% Are Looking for New Jobs  |  Nine Biz-Dev Metrics for Making Partner  |  CPA ROI DOA: Why the Next-Gen Accountant Won’t Be a CPA  |

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Let’s face it – accounting isn’t especially attractive to college students. It has a reputation for being dull, and anyone who has talked with experienced practitioners knows that a job can require long hours.

And then there are the extra hours of study required to pass the CPA exam. And then there are the years of work (and relatively low pay) required to really learn accountancy. And then there’s the CPE needed – official and un – just to keep up with changing rules and regs.

But there are upsides, too. READ MORE →