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WEIGHING THE DECISION TO LEAVE PUBLIC ACCOUNTING
Many accounting majors join public accounting firms upon graduation, but relatively few stay with their initial employer. This is especially true of women. The 2010 Accounting MOVE project found that while women and men were hired at similar rates into the profession and retained at similar rates initially, the senior manager level appeared to be the ceiling for women
. Until the concerns of women currently in public accounting are fully understood and addressed in substantive ways, any measures undertaken by the firms to retain women will be less than optimally effective. We surveyed accounting professionals who graduated from a single university during a fifteen year period (1996 to 2010) in order to better understand the concerns and obstacles facing both men and women as they move through the profession. Of the 214 respondents, 141 (66%) were initially employed in public accounting and are the focus of this study. The 59 females and 82 males initially entering public accounting are homogenous. The one significant difference is that men in public accounting reported working 48.4 hours in an average, non-busy-season week while women reported a 43.7 hours week. While seemingly small, this difference shoes that men work six weeks more in an average year than women. When comparing public accounting employment in Big 4 to other public firms, additional differences emerge. Men at the Big 4 report a significantly longer average work week (49.2 hours) than women (43.3 hours), but not in the length of, or hours worked during, the busy season. In contrast, women at non-Big 4 firms report an average busy season of 21.7 weeks, nine weeks longer than the busy season reported by men at similar firms. In spite of the longer busy season, 41% of women at non-Big 4 firms are with their original employer compared with only
13% of men at non-Big 4 firms. The opposite pattern occurs at the Big 4, where only 24% of the women and 37% of the men are still employed by their first Big 4 firm of hire. FACTORS IN CAREER DEVELOPMENT Are these demographically similar women and men who started in public accounting motivated by similar factors when considering long-term career development? Many studies have assessed the factors contributing to career development and retention in public accounting, including equitable pay and benefits, opportunity for advancement, leadership, and technical development opportunities among others. We asked those surveyed to rank a series of personal career development factors such as quality work opportunities, acquiring technical skills, and developing personal connections with senior management. Both men and women gave similar rankings, with the highest scores assigned to experiencing quality work opportunities and to acquiring more advanced people skills and more advanced technical skills. However, women ranked working long hours significantly more imporant than did the men surveyed, although they also reported working fewer hours outside of busy season than the men. Young professionals are often advised to find a mentor to assist in career development activities and to help coordinate professional goals. However, respondents in this survey do not rate working with a formal or informal mentor as highly as developing personal connections with more senior managers. FACTORS AFFECTING TURNOVER: SURVEY RESULTS Those surveyed were given a list of factors motivating the decision to leave their first positions and the opportunity to provide open-ended responses. They could check off multiple reasons motivating their job change and were not asked to rank the reasons in importance.
that many respondents left after being promoted to senior. This suggests that public accounting experience, including professional development and exposure to multiple industries, increases a young professional’s human capital, which in turn results in increased opportunities for other employment, presumably at a higher rate of pay. TRAJECTORY OF GRADUATES FROM PUBLIC TO NON-PUBLIC ACCOUNTING One pressing question is how to retain the people who enter public accounting, either at the original firm of hire, or in public accounting in general. This question has not yet been adequately answered, as shown in the table. Women are significantly more likely to start and stay in public accounting if their first job is not in the Big 4. However, the converse is true in the Big 4, which are doing a better job keeping men in public accounting than women History of Accounting Experience by Gender and by Gender/Employer Big 4 Female n = 42
Other public Female n = 17
Big 4 Male n = 59
Other public Male n = 23 Started and stayed in public accounting
Left public for non-public accounting
Left accounting field completely
Respondents answered an open-ended question about why they chose to leave public accounting firm for another sector. Of those leaving public accounting for another sector, 38% cite issues related to work-life balance. Comments included:
- It became increasingly difficult to balance career progression at a Big 4 accounting firm with my desire to be actively involved in the lives of my two boys.
- I left public accounting after I made manager. I felt that advancement beyond manager at that point in my life required too much additional sacrifice (time, personal life, etc.) and I was ready to start a family.
