I’m a 31F CPA working at a small public accounting firm. I’ve been here for 5.5 years. I was laid off, worked elsewhere for 2 years, and then returned after being offered higher pay. The people are generally good and I’ve built some friendships here. The compensation is solid for my experience level, which is part of why I haven't left. My main issue is the quality of the work and processes. Here are some examples: Retained earnings often don’t roll correctly, and numbers are sometimes plugged just to make returns tie. in returns. Tax adjustments are kept in workpapers but not reflected in client books, even for bookkeeping clients. Balance sheet issues are sometimes handled without proper entries or client communication. Work is very deadline-driven, often at the expense of accuracy. The owner has said depreciation “isn’t important” for many clients because they don’t understand it and banks don’t focus on it.…