How CAS Can Rescue Accounting from Its Talent Crisis

Here’s the hard truth: If your firm’s business model still revolves around offering services traditionally provided by an accounting firm and nothing more (think tax, audit, etc.), you’re probably beginning to see diminishing returns. 

The next generation of accountants isn’t looking for a desk, a calculator, and a stack of 1099s. They want a career that’s dynamic, strategic, and impactful. Traditional services are vital and important—but let’s not pretend they’re sexy.

CAS delivers that.

Learn more about Client Advisory Services (CAS).

The Talent Crisis, Unpacked

We’re not just dealing with a few hard-to-fill roles. This is a full-blown profession-wide crisis:

• Accounting grads are down: According to AICPA, bachelor’s degrees in accounting dropped by nearly 8% between the 2021 and 2022 academic years. The good news is that enrollment is up as of 2024; however, thousands of open accounting jobs remain unfilled. It will take time to catch up, even if the numbers remain positive.

• Fewer CPAs: The number of candidates sitting for the CPA exam is plummeting.

• Exit stage left: Older accountants are retiring faster than they can be replaced.

• Burnout is rampant: Long hours, low margins, and repetitive work? Shocking that people are leaving.

• Low starting salaries: Most firms offer newly-minted accountants somewhere in the mid-$50k range to start, far below the expectations (and desires) of rising grads.

But here’s the thing: It’s not the profession that’s the problem. It’s the way we’re using our talent.

CAS Gives Accountants a Reason to Stay (and Thrive)

Let’s say it loud: Accountants don’t hate accounting—they hate doing meaningless work.

Advisory allows them to branch out, get creative, and see real results for their clients, bolstering job satisfaction. Instead of pounding through month-end checklists, advisors get to:

• Work closely with clients

• Solve real business challenges

• Provide insight, not just output

• Think critically, creatively, and collaboratively

• Experience the challenge of steering a business into growth and profitability

CAS Creates Career Paths That Don’t Suck

Here’s what happens when you embrace CAS: You stop hiring for “bookkeepers” and “data entry specialists,” and start opening doors for:

• Virtual CFOs

• Client success managers

• Automation specialists

• Financial analysts

• Strategy consultants

The work is more flexible, more interesting, and more aligned with what the next generation of talent actually wants. Translation: You stop losing your people to burnout—or to tech companies.

CAS + Automation = The Burnout Cure

Let’s be clear: CAS doesn’t work if your team is still buried in spreadsheets and manual reconciliations. That’s where automation comes in.

At Botkeeper, we’ve reduced the need for human intervention in bookkeeping. Our AI does the heavy lifting—cleaning data, categorizing transactions, reconciling accounts, and more.

That gives your team back their time. And not just “catch-up-on-admin” time. Time to build, advise, and lead.

Burnout happens when people are stuck in low-value work. CAS thrives when automation clears the way for high-value strategy.

Gen Z Doesn’t Want a Timesheet—They Want Purpose

Want to attract younger talent? Then stop offering jobs that look like they came out of a 2005 job board.

• Work that matters

• Tech-forward environments

• Mentorship and mobility

• Work-life balance that isn’t a punchline

They grew up in the cloud, and they expect their careers to be just as seamless. That means more Zooms, fewer folders. More insights, less input.

More CAS. Less compliance.