Capacity Articles

Prospective CPAs now have another way to pursue the designation in Virginia — without a requirement to obtain 150 hours of education. This new CPA pathway will encourage even more accountants to become CPAs, increasing the talent pool into...

Potential employees are looking to work for organizations that are focused on providing staff with career empowerment, flexibility in terms of work/life balance, a work environment that promotes diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI), and a more balanced commitment to helping staff grow professionally while simultaneously growing the overall practice.

Although popular and successful in other industries, returnships have remained largely untouched by the accounting profession. Experts share why CPA firms should consider tapping into this retention tool to combat the ongoing talent crisis.

Burnout is fueling workplace frustration, cynicism and absenteeism. Leaders can chart a path forward and right the ship. Even the fastest-growing companies aren’t immune. The evidence is clear: Leaders recognize the problem. But the real question is, how will they fix it?

The VSCPA applauds the Virginia House and Senate for passing VSCPA-backed legislation to address a crucial barrier preventing accountants from becoming CPAs — a requirement to obtain 150 hours of secondary education before becoming licensed.

Legislation is alive and under consideration during the 2025 Virginia General Assembly session, which technically began Jan. 8, 2025.

For Immediate Release
 
 Emily Walker, VSCPA
 (804) 612-9428
 [email protected]
 
 Richmond (Feb. 17, 2025) — The Virginia Society of Certified Public Accountants (VSCPA) applauds the Virginia House and Senate for passing VSCPA-backed...

It’s getting increasingly expensive to hire and retain employees, especially with unskilled or lower skill positions. So, how can prudent employers offset increasing labor costs? The answers can be found by investigating and pursuing labor incentives, typically at the federal and state levels, ahead of future hiring.

The VSCPA has updated its Board position on substantial equivalency and practice mobility, as well as responded to recent exposure drafts. In addition, we are championing legislation to address the profession's pipeline challenges.

At its Nov. 8, 2024, meeting, the VSCPA Board of Directors approved revisions to its standing position statement on practice mobility and licensure:
 
 The Society endorses automatic practice mobility for out-of-state CPAs with licenses in...

Across the country, states and localities are addressing population and migration shifts by offering relocation incentives. While no Virginia communities are listed on the site, West Virginia communities of the eastern panhandle, Greenbrier Valley and Morgantown all offer incentives. Learn more about this growing trend.

Recruiting in any industry is a bit of a numbers game. Finding the best candidate for a role means sorting through hundreds or maybe thousands of resumes to screen potential candidates—and that’s only the beginning of the hiring process. For...

With more workers feeling detached from their employers, some accounting firm leaders say building a strong work culture is the key to engaging and retaining top talent.
 
 By Bridget McCrea
 
 On any given workday, just 33% of employees are...

Where are the best accountants? That question still keeps CPA firm leaders up at night, according to the most recent results of the biennial CPA Firm Top Issues Survey from the American Institute of CPAs (AICPA) Private Company Practice Section (PCPS). 

For Immediate Release 
 
 Tina Bates, VSCPA 
 (804) 612 -9416 
 [email protected] 
 X: @vscpanews 
 
 Richmond (June 7, 2024) — The Virginia Society of Public Accountants (VSCPA) Educational Foundation recently selected its college...

The pool of accounting graduates continues to shrink, according to the biennial 2023 Trends report from the American Institute of CPAs (AICPA), “A Report on Accounting Education, the CPA Exam and Public Accounting Firms’ Hiring of Recent Graduates.” However, colleges and universities are projecting enrollment will flat line or increase slightly this academic year, providing a bright spot in the data.

Traditionalist, Boomer, Gen X, Millennial, Gen Z — the greatest generations of all time! CPAs often don’t like change, especially before tax season, but one thing is certain: Change is inevitable.

New pay transparency laws are requiring employers to disclose wages to prospective candidates and/or current employees. Though not required in all states, many employers — including CPA firms — are gambling on using the practice to attract and retain talent.

The word “pipeline” is everywhere these days, but what do we really mean by that? Essentially, the CPA pipeline is the queue of next-gen accountants — beginning with students’ piqued interest in accounting in middle school all the way through young professionals deciding to stick with the profession long term.

Across the country, dedicated accountants who have devoted their lives to the CPA profession are asking themselves an unwelcome question: Where are the next generation of talented accountants? The answer: They are there, but the number is dwindling. 

It's often said that earning the certified public accountant (CPA) credential opens doors and creates new opportunities for those that pursue it. Whether providing more earning potential, job security, credibility with clients, or...

In March 2023, Alex Cheney was laid off from his role as a senior technical recruiter at a global software company headquartered in San Francisco. Having spent more than a decade in the talent acquisition space, Cheney is a seasoned...

