Buffalo Young CPAs Promote Accounting Profession to Teachers

The Buffalo Young CPAs Committee has ventured into new territory. Over the past three years, we have spent a lot of time focusing on the profession, encouraging young CPAs to get involved in the accounting practice and in the community. Having accomplished this goal, we decided to expand our reach and promote a similar level of involvement by individuals who are closely tied to CPAs.

In thinking about the groups of ‘outside’ individuals who have a meaningful impact on the profession, the committee discussed the perception of accountants within the community as well as the college enrollment problems that currently plague the profession. We spoke to recent college graduates and what we heard were just variations of worn-out stereotypes—“accountants are geeks with adding machines”; “accounting is so boring”; or “there are other careers that are more exciting and lucrative than accounting.”

While that might be a perception, the reality is CPAs are part of a cool profession that is fun as well as diverse and challenging. With that in mind, the committee decided to talk with college professors, high school guidance counselors and teachers to change the students’ antiquated views and help reveal the variety of career opportunities that are available through accounting.

Our desire to reach out turned into a career reception, which we held on Nov. 14 at the Marriott Hotel in Amherst. The reception included a panel discussion to present some of the different, nontraditional career options that are available to accounting graduates. The panel included the following four speakers, all of whom have an accounting degree but do not fit the mold of a “traditional” accountant:

Joe Hayek, an international tax auditor with the Internal Revenue Service, who, by the way, is much nicer and more personable than your stereotypical IRS agent. Joe talked about his diverse experience with the IRS and managed to change many people’s perception of IRS auditors.

Pete Augustine, chief financial officer and chief operating officer of New Era Cap Company, a manufacturer of baseball caps worldwide. Pete talked about his involvement in all areas of the company, from product development, design and management to manufacturing and distribution. He also spoke about how he helps to design and implement processes to ensure that internal resources meet the objectives of New Era’s sales force and customers.

Maureen Cilano, Amherst’s director of finance, who talked about the unusual challenges of managing a town’s finances, as well as the political nature of her job.

Ron Wheeler, who works as a financial investigator for the Affirmative Civil Enforcement unit of the U.S. Attorney’s Office. Ron told the audience his work focuses mostly on health care fraud through fraudulent billings and reporting, attempting to recover damages whenever possible. It is encouraging to know that he is out there protecting our interests.

After each speaker gave a brief presentation about their work and experiences, we opened the floor to questions from the audience. This part of the presentation could easily have lasted several hours, so abundant were the questions.

The teachers were very appreciative of the effort, and repeatedly expressed their hope that CPAs could come visit their schools, thus realizing the committee’s goal.

The reception benefited all who attended, with the teachers discovering just how diverse accounting is, and the committee members and CPAs learning about how they can attract the best and the brightest to the profession.

As president, I can say that the success of the event was very gratifying to the entire Young CPAs Committee. The occasion made me even more optimistic about the future of our fine profession.