Rosenberg Associates Blog

Business Man Carrying Money Bag

Should CPA Firms Continue the Decades-Long Practice of New Partner Buy-Ins?

Avatar photoMarc Rosenberg, CPA / August 9, 2023

Aspiring accountants who are invited to become a partner in their CPA firm usually face the hurdle of a buy-in requirement. This requirement is a payment that new partners must make to gain an ownership stake in the firm. Depending on the practice’s size, the buy-in requirement can be substantial at some firms, ranging from…

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time management

Distractions Spar with Productivity (and Poll Results)

Avatar photoKristen Rampe, CPA / August 1, 2023

Responding to clients versus protecting yourself from distractions: is it possible to have your cake and eat it too? Increasing productivity can contribute strongly to profitability, and we know that responsiveness is a cornerstone of the accounting profession, something our clients (internal and external) expect. Most professionals are bogged down with requests for their time….

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CPA building blocks

Why Working at a CPA Firm is Phenomenal, and Why Students Should Major in Accounting

Avatar photoMarc Rosenberg, CPA / June 26, 2023

We’ve written over 500 blogs in the past 15 years. Our material is pitched mostly to partners and managers. We would love it if this blog was read by entry-level hires, staff at CPA firms senior or below, and interns. Partners, you should forward a copy of this blog to your firm’s young people. We…

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Brad Cripe and Kevin Rich

Learning About Today’s Accounting Students: Perspectives of University Accounting Department Heads

Avatar photoMarc Rosenberg, CPA / June 20, 2023

Our Chicago area roundtable group, comprised of 70% of Chicago’s local CPA firms, invited the accounting department heads of two leading universities to talk to us about today’s accounting students. We were privileged to host Brad Cripe, PhD, from Northern Illinois University in DeKalb, Ill., and Kevin Rich, PhD, from Marquette University in Milwaukee, Wisc….

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Jeffrey Weiner headshot

Analysis of Jeffrey Weiner’s “The Power of Showing Up”

Avatar photoMarc Rosenberg, CPA / June 6, 2023

Jeffrey Weiner joined Marcum in 1981 and has led the firm since 1990 when he was named managing partner. Marcum LLP is a national accounting and advisory firm. Accounting Today puts their annual revenue at $1.2B, making them the thirteenth largest CPA firm in the U.S. They have 39 offices from coast to coast. If…

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Professionals shaking hands

Why CPA Firms Often Prefer to Sell to Other CPA Firms Instead of Non-CPA Firms

Avatar photoMarc Rosenberg, CPA / May 31, 2023

For about ten years now, there has been a merger frenzy in the CPA profession, fueled by three interrelated factors: (a) baby boomers are rapidly approaching or reaching retiring age; (b) succession planning is not a strong suit of CPA firms so, they often find themselves with no bench to take over the firm and…

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How 20 Chicago Mid-Size Firms Saw the 2023 Tax Season

Avatar photoMarc Rosenberg, CPA / May 24, 2023

My colleague, Art Kuesel of Kuesel Consulting (art@kueselconsulting.com), and I have been leading three roundtables in the Chicago area for over 20 years. Each group has about 25 partners, mostly MPs. The group that this blog reports on comprises roughly 75% of the largest local firms in Chicago. Revenues range from $7M to $35M. We…

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An alarm clock

Time Tracking: A Partner-Candidate Asks If It’s Worth It

Avatar photoKristen Rampe, CPA / May 17, 2023

We previously shared Part 1 of this series. Read it here.  We occasionally receive lengthy replies to our blogs and like to share our readers’ perspectives. A senior manager of a three-partner firm in the Midwest wrote to us, following my April Fool’s blog on raising the minimum retirement age to 85, articulating frustration with…

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Buyout Schmyout: A Partner-Candidate Asks If It’s Worth It

Avatar photoKristen Rampe, CPA / May 10, 2023

We occasionally receive lengthy replies to our blogs and like to share our readers’ perspectives. A senior manager of a three-partner firm in the Midwest wrote to us on the topic of succession and buyouts, following my April Fool’s blog on raising the minimum retirement age to 85. This is Part 1 of a 2-part…

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Person selecting a checkbox.

Poll Results: Retention Effectiveness Strategies for CPA Firms

Amanda LilleyAmanda Lilley, CPA, SHRM-CP, PHR / May 2, 2023

We polled our audience of CPA firms to find out the average turnover percentage in 2022 and what retention strategies firms plan to implement after this latest winter busy season to try to keep staff from joining the mass exodus that is common for public accounting professionals at this time of year.   Based on 63…

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