Founder
Big 4 Transparency
Dominic Piscopo, CPA, the founder of Big 4 Transparency and host of the Big 4 Transparency Podcast, is on a mission to bring salary transparency to the accounting profession. He created Big 4 Transparency just over 4 years ago, which has since amassed a crowd-sourced database of over 20,000 records and has become the place over 300,000 accounting professionals go for compensation data. Over the last few years, he’s been working directly with firms ranging from 10 person firms all the way to the Big 4, providing them with the most granular, timely and easy to use benchmarking solution on the accounting market.
The dataset that Big 4 Transparency has amassed can drive insights on what is happening in the accounting industry, and has been used in many analyses in the industry, including the real data on employee job satisfaction and hours worked at private equity backed firms compared to the rest of the industry.
Private equity investment in accounting isn’t just a bet on firms, client relationships, or growth potential — it’s a bet on people. The success of these deals ultimately depends on whether the talent inside PE-backed firms stays engaged, motivated, and committed for the long term.
Building on last year’s research, this session will explore new data comparing PE-backed and non-PE firms across key talent indicators, including compensation, hours, career opportunities, and job satisfaction — and dig into what may be driving those trends.
As AI, automation, and new business models continue to reshape the profession, retaining and developing talent may become one of the biggest differentiators between firms that thrive and those that fall behind. The discussion will also feature early insights from a new qualitative research study conducted with academic partners, exploring how employees are experiencing the shift to private equity ownership and why the human side of these deals may ultimately determine their long-term success.
Both before and after a deal, private equity will rouse a lot of emotions inside an accounting firm — and change a lot of people’s roles. Experts will discuss how to keep both partners and young staff on side, how to communicate with clients, and how to help everyone adjust to a firm’s new structure.
When private equity firms invest in accounting firms, they’re ultimately acquiring two assets: client relationships and the teams that serve them. But if those teams are unhappy or misaligned with the deal, the value of the acquisition can deteriorate quickly — and right now, online, accountants’ perceptions of private equity are often skeptical at best. In this session, Big 4 Transparency draws on its proprietary database to reveal what really happens when firms take on private equity investment. We’ll examine the data behind these deals, uncover the impact on retention and morale, and explore strategies for keeping employees engaged through transition.