CPA Earned - Now what?

njjel

An employee has earned her CPA. Her current title is that of staff accountant. She feels she is entitled to an increase due to the fact she is now a CPA. Four years ago the Controller earned his CPA and was given an increase in pay and she is aware of this fact. How would your company handle this?

Don D

I would not relate the two positions at all. A comptroller earning a CPA is far more valuable and likely to leave you than a staff accountant. I've known it to be fairly standard to reward the head accountant or controller. Usually discussions have been ongoing and it's not out of the blue, as it's a rather lengthy and repetitive process to earn it. I wouldn't give the staff accountant a raise unless the managers thought it was going to bring a great value increase to the department or we wanted to play the 'keep her from leaving' game. Nothing automatic though.

deniseE

Did the company help fund her degree??

Was she ever told in anyway that earning her degree would increase her pay?

Do you pay those with a degree in her job classification more than those without a degree?

If the last two are answered "no", then it doesn't seem that you are under any obligation to do anything. If the answer to (1) is yes, then I would advise the employee that the company has certainly contributed to her well-being by funding a portion of her education.

Is there anywhere this employee can go from here or has she hit the glass ceiling? Is this an employee that you'd want to be without?

marc

Don and Denise have raised the right questions. In addition, it might be interesting to understand your ees motivation for getting the certificate. Most states require some sort of experience in addition to passing the exam, so the certificate may not be complete - that being said, the ee is certainly more marketable and therefore more mobile than before. It sounds like it is time to do as suggested above, and that is to examine your finance/accounting departments and see if you have some areas needing more horsepower - your ee may have some thoughts in that area as may your controller. If the ee is going to keep doing the same job and no additional benefit comes from the certificate, then I would suggest no raise or just minimal to recognize the accomplishment. Then start looking at cross-training or who would replace this ee because you may soon be facing turnover in that position.

MS HR

any problem with male v. female pay inequities that could be raised?

bamahr

I agree if the company paid for or encouraged her to obtain her CPA. She should not assume that she will be given an increase. There is not comparison with the Controller and a Staff Accountant. I would congratulate her on HER sucess.

Pork

PRECEDENCE, PRECEDENTS, PRECEDANCE: In life as a Retail HR we set in motion a career progression to the level of CFO, Treasurer, Comptroller, Vice President of Finance, vice President of Accounting, Assistant Controller and Assistant Finance. One could get promoted as a staff accountant to either of the Assistant positions but could not go any further in our world of finance management with out the CPA. With that the company paid for the education and the necessary testing periods to get the CPA, a highly regarded credential with in the professional ranks of FINANCE. In the private business world the CPA provides a great deal of finance and banking savy a professional right of passage into the upper crust of their world and a respect for the hard work and self improvement. Things do change, but if there is a need for this credential in your company for future growth of the company it is not one easily obtained. You need to look at what is published and what are your current needs as well as future needs. If there is a requirement and you knew she was working toward this end goal, then look to your precedence for guidance on how to handle this situation!

njjel

We did not pay for her courses but did pay her for the extra time off she needed to study and take the exam on 2 different occasions. I have felt that while the CPA is certainly a great accomplishment, that it does not in fact have the same bearing as when the controller obtained that certification. However, she feels that because he DID get a 7% salary increase, she should be afforded the same increase. Upper management has not addressed this as yet, but when they do they will probably give her the increase.

Pork

NIJEL: It is certainly in our business world the most important credential established. With it comes fiduciary connections provided to few other professional like doctors and lawyers "passing the bar" and given levels of difficulty to even be more difficult than getting the right to practicing medicine. If it is not in your companies career progression program, then definately insure upper level management deal with the concerns and issues. I highly recommend for internal candidates with potential to learn more and to move up, yourcompany should justly recognize and brace the positive nature of the achievement!

Our accounting manager is a high school graduate with a masters in experience and runs our finance world without credentials, but we are in Mississippi and we do things differently in the Swine World of World, we don't produce Atom Bombs, just thousands of these little "piglets" that grow up to fit on your table and smile with an apple in it's mouth! Thank God for the computer or she would still be just a bank teller.

Here's cooking more pork!

PORK

ritaanz

How large is your Accounting Department? Usually the employees know the promotional availablities in their area. If your Accounting positions do not require a CPA I'm sure this employee was aware of that. What is the Controller's position on this? We have several employees going to school pursuing their degrees with tuition reimbursement up to $2500 per year. Not one of these positions require a degree. As they progress toward their degree, they are aware that the degree will enhance their ability for promotion to positions within the company. We cannot create positions nor can we increase their salary which would take them out of their grade range.

You cannot compare a Controller with a CPA to a Staff Accountant. The Controller's CPA has made him more valuable in the scope of his responsibilities and made him able to assume additional financial duties. Your Staff Accountant has assumed that because she has her CPA she should automatically be rewarded. Your company's responsibility is to pay what the job of Staff Accountant is worth. If you can come up with a career plan and growth for her that's fine. Would you pay your building maintenance person more because they had earned a BA?

mwild31

Ritaanz hit it. Try to stop the upper management folks from making a decision based on the fact that there is a woman and man involved here - and it looks as though the man received favorable treatment. What you have here is simply a staff accountant and a controller and the two are very different in terms of responsiblity and job requirements. Also, I really hate it when people compare their wages to others - did the controller go around & tell everyone about his increase or did the staff accountant find out because she processes payroll? If she found out from processing payroll - you should speak with her immediately. I tell my subordinates that if they ever use confidential wage information, which they view solely for business reasons, as a bargaining chip for their own wages - they have to find another job - cause they wouldn't have known if they didn't have this job.

njjel

I appreciate the input on the matter. In the end it will be upper management's decision and in the past they have typically been very generous with these types of requests. The culture of this organization is very different than any other I have worked in and if it were any other company, I believe the situation would be viewed as stated above. I just wondered how all of you handled this in "your world". Thanks.

Pork

NJJEL: In my world, I handle it by making sure those with a need to know are made aware of the situation, as you have with us. I would then provide my words of advice on the history of this issue in our company. If asked, for my advice, guidance, or opinion, I would then express my professional opinion, which we all have, but unlike you, we out here in your professional world have no idea of the heartbeat in your company, without which, our opinion is just that our opinion. Keeping the thumb on the heart beat of any organization is always best placed in the hands of God's people the HR. May we all have a Blessed day!

PORK