July 01, 2024

Tackling the Talent Shortage

Chair’s Message

Welcome to your July/August issue of Today’s CPA. This is my first chair’s message, which is special to me because my involvement in TXCPA began when I was invited to serve as a member of the TXCPA Editorial Board. I have served in many different roles for the past 20 years, at both the state level and for TXCPA Houston. I am grateful to have been introduced to volunteer leadership with TXCPA by originally helping steer the direction and content for this magazine.  

My time as TXCPA Chair comes at a particularly exciting time for an accounting educator like me. You’ve no doubt read and heard about TXCPA’s commitment to growing the CPA pipeline and our multi-year CPA Pipeline Strategy that launched in 2022-2023. This past May, AICPA’s National Pipeline Advisory Group (NPAG) released a draft report with proposed profession-wide solutions to tackle the talent shortage and attract more people to a rewarding career in accounting.

At the Annual Meeting of Members in Frisco, Texas at the end of June, our agenda included time devoted to discussing how we can be a part of the solution and incorporate NPAG’s proposals into our own plans and actions. The talent challenges are impacting all of us – from employers to educators – and I am encouraged by the way our profession is committed to reversing the trends and how our members are pledging to share the many ways they benefit from being CPAs.

I am honored to serve as your TXCPA Chair as we navigate the pipeline challenges and other critical professional issues together. You can learn more about my background and vision in the cover story, and I welcome your feedback throughout the year if there is anything TXCPA can do to help support you or add value to your membership.

I look forward to serving with you!

TXCPA Chair Mohan Kuruvilla, Ph.D., CPA-Houston

Let’s Connect!

Drop me a note at chair@tx.cpa.

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CHAIR
Mohan Kuruvilla, Ph.D., CPA

PRESIDENT/CEO
Jodi Ann Ray, CAE, CCE, IOM

CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER
Melinda Bentley, CAE

EDITORIAL BOARD CHAIR
Jennifer Johnson, CPA

MANAGER, MARKETING AND COMMUNICATIONS
Peggy Foley
pfoley@tx.cpa

MANAGING EDITOR
DeLynn Deakins
ddeakins@tx.cpa

COLUMN EDITOR
Don Carpenter, MSAcc/CPA

DIGITAL MARKETING SPECIALIST
Wayne Hardin, CDMP, PCM®

CLASSIFIEDS
DeLynn Deakins

Texas Society of CPAs
14131 Midway Rd., Suite 850
Addison, TX 75001
972-687-8550
ddeakins@tx.cpa

 

Editorial Board
Derrick Bonyuet-Lee, CPA-Austin;
Aaron Borden, CPA-Dallas;
Don Carpenter, CPA-Central Texas;
Rhonda Fronk, CPA-Houston;
Aaron Harris, CPA-Dallas;
Baria Jaroudi, CPA-Houston;
Elle Kathryn Johnson, CPA-Houston;
Jennifer Johnson, CPA-Dallas;
Lucas LaChance, CPA-Dallas, CIA;
Nicholas Larson, CPA-Fort Worth;
Anne-Marie Lelkes, CPA-Corpus Christi;
Bryan Morgan, Jr, CPA-Austin;
Stephanie Morgan, CPA-East Texas;
Kamala Raghavan, CPA-Houston;
Amber Louise Rourke, CPA-Brazos Valley;
Shilpa Boggram Sathyamurthy, CPA-Houston, CA
Nikki Lee Shoemaker, CPA-East Texas, CGMA;
Natasha Winn, CPA-Houston.

CONTRIBUTORS
Melinda Bentley; Kenneth Besserman; Kristie Estrada; Holly McCauley; Craig Nauta; Kari Owen; John Ross; Lani Shepherd; April Twaddle; Patty Wyatt