AI

Horton: Burnout Isn’t Inevitable in Audit | The Disruptors

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Analytics, automation, and AI will reshape audit roles—and that should excite CPAs.

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The Disruptors
With Liz Farr

Audit is notorious for long hours, terrible work-life balance, reliance on endless checklists, and repeating the same mind-numbingly tedious procedures year after year. But some, like Kathryn Horton, are creating a different path for success as an auditor.  

 At her solo firm, Kathryn K. Horton CPA, she provides outsourced audit and analytics consulting services to firms nationwide. As “auditor on call,” she steps into manager and senior manager roles for local, regional, and national firms, helping them increase capacity while reducing staff burnout. 

MORE STREAMING: Chang: Killing SALY, One Agent at a Time | Vanover: 5-Star Firms Don’t Bill by the Hour | Kless: Profit Is a Result. Flourishing Is the Purpose | Whitman: Build Culture on ‘Progress,’ Not Change | Shein: No PE? No M&A? No Problem | Hood and Weber: Time to RISE | Proctor: Turn Dumb Ideas into Brilliant Solutions | Carter-Gray: How 1 Poor Review Strengthened the Firm | Hartman: Upwork to “40 Under 40” in 3 Years | Telka: Transform Fear into Fuel | Woodard: Move Past Reports; Deliver Results | Baker: Find True Purpose to End Burnout | Brolin: The W.I.N. Leadership Formula | Gertrudes: How EOS & “Unreasonable Hospitality” Reshaped GrowthLab | Vilms: The Power of People in a Tech-Driven World | Dickerson: From Diagnosis to Disruption | Kapilovich: Treat People Like People | Martha Yasso: From Wall Street to Main Street | Jackie Meyer: Tax Plans in 90 Seconds? Believe It  | Erica Goode: Build a $200K Firm in 15hrs/Week |

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During her eight years in public accounting, Horton says, “I did struggle with burnout at various times, where the work–life balance really wasn’t a balance anymore.” A significant factor was the hyper-connectedness of today’s technology, where “we’re essentially on call 24/7” responding to emails and calls, which made it “really hard to unplug and just recharge the batteries.” 

Another factor was demanding clients. “I realized that 80% of my stress was coming from 20% of my clients,” Horton recalls.  

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Stein Smith: Blockchain, AI, and the Future of Advisory | Holistic Guide to Wealth Management

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Firms that translate AI-driven data into clear insight will lead the next era of advisory. 

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Is your firm truly ready for tax season—or just hoping to survive it? Join this 90-minute webinar featuring an Accounting ARC Live panel with thought leaders who know what it takes to optimize performance under pressure.

By Rory Henry CFP®, BFA™
For CPA Trendlines

Few people have been able to bridge the gap between emerging technology and the accounting profession the way Dr. Sean Stein Smith does. A CPA, researcher, Forbes contributor, and professor at Lehman College, Stein Smith serves on the advisory board of the Wall Street Blockchain Alliance and has spent more than a decade helping practitioners make sense of blockchain, crypto, and artificial intelligence. 

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“The whole blockchain conversation has moved from the back burner to the front [burner],” he says. “Every major financial institution is entering the on-chain space.”

And CPAs can no longer afford to ignore it.  

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IRS Set for a Turbulent 2026 Season as TIGTA Flags Persistent Weaknesses

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Heading into 2026, problems from the past several filing seasons are still unresolved.

By CPA Trendlines Research

The coming 2026 filing season is shaping up to be another high-stakes test of the Internal Revenue Service’s capacity to serve taxpayers and practitioners, with new reports from the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration offering an unusually candid look at the agency’s most vulnerable operational seams.

Join the survey. Get the results.

MORE: Firms Brace for a Tough Tax Season

How smart pros are prepping for tax season:
Join the survey. Get the results.

Taken together, the findings forecast a filing season characterized by incremental improvements in training but overshadowed by enduring structural constraints in telephone service, submission processing, identity verification, and staffing.

