‘Respected, supported and empowered:’ Building firms that champion women

Flexibility and support are the common hallmarks of the 2022 Best Firms for Women — as their staff are happy to tell you.

The 10 firms on our annual list are chosen from among Accounting Today’s larger list of the overall 100 Best Firms to Work For, which is selected largely on the basis of in-depth employee surveys. What sets the Best Firms for Women apart from their already stellar peers is the positive responses to those surveys given by their female employees, as well as having a minimum of 15 women in the firm — and those with more than 60 employees must have a minimum of 25% women.

This year’s No. 1 firm, Youngstown, Ohio-based HD Davis CPAs, reports positive numbers — of its 41 employees, 76% of staff, 25% of the executive management team and 83% of the senior management team is female. These are impressive stats for a profession that continually struggles to rectify the gender disparity in its female leadership, and the Best Firms for Women achieve these ratios by backing up their missions for gender diversity with intentional action. Brittany Mendez, HD Davis’ director of operational consulting, advises other firms to do the same: “Be authentic in your core values and promises to employees. Don’t just say your children are welcome, bring them in so others see it’s true. Don’t just say you value diversity in the workplace, hire to make it known.”

HD Davis retains a top position from last year’s ranking, having ranked No. 3 in 2021. Joining them this year at No. 2 and 3, respectively, are San Francisco-based Realize CPA and Laurel, Maryland-based Bormel, Grice & Huyett, both of which, like HD Davis, represent the small-firm category (firms with 15-49 employees). Realize has 42 employees, 67% of whom are female, and Bormel, Grice & Huyett’s 29-person staff has a 59% female ratio. Occupying the top Best Firms for Women spot for medium-sized firms (50-249 employees) is Houston-based, 92-person EEPB, which ranked No. 6 overall and has an impressive 85%-female executive team.

To find out how these firms have successfully recruited and advanced these women, we spoke to a selection of the Best Firms for Women: HD Davis, Bormel, Grice & Huyett, and EEPB. We inquired about their culture, and the programs and strategies employed at these female-

friendly workplaces, but also about how they have retained their talent during the ongoing staffing crunch, because their voluntary turnover rates — of 2%, 3% and 16%, respectively — also tell a very positive story.

What makes you a Best Firm for Women?

Brittany Mendez (director of operational consulting, HD Davis): For me, the key to being a Best Firm for Women is as simple as our flexible work scheduling. Many places offer work-from-home models or flex time, but the magic lies in allowing employees to make their own schedules and choose where they want to work — home, office or away — and ensuring the office is family-friendly. There’s just something special about having a space that is getting a smile or high-five from a kiddo on your way to/from a rough meeting!

Katherine Grice (partner, Bormel, Grice & Huyett): Our firm has employed several very successful women over the years: fine, very competent, professional women who have also lived enriching lives outside of the company. We believe this strong example attracts talented, resemblant women into the profession and onto our team.

Laura Crowgey (HR & wellness coordinator, HD Davis): I think what makes HD Davis CPAs a Best Firm for Women is based on how we are respected, supported and empowered. These are three crucial aspects of a company that separate ourselves from the rest. We have the capability of creating our own paths and molding it into our future, while having the support from our partners and staff.

Alex McNally (manager, HD Davis): When thinking about HD Davis CPAs being the Best Firm for Women, for me that means a lot of different things. It means a place that is supportive and uplifting. It means a place where everyone is treated equally. It means a place where glass ceilings are broken and women aren’t kept in old social-normative boxes.

You’re on the list based on positive survey responses from the women in your firm. What would you say these positive responses are based on?

Catherine Lightfoot (tax director) and Joy Leagjeld (audit director), EEPB: EEPB is very open to encouraging professionals to reach their full potential. Women utilize these opportunities as much as, if not more than, men. Women in leadership exhibit a healthy work-life balance and encourage others to do the same. Firm decisions and changes are made by groups encompassing many levels of staff. So, women are involved at every stage of their career with decisions that affect their work life.

