How CPAs can show their value on National Accounting Day

Sponsored by TaxBandits

Today is National Accounting Day. To mark the occasion, Sue Coffey, CPA, CGMA, the AICPA’s CEO–Public Accounting, joined the podcast for a special edition to discuss celebrating the day and maximizing the profession’s broader impact.

She explains how the CPA Trust campaign aims to highlight the value CPAs bring to businesses, individuals, and communities. Coffey shares examples of trust in action, from financial reporting to tax planning and advisory support. Coffey also details what practitioners can expect from ENGAGE in June.

What you’ll learn from this episode:

• The significance of National Accounting Day to Coffey.
• A preview of the AICPA’s CPA Trust campaign.
• Real-world examples of how trust in action is demonstrated by CPAs with clients and communities.
• Why CPAs are encouraged to share their impact publicly through social media.
• What makes ENGAGE a key event for learning, networking, and industry insights.

Play the episode below or read the edited transcript:

— To comment on this episode or to suggest an idea for another episode, contact Neil Amato at Neil.Amato@aicpa-cima.com.

Transcript

Neil Amato: Welcome to the Journal of Accountancy podcast. This is Neil Amato with the JofA. Today’s guest is a name our audience undoubtedly knows well. She is Sue Coffey, the AICPA’s CEO–Public Accounting. You’ll hear my conversation with her right after a brief sponsor message.

[sponsor message]

Welcome back to the show. Again, our guest is Sue Coffey. This is a special edition to celebrate National Accounting Day, which is Tuesday, May 19. Sue, it’s just a few weeks before ENGAGE. Thanks for making time for the JofA podcast. First, what does National Accounting Day mean to you?

Sue Coffey: Wow. Well, National Accounting Day is really a day to celebrate our role in supporting the success of our country and our local communities, to really honestly reflect on the fact that without our services, our clients, employers, and communities would not have the trusted information they need to make meaningful business and life decisions. It’s as simple as that.

Amato: For the AICPA, how is National Accounting Day the beginning of a larger effort, starting May 19 and moving forward?

Coffey: Well, Neil, I’m really excited about the launch of our CPA Trust campaign. This campaign is designed to show business owners and individuals the depth and breadth of our services and really the value of the trust we bring to the delivery of those services every day.

Amato: Regarding CPA trust, what’s an example you’ve seen of trust in action from a CPA?

Coffey: Oh my God, there are just, honestly, just too many. When I think about it, it’s CPAs helping towns and schools manage their budgets and finances. It’s auditors providing trust in financial statements for investors and bankers to make investment and lending decisions. And tax advisory helping individuals accurately file their tax returns and achieve their life goals: buying a home, sending their kids to college, planning for an amazing retirement.

And candidly, I’m a product myself of planning and having that trust in my financial adviser, who’s obviously a CPA, has been so critical to obviously me, but my parents and my grown children.

Amato: That’s great. And there are lots of examples, so it was hard for me to say, “What’s one example?” So thank you for those. What do you want CPAs and supporters to do to help kick this off, CPA Trust?

Coffey: Well, in short, post about your impact on social media. CPAs, we, are humble, but we’re asking everyone to share a few words or a picture that shows the value you deliver, an example of something you’ve helped an employer or a client achieve.

We’ve created a digital mosaic with the theme CPA: Trust in Action that we’re hoping everyone will post pictures to. It’s a collective way to celebrate our profession, and others will absolutely take notice. We’re hoping to see people post to the mosaic and on social media to create momentum and energy in the weeks leading up to the CPA Trust campaign, which, by the way, launches in June, concurrent with our ENGAGE conference. And I can’t wait to talk more about it when it’s officially public.

Amato: Exactly. We’ve mentioned ENGAGE a few times. It is coming up June 8 through 11 in Las Vegas. What are a few things you always look forward to about ENGAGE? And what about this year’s event, in particular, excites you?

Coffey: Well, ENGAGE is honestly my favorite conference of the year. We host a ton of conferences. This is by far my favorite because it has multiple tracks. It has something for everyone. It has an advanced accounting and auditing track. It has a track for CFOs. It has a track for system and organization controls and estate and advanced taxation and technology.

And all the speakers are like No. 1 in our field and sharing their insights and best practices. It really is our must-have training of the year.

And the other thing it does is it has activities that cross generations. It has activities for emerging leaders and seasoned practitioners. The networking is off the charts. The social events are a ton of fun. And our keynotes are always super interesting.

And this year, it’s like almost over the top. We’ll have a keynote conversation between actor and entrepreneur Ryan Reynolds. And for those of you who are Deadpool fans like I am, that’s super exciting. And he’ll be paired with Richard Galanti, who was the longtime Costco CFO. And it is an incredible duo that will help all the participants understand what’s going on in the world of entrepreneurship today. They are super unique business leaders known for reshaping their industries in really unexpected ways. So, I’m super excited for that.

I’m also really excited about author, entrepreneur, and political scientist Ian Bremmer. He’s back by popular demand. We’ve had him in the past, and everybody loves him. I’m also super eager to hear Clara Shih of Meta discuss AI. She’s a leader in that space. If you’re navigating what AI means for your organization and your clients — and aren’t we all — then this is the perspective that you’ll really benefit from.

Amato: Sue, that’s great. Some of the items you mentioned will have appropriate links in the show notes. We’re glad to have you on the podcast on National Accounting Day.

Coffey: Thanks, Neil.