
Layoff Watch ’23: Deloitte UK Cuts More Than 800 People Because Business is Slow and People Aren’t Quitting
Reported earlier today by Financial News, Deloitte UK is cutting approximately 3 percent of its workforce or more than 800 people. The cuts are concentrated in consulting, financial advisory, and risk advisory though a few audit and business services folks also got the axe. FN cites slowing demand in the second half of the year […]

PwC Is Suddenly Scared of Making Money
First reported by Financial Times on Sunday, it seems PwC is now overly cognizant of conflicts of interest, even just the perceived ones. PwC is planning to give up tens of millions of dollars of consulting work for its US audit clients to reduce the risk of conflicts of interest, challenging its rival Big Four firms […]

If We Believe This Report, Talent Is No Longer Firms’ Number One Priority
According to the recently released Thomson Reuters 2023 State of the Tax Professionals Report [PDF], talent is no longer firms’ most important priority. This is a significant shift from last year (see also: Finding/Retaining Staff and Challenges Working With the IRS Are Top PITAs for CPA Firms, Says AICPA Survey) that could mean the so-called […]

Layoff Watch ’23: Deloitte Makes Some Cuts in Risk & Financial Advisory (UPDATE)
Apparently a 3% reduction was announced in an RFA (Risk & Financial Advisory) all-hands call today (April 20). Saw only one mention of it on thelayoff and many, many on Reddit. Like this one on the Deloitte sub: According RFA All Hands: 3% of RFA will be laid off, most of which will be in […]

Layoff Watch ’23: BDO USA Cuts 85 People in Advisory, Wishes Them the Very Best on the Way Out the Door
Fresh off the rumor mill: BDO USA has cut 85 people from advisory, announced via internal email from brand new advisory head Eskander Yavar to all of his service line this afternoon. We were provided part of the email which reads: Today was a difficult day for our practice — we reduced our workforce by […]

Layoff Watch ’23: KPMG Let Some Advisory People Go Today
Article photo from a scathing review of KPMG’s metaverse space Alright folks, the moment we’ve been saying wasn’t going to happen to us now has: layoffs are here. Bet you feel dumb for saying firms won’t be laying anyone off because they don’t have enough people to lay off eh? I know I do. We’ve […]

Deloitte Will Be the Next Big 4 Firm to Split Audit and Consulting, Says WSJ; Deloitte Denies
The rumor mill got fired up a mere 14 days ago when the Wall Street Journal reported EY was considering splitting its audit and advisory arms (pesky regulators and conflicts of interest and whatnot). As interns and accounting students who aren’t even going to Meet the Firms yet blew up social media asking what this […]

Layoff Watch ’20: BDO USA Waved Goodbye to Some Folks In Advisory
This came in through the tipline about an hour or so ago: BDO Advisory US had a RIF yesterday… about 3% of workforce… low performers but also told it was due to economic conditions… guess the comp reduction didn’t “keep our family together.” So the email I got yesterday from a person saying (s)he was […]

He Made the American Dream Real: From Foreign Lands to Big 4 Auditor to a Leader at an Advisory Firm
Does your accounting job have you trapped in an accrual world? Do you ever want to ditch it all and travel down a different career path? You could go back to school to become an orthopedic surgeon, but then you’d have to re-learn the phases of mitosis. You could be an English teacher, but that […]
Comp Watch ’14: Anticipatory Anxiety in Deloitte Advisory
Last year, it was someone in tax who wanted to get a jump on Deloitte comp talks, this year it's an eager beaver in advisory who would like the honor: Deloitte Advisory ratings will be approved. We should be hearing of our rating (and possible promotions) any day this week). Raise %'s wont be communicated […]
EY Tops Big 4 Las Vegas Firms in Hindering Its Advisory Business Growth
In this day and age of professional service firm trends, it's strange to see an announcement that highlights the audit business in the lead paragraph: [On Monday] Ernst & Young LLP’s Las Vegas office celebrates its 10th anniversary. Since its opening here in 2003, it has become the nation’s largest fully integrated gaming and hospitality practice, […]
Let’s Discuss: Switching From Your Firm’s Audit Practice to the Advisory Practice
Last week during Caleb’s pseudo office hours, someone threw out the following question:
Have y'all covered the transition from Assurance to Transaction Services in GC?
Bonus/Comp Watch ’13: KPMG Advisory
Sometimes on a hot summer day there's nothing better to do than talk about but money. A recent memo from KPMG's advisory leadership entitled "Outlook for 2013 Compensation" is happy to share the news that FY 2013 has been motoring along and that they are cautiously optimistic the last quarter will round out nicely: We […]
The New EY: A $50 Billion Revenue Goal, Squishy Independence, and Adios to the Ampersand
Nearly three years ago we surprised everyone with the news that PwC was rebranding itself. It was big news for awhile and not everyone liked the new look, but just like a website, eventually people get tired of bitching about the changes and they move on. Shortly thereafter, we highlighted an obscure report from Marketing […]
Hiring Watch ’13: Grant Thornton Chicago on the Hunt for Forensic and Investigative Dynamos
Last Friday while I was poorly navigating North Carolina, a tipster passed along an enthusiastic message that he received from a Grant Thornton National Talent Acquisition bounty hunter. And from the sounds of it, GT wants some fresh faces in their forensics group:
Layoffs Watch ’13: Ernst & Young Advisory
Another one bites the dust (via the tip box): There had been some concern among advisory professionals at EY that there could be a downsizing. It finally happened to me today at the [redated for privacy] office. Told that I appear to have topped out at Sr 3 and would not be promoted this year […]
Big 4 Revenue Bigger Than Ever in 2012
The website Big4.com likes to put out an analysis of the Big 4 firms' revenues every year and we're pretty grateful because we sure as hell don't want to do it. That said, it's largely just a press release for all the firms to remind everyone how much they're crushing it. And although Big4.com "believes […]
Comp and Bonus Watch ’12: Here’s What Deloitte AERS Advisory Will Be Serving Up
Last week, we threw out a thread to get Deloitte's compensation discussion going which really dived into nothing of particular importance other than the usual bickering. It's possible that the discussion jumped the gun a bit, but if nothing else it got people lathered up and anxious for more details. Thankfully, we now have more […]
Is Deciding Between Forensic Advisory Work and Auditing Really That Difficult?
Our inquisitor has options. Don't you hate that? If you're stumped on career multiple choice question or need help with picking out something for the gift exchange, email us at [email protected]. I was fortunate enough to receive two full time entry-level offers from two Big 4 firms: 1 in Audit and 1 in Forensic Advisory […]
PwC, Deloitte Enjoying Their Booming Advisory Businesses, Thankyouverymuch
This morning we linked to a Reuters report about the horse race between Deloitte and PwC for the biggest of the Big 4. It reports virtually nothing new that we haven’t discussed here already including Deloitte jumping P. Dubs last year by a whopping $9 million (thanks mostly to keeping their consulting business in house), the