Christine Graygo (director of accounting & auditing, HD Davis): The environment within the office and in the company as a whole is inclusive. The partners and management team have created a space where everyone is viewed equally regardless of gender or race.

Grice (BG&H): We ask that our top professionals mentor our new employees both professionally and within our industry. We do employ programs and targeted outcomes, but we really take great pride in watching our successful women nurture the next generation of female leaders. We also encourage our employees to get out there in the community, join boards, service clubs, volunteer. We really emphasize this for our women staff and show by example that encouragement for businesswomen in our industry is no longer tepid.

Crowgey (HD Davis): These positive responses, in my opinion, are based on open, honest communication with one another and how we can properly have diverse conversations and find solutions. HD has a unique culture that allows the staff to explore their career to ensure everyone is where they should be and ultimately find their true passion.

Do you have any specific strategies for recruiting women? For retaining them?

Grice (BG&H): We believe that our employees want to take part in the recruiting process. We encourage them to help us build a team that they want to work with. This increases our ability to develop long-lasting teams that want to work together. If our employees enjoy working with one another, they are more inclined to provide cohesive, higher-quality services to our clients, as well as become long-term employees.

Marcy Angelo (“white glove” payroll director of operations, HD Davis): Being able to truly create a work and life balance. We have several full-time moms on our staff that are able to attend soccer games, fundraise for the softball team, and pick the kids up from school, but don’t feel the pressure of being stuck in an office from 9-5. They build their own schedules based on relationships with clients to ensure all clients’ needs are met, while also meeting their household needs.

Graygo (HD Davis): We don’t hire based on criteria such as gender. Our team feels like a family, so when we are recruiting we just find the people that mesh best with the group.

Lightfoot and Leagjeld (EEPB): We have updated policies (maternity leave, hybrid work-from-home policy, relaxed dress, etc.) to be as competitive as we can be. By giving women the flexibility to be present at home and still be successful at the firm, we feel that we are better at retaining women than maybe we were in years past.

Crowgey (HD Davis): At HD, it is very important that when recruiting men or women, they are aware of our core values and understand the definition of each one. We take pride in our core values and when we see candidates that match this, we know they have the potential to be a great asset.

How were your recruiting and retention efforts impacted by the pandemic and the shift to more remote and flexible work models?

Angelo (HD Davis): Much of our staff was already working remotely part-time by the time the pandemic hit. This helped HD Davis adjust quicker to a fully remote schedule and not feel the pressure of daycares and schools being closed, as they were able to maintain their usual schedule to meet their kids’ needs in addition to their clients’ needs.

Grice (BG&H): My employees refer to me — affectionately, I hope — as a dinosaur, so I was very encouraged by our younger staff taking the lead on navigating our firm through the transition of our business practices, technology and culture made necessary by the pandemic. I could not be prouder of how our teams have embraced and managed these challenges.

Graygo (HD Davis): Even before the pandemic and shift to remote work, we offered the ability for our employees to work from home. However, with the inclusion of digital resources, we have been able to offer for our employees to work from anywhere. This allows us to be able to recruit across the country.

What have been your biggest challenges and successes in recruiting and advancing women amid the Great Resignation?

Grice (BG&H): We invite prospective employees to spend good, honest time with our employees/their potential future co-workers. We give them the opportunity to experience our teamwork, our firm culture, and see firsthand the commitment we have to supporting our employees. This process has been successful for us and given us the ability to recruit terrific candidates. We also remain cognizant that our staff remains very popular amongst recruiters. So, we remain proactive and regularly consider the needs and expectations of all of our staff as our business grows.

Angelo (HD Davis): The Great Resignation actually proved quite successful for HD Davis, as women realized that they could maintain their work and life balance by also building their career. Many of us experienced the 9-5 in the office work style, the guilty feeling while wondering how things will get done at home, or other personal responsibilities. HD Davis has been able to market our work style as one that is inclusive for all phases of life, allowing some women to “start over” in their career and build a personal and professional well-being.

What is the typical experience for a woman advancing within your firm?