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5 Ways to Stay Ahead of the AI Curve | Accounting Influencers

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Automation isn’t replacing accountants—it’s exposing who can’t evolve.

This is a preview. The complete video episode, with commentary and transcript, is first available exclusively to PRO Members | Go PRO here

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Accounting Influencers
With Rob Brown

Artificial intelligence isn’t a future disruptor—it’s already embedded in accounting. The profession’s survival depends on how quickly firms adapt.

“The robots are coming—scratch that—they’re already here,” says Accounting Influencers host Rob Brown. “AI literacy isn’t optional anymore. If you’re treating AI as tomorrow’s problem, you’re already behind the curve.”

The latest episode explores the seismic impact of automation on accounting and the urgent need for firms to transform their skills, strategies, and structures.

Citing a McKinsey report, Brown notes that nearly 80% of organizations already use AI in at least one core function. “It’s pervasive now,” he says. “Reconciliation, data entry, transaction classification—AI eats those jobs for breakfast.”

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Strategic AI, Not Shiny Objects | ARC

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Leaders tie AI to real workflows, not wish lists, and adoption follows. 

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Is your firm truly ready for tax season—or just hoping to survive it? Join this 90-minute webinar featuring an Accounting ARC Live panel with thought leaders who know what it takes to optimize performance under pressure. 

Accounting ARC
With Liz Mason, Byron Patrick, and Donny Shimamoto
Center for Accounting Transformation

Accounting leaders are accelerating AI deployment across tax, audit, and advisory—but three accounting veterans and hosts of Accounting ARC argue the difference between adoption and shelfware comes down to focus, guardrails, and relentless training. 

On the latest episode, hosts Liz Mason, CPA; Byron Patrick, CPA.CITP, CGMA; and Donny Shimamoto, CPA.CITP, CGMA; dissect how large firms are approaching Microsoft Copilot and adjacent tools. They agree that leaders should start now, but do so strategically. 

MORE Accounting ARC: Don’t Get Fired by Your Own Automation | What Amazon Doesn’t Tell You | Royalties, Residuals, and Reality Checks | ARC-SLC | Free Speech Is a Right; Respect Is a Responsibility | Cash Bags, Casinos & Audits: How First Jobs Shape Us | Gen Z Redefines Careers | Bootleggers, Baptitsts & CPAs: Rethinking Licensure | CPA Firm Ownership Under Fire | Walking Violation: When Showing Your CPA Gets You in Trouble | Audit Bags to TikTok Tags, Gen Z Talks Success | Students Challenge Accounting’s Traditional Career Path | True Grit: Recognizing Struggles That Shape Our Successes |More Admins, Fewer Students, No Plan | What Career Advice Gets Wrong for Gen Z – And How to Fix It | Your Identity is Not a Liability | Burnout, Be Gone: Accounting Needs a Boundary Breakthrough

Patrick, CEO of VERIFYiQ and co-founder and educator at TB Academy, opens with a caution that resonates across enterprise tech cycles: many organizations feel pressured to adopt generative AI without clearly defining expected outcomes. He urges leaders to ask what success specifically looks like, whether that is fewer review points, faster cycle times on close, or reduced audit adjustments. 

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Bot Wars: Wolters Kluwer, Intuit, Thomson Reuters Battle for AI Dominance in CPA Firms | Cornerstone Report

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Smart new toolbox or Pandora’s Box? Inside the surge behind agentic AI.

By CPA Trendlines Research
Cornerstone Report

The accounting industry is undergoing a seismic technological shift as artificial intelligence transitions from a buzzword to a business imperative.

