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Beyond Raises: How Compensation Is Reshaping Firm Strategy
Earn free CPE with Earmark! Take your learning on the go and earn NASBA-approved CPE just for listening to The INSIDE Public Accounting Podcast. Simply listen, take a short quiz, and download your certificate. Start now on the IPA channel in the Earmark app: INSIDE Public Accounting | Earmark CPE
Compensation has always been one of the largest line items on an accounting firm’s income statement. But according to the latest IPA data, the pressure around pay feels different this year.
In this episode, Rob Brown and Chelsea Summers take a closer look at what firm leaders are really facing when it comes to compensation — and why this conversation has moved well beyond HR.
Using insights from IPA’s 2025 Practice Management and HR data, they explore how firms are navigating thinner margins, moderating salary increases, and shifting from blanket raises to more targeted investments. The discussion highlights how firms are differentiating pay by experience level, with a strong focus on protecting mid-level professionals who are critical to succession planning and firm stability.
Rob and Chelsea also examine longer-term trends, including rising entry-level pay, slower escalation for standardized or automated roles, and the growing gap between junior compensation and partner pay. They unpack what partner compensation data reveals about governance, equity structures, and generational transition inside firms.
The conversation wraps with practical takeaways for firm leaders from aligning compensation strategy with pricing and margins, to using transparency and clarity to build trust, even when firms can’t lead the market on pay.
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By INSIDE Public AccountingEarn free CPE with Earmark! Take your learning on the go and earn NASBA-approved CPE just for listening to The INSIDE Public Accounting Podcast. Simply listen, take a short quiz, and download your certificate. Start now on the IPA channel in the Earmark app: INSIDE Public Accounting | Earmark CPE
Compensation has always been one of the largest line items on an accounting firm’s income statement. But according to the latest IPA data, the pressure around pay feels different this year.
In this episode, Rob Brown and Chelsea Summers take a closer look at what firm leaders are really facing when it comes to compensation — and why this conversation has moved well beyond HR.
Using insights from IPA’s 2025 Practice Management and HR data, they explore how firms are navigating thinner margins, moderating salary increases, and shifting from blanket raises to more targeted investments. The discussion highlights how firms are differentiating pay by experience level, with a strong focus on protecting mid-level professionals who are critical to succession planning and firm stability.
Rob and Chelsea also examine longer-term trends, including rising entry-level pay, slower escalation for standardized or automated roles, and the growing gap between junior compensation and partner pay. They unpack what partner compensation data reveals about governance, equity structures, and generational transition inside firms.
The conversation wraps with practical takeaways for firm leaders from aligning compensation strategy with pricing and margins, to using transparency and clarity to build trust, even when firms can’t lead the market on pay.