Lightfoot and Leagjeld (EEPB): Given the profession’s difficulty in promoting women to leadership positions, what do you do to promote women and attain more of a gender balance in leadership? Women are promoted for the strengths and talents they have, not because they are exactly like their male counterparts. It’s an important difference.

Megan Jones (marketing & events coordinator, HD Davis): When you work at HD Davis CPAs, the management team encourages your growth. You’re asked about your goal and what position you see yourself working in, and they work with you to achieve those plans, whether that be through professional development, furthering your education, or providing experiences that will give you growth opportunities in the field of your choice.

Grice (BG&H): In our firm, we have women in all positions. We are there to mentor and support all staff to achieve their goals. We always promote the best person for the position. If you look at the history of our company, we have consistently achieved this. We think our firm works best with balance.

Graygo (HD Davis): When filling out our management team, factors such as gender are not taken into consideration, but instead we look at abilities, and willingness to take on whatever is needed for the firm. Everyone’s personal goals and professional development are also brought into consideration. Through this process, our management team has actually been filled almost entirely by women.

What does the accounting profession need to do to retain and advance more women?

Graygo (HD Davis): When people look at the profession of accounting, it is often perceived to be a “boys club.” This is not conducive to attracting women to the team. Things that will work in your favor: flexible schedules for single mothers, open-door and open-mind policy for women to advance in their careers, and ensuring a safe environment for all women.

Grice (BG&H): Top management should include women and be vigilant in ensuring that no gender-based (nor any other form of) harassment or discrimination will be tolerated within the profession or in client relationships.

Lightfoot and Leagjeld (EEPB): Recognize and promote the new realities of where, when and how much partners work.

How would you advise other firms seeking to become a Best Firm for Women?

Grice (BG&H): Look to your leaders and their core values. Are their core values aligned with what women need to feel welcome and succeed in the workplace? Define and expand whatever makes your firm an enriching, successful place for women to work.

Lightfoot and Leagjeld (EEPB): Find your leaders and give them the tools to be successful. They know what they need; just ask them.

Mendez (HD Davis): Provide a safe space for women, regardless of their life phase, family status or age. By doing this, you also create an atmosphere that not only enables but encourages growth within the company and employee retention. Also, make a concerted effort to hire a diverse group of women — all ages, races, ethnicities, etc. — in doing so, you create a beautiful community that strengthens the sum of the whole team.

What’s on the horizon for your firm in terms of keeping up its status as a Best Firm for Women?

Grice (BG&H): It’s like being awarded three Michelin stars … we do not want to slip back to just two. Recruiting and preserving a diverse staff is in our mission. We have been exceptional in this regard, and we are committed to continuing on that path.

Mendez (HD Davis): Leadership at HD is working on plans to restructure how employees track time, bill, and get paid. While we don’t want to leak too many details on this as it is two to three years away, we know that updating the how and why employees do what they do daily will really boost us in terms of creating a great place for not only women to work, but all employees.

Lightfoot and Leagjeld (EEPB): We have added a new training program, called Breakthrough Leadership, to give our aspiring talent the tools they need to become successful leaders.

McNally (HD Davis): We will continue to provide a safe place for people to work. We will grow our firm by continuing to change and adapt to things that our staff needs from us. Our firm is going to request quarterly feedback on our company that we as a team can improve on. This will allow us to get direct information from our staff, rather than just guessing what our staff needs from us.

Any final thoughts?

Mendez (HD Davis): Be authentic in your core values and promises to employees. Don’t just say your children are welcome, bring them in so others see it’s true. Don’t just say you value diversity in the workplace, hire to make it known.

Grice (BG&H): My experience is that women make exceptional accountants: They are ethical, professional, detail-oriented and team-spirited. If you offer fair and equal opportunities and work environments, the potential for a woman’s success, and the success of the firm that employs her, is tremendous.

Graygo (HD Davis): I am excited to see growth for women within the accounting profession. We have a long way to go, but with firms like HD Davis and their willingness to continue to grow, improve, and do what is necessary to retain the most talented individuals, I have hope that women’s advancement within the accounting profession will continue.