Picture this: You're the owner of a small tax firm struggling to keep up with the work coming through your door. The
But after several months of searching, you have your eye on a great candidate. Angela is young, smart, energetic, on the fast track at a Top 50 Firm and looking for something new. It all lines up perfectly, but there's just one hiccup.
Angela and her husband share a dream of running their own little farm on the side, and she wants something that will allow her to do that while practicing accounting. And honestly, she's a little burnt out on tax. She'd love to find something with more variety and flexibility. Unfortunately, that means Angela probably won't find what she's looking for at your tax firm.
But a firm offering the broader range of client accounting services work might just be a perfect fit for Angela and other talented young stars like her. With an expanded focus beyond tax work, a dedication to deeper client relationships, and an emphasis on work-life balance, CAS is a brand of accounting that people like Angela are more likely to embrace.
CAS bypasses the troubles of tax season
Angela's farming dream may be somewhat idiosyncratic, but her motivations are increasingly common. Today's professionals want
There's nothing wrong with a tax focus, of course — it's an integral function of the profession. But while many firms have attempted to alleviate the burden of tax on their workers, there's only so much they can do. If a big chunk of a firm's revenue comes from tax work, associates should expect tax season to be busy, knowing that half of their year (or more) will be characterized by pressure-packed deadlines and long hours.
The problem is that the demands of a tax-heavy workload run counter to many of the workplace attributes young people are seeking. Work-life balance gets strained, flexibility is curtailed, and the work itself is largely transactional and compliance-focused.
CAS embodies the attributes young professionals are seeking
A CAS practice, on the other hand, is almost tailor-made for the needs and interests of today's young professionals. With less focus on tax deadlines and seasons, for example, CAS can provide a more consistent and manageable workflow, which translates to a higher quality of life.
But the appeal of CAS goes beyond its work-life advantages. For young people looking to do meaningful work, CAS provides an antidote to the longstanding notion that accounting is nothing more than crunching numbers. To the contrary, working with business owners on multiple aspects of their enterprises gives accountants the opportunity to…
- Enjoy more varied work: Instead of once-a-year tax work, CAS practitioners are part of a larger engagement that takes a much broader view of a client's business. CAS takes a client's entire budget into account, looking at the bigger picture of how the business is poised for the future.
- Flex their analytical muscles: CAS is all about providing advice and guidance on a wide array of challenges and opportunities. And it's work that has real-world impact that goes beyond the numbers — especially when a suggestion or idea helps a business owner expand their restaurant or bring on more workers at a factory.
- Use technology to pursue innovation: Gen Z candidates have grown up with technology. So when it comes to finding solutions for clients, CAS gives them more freedom to do what comes naturally to them: Seek out technology that helps those businesses do things more quickly, cheaply, or efficiently.
- Build deeper client relationships: With its focus on close, continuous work with business owners, CAS allows accountants to prove themselves as partners rather than just "tax people." CAS is about developing a deep understanding of a business in order to make strategic recommendations that go well beyond the scope of the traditional accounting role.
Combined with a more attractive work-life balance, these factors can make CAS work a much more rewarding prospect than a mostly tax-focused position. For a certain breed of accounting professional, CAS work will make them feel much more embedded in their community, which tends to make the work they're doing feel that much more consequential — and meaningful.
CAS can be a key piece of your recruitment strategy
It's worth noting that many CAS firms, especially those on the smaller side, probably can't compete with the big tax firms when it comes to name recognition or compensation. But this doesn't necessarily put them at a disadvantage when it comes to recruiting.
After all, CAS firms are selling a different idea of what an accounting career can be, which is likely to appeal to a different kind of candidate. For a young accounting grad looking to do meaningful work without several periods of stressful, deadline-driven busywork, a lower salary may be worth the tradeoff.
And for the CAS firm, losing out on candidates to the big tax firms during the standard recruiting periods can be offset by the ability to interview promising young professionals throughout the year. In fact, outside of recruiting cattle calls, a CAS firm is probably more likely to find the hidden gems of the profession's next generation.
Maybe it's someone who likes the idea of accounting but not necessarily routine tax work. Or someone who's really passionate about small business and sees CAS as a great way to get hands-on experience in a variety of fields. Or maybe just someone looking for the kind of work-life balance that lets them run a small farm with their family.
They're out there, but they're not buying what traditional accounting firms are selling. CAS can help close the gap — and close the deal.
Solve the accounting talent crisis: embrace CAS
By casting a net that encompasses more than tax work, CAS has earned a reputation for helping accounting firms diversify and expand their revenue streams, which is why it has emerged as such
CAS offers not only the kind of work-life balance that most young professionals are seeking today, but also the kind of work they're looking for: multifaceted, personal and impactful.
And for firms that use it wisely as a recruitment tool, CAS can be the game-changer that brings in the kind of talent that opens up a new world of possibilities.
