Solving the CPA Pipeline Problem: An Interview with AICPA's National Pipeline Advisory Group

Lexy Kessler, National Pipeline Advisory Group (NPAG) chair and Sue Coffey, Chief Executive Officer - Public Accounting with AICPA join us for a special bonus episode to address the accounting talent crisis and talk about how we can improve the CPA pipeline. Along with these issues, they also emphasize the importance of working together as a profession, being data-driven in their approach, and looking at the broader ecosystem of accounting, with updates and more comprehensive strategies expected to be detailed in the NPAG draft national strategy plan in May 2024.
00:04 Lexi Kessler and Sue Coffey join the show
01:29 What types of things are on the table to solve the pipeline problem?
04:14 Less than 1/4 of freshman accounting majors finish their degrees in accounting
06:48 How do we even begin to address this huge problem?
09:45 Did any of the other data you looked at surprise you?
12:37 Is the committee looking into ways to bring back accountants who left the ?
15:11 Starting salaries and hours worked
17:39 Should staff accountants be paid overtime?
20:43 Should we revisit how we regulate audit?
24:24 What efforts are going towards bringing career changers to accounting?
26:32 Final thoughts and where to learn more about the AICPA's pipeline ideas

[@LEM620]

I'm an accounting major and a lot of my classmates complain that the major is too hard for too little reward. 150 credits, a few years in public w/ unpaid overtime, 4 exams, all for comparatively lower salaries than Engineering, IT, CS, and MIS. The ones that are smart, good students, and committed enough to pass the major and the CPA are also smart enough to see that it just isn't worth it.

[@KP-us1ld]

Hours and pay suck. Even as you move up in the career, it's not enough for the amount of work you have to do. Why would people do that rather than major something else that doesn't require 150 or many unpaid hours? These entities are built by partners who grandfathered into the 120 and pulled up the ladder behind them just to they could make the profession more difficult to enter. The two women said nothing is off the table but when asked about the two most important aspects of working in public, they have nothing to say.

[@miguelgaribay325]

I found your podcast today and I’m seriously thinking of making a career change into the accounting space. The industry I’m in now requires me to be in relatively good physical condition and after a few injuries (none career ending, so far), I’ve began to look at changing industries. I’m glad you talked about career changers as my undergraduate degree is not in accounting. Great info, thank you.

[@alexseip8233]

I’m in the same boat.

[@alexseip8233]

Interesting conversation as somebody’s looking for a career change and seeing what it entails to become a CPA. I have a degree but will have to catch up on most the pre-reqs.

[@karthik_mv]

Actually it would be nice if AICPA would have an MoU with ICAI India. It would make the transition process easier and shorter. We have to complete a 2-3 year internship as part of our curriculum.

[@brian4958]

Industry comment : Problem is industry job postings want CPAs for job you don’t need a CPA. If a newbie can’t get hours under a cpa in industry they can pass exam but who’s going to sign off?

[@SM-lh2rm]

I’m curious - as a CPA almost partner, I see so much stupid in my firm. Given that I’m at a Manager role, I’ve systematically eliminated stupid non-billable activities. In fact, we’ve eliminated 5 headcount due to attrition with no client loss or revenue loss and reduced staff legwork. Granted, relative to our alliances we’re above average, it would seem to me that a significant portion of today’s accounting headcount could be replaced by simply teaching how to PDF an email rather than physically printed and scanning.

[@beetdiggingcougar]

I feel the same way. I wrote a macro to roll forward Excel work papers. What used to take a staff 30 minutes to do now takes 8 seconds. I'm amazed at how many staff don't seem to care about improving but they also leave and we are just fine. It's the client relationship management that takes up so much time.

[@clearbizclutter]

This is so true. I can’t tell you how much time we have spent in team meetings (the whole team) talking about office supplies and the kind of paper we want to print something on. 🤦🏾‍♀️

[@brendanm87]

Exactly!! This is why I just started my own firm a few weeks ago. I couldn’t take it anymore. There is tremendous opportunity if you are willing to take the risk and start your own firm. And you can do it sooo much better than the existing boomer owned legacy firms. With 75% of current AICPA members at retirement age, there will be millions of clients looking for new CPA’s in the next 5-10 years. Hope I am right in making the jump.

[@BlackjackPNGtuber]

The hours and pay you work in this field compared to others is why no one wants to enter this profession. It is just horrible, nobody I graduated with in college has even remained in the field due to how bad the pay and hours are.