Orange County’s largest accounting firms increased their employee counts 2.3%, the sixth consecutive year of gains.
“The trends seem to be positive this year,” said Roger Weninger, regional managing partner for Seattle-based Moss Adams LLP, which maintains an Irvine office.
“People think the economy is doing well, so we’re seeing a lot of new investments, whether it’s private equity or strategic buys. It’s all positive.”
This week’s Special Report includes a list of the largest accounting firms with operations in the county ranked by local employees as of June 30. The list also includes the number of partners and certified public accountants, though those counts don’t affect the rankings. No firms premiered on this year’s list.
The 56 firms employed 5,026, up 114 from the previous year. The growth follows a 6% increase a year earlier. About 29 of the firms expanded in OC as 12 reduced staff and the remainder reported no change.
Overall, OC’s accounting and consulting firms employ 14,600 among 1,930 firms, the majority having fewer than 10 employees (see graphic, page 20).
CPAs Rise
A definite trend among companies on the Business Journal’s list is that certified public accountants are being hired at a faster rate, 7.1%, than other types of employees. Firms combined to employ 1,763 CPAs, which made up about 35% of local employees compared with 32% a year earlier.
Ernst & Young LLP led the pack, adding 46 CPAs, up 46% to 146. Moss Adams, ranked No. 7, added 29 CPAs, a 43% increase to a total of 96.
“We’re definitely hiring,” Weninger said. Demand is strong for tax experts, either to handle the complex current taxes or to anticipate the proposed tax rules, he said.
Countywide, ranked firms added six partners, a 1% increase to a total of 566. Notable increases were the five PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP added for a total of 41 and the three additional brought on at No. 11, Grant Thornton LLP, for a total of 13.
The list also includes firmwide jobs, which rose 7.1% for a total of 962,160; that number doesn’t affect the rankings. The Business Journal also calculated a list of management consultants in this report that includes some accounting firms.
• New York-based Deloitte LLP’s Costa Mesa office holds the No. 1 spot with 857 OC employees, up 7%. The firm increased its local CPA count by 10, ending with 160, and cut one partner, leaving it with 100 even.
• KPMG LLP in New York is No. 2 with 510 Irvine-based employees, a 3.8% decline. It was the only Big Four firm to trim employees over the year. KPMG added 11 CPAs for a total of 127, and elevated three to partner for 48.
• London-based Ernst & Young is No. 3 with 436 Irvine-based staffers. It has 43 partners here, down by three.
• PricewaterhouseCoopers in New York, which brands itself as PwC, is No. 4 with 398 employees in Irvine, up 5.9%. The firm also increased CPAs by five to 121 and its number of partners by five to 41, a 14% increase.
Notable Movements
• HCVT LLP in Costa Mesa jumped one spot to No. 10 by adding a dozen employees for a total of 130. It also added eight CPAs to reach 65.
• Hall & Co. in Irvine climbed four spots to No. 22 with 53 workers. It boosted its CPA count 21% to 34.
• Conrad LLP in Lake Forest zoomed up 13 spots to No. 31, the biggest leap on the list, by adding 10 employees for a total of 33.
• Employment at Chicago-based RSM US LLP’s Irvine office fell 11% to 157. Its number of CPAs also dropped 15% to 58, and it lost two partners for a total of 14.
• Frazer LLP in Brea reported a 23% drop in employees to 48 and a 16% decline in CPAs to 27. It fell from No. 19 to No. 25, the biggest decline on the list.
