CPA Job Outlook Promising
December 22, 2008 by Lela Davidson
Filed under Finance
Despite cutbacks in many industries, the job outlook for Certified Public Accountants remains strong. The majority of CPA firms surveyed as part of the 2008 National Management of Accounting Practice survey reported continued strong growth over the past two years.
The survey, which was conducted by the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants and the Texas Society of Certified Public Accountants, revealed a 10% increase in average net client fees per partner .
James C. Metzler, CPA, AICPA vice president, small firm interests states:
“CPA firms continue to do well. Clients go to CPAs to help them weather a troubled economy, and banks may seek greater assurance from practitioners about the companies with which they do business.”
The information was collected prior to the current financial crisis, which according to Metzler will translate to increasingly competitive fee structures situations from other firms and pressure from clients to reduce fees.
Not only are fees up, turnover is down. Less than a third of reporting firms lost professionals in fiscal 2007, compared to over 45% in 2005.
Metzler attributes the good news in part to work life balance:
“We’ve found that more and more small firms are offering greater work-life flexibility, which persuades more practitioners to remain at their firms.”
Revenue growth, changing standards, and respect for your personal life? Looks like a great time to be a CPA!
Image Credit: joeltelling, Flickr
