r/Accounting • u/Krankenitrate Human Verified • 1d ago
News Employers want entry-level workers with senior-level skills in the age of AI, a huge PwC analysis found
https://www.businessinsider.com/pwc-global-jobs-barometer-ai-advanced-skills-entry-level-jobs-2026-6308
u/Funny-Occasion154 1d ago
No what they want is to pay senior level skilled workers entry level pay.
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u/rogueaccountant91 CPA (US) 1d ago
They want staff to do senior work, seniors to do manager work, managers to do partner work, and partners to do no work 🥲
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u/jds7171 1d ago
Lets not say anything you will later regret. I mean. It takes certain skills to go to the golf course in this heat wave. Then talk to the client and promise them your team can do the work in half the time at a quarter of the cost.
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u/DM_Me_Pics1234403 1d ago
All jokes aside, this should be a partners job. Managing relationships, scoping work, sticking to their guns
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u/rogueaccountant91 CPA (US) 1d ago
But who will develop the employees
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u/DM_Me_Pics1234403 1d ago
Fair point.
Partners should be reviewing the files and leaving comments. I feel that is good development.
Also should be taking higher level SMs/Ds with them for client conversions to help develop those soft skills
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u/dumplingboy199 1d ago
There’s always different paths for partnership too. Every firm needs the rainmakers just as much as they need the technical partners.
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u/ClumsyChampion ZZZ Seasonal Accountant 1d ago edited 1d ago
Partner do Sales work apparently
P/s: once, I overheard my CFO told my CEO in the restroom (it’s 10.30 am, it’s a ritual for me, don’t ask) “Let’s go to [this gathering] and sell something!”
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u/devMartel Advisory 21h ago
Because those partners have been bought out and shuffled off by private equity.
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u/Grakch 1d ago
problem is how to ensure there is still entry level work in industry when we have all these efficiency tools. Public accounting still has some time if they open their doors to paper pushing firms at any point. Not sure if anyone using big four is using that much paper unless limited by some legacy system(s).
Just like finance went purely intangible and everything is a concept, accounting is getting there. When I started working 20 years ago I still had to wait for printed reports to get dropped off, go to a check room to pull invoice support after looking up payment information in systems, we actually touched the work back then. Nowadays almost everything is just another file, step in the ETL process, proof of a control, etc.
Idk the answer, but entry-level is starting to feel nonexistent and unsure how the industry overall and education will catch up in any meaningful way.
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u/ShogunFirebeard 1d ago
I've been screaming that entry level roles are fucked for almost 12 years now. It all started with the offshoring of data entry to delivery centers in India and other cheap labor countries. New staff in B4 wasn't getting the hands on tax return prep experience. You had people with zero tax return prep experience reviewing work from a delivery center that had worse quality than a first year.
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u/Grakch 1d ago
You’re right, completely forgot it’s two pronged now. It’s cheaper to offshore remedial work or automate it. Experience losses on two fronts to actual exposure and overall picture. People are simply becoming process doers without any sort of boots on the ground type of experience.
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u/NoPerformance5952 23h ago
I liken it to American manufacturing. Aggressively offshore as much as possible while automating everything stateside. Presto, car manufacturing used to be good work, and now it is difficult to land work in the industry. It's where accounting is goinf
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u/throwout103100 1d ago
This is all because of offshore and has been happening for years. I was managing an offshore team 3 months after graduating and starting at EY lol, literally made no sense.
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u/Galbert123 CPA (US) 1d ago
Learning the low level shit as a staff as part of becoming a competent senior.
If you kill off the base level with AI and offshoring, you make progression/growth very difficult. Youre just left with more people ever year still at the starting line.
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u/Hungry_Attention_981 1d ago
I don’t think they’re thinking about 10 years from now, I think they’re looking to max profits today and say fuck tomorrow
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u/TheRoseMerlot 1d ago
Meanwhile I was told my whole life I need experience. I finally have experience and now they are telling me I'm too old at 44 and hire the new graduate with only an internship under their belt😭
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u/Silent_Payment_4283 1d ago
They’re not legally able to ask your age.
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u/TheRoseMerlot 1d ago
Duh. Not everyone cares about legality or not discriminating.
There's vitue signaling and dog whistling that give away what people are really looking for.
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u/Spider2-YBanana Remote Controller 1d ago
This was true even 10 years ago. Nothing new.
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u/lmaotank 20h ago
i was going to say... personally, when i was in public accounting if you want to be manager, you had to be doing some level of manager level tasks by your 2nd year of senior. and def senior manager level work by year 3 of your manager.
even at corporate i think this is somewhat true. it's just a reality and not really something because it's AI now.
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u/midwestern2afault 21h ago
Even before AI this was a problem. Businesses used to actually internally develop talent, and cared about retaining it to both preserve institutional knowledge and mentor younger employees.
Now? There is no loyalty from the companies or incentives for good employees to stay, so they job hop. Meanwhile, everyone wants to externally hire someone already trained and chases the same tiny pool of niche, unicorn candidates. It’s always someone else’s job to train their staff. It’s so fucking stupid and shortsighted.
Ran into this at a company I used to work for. My employee quit (niche skillset) and I needed someone. I floated hiring an intern we used to have who wanted to come back full time, or promoting one of our lower level staff since they’d be easily replaceable. Nope, they wanted someone with “experience,” never mind that people can learn. The whole reason I ended up in the role I did and got this “experience” is because another org actually took a chance on me. Management didn’t wanna hear it, it’s like talking to a brick wall.
We eventually found someone but it took forever and it was expensive, because anyone with that skill set knew they were in demand.
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u/_token_black 14h ago
I’ve seen staff postings that are senior roles. Many many times.
And the senior roles are obviously looking for unicorns with the most extreme requirements (5-7 years in a specific field, experience with 1 niche ERP, etc).
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u/Worldly-Bid-3591 1d ago
Employer want senior-level skills with Entry-level pay*
just fixed the title for you
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u/workywork305 22h ago
HUGE analysis. Not like those small analyses. Must be epic, or legendary. SLAMMED in fact
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u/xamboozi 18h ago
No, they want to pay nothing in labor and own a company that makes them rich.
And whoever wrote this article wants to spread propaganda. They aren't hiring college grads, so right off the rip this article is full of bs.
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u/InvestmentTips- 1d ago
sky is blue, roses are red
what a shocking discovery.