Accounting jobs are everywhere. But not all accounting firms are the same.
It’s hard to know exactly what working at any company is going to be like from the outside looking in. When you’re applying for positions, you put your best foot forward…but so does the potential employer.
We believe you deserve to have the best information available whenever you make a decision. (And there aren’t many decisions bigger than where you choose to work!) So we’ve put this post together to pull back the curtain and give you a look at “a day in the life” of our team at CRS CPAs.
Accounting Careers at CRS CPAs
CRS CPAs is a mid-sized accounting firm (“not too big and not too small”) in the western part of Tennessee. We are headquartered in Jackson but have additional locations across the area in Dyersburg, Paris, Martin, Milan, and Brownsville.
Our clients range from individuals to small businesses across all types of industries as well as nonprofits of all kinds. Because of the strong agricultural nature of our part of the state, we serve quite a few farms and large ag operations too.
We encourage people to “expect more from your CPA.” We deliver more than just tax preparation; we provide a full range of accounting services. But a big thing that sets us apart is being able to give timely and accurate advice to help people grow their farms, businesses, and nonprofits. (Click to learn more about who we serve and what drives us.)
Because we do so many things for our clients, we have a wide range of roles in our team. Accounting careers at CRS CPAs include:
- Bookkeeper
- Accounts Payable Specialist
- Accounts Receivable Clerk
- Auditing Clerk
- Payroll Administrator
- Assistant Controller
CPA Positions at CRS CPAs
For those who hold a CPA certification, we have several leadership positions within our firm. By taking the extra steps to further your education and successfully pass the CPA exam, you open yourself up to opportunities such as
- Financial Advisor
- CFO (we do quite a bit of CFO consulting for our clients)
- Audit Manager
- Tax Manager
- Client Accounting Services Manager
Many people who become CPAs immediately try to get their foot in the door at one of the “Big Four” firms: Deloitte, Ernst & Young, Pricewaterhouse Coopers, or KPMG.
In a post we wrote titled, “What Jobs Can A CPA Do?”, we made the case that being a “small fish in a big pond” isn’t always the best idea in the long run. Accountants in those firms may carry impressive business cards, but they can count on long hours, high pressure, few promotions, lots of competition, and not much connection to their supervisors.
By choosing to work with a smaller CPA firm closer to home, however, you can expect to gain valuable experience in a much less stressful environment. You’ll also build much deeper relationships and learn much more from the senior CPAs you work with (since their time isn’t limited by the demands of working for a large corporate firm either).
Getting connected with one of these types of firms (like ours) is all about building relationships.
- As you work through your accounting degree and CPA certification, find ways to get to know the CPAs in your area.
- Look for internship opportunities and attend networking events.
- Offer to help part-time during busy seasons.
What Is Our Accounting Work Environment Like?
The culture of where you work is as much (if not more) important as what you do for a living. When you spend 40 hours of your week around the same people, you want to know that you can expect to enjoy being there.
At CRS CPA’s, we take pride in the fact that we have a great work environment. Our employees love being here, and in 2023 we were selected as one of Accounting Today’s “Best Small Firms To Work For.”
We have 5 foundational pillars that we build our work culture around:
- Ceaseless Compassion – we believe we all hold a sacred responsibility to share our time, talent and resources with others. We honor this by giving our team time to rest, rejuvenate and prioritize their relationships and passions
- Unyielding Integrity – We honor our commitments even when expensive, inconvenient, or embarrassing. Integrity is the relentless pursuit of honesty at all times.
- Approachable Professionals – We work to kill the stuffy accountant image. We hire professionals who are encouragers and express gratitude for opportunities to serve our clients, each other and our communities
- Enthusiastic Excellence – We believe we work with the best client and colleagues on Earth, and we are driven to serve them with excellence
- Intentional Action – We believe we must ask the hard questions in order to give honest insights. This means we must be intentional in our communications and not just waiting on the next deadline. and mutual support among employees
But the best way to get a feel for what it’s like to be a part of CRS CPAs is to hear from our team members themselves.
These and other video testimonials from some of our employees can be found on our Career Opportunities page. Take some time there to let Samantha, Sara, Chloe, Joey, Kristen, and Paul share their individual experiences.
What Beliefs Drive Us?
The CRS team is made of those whose character is in line with our core values of compassion, integrity, excellence, professionalism, and intentionality.
- Our team shows compassion to each other, our clients, and our communities. We demonstrate this compassion with the belief that we all hold a sacred responsibility to share our talents, time, and resources with others.
- Our team is known for doing what we say and owning up to our responsibilities. Every team member is one who understands that we are not given integrity, but it is a result of the relentless pursuit of honesty at all times.
- Our team members are extremely good at their jobs. We are a team that understands perfection is not attainable, but we chase it knowing we can catch excellence.
- Our team has fun but is always courteous, appreciative, and engaging. In short, our team may be diverse, but we are always professional.
- Our team is intentional in encouraging each other; serving each other and, ultimately, our clients.
Learn More About CRS CPAs Careers
If you like what you’ve seen and heard, there’s a good chance that you would love working with us. And if you are an accounting professional who identifies with our core values, we’d love to meet you.We have opportunities available from time to time, so the best way to find out about current job openings is to check out our Career Opportunities page or schedule a call.
If you don’t see a position listed on our website, it’s very possible that opportunities to get connected still exist. Many of our full-time team members began as interns before moving up into other roles. In fact, we often don’t have to post a job opening because we are able to simply reach out to great people that we already have gotten to know.
So even if it’s just to introduce yourself, schedule a call today to take the first step towards what could be a great accounting career with CRS CPAs.
