We tend to only think of our tax professionals as April 15th approaches, but Coulter client American Society of Women Accountants (ASWA) focuses on them year round.  2010 marks the inauguration of ASWA’s jointly developed “Accounting MOVE Project,” which documents the level at which women leave the accounting profession and advocates for the promotion and retention of women.  The project includes both a research report and a “Top Firms” list. 

ASWA jointly sponsored this project along with the American Woman’s Society of Certified Public Accountants (AWSCPA) and Wilson-Taylor Associates, Inc.  The launch of this important research could not have been possible without the support of BDO Seidman, LLP and Moss Adams, LLP.

If you haven’t heard of Wilson-Taylor Associates, you might be familiar with Working Woman’s “Top 25 Companies for Executive Women.”  In that same vein, the Accounting MOVE Project has also developed the “2010 Best CPA Firms for Women” list.  This list will be released in late April and includes ten firms with top-notch programs and proof that those programs actually retain and advance women.  Firms were ranked on the range, depth and success of programs and workplace culture proven to remove barriers to women's success, especially at midlevel and above. 

The Accounting MOVE Report pivots on the following four factors proven to advance women in business:

M - Money: Practices that ensure that women are paid equitably.
O - Opportunity: Advancement, leadership development and the pipeline.
V - Vital supports for work-life: Including flexible work arrangements, telecommuting, wellness and other programs and amenities that offset caregiving and other responsibilities typically unique to women.
E - Entrepreneurship: Gaining and retaining clients.

The executive report, which was released today, found that while women comprise over half of firm employees, only 40% of senior managers and 17% of partners are women.  The report also provides the following key findings:

• “Senior manager” is the level at which women abandon public accounting firms

• Metrics are weak-to-nonexistent for women’s initiatives

• Women are an overlooked resource for gaining and retaining clients

• Flexibility is one solution, not the solution

• Career path and success strategies are opaque to women staff and managers

ASWA exists to provide a home for all women accounting professionals whether new to the field, experienced or considering a career transition.  In all the time that I have worked with ASWA and at Coulter alongside several other women’s organizations, I have often been questioned as to whether there is still a need for women’s professional organizations.  The findings from this important survey certainly confirm the necessity for at least one of them! 

This year’s Accounting MOVE Project provides the first benchmark from which we are determined to find continuous improvement each year.  I hope that our “2010 Best CPA Firms for Women” list spurs competition among other firms--which can only be good for women accountants.  And I look forward to working with ASWA’s leaders to continue the association’s important work to advocate for and advance women in the accounting profession.