salary

10 Tips to the IRS for Beefing Up Staff

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Two businesswomen meeting in an office

Guess who has the federal government’s worst retention rate for employees under 40?

By CPA Trendlines Research

If you think it’s hard staffing a CPA firm, imagine the challenges at the Internal Revenue Service where

  • the pay’s not so good
  • laws limit bonuses
  • it takes three months to hire an applicant
  • federal bureaucracy gums up the process
  • the hiring process uses antiquated technology
  • only a remote office can authorize many hires

MORE: Eight Ways the IRS Can Speed Up Processing Tax Returns | IRS Plays Whac-A-Mole with the Phones | VCs Plunk $60 Million into AI-Powered ‘Autonomous’ Tax Prep | How Tax Practitioners Became Cybersecurity Risks
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  • the recruitment and retention budgets are austere
  • training programs, spaces and equipment are inadequate
  • more than 100 full-time positions need to be filled every day
  • over half of employees will be eligible to retire within five years

The Taxpayer Advocacy Service says the IRS needs to deal with these problems, and it’s going to take money, effort, technology and legislation to get it done.
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PCPS MAP: Profits and Pay Lag behind Revenue Gains at CPA Firms

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Revenue grows 11%. Profit trails at 4%. Entry-level salaries not ‘competitive.’


By CPA Trendlines Research

CPA firm revenues are growing strongly, but profits and entry-level salaries are failing to keep pace, according to new survey data analyzed by CPA Trendlines.

MORE in SURVEYS & RESEARCH: Firms Rev Up Expansion Plans | Overcoming the Five Hurdles to Advisory Services | Research: Accounting Pros Cautiously Optimistic about Generative AI | Why Compliance Still Matters. But It’s Not Enough. |  New Businesses Mean New Business | How to Transform Your Team into Trusted Advisors

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Although the average base salary for new entrants to the profession increased by $5,000 to $50,000 in the fiscal year 2022, this still lags behind comparable pay in fields such as engineering, the AICPA says in commentary accompanying the new 2023 National Management of an Accounting Practice Survey, adding "competitive compensation is crucial to firms’ ability to attract talent."

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Staff Need Good Pay and TLC

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table of responses

They’re scarce. Here’s how to keep them happy.

By CPA Trendlines Research

It’s no news to the accounting industry that staff and professionals are hard to find and hard to keep from wandering off to some other firm.

MORE: SURVEY: Accountants Economic Outlook Brightens | The 7 Categories of Cybersecurity Solutions Firms Need | Understanding the Full Cost of a Data Breach | Research: Accounting Pros Cautiously Optimistic about Generative AI | How Auditors Can Beat AI | Why the U.S. Must Act Now to Protect Our Online Privacy
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And the law of supply and demand hasn’t failed to rule, according to the Global Talent Trends 2023 survey of the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants: Scarce employees expect a good salary, good treatment and a chance to work outside the office.

Identifying and dealing with these employees’ expectations is essential to a continuous and successful flow of business. The survey found five challenges to that flow.
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Three Ways to Run a Break-Even Analysis

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woman working on calculator in front of two computer monitorsHow to tell what the profit should be.

By Ed Mendlowitz
77 Ways to Wow!

Break-even analysis is a budgetary process designed to tell you how much sales are needed to break even, and how much you will make or lose if you exceed or fall short of this “break-even” sales amount. Properly used, it can become a very potent tool.

MORE: The Top 11 Financial Statement Ratios | Insurance You Might Not Know You Need | Solos Need Plans for Death, Disability | You Don’t Need This, But Your Survivors Do | Five Ways to Ward Off Fraud in Not-For-Profits | Client Hires New Manager: You Need a Plan | Anatomy of a Fraud
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In a break-even analysis, all costs and expenses must be separated into “fixed” and “variable” categories. Designations such as “Costs of Goods Sold,” “Selling” or “General and Administrative” are irrelevant.
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The Office Is Over

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road in grassland

Plus a worrying note on salaries.

By Marc Rosenberg
The Rosenberg MAP Survey: National Study of CPA Firm Statistics

Every year, we ask the industry’s top consultants to share their observations from CPA firms across the country. How do you think the next 12 months will unfold? And how would you assess the last 12 months?

MORE: OUTLOOK: Private Equity Comes for Accounting Firms
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Here are my thoughts regarding 2023:

  1. Firms will continue to struggle with all facets of remote work. Firms will never get back to working in the office as a norm, not because of COVID-19, but because their people – especially partners – don’t want to work in the office full-time.

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