Murphy, a partner with the Midwest regional firm Plante & Moran, focused on "the demands of diversity" in her inaugural speech at a recent AICPA conference in California. She explained that the sheer variety inherent in the CPA profession requires creativity and flexibility to insure ongoing viability.

 

"The diversity of opportunity in our profession is astonishing," she said. "People in large and small firms; business executives; academics; people working for the FBI, for government, for major league baseball, for Hollywood. Women, as well as men. In fact, more women than ever before."

 

However, in turn, said Murphy, the profession must recognize that diversity and "recognize the needs of the people who participate in it, at all stages of their lives and professional and personal development." She addressed the high turnover in the profession and referred to future shortages of CPAs as two challenges facing the profession. While noting that student enrollments in accounting programs are up 19 percent over the past four years, she said these students must be encouraged to embark on a career in accounting and, more importantly, remain in the profession.

 

"We need to stop the revolving door," she said. "Turnover is high. Across all our firms, one out of six CPAs left during 2004."

 

Murphy cited the workload pressures stemming from compliance with the Sarbanes-Oxley Act as contributing to employee turnover.

 

"One way to help relieve that pressure is by ensuring a steady supply of new talent," she affirmed. "We must communicate to potential candidates that there is significant value in becoming a CPA, to taking and passing the exam, and entering the ranks of our fantastic profession."

 

Murphy announced a new AICPA initiative directed exclusively to young professionals. Called the Young CPA Network, the program will offer resources tailored to this group, including a Web page and a dedicated newsletter.

 

"The Network will help CPAs to better understand the development opportunities available to them within the profession and give them the tools they need to become our next generation of leaders, inspiring the next cadre of students to join our profession."

 

Murphy also championed work/life balance, which an AICPA survey revealed was as important to CPAs as upward mobility.

 

"No doubt it's the expanding profile of women in the profession that accounts for the emphasis on work/life balance," she said. "But balance is as important to men as it is to women. The young soccer dad who is determined to make time for his family probably doesn't see these issues as women's issues. And neither should we. It's important that we always keep this in mind: We want to help everyone stay in this profession. We must appeal directly to the motivations that probably attracted them to accounting in the first place -- the opportunity to make a difference," she said.