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Disappointing Accounting Firm Trend: Managers Sitting in Cubicles

Sorry for the downtime today, we’ll make it up to you over the weekend. Promise.

It’s no secret that staff professionals working in public accounting are urged to “stay until manager” for all kinds of substantive reasons that we won’t get into here.

The attraction of being promoted to manager has many superficial benefits including being called a “manager”, having “manager” on your business cards, and getting an office rather than slumming in the cube farm.


With the reconfiguration of some offices however, your dream of getting an office with a door and possibly a window may be dashed as more and more managers, senior managers, and — GASP — even some directors are living life in the grey squares.

Now while this development is most certainly a direct slap in the face of everything public accounting represents, our understanding is that it is not spreading around like H1N1. It depends on the city you’re in, your practice, and possibly your coolness factor.

But if you are in one of the unlucky few in could be much, much worse if more firms follow the lead of E&Y Jericho and go the no-décor-will-be-allowed route (God help you if they lock the bathrooms too). How will these managers be able to appropriately express themselves? Oh! And how on Earth is a manager supposed to get some action during busy season? Cubicle sex is not happening. Christ, how will they live?

Vault Accounting 50: Firms #11-#20 (2011)

Jumping back into the Vault Rankings after going over the Top 10 last week, we bring you the firms that are on the cusp of greatness or merely experiencing the best it will ever be.

The most interesting thing about 11-20 is that lack of a “major” firm. If you want to make the argument that CBIZ is a major firm, we suggest you talk them into dropping the “CBIZ” and simply embrace Mayer Hoffman McCann. We shouldn’t have to explain it further than that.

Of course, if you’ve got any news, gossip or anything relatively interesting about any of these firms, email us at tips@goingconcern.com. As for the firms, here theblockquote>11. WithumSmith+Brown, PC – Princeton, NJ
12. Berdon LLP – New York, NY
13. Reznick Group, P.C. – Bethesda, MD
14. Eide Bailly LLP – Fargo, ND
15. Goodman & Company, LLP – Virginia Beach, VA
16. CBIZ & Mayer Hoffman McCann P.C. – Cleveland, OH
17. Armanino McKenna – San Ramon, CA
18. SS&G Financial Services, Inc. – Cleveland, OH
19. ParenteBeard LLC – Philadelphia, PA
20. Schenck Business Solutions – Appleton, WI


And some of the buzz from Vault’s, err, vault:

• WithumSmith+Brown, PC – “The people at WS+B are great to work with”— “familial” “culture that’s second to none”; “Not all partners respect scheduling requirements and quality of life”

• Berdon LLP – “Reputable”; “Older crowd, not very hip”

• Reznick Group, P.C. – “Alot of Big Four alumni”; “Flashy”

• Eide Bailly LLP – “Extremely qualified”; “A widely unrecognized name”

• Goodman & Company, LLP – “Relaxed culture”; “A mess”

• CBIZ & Mayer Hoffman McCann P.C. – “Flexibility and autonomy”; “Change is resisted”

• Armanino McKenna – “Upward mobility without waiting for partners to retire”; “Never heard of this firm”

• SS&G Financial Services, Inc. – “Personable, friendly environment”

• ParenteBeard LLC – “Smart, aggressive”; “Arrogant”

• Schenck Business Solutions – “Solid, have only heard positive things”; “Low-ball service provider”; “Macho”

News at these firms fly beneath our radar for the most part but we did not ParenteBearde’s merger last year and Armanino McKenna’s CFO survey from this summer that showed some signs of life in the job Bay Area job market.

Earlier:
Vault’s New Accounting 50 Ranking Has Plenty of Surprises