MORE Cornerstone Reports: Private Equity Update: Over 90 Deals, $200 Billion in Value | Intuit Fires Back with Agentic AI after Xero Nabs Melio | Xero Buys Melio for $3 Billion in Race for ‘The Active GL’ | Gen AI in Accounting: Epic Transformation, or Overheated Hype? | Gen Z Surges into Accounting for All the Reasons Your Mother Told You | Major Changes to Circular 230: Implications for Tax Professionals | Salary and Compensation Outlook for Small CPA Firms | Battling the Staffing Crisis: Is a Little-Known, But Controversial, Visa Program the Answer? | Twelve Years and Out: Seasoned Accountants Join the Exodus. | Jobs Outlook: Strong and Steady Growth in Hiring and Earnings for U.S. Accountants | Student Accounting Enrollment Shows Third Year of Recovery | CPA Billing Rates, Tax Return Fees, and Client Accounting Pricing at CPA Firms

MORE AI: 5 Ways to Stay Ahead of the AI Curve | Accounting Influencers | Strategic AI, Not Shiny Objects | Bot Wars: Wolters Kluwer, Intuit, Thomson Reuters Battle for AI Dominance in CPA Firms | Don’t Get Fired by Your Own Automation | Don’t Let AI Sound Smarter Than You | Farlee: AI and Outsourcing Shape Careers | TaxPlanIQ Escalates the Battle in Tax Planning Software | Why Advisory Is Broken. And What Comes Next | Haase, Radzinsky: Inside the TaxDome-Juno AI Alliance

In the past year, CPA firms across the U.S. have quietly begun deploying generative AI assistants, machine learning tools, and “agentic” AI platforms to automate audits, prepare taxes, and provide financial insights.

It’s astonishing:  The profession has reached a tipping point where those not investing in AI risk being left behind.

In this CPA Trendlines Research Cornerstone Report:

  • How CPA Firms Are Embracing AI

  • AI Adoption Surges from Experimentation to Mainstream

  • The New Agentic AI Toolbox: Platforms and Solutions Leading the Charge

  • Measuring the Payoff: Efficiency, ROI, and Firm Economics in the AI Era

  • Talent in the Age of AI: How Roles and Skills Are Evolving

  • AI in Action: Use Cases and Success Stories from Firms

  • Navigating Risks, Regulation, and Ethical Challenges

  • Overcoming Implementation Hurdles: Change Management and Best Practices

  • The Road Ahead: Strategies for Firm Leaders

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Don’t Get Fired by Your Own Automation | ARC

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“Waiting this one out is not an option. The rate of change is too fast.”

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Accounting ARC
With Liz Mason, Byron Patrick, and Donny Shimamoto
Center for Accounting Transformation

Artificial intelligence is not replacing accountants; it is replacing the parts of accounting that accountants least want to do. That is the consensus of Liz Mason, CPA; Byron Patrick, CPA.CITP, CGMA; and Donny Shimamoto, CPA.CITP, CGMA, who devote the latest Accounting ARC to reframing AI as an accelerant for professional judgment rather than a threat to jobs.

MORE Accounting ARC: What Amazon Doesn’t Tell You | Royalties, Residuals, and Reality Checks | ARC-SLC | Free Speech Is a Right; Respect Is a Responsibility | Cash Bags, Casinos & Audits: How First Jobs Shape Us | Gen Z Redefines Careers | Bootleggers, Baptitsts & CPAs: Rethinking Licensure | CPA Firm Ownership Under Fire | Walking Violation: When Showing Your CPA Gets You in Trouble | Audit Bags to TikTok Tags, Gen Z Talks Success | Students Challenge Accounting’s Traditional Career Path | True Grit: Recognizing Struggles That Shape Our Successes |More Admins, Fewer Students, No Plan | What Career Advice Gets Wrong for Gen Z – And How to Fix It | Your Identity is Not a Liability | Burnout, Be Gone: Accounting Needs a Boundary Breakthrough

Patrick, CEO of VERIFYiQ and founder and instructor for TB Academy, begins with a familiar refrain from social media: AI will put accountants out of business. Mason, CEO of High Rock Accounting, answers with little patience. If a practitioner’s value is “typing numbers into a screen,” she says, then replacement is inevitable. The hosts argue that firms win when they let technology handle the typing and redeploy human time to analysis, communication, and decision support.

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Don’t Let AI Sound Smarter Than You | Accounting Influencers

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Keep your own voice in charge.

