Talent shortage is a problem in accounting. It has been for decades, and it’s only getting worse. Firms face a historical struggle to find quality accountants—and keep them—while focusing on growing the business.

Every accounting firm is a business, but does that mean your firm should function like a traditional company? A typical business has many moving parts, a variety of roles, and a structure in place. It’s an entire system that revolves around the company’s core offerings, products and/or services.

We’ve all heard about or experienced firsthand some awful stories about hiring for tax season, and we do our best to avoid them from happening to us—or from happening again!

It was already predicted that in 2020, we would see a shortage of accountants within the industry. With COVID-19 causing a record high in unemployment, Accounting Today reported professional and business services shed 2.1 million jobs in April of this year, including nearly 68,000 in accounting and bookkeeping.

We're already seeing the shortage take effect—the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that year-over-year growth for accounting and bookkeeping services is down almost 2%. 

If it’s possible to compensate for emerging shortage, accounting firms will have to adjust their hiring process in order to do so.