The CPA Credential: What’s In It for You?

By Chad Durkee, CPA

College is an exciting time in your life — one that is filled with many transitions and decisions to help prepare you for a prosperous and rewarding future. Eight short years ago, I was in your shoes, deciding what I wanted to do for a career for the rest of my life. I graduated from UW–Oshkosh in December 2014 with a Bachelor of Business Administration degree in accounting and finance. I obtained my Wisconsin CPA license in February 2017.

Those are two of the most significant professional decisions I have made, and both have positively impacted my life. My degree and CPA credential have created opportunities and led me professionally to where I am today: co-owner of a public accounting firm. I strongly believe students should consider public accounting as a career and should obtain the CPA credential. Both are of high value to your future.

Whether you’re introverted or extroverted, your personality type doesn’t matter in public accounting. There’s a place for everyone. Accounting firms need finders, minders and grinders Finders are the business development side of the business. They turn relationships into new business and attend most of the client-facing meetings. Minders are the managers. They look after the clients, internal team members and internal procedures. Grinders are the “doers” and the execution part of the firm. They do a lot of the detail work.

Every day is different in public accounting. You work with a variety of clients in a wide array of industries and have the opportunity to specialize in an industry you’re interested in if you want to. There is also a variety of client work: auditing, bookkeeping, payroll, business and individual tax preparation, and consulting to name a few. You are constantly learning, always challenged by new problems to solve. You never get bored doing repetitive tasks on a daily basis.

Starting out in public accounting is a great way to develop your accounting skills more quickly. This helps expedite career advancement, which ultimately can increase your earnings potential over time. You have work-life balance in public accounting, too. Although tax accountants do work a lot during busy season (January through April), they tend to have a ton of flexibility the rest of the year. I enjoy golfing, boating and various other summer hobbies outside of busy season. I prefer working in the winter, knowing I’ll have a lot of time off the rest of the year. For example, our firm is closed on Fridays from May through December. Client deadlines are known well in advance, so there is flexibility in managing your schedule, and you can decide when the work gets done.

The future

There is a misconception out there that future accounting work may be automated. Although manual and tedious tasks might be automated, the human elements of accounting and consulting are hard to replace with technology, so CPAs will always be needed. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, employment opportunities for people with a CPA license are projected to grow by 22% between now and 2028. Right now there is a huge demand in the marketplace for public accountants.

Many public accounting firms offer incentives to their employees for obtaining their CPA certification. These incentives may include paying for the cost of study materials and the CPA Exam, allowing paid study time and/or a monetary bonus when all four parts of the exam have been passed. The employers are willing to do this because they see the value in employees becoming certified and licensed.

Studying for the CPA Exam is a significant time investment, and you may find yourself sacrificing short-term perks (like social activities) for long-term benefits (like a great career). Over a lifetime, the typical CPA salary is 10–15% higher than that of a non-CPA accountant.

When someone asks you what you do for a living, and you say you are an accountant, typically the next question is “Are you a CPA?” Some people just expect that you are because of the credibility it adds. CPAs typically have more opportunities for career advancement than non-CPAs as well. In fact, in public accounting, you may not be able to advance higher than a supervisor position without your CPA designation.

Generation Z

Current high school and college students fall into the Generation Z (Gen Z) category, which, by most accounts, encompasses people between the ages of 10 and 25. Gen Z is quickly changing the marketplace, and employers are learning to adapt to their lifestyle and their values.

You more than likely are a member of Gen Z, and you may see yourself in the following statements:

• Gen Z cares about work-life balance, flexibility and personal well-being.

• Salary tends to take a back seat to lifestyle and values.

• More than half of Gen Zers said they would leave their job if it interfered with their personal lives.

Those in the Gen Z age range are innovative and powerful and want to make a difference in the world — and employers may be willing to negotiate with you to support your lifestyle and values.

The way we roll

Elevate Accounting LLC was launched on October 1, 2021. My business partner, Joel Stadler, and I met while working at a regional CPA firm. With that public accounting background, we were able to start a CPA firm when I was just 29. Launching this company was the best career decision of my life. We are just over a year into this new firm, and I am personally managing over 200 client relationships. We are growing quickly and ready to onboard another CPA. We used our networking connections to build a successful CPA firm based mainly upon word-of-mouth referrals and treating people right.

At Elevate Accounting, we are trying to be the firm of the future and adapt to the new workplace expectations created by Gen Z workers. We are people driven versus profit driven. Our philosophy is simple: Take care of your people (the employees and clients), and the profits will come.

We are also embracing technology. All of our programs are cloud-based, so employees can work from home or in the office, and clients can upload everything to a secure portal or choose to have an in-person meeting.

Our philosophy is to hire good people whom we trust and who will buy into our company’s culture. We want our employees to manage their schedules, get their work done and be able to enjoy their lives.

Final words

Make sure you are doing something that you truly enjoy in your career because money isn’t everything. Public accounting is a rewarding career, and obtaining your CPA designation will open many doors and create countless opportunities for you throughout your life, but you still have to live your life with a purpose. Two core values that guide my life are compassion and integrity. I think of selflessness, serving others and empathy. ethical behavior, accountability, honesty — and the foundation for everything I do. Think about what values you want to guide your life.

Finally, remember that time is our most valuable asset, and tomorrow is not promised. Make time for what is important in life because the work will always be there. Work to live — don’t live to work. Leave a legacy while doing what makes you happy. You can’t relive your life, so make it a life worth living!

Chad Durkee, CPA, is co-owner of Elevate Accounting LLC in Oshkosh. Contact him at 920-385-6342 or chad@elevateaccountingllc.com.

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