Accounting Profession

ACCOUNTING FIRMS’ ETHICS SHOULD BE CAREFULLY SCRUTINIZED Having taught both millennials and Gen Z, I’ve always wondered the extent to which values and ethics are considered in the job search decision. Even if they want to consider it in their decision-making process, the question is how to do so. Candidates for positions can’t ask straight […]

Is it Time to Break Up Professional Services Firms, aka CPA Firms? I can remember years ago when I was studying accounting that the form of ownership of CPA firms was a partnership with all partners being licensed CPAs. Over the years, the forms of ownership have broadened, in part to limit the liability of

Is it a Personnel Issue? Recently, a reporter from the Wall Street Journal, Mark Maurer, asked to interview me about the question: “Are companies picking a new finance chief after detecting a material weakness in their financial reporting controls, at least in part due to a shortage of skilled accounting staff?” The idea is that the two

Independence Standards at Risk Perhaps you are aware that private equity firms have started to acquire a controlling interest in accounting firms, which these days are better referred to as “professional services” firms. The first such acquisition was in August 2022, when Tower Capital Partners purchased the stock of Eisner Amper LLP, a majority-owned CPA