A Profile of Key Tax Personnel in Corporate America

Confronting Gender Issues on the Tax Track

Kim Honaker, DBA, CPA

The absence of female leaders in public accounting is well documented, and work/life balance issues are often cited as a significant consideration in turnover decisions for employees (Louise Single, “WEIC 2010 Benchmarking Survey Results,” AICPA, 2010; Mary Bennett, “The Attraction, Retention and Advancement of Women Leaders: Strategies for Organizational Sustainability,” AICPA, 2013). A tax track is often viewed as a more family-friendly, balanced option for female CPAs when compared with an audit track, especially given the reduced expectation of travel. In addition, it is a common assumption that work/life balance is easier to achieve in the corporate environment where one is not juggling the needs of multiple clients. If these assumptions are true, one should see women represented in greater leadership numbers in corporate tax.