The potential for less regulation is one factor driving optimism among CPA decision-makers in a quarterly survey, according to Ken Witt, CPA, CGMA, AICPA & CIMA associate director–Management Accounting Research and Development.

Witt joined the JofA podcast to discuss fourth-quarter results of the Business and Industry Economic Outlook Survey — statistics that were dramatically different from the third quarter.

The executives are mostly optimistic about the domestic economy in 2025. They also have a brighter outlook as it relates to their own organizations, although that increase since the third quarter was more muted.

What you'll learn from this episode:

• A breakdown of the quarter-over-quarter change in optimism.
• What challenge returned to its familiar top spot in this quarter's survey.
• The reasons that optimists and pessimists feel the way they do, according to Witt's analysis.
• The hiring outlook for 2025.