- Unless you want to make partner, would recommend leaving public accounting after 2- years (and at the very most 5 years) for a job/industry that provides a well-balanced life style and a career path before you find yourself getting burned out, jaded or laid off.
- I left public accounting because of the travel, job demands, lack of work-life balance… While the experience at [Big 4] was great for the start of my career I did not see myself wanting that lifestyle while married with children and decided to leave.
- I left public accounting to try internal audit because there was no work/life balance in public accounting and the pay was better in internal audit.
- The culture is not for me, I tried twice. I don't believe I (should) have to give up so much of my personal life to be successful. When looking forward at my career, I had to weigh advancing in the accounting profession against the sacrifice I would have to make in order to advance. It was not worth it for me.
- I didn't view the opportunities taken by managers at my company as being worth the work/life balance sacrifice to work at [Big 4]. I was forced to specialize in industries that I didn't find compelling, and I knew I would not like a long-term career in these industries. As such, I didn't feel that staying with [Big 4] was worth the long-term work/ life sacrifices.
- My wife wanted to have a husband. Responses to the open-ended question also suggest that the change is sometimes driven by a search for more meaningful work. Related comments include:
- I want to own my own work and be able to drive change.
- Wanted to own something/drive it/learn a business and feel ownership of something meaningful. -... my need to be in a role where I felt I had impact and influence to drive an organization’s results vs. being on the audit side of public accounting.
- By working in nonprofit I could use my skills and feel personally rewarded by the work.
Obviously, some stay and thrive in public accounting. The survey also included an open- ended question asking respondents who stayed in public accounting why they did so. Nine respondents indicated they were still in the position as a “means to an end” – e.g., obtaining a CPA license, or gaining sufficient experience to move to another position. Other responses can be categorized as:
- Job security/financial stability
- Opportunities for professional development, including diversity of experiences
- Quality of co-workers
- Opportunities for advancement
- Flexibility/work-life balance Although work-life balance is an issue for many who left a firm, some who stayed cite flexibility and the ability to work at home as a factor in the decision to remain in the firm. CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS A traditional student graduates from a four or five-year program before the age of 25, and some will discover another “passion” after working for some time in public accounting. Several of those surveyed mentioned that their work in public accounting exposed them to a particular sector or industry that they ultimately found more rewarding. It is unlikely that structural changes in the profession would change their decisions. For some, better pay will always be a prime motivator for job change, regardless of the industry or sector. In public accounting, however, once compensation is taken out of the mix, work-life balance issues still appear paramount for many women in the profession. Demands for both more reasonable and more flexible working conditions, and complaints about the current work schedule adversely affecting family life, are the primary explanatory factors for women leaving their initial jobs with the Big 4. Men leave public accounting for more diverse reasons
which are less focused on work-life balance issues. While a flexible schedule is important, compensation and professional opportunities are the most significant drivers for men. So, what can be done? Given the nature of public accounting and client demands, a rigorous work schedule is to be expected. However, hearing about 55-hour weeks while a junior or senior in college does not prepare one for actually working five or six extended weeks back- to-back. Being told about pulling an all-nighter on a weekend does not equate with two consecutive weeks without a day off. The industry should continue its focus on a two-pronged approach: a realistic preparatory education program before a new hire ever sets foot in the office, and better ways to increase schedule flexibility. The preparatory education component should begin while potential hires are enrolled in their intermediate accounting courses. These courses help students decide (or their grades decide for them) whether public accounting is theoretically the right track for them. Public accounting provides great training and professional opportunities, but students need to have realistic expectations about the demands of the profession. An annual seminar should be held with participants from public accounting firms to expose every accounting major to the realities of the profession. It is especially important for female students to hear from women in the profession about how they met the challenges. Employment expectations seminars for students could be presented by members of the local Big 4 offices regional firms in conjunction with a faculty member or Big 4 human resources staff who could present the findings of this study and the reality of job tenure. This would bring substance to the discussion and hard facts for students to consider when weighing their employment options. 1 American Society of Women Accountants [ASWA]. 2010. “Count them In: Where and Why Women Leave Public Accounting and How to Reverse the Trend.” Accounting MOVE Project Executive Report. April.
