How We Might Overcome the "Accounting Deficit"

I bring this up because the accounting profession itself seems to have an image problem these days A recent column by the terrific Joe Queenan in The Wall Street Journal highlighted what he called an quotaccounting deficitquot According to Queenan quot300000 accountants and auditors have left the profession many on the dead runquotAmerican firms including many media and entertainment companies that are among the MFM membership are competing fiercely for a shrinking talent pool and aggressively recruiting candidates from around the worldOne of the key problems said Queenan is the depiction of accountants as bean counters unexciting number crunchers quotwho have their heads buried in Byzantine financial statementsamp8230obsessed with trivial detailsquot One can only imagine what he thinks of actuariesThis image problem is exacerbated by the changing attitudes toward work of younger financial professionals It was once considered a highly respected if a bit mundane profession that paid well Now it is viewed as one that lacks meaning luster and excitement In a word accounting is uncoolQueenan proposes that employers raise salaries to make the accounting profession more appealing and quottake steps to make itself more glamorousamp8230including testimonials from flashy exciting practitioners of the tradequotHello media and entertainment companiesIn my first 12 months as CEO of the Media Financial Management Association I39ve learned two things 1 we have the privilege of working in one of the most dynamic and exciting industries on the planet and 2 there39s not a single conversation I39ve had with a group of industry financial professionals where the issue of recruiting and retaining top accounting and finance talent doesn39t come upThere is a wealth of creative content producers at our fingertips the folks sitting on the revenue development side of the aisle How can we put those producers to work helping us to make finance careers in the media and entertainment industry the first choice of recent graduates and younger professionals looking for a cool way to use their skillsThe American Institute of Certified Public Accountants is running radio ads in the Chicago area where I live promoting the importance of CPAs Maybe that39s a strategy media and entertainment companies can utilize on a more targeted basis Perhaps this is something MFM can undertake with the support of members who are passionate about this critical issueI39d like to learn more about what you are doing to attract and retain top talent and how MFM might be a resource to expand those efforts industrywide Email me at joeannottimediafinanceorg with your thoughts Who knows We just might be able to make accounting coolClick the social buttons to share this story with colleagues and friendsThe opinions expressed here are the author39s views and do not necessarily represent the views of MediaVillagecomMyersBizNet

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How We Might Overcome the "Accounting Deficit"

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Joe Annotti

"About That with Carl Mayer": Involved Media Connected Audience Fall 2024 Report (Episode 5) - By Carl Mayer

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How We Might Overcome the "Accounting Deficit"

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"About That with Carl Mayer": Involved Media Connected Audience Fall 2024 Report (Episode 5) - By Carl Mayer

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