There’s no doubt that the accounting profession has always been thought of as the profession to go to if you want a job that’s stable, pays well, and provides security. So if this was the case 10, 20, or even 50 years ago, you may not be surprised that accountants—and especially CPAs—are in even higher demand today as our world continuously expands in business practices and technology. While many people who consider getting their CPA license understand that obtaining this certification puts them in high demand, they often don’t know WHY this is the case. Here are some reasons why being a CPA today is so important to the U.S.’s financial and economic growth.
Serving the Complex Demands of a Rapidly Changing Business Environment
CPAs back in the age before computers did everything by hand and kept their work in books. With the advancement of the computer, internet, software, and Excel spreadsheets, the business environment of accounting has changed for the better. Connection and communication through the internet has helped companies and organizations service more clients more efficiently and effortlessly. Auditors can execute audits overseas; large hubs of databases that are accessible from anywhere make information and analysis more consistent and synced; financial reporting can be delivered and received quickly; and much more.
With the advancement of technology, the accounting industry continuously improves and protects the financial integrity of the U.S. economy in a streamlined process that can be easily tracked, recorded, and archived. This gives CPAs more time to help clients focus on business strategy, develop new and more sophisticated procedures, and better evaluate performance to optimize growth. In addition, this changing business environment is one that is extremely mobile, enabling CPAs from businesses and organizations to advise clients without having to physically be present, expanding their reach and influence cost effectively.
Competing for Best Talent
We mentioned in an earlier blog post that since many of the baby boomers are reaching retirement or have already retired, the need to replace them is on the rise. Enter the millennial generation who are native born techies and have grown up in the digital age that has changed the way people do business forever. Freshly graduated accounting majors who are looking to get certified or younger working CPA professionals are in high demand due to their savviness in pop culture, what’s trending, and especially implementing new technological tools to work smarter—not harder.
The older CPA generation is accustomed to doing financial procedures manually whereas new, fresh minds are quick to adaptation and can offer insight into better ways to approach and update those procedures. Also, because CPAs have such an extensive knowledge and skillset from auditing to taxes to financial advising and so on, many firms are looking for such top talent and are competing against one another to gain this talent as they continue to grow and optimize their services.
Gaining Global Perspective
As businesses grow overseas and abroad, having a diverse set of CPAs is an important part of any business’ global reach. Many CPA Exam candidates today are international, coming from parts of the world such as India, Japan, China, and Egypt. Recruiting CPAs who have different cultural perspectives and practices is quite beneficial for firms, businesses, and organizations looking to explore and make an impact on markets outside of the U.S. as well as inside.
Additionally, because CPAs can practice from anywhere in the world, they can obtain many global clients and build a great international presence and reputation for themselves and the company they work for by providing knowledge on how to crack today’s global economy to other countries. This is an area of growth that CPAs and the accounting industry weren’t too largely involved with in the past and contributes to the rapidly changing business environment.