CPA_Practice_Advisor_March_2020 - 23

A YEAR IN THE LIFE: PAYROLL ACCOUNTANT

Flexible Work Arrangements
are Key to Recruiting
& Retaining Female
Accounting Staff
By Isaac M. O'Bannon

AMERICAN CPA FIRMS that offer modified work arrangements have significant advantages in terms of recruiting and retaining female employees,
according to new research by the American Institute of CPAs.
Approximately half of firms surveyed
reported that flexible schedules (56%), reduced
hours (50%), compressed work schedules (49%)
or telecommuting options (56%) helped attract
employees, while about 80 percent of firms said
those arrangements helped retain employees.
"While perspectives are changing, women are
still more likely to handle duties involving child
care and managing households. At the same
time, many younger workers expect employers
to offer them some flexibility as to where and
when their work is done," said Jacquelyn Tracy,
CPA, chair of the AICPA's Women's Initiatives
Executive Committee and partner with Mandel
& Tracy, LLC. "Modified work arrangements
allow women to more successfully manage
their careers as CPAs and the priorities in their
personal lives."
A Pew Research Center study found mothers
spend more than 31% of their day on child care
and housework, compared to about 17% for
fathers.
The AICPA's biennial CPA Firm Gender Survey
seeks to understand how firms are working to
address gender disparities and advance women
in the profession. More than 1,100 firms, ranging
from those with fewer than 10 CPAs to those
with more than 100, responded to the survey,
which was conducted in 2019.

In addition to asking about working arrangements, the survey also questioned firms about
gender distribution on executive committees,
formal programs to advance women and succession planning.
The survey found that 39% of firms monitor
pay parity between genders and 85% of those
who monitor disparities took action to close gaps.
Additionally, one in five firms offered unconscious bias training, with 59% of the firms with
more than 100 CPAs offering it. Implementing
and expanding education around preconceived
notions, biases and stereotypes pertaining to
various groups is one of the main goals of the
CEO Action For Diversity & Inclusion pledge, an
effort by business leaders to increase diversity
and inclusion throughout their workforce and
leadership. The Association of International
Certified Public Accountants, combining the
strengths of the AICPA and CIMA, has signed the
pledge and encourages others in the profession
to do so as well.
Among other findings of the survey:
* The larger the firm, the more likely it is
to have formal mentor and sponsorship
programs to help advance women and
minorities.
* Women in small firms (2-10 CPAs) comprise
53% of executive committees but only 16%

of firms with more than 100 CPAs.
* A n analysis of job titles found that women
were nearly equally represented or outnumbered men in CPA firms through the
senior manager level, after which the ratio
declines.
* Only 44 percent of firms have a succession plan, down from 47% in 2017. But 6%
included a gender component in their plan,
up from 2%.
The firm gender survey is one of many things
the AICPA is doing to promote gender equality
within the profession. The AICPA also hosts
the annual Global Women's Leadership Summit, co-sponsors the Most Powerful Women
in Accounting award and in coordination with
Women's History Month, is hosting the webinar
Creating New Possibilities through a Coaching
Culture, being held March 24.
Survey methodology: The CPA Firm Gender
Survey was conducted via email by the AICPA
for the AICPA's Women's Initiatives Executive
Committee in August 2019. Some 1,129 qualified
respondents, drawn from CPA firms of varying
sizes and regions within the United States,
participated.p
For more information about gender initiatives and other resources, visit www.aicpa.org/
womenlead. ■

MARCH 2020 ■

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