Art of Accounting: Importance of being or appearing calm

This is the final day of the 2022 tax season and a period when many tax staff give notice. Recently I had a few calls from partners “complaining” about good staff leaving as of today or the end of the month. Some calls also came from CFOs or owners of private firms, and the October dates were simply coincidences of timing. They were upset, but after listening to them I tended to agree with the staff people and here are my comments. Note: I further upset the callers, some of whom I knew, and some I never previously spoke to. They said they wanted my opinion, but they also sought some commiseration about their “unfortunate” situations. They got my opinions, but I denied them the commiseration. 

To start, here is the context of these calls. These were staff people working for at least four years for the same firm who had advanced rapidly and satisfactorily and whose work was exceptional. Most were leaving to work at other CPA firms or going private in a similar or slightly elevated capacity at another company. Those that left were at all levels of experience. Some started with the firm and others joined after working at a few other firms, but they all were at the job they were leaving for at least four years. They all gave reasonable notice and “reasonable” reasons, but not what I think were the real reasons.

There was a common thread. Each person who gave notice had a boss or immediate superior that was overworked, always behind, always too busy for general or in-depth discussions about the issues or the clients’ or overall situations. All instructions were hurried and something to get out of the way, with many not fully explaining everything that needed to get done or forgetting about important info they should have told employees about. Everything seemed to be a rush, even routine recurring work, and scheduling was quickly changed at the last minute to get other work that was improperly scheduled completed. Partially completed work was overloading to-do lists, with constant apologizing to clients. No day could be planned the day before. Keep in mind that these people liked the work, the clients and their bosses, but they did not like the untenable pressure-filled unstable working conditions. Some needed staff under them but weren’t permitted to hire their own assistants and their boss’ involvement was always pushed forward. 

Those in public accounting saw their bosses’ situations becoming theirs if they remained and made it to partner, but didn’t want to emulate them. Money was not the primary driver for leaving, although every employer offered to match and then add something to the new salaries their departing staff would be getting. 

From my discussions, I found out that similar-level staff working for other partners or bosses did not leave with the frequency these people lost staff. This was not distinguished between people working in the office or at home virtually.

So, what is the takeaway from this? Bosses are responsible for maintaining an atmosphere of calm, control and staff support. You are your own worst enemy. You are the role model of what many of your staff will aspire to. Ask yourself if you would enjoy working for you. When I asked this question, I got a lot of rationalizations, which I rejected as hogwash. You set the schedule and pace of the work and how much your staff will be able to get your work done for you.

As to money, which I see as a secondary issue, if they were worth the raises offered to them when they gave notice, why were the raises not offered to the employees before they gave notice? Are the staff being managed fully or are you letting others set the pay levels for you? If you are the boss, be the boss. 

I get more of these types of calls than I should. These situations are easy to solve. Be and act calm and pay the right wages.

Do not hesitate to contact me at emendlowitz@withum.com with your practice management questions or about engagements you might not be able to perform.

Edward Mendlowitz, CPA, is partner at WithumSmith+Brown, PC, CPAs. He is on the Accounting Today Top 100 Influential People list. He is the author of 24 books, including “How to Review Tax Returns,” co-written with Andrew D. Mendlowitz, and “Managing Your Tax Season, Third Edition.” He also writes a twice-a-week blog addressing issues that clients have at www.partners-network.com along with the Pay-Less-Tax Man blog for Bottom Line. He is an adjunct professor in the MBA program at Fairleigh Dickinson University teaching end user applications of financial statements. Art of Accounting is a continuing series where he shares autobiographical experiences with tips that he hopes can be adopted by his colleagues. He welcomes practice management questions and can be reached at (732) 743-4582 or emendlowitz@withum.com.