The CPA talent pipeline and diversity in the profession are two massive, yet critical, issues. They’re also tightly interwoven, with diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging (DEIB) emerging as one of the top issues for attracting and...

Remote work is here to stay even after COVID-19 is in the rearview mirror, according to Jeff Phillips, founder of remote staffing platform AccountingFly. In his Nov. 4, 2020, VSCPA Virtual Tech Talk, “Thriving with Your Remote Accounting...

When it comes to disability, at an 80% rate of unemployment/underemployment (the highest rate of all disabilities), those on the autism spectrum are underrepresented in the workplace as a whole — although they may have the skills, talents and education to be high-performing employees.

For some organizations, diversity, equity, and inclusion efforts often translate to little more than annual training. However, truly engaging journeys involving all team members could yield increased productivity, higher revenue, and lower attrition rates.

The industry is changing and the staff aren’t out there — so the solutions are with you. Reducing your workload and focusing your practice is the path we’ve seen provide significant capacity improvements as well as improved profitability. This creates a positive upward spiral where improved profitability enables firms to offer higher pay and better hours, which further helps attract new staff and improve retention. Here are four powerful strategies to help you create capacity.

With a low unemployment rate, fewer students attending college or sitting for the CPA Exam, and more work to fill client and company needs, accounting firms and corporate finance teams are feeling the talent crunch. We’ve heard you loud and clear. With the help of a special Board of Directors capacity task force, we are developing resources to help you make sound decisions around talent and capacity. 

For nearly the past two decades, prospective CPAs in Virginia have had to undertake 150 hours of education before becoming licensed. But a declining CPA pipeline has accountants asking: Is the 150 now a barrier to becoming a CPA? Is it time to reimagine how we prepare CPAs for an increasingly evolving profession?

As CPA firms and corporate finance teams compete to hire the best accounting talent to keep up with unprecedented demand, the Virginia Society of CPAs (VSCPA) 2022 Compensation & Benefits Survey reveals firms are increasing newer accountants’ salaries, increasing support for aspiring CPAs, and exploring other solutions such as offshoring and outsourcing

As firms and corporate finance teams compete to hire the best accounting talent and keep up with unprecedented demand, the 2022 Compensation & Benefits Survey reveals CPA firms are increasing newer accountants’ salaries — at the expense of partner compensation.

By Nicole Garcia
 
 Job interviews can be intimidating, but virtual interviews can often be even more intimidating. Many employers have transitioned to virtual recruiting and interview processes. While this has many benefits for both parties...

Companies and firms are finding an effective way to overcome the woes of today’s talent market: professional recruiters. Organizations can benefit from understanding what professional recruiters bring to the table, what to expect when working with them, and what makes paying for their services a smart investment. 

How can accounting firms provide their clients with the best customer service amid the Great Resignation? Perhaps, in addition to benefits and perks, focusing on other strategies like offshoring and outsourcing, streamlining internal business operations, increasing teams’ productivity, and better defining flexibility for employees may help alleviate the talent strain. 

What are graduates truly looking for in the job field today? How do they plan to tackle the Five W’s? A survey of 40 students conducted this spring offers valuable information, including students’ stances on remote work, important aspects of a job environment and obstacles they currently face while in school.

Talent-related decisions are critical to ensuring an organization’s success, so it is important to invest the time in understanding when to hire, how the talent landscape continues to change and what best practices to utilize in your organization. The fact may be that you are a CPA, not a hiring expert, but it is important, now more than ever, to understand how the decisions you make today affect the success you will experience tomorrow and further into the future. 

Regardless of the changes occurring in the accounting profession, one fact remains: CPA firms are trying to attract and hire the best candidates and are doing so at earlier and earlier stages of accounting students’ education.

From creating well-received recognition programs to actively listening to employees' wants and needs, VSCPA members and their firms are proactively working to keep employees. Employee retention should be a real part of organizational culture.

While it is fair to say some people are inherent innovators, think Bill Gates, Oprah Winfrey or Steve Jobs, most people actually become innovative by working for an organization or in an environment that cultivates the skill — a company whose behavior and attitudes foster an innovative culture.

As our country begins our “new normal” in the wake of the pandemic, accounting firms and companies must reinvent themselves to match new employee expectations that were reshaped during the lockdown.

Firms are challenged today to find the right talent, and the skill sets needed of entry-level staff are changing. The path to the CPA may even change because of it.
 
 By Chip Knighton
 
 Picture a pyramid. Wide at the bottom, narrow at the...

By Chip Knighton
 
 Finding a mentor is one of the best ways to gain expertise in the more career-oriented aspects of the accounting profession. A mentor can provide a sounding board, a different perspective on office politics and firsthand...