This is a preview. The complete video episode, with commentary and transcript, is first available exclusively to PRO Members | Go PRO here
Sponsored by Poe Group Advisors: Helping accountants buy, build, and sell exceptional firms. See Today’s Special Offer
Subscribe to CPA Trendlines podcasts anywhere: Apple, Google/YouTube, Spotify, iHeart, Deezer, Amazon Music, Audible, Player FM, Audacy, RSS.

Sponsored by Poe Group Advisors: Helping accountants buy, build, and sell exceptional firms. See Today’s Special Offer

Accounting Influencers
With Rob Brown

In the race to stay relevant in accounting, artificial intelligence has emerged as both a powerful accelerator and a quiet threat. In this episode of the Accounting Influencers podcast, the conversation dives deep into how accountants can harness AI to amplify their visibility and credibility—without losing their authenticity.

AI tools like ChatGPT, Copilot, and Jasper have made it easier than ever for professionals to create content that showcases their expertise. Need a LinkedIn post, a client email, or a blog idea? You can generate it in seconds. But speed comes with a price. The danger, as host Rob Brown notes, is mistaking efficiency for originality.

“AI is fast. AI is smart. But AI has no soul,” says Brown. “It’s never sat with a client in crisis or led a team through busy season. It hasn’t lived your story.”

The temptation to let AI speak for you is understandable. Accountants are busy, and content creation can feel daunting. Yet, when AI-generated posts sound polished but generic, professionals risk blending into the background. The very tool designed to help them stand out could make them indistinguishable.

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Rosenberg MAP: Staff Turnover Falls to Record Low

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Are CPA firm retention tactics finally paying off?

By CPA Trendlines Research
The Rosenberg Survey

Staff turnover at CPA firms has fallen to its lowest level in years, signaling that the profession’s investments in culture, compensation and flexibility are paying dividends.

MORE: The 2025 Rosenberg MAP Survey is available from CPA Trendlines here.

The 2025 Rosenberg MAP Survey reports average professional staff turnover at 11.1 percent, down sharply from 18.8 percent in 2022 and the lowest since before the pandemic, marking a major shift after years of talent turbulence.

Firms that struggled to recruit and retain staff during the labor shortages of 2021 and 2022 now report greater stability and stronger pipelines.

“This trend may reflect firms’ stronger retention strategies,” the survey notes. “Lower turnover not only reduces recruitment and training costs, but also helps preserve institutional knowledge and maintain stronger client relationships.” READ MORE →

Rosenberg Survey: Efficiency Slips as Staffing Expands

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Now available from CPA Trendlines here

Productivity drives profitability as never before.

By CPA Trendlines Research
The Rosenberg Survey

After several years of steady gains in productivity, CPA firms are seeing a slight decline in revenue per person, suggesting firms are adding staff faster than they are growing revenue, even as hiring rebounds and turnover drops.

MORE: The 2025 Rosenberg MAP Survey is available from CPA Trendlines here.

According to the new 2025 Rosenberg Survey, the erosion in average revenue per full-time equivalent employee comes after consistent increases from 2020 through 2024. Larger firms are still posting the highest efficiency levels. But the overall trend points to a mild dilution of productivity as practices rebuild teams and expand support infrastructure following years of lean staffing. READ MORE →

Partner Pay Hits $615,000 But Lags Behind Revenue Growth

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Precision management now drives partner prosperity.

Now available from CPA Trendlines here

 

Precision management now drives partner prosperity.

By CPA Trendlines Research
The Rosenberg Survey

After years of strong top-line expansion, CPA firm partners are finding their personal earnings growth lagging behind overall revenue gains, according to the 2025 Rosenberg Survey.

MORE: The 2025 Rosenberg MAP Survey is available from CPA Trendlines here.

Average income per equity partner is rising just 3.2 percent this year to $615,000, compared with double-digit revenue increases in the last two years. The survey concludes that leverage, the ratio of professional staff to partners, and billing rate management remain the most decisive drivers of profitability.

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