The World is Changing. Are Your Hiring Practices and Benefits Programs?

Here is what would seem like a simple question – What kind of college graduates do CPA firms hire?  When I came out of college the answer was pretty simple – accounting graduates.  Duh.  Well, according to a new report (“Trends”) from the American Institute of Certified Public Accounts (“AICPA”), 31% of the new graduates in 2018 that public accounting firms hired were non-accounting majors. Almost 1 out of every 3 new hires was not an “accountant.” Does this surprise you?

These numbers are actually causing many in the CPA profession to reevaluate things, including the actual CPA exam itself – what it should look like, who can take it, etc.  As a CPA, I have found these changes to our profession interesting.  CPAs have always been on the leading edge of business changes as consultants and advisors to clients. However, as Barry Melancon, CPA President of the AICPA said of the Trends Report, “Increased demand for technology skills is shifting the accounting firm hiring model.”  With more and more of the accounting profession becoming automated and technology focused, the old fashioned debit and credit skills are becoming less valuable on their own.

I suppose all of this makes sense when you think about it, but what has this shift required of accounting firms and their hiring practices?  It’s caused them to think differently in many areas. The traditional career paths are changing.  Incentive structures are changing.  Work habits of these new non-accounting graduates are different.  How is your business model changing and have you considered what these changes mean to your recruitment and staffing model?

All business models change.  In fact, if the CPA profession can change as fast as it is doing, I am quite sure that almost every other business is changing as I type this.  Are you a leader in your organization, and are you thinking about how your next new hire could be different from your last?   Do you post positions simply to fill the same role of the prior person?  Or are you thinking strategically about how your business is changing and adjusting accordingly?

I would suggest that a growing business needs to constantly be considering what it will look like and need 2 to 3 steps out.  Part of that analysis should include your benefits program including your retirement plan(s).  This could be both your qualified plan – 401k – and non-qualified plans.  Just because you haven’t done something in the past is no reason not to consider it in the future.

If you want to have a discussion around the next generation of retirement plan and planning for your organization, please give me a call.  I would love to talk to you about the unexpected.
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Pete Welsh a/k/a 401kGuy