CPAs and Finance: A symbiotic relationship

Finance has become the career field that Gen Z considers most stable and attractive, according to a recent survey by the CFA Institute. When I read this, I felt a deep sense of connection to our youngest working cohort; CPAs are, after all, integral to every aspect of the financial world.  

To me, there is no other career with such wide-reaching potential. In fact, our keynote speaker at The ONE this year, Canada’s own Hollywood A-lister Simu Liu is a shining example of how the skills learned as an accounting student can bolster career success in unconventional ways.  The tools and teachings learned by aspiring CPAs build the foundation for any number of careers, especially those in business and finance. In my own personal case, everything I’ve accomplished can be traced back to those beautiful letters, C-P-A. 

The experiences and challenges I’ve encountered have been staggering at times, but always, always worth it. The pillars of the CPA profession — judgement, integrity, trust, logic and control — were essential when I was in on the ground floor of a true startup where I fundraised the first million. They were imperative when I moved on to a massive multinational and compulsory when I moved into the highly regulated broader public sector. 

As you will see in our Supply & Demand feature, there is ample evidence showing major demand for jobs in the CPA-sphere. The article cites a Robert Half study that found some 40 per cent of businesses have reported difficulties in filling internal accounting positions and more than a third were concerned that the resulting backlogs were leading to accounting inaccuracies. The ranks of CPAs working in Canada have not grown at the pace needed over the past decade to satisfy the coming demand. Now, we are seeing a younger, digitally fluent generation who wants in, and we have the capacity to enable them.  

Without an adequate supply of CPAs across Canada, “the cost to society is huge,” says Irene Wiecek, an accounting professor who also sits on the newly established accountancy education panel of the International Federation of Accountants (IFAC). “There is a decline and it’s not just in Canada.”  

Without CPAs, companies struggle with public disclosure and compliance, which could lead to a decline in the integrity of public markets. An article in Bloomberg recently connected a shortage of accountants to high-profile errors in regulatory filings, with at least four major U.S. companies needing to correct their earnings reports last February soon after releasing them – citing “clerical error” as the reason. 

The Bloomberg story also concludes that as the talent pipeline dwindles, businesses have “fewer experienced accountants to do strategic thinking and other high-level tasks.”  

The picture being painted here is clear: The world needs more CPAs.   

As a CPA, you are the financial backbone in any organization, industry or sector. You get to be on the ground floor of the of all the remarkable things that are happening in the ecosystem, such as sustainability, advanced technology and artificial intelligence. 

These are global issues that require global solutions — and CPA Canada plays an important role as the representative of Canadian CPAs at international tables — the trusted partner of the Global Accounting Alliance, IFAC, the International Sustainability Standards Board and many others.  

As stable as they are, careers in finance and business are changing and CPAs have an opportunity to lead – globally. This is why we believe so strongly in finding a way for members from Ontario and Quebec to remain a part of our national profession. 

Throughout everything in my career – all the insight on display from our recent focus groups across Canada and all the amazing work I’ve been a part of around the world since taking the helm here at CPA Canada – being a CPA and representing the profession has been my proudest honour.  

Thinking back on that scrappy startup early in my career and on through the years, I would not have any of those experiences without my designation. There are few career paths more open-ended than ours — few degrees, diplomas or documents have the power to take your career anywhere the way a CPA does. 

I have so much pride in this profession as it stands, but I’m even more excited to see it grow and evolve as the younger generation joins.