Women Need to Rise as CPA Firm Partners

The good news for women in accounting is that 42 percent of CPAs in U.S. firms are women, so efforts focused on retention and advancement could result in meaningful change in the next few years.

Business ownership in the United States is changing, and that is great news for women. Roughly 30 percent of businesses in the U.S. are now owned by women and growing at 1.5 times the national average.

Democratization of communication and social media play big roles, allowing women to drive the narrative and be more authentic, thereby reducing pressure to “comply” with male-centric business norms and supporting a shift in the leadership model. Many of us see and appreciate women as leaders and the strengths women bring to organizations and teams.

Today, 37 percent of CEOs in the Fortune 500 are women. However, the pace of change in accounting firm leadership is not keeping up. According to the 2019 AICPA Trends Report, only 23 percent of partners in public accounting firms are women. While that may sound promising, this number has not increased significantly since 1993, when only 19 percent of partners were women. Clearly, we have some work to do.

As efforts to increase diversity across the profession have surged, the so-called “pandemic effect” is adding hurdles that will likely impact the trajectory of female leaders over the next few years. According to McKinsey, women in senior leadership positions are among the groups hit hardest by the pandemic, particularly those with children under 10 years old. McKinsey estimates that 23 percent of these women thought about leaving the workforce in 2020! 

A Look at the Research

According to the 2021 Women in the Workplace Report ,“42 percent of women say they have been often or almost always burned out in 2021,” up from 32 percent in 2020. This means programs, initiatives and other efforts focusing on hiring, promotion and retention of women should include evaluating how workplace culture, performance measures and leadership roles might heighten this sense of burnout.

The good news is that 42 percent of CPAs in U.S. firms are women, so efforts focused on retention and advancement could result in meaningful change in the next few years.

A good first step would be to re-evaluate how “high performance” is assessed.  Persistent gender stereotypes influence perceptions of female leaders as compared to leadership styles of men.  For example:

• Women have more of a cooperative style, whereas men are more direct
• Women are more collaborative, while men are more competitive
• Men are more self-confident, whereas women may suffer from “imposter syndrome”
• Men can be more impulsive (i.e., just do it) while women are more nurturing (i.e., don’t do it until you can do it right)

These perceptions may influence how performance is evaluated. In a highly competitive culture or an organization with a command-and-control structure, women may not be seen as “strong” leaders. In “Research: Women Score Higher Than Men in Most Leadership Skills ,” authors Jack Zender and Joseph Folkman found that “women in leadership positions are perceived as just as — if not more — competent than their male counterparts.” Their data shows that women score statistically higher than men in most leadership competencies, including:

• Taking initiative
• Driving for results
• Being bold
• Connecting to the outside world
• Communicating powerfully and prolifically

This suggests unconscious bias might be influencing perceptions of what it takes to be perceived as a good leader.  In Deloitte’s report “Leadership. Do men and women do it differently? ”, the authors describe the lingering impact of these perceived differences as “underlying beliefs, attitudes and mindsets about appropriate gender roles influence perceptions about men and women’s leadership performance and potential.”

Bias might also play a role in other professional areas both in subtle and no-so-subtle ways. For example:

• Are client functions or social gatherings organized around primarily male-centric activities such as sporting events or cigar bar?
• Are men always the lead on sales meetings?
• Are there expectations for participation in after-hour events or programs?
• Is travel a requirement for promotion?

Firms should scan for, then root out, bias embedded in policies and practices that have developed and evolved over time across the industry based on male norms, styles and experiences. Identifying those patterns and how they manifest in your firm might reveal opportunities to shift toward more equitable, unbiased practices. A simple example would be to limit the number of after-hours programs so that working parents (who are more likely to be women) aren’t put at a disadvantage for expanding their network, making connections or strengthening workplace relationships.

For many working women, it can be challenging to find mentors and role models. With so few women in leadership across the profession, it is difficult for many women to find a role model with similar lived experiences who have successfully navigated the path to leadership.

Women partners not only can provide insights on balancing work while caring for young children or aging parents, managing a disability (visible or invisible), or building a professional network. In organizations with only a few female leaders, there are limited opportunities to build these relationships. There are several women’s organizations that provide opportunities to build these relationships through networking events, mentoring programs and development programs for women.  Offering networking opportunities specifically geared toward women in leadership roles. Firms could work with those organizations to sponsor internal events or encourage participation in external events and programs.

Developing training and development programs specifically aimed at supporting women is a great way to strengthen the leadership pipeline, as well as boost retention. Leadership training specifically focused on leadership skills can also boost confidence.

A KPMG study reports that as much as 75 percent of female executives report experiencing Imposter Syndrome at some point in their career. Merriam-Webster describes Imposter Syndrome as “a false and sometimes crippling belief that one’s successes are the product of luck or fraud rather than skill.”

It manifests as feelings of self-doubt, low confidence and inadequacy. While core competencies will vary by program, some key areas to consider include:

• Influence and Negotiation – to help women negotiate confidently and increase their influence and impact
• Communication – to empower women to speak up with sureness and poise, without shrinking themselves to seem less “bossy” or intimidating
• Entrepreneurial Mindset – to help women better promote themselves, speak to their achievements and be recognized for their accomplishments
• Business Development – to learn to “brag” to build clout and comfortably promote themselves and their organization, and navigate gender differences in negotiations
• Conflict Management – to develop strategies for navigating difficult conversations, particularly as it relates to gender differences in how men and women tend to relate to conflict

Leadership development should not just be “butts in seats” training classes. Formalizing mentoring and coaching programs can provide vital career mapping and guidance insights. 

And let’s not forget the men! Any program designed to increase the number of women partners will yield limited results without participation from men.

Allyship is Powerful

A 2014 study by Pershing LLC found that 77 percent of respondents to their survey fell back on traditional gender roles when asked about preferences for leadership styles, expressing a preference for male leaders, despite the fact that the majority prefer a collaborative leadership style which they attributed with women leaders. 

The traditional view of allyship is men who sponsor, mentor and advocate for women.  Men can also serve as role models and spokespersons for other men.  While men remain the majority of partners, their voice is critical in addressing inequities within their firms.  Providing training on allyship, advocacy and sponsorship can help men feel more comfortable providing mentorship and other support to women, as well as role models for their male counterparts.

Most, if not all, of these strategies can also boost recruiting efforts as well. Candidates are seeking out firms with a demonstrated commitment to diversity and inclusion. 

Final Thoughts

Developing programs, modernizing practices and updated policies aimed at equity and inclusion to support a more diverse workforce are clear evidence of that commitment. They also send a signal to other groups across the firm that diversity matters and the firm is willing to put in the work to identify strategies that support a more diverse workforce.