Just over half of accountants report being "highly satisfied" with their jobs, according to an ongoing survey — and perhaps just as important, the sources of dissatisfaction in the profession are becoming clearer and clearer.
The preliminary results of the 3rd Annual CPA Career Satisfaction Survey, which were released at last week's Bridging the Gap Conference showed satisfaction creeping up, with 54% of respondents saying they are "highly satisfied" with their careers, versus 50% two years ago.
The survey, which is conducted Brainstorm Group and HB Publishing & Marketing Co., also identified a number of factors that influence satisfaction, which get surprisingly specific.
Pay, for instance, is always important, but only really moves the needle on satisfaction for those who report that their salaries are "highly" competitive, versus being merely "somewhat" competitive.
Similarly, long hours aren't necessarily a driver of dissatisfaction — it matters more what kind of work people are doing during those long hours, and what kinds of clients they're doing it for.
It also turns out that the size of firm one works for is important: Those at smaller practices with between 11 and 24 employees reported both the highest satisfaction (70%) and the lowest dissatisfaction (5%), while sole practitioners are at the opposite end of the spectrum, with 41% dissatisfied with their careers and only 23% satisfied.
More details from the preliminary results, including the primary drivers of job satisfaction in accounting, are below. The survey is
