Tips for Your First Busy Season

By ficpasyoungandlicensed on January 19, 2017February 10, 2017

Going into your first busy season in public accounting can be quite intimidating. If you’ve dubbed yourself an auditor, it’s likely that week one you’ll be interacting with the client. Or if you’ve chosen tax, you’re given the forms and asked to go with it. Everything in school seems challenging but then you get hit with the real world of public accounting. If you haven’t realized it yet, you will soon…school gives you the vocabulary, the frame of reference, and the ability to confidently tell the difference between debits and credits, but it’s your first busy season where you learn how much you don’t know. I recently came across an article in the Journal of Accountancy that included tips for first-year auditors. Even though some of the tips seem obvious, sometimes, we have to remind ourselves. (more…)

Using Harsh Feedback to Fuel Your Career

By ficpasyoungandlicensed on January 13, 2017January 13, 2017

The first time I tried to enlist in the Marine Corps, I got laughed out of the recruiter’s office. At a pudgy 300 pounds, I was hardly an ideal candidate. The recruiter was just playing the odds when he took one look at me, pointed to the door, and told me to stop wasting his time.

After months of diet and exercise, I did get a recruiter to take me seriously – and finally graduated from boot camp at 185 pounds, 18 months after that initial failed attempt. The tough feedback that I received in the Marines was exactly what I needed to get my life together.

Read the rest of the article from Harvard Business Review.

The CPA’s Role in Divorce Engagements & Family Law Matters

By ficpasyoungandlicensed on December 23, 2016February 10, 2017

For many attorneys, retaining the services of a Forensic CPA can play a fundamental role in successfully resolving their clients’ legal disputes. A forensic accountant should possess the unique skills and abilities necessary to assist attorneys and their clients in litigation involving complex financial matters. The need for forensic accountants as expert witnesses and consultants arises from financial issues requiring highly specialized knowledge across a variety of disciplines. Often, these key issues are pertinent to the outcome of the case. Forensic accountants are able to provide a variety of services to attorneys and clients that range from consulting engagements and preparation of financial analyses, to assistance in settlement negotiations and expert witness testimony. (more…)

Business Development for Young CPAs

By ficpasyoungandlicensed on December 19, 2016February 10, 2017

As a CPA, perhaps one of your career goals is to become a partner. Whether that be at a Big 4 firm, a smaller firm, or perhaps starting up your own. One of the things I would always hear as it relates to partners is having a book of business. Maintaining clients as well as bringing new ones in. When I first started my career, business development seems like such a daunting task (who am I kidding, it’s still daunting at times). How do you even start? What knowledge or technical expertise can I even offer? What’s the point if I’m just starting my career and won’t need a book of business for a while? (more…)

The Small Firm Experience

By ficpasyoungandlicensed on December 9, 2016December 9, 2016

overstreet When I was going through the recruiting process in my final years of college, I had a hard time deciding whether I wanted to work at a large or a small firm. I talked to firms of all sizes and accepted an offer with a small firm in Tampa, Florida. Now that it is a few years later, I think I made the right choice for myself. But after working for a few years I now think the size of the firm is less important. I now realize that it is more important to me that I enjoy my work and that I continue to gain experience and grow professionally. These are a few of the experiences I have gained while working at a small firm… (more…)

The FBI: A Career Like No Other

By ficpasyoungandlicensed on November 4, 2016November 4, 2016

Have you have ever wondered what it’s like working at the Federal Bureau of Investigation?

Our Mission. At the FBI, we do complex work to achieve a simple mission: to protect the American people and uphold the Constitution of the United States.

Our People. The FBI is staffed by more than 35,000 employees including special agents, intelligence analysts, and support professionals with an annual budget of approximately $8.7 billion in fiscal year 2016. (more…)

Succession Planning

By ficpasyoungandlicensed on October 20, 2016October 20, 2016

For many employees of small to midsize public accounting firms succession planning is an important topic. Young CPAs in those firms often assume that it is not their place to get involved or are unsure what they can do to become a part of the process and prepare for the future. Below is a link to an article from the AICPA’s Young CPA Network outlining ways Young CPAs can prepare for this process. Read the article

Delia Finnerty
Law, Redd, Crona & Munroe, PA

How Auditors Can Become Partners Earlier

By ficpasyoungandlicensed on October 7, 2016October 7, 2016

The path to partner can be faster and easier than is often reported. In fact, it took one partner only seven years at Top-100 firm Warren Averett. Fifteen percent of its 124 partners are under 40, including the CFO.

In a recent webinar, Yogesh Patel, an audit partner who is under 40, explained how he became partner in 11 years. Yogesh started at the firm as a runner during his junior year at college. That meant he did things like moving furniture, making bank deposits and picking up lunches. There was an added benefit, though: Doing low-level tasks gave him a real feel for how the firm treats people at all levels. Courtesies like saying “please” and “thank you”; flexibility in taking time off for important personal events—these were extended to personnel all the way up and down the line.