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Big 4 Accounting Firms Podcast: Accounting Career Tips and Accounting News

We discuss the latest accounting news and accounting career tips on how to succeed at the big 4 accounting firms. Learn the rankings of the largest public accounting firms in the world, big 4 interview tips, big 4 salary details, big four news and career tips. We also discuss other topics like what it takes to pass the CPA exam and how to be a successful accountant. We cover the latest news regarding Pricewaterhousecoopers, Ernst and Young, Deloitte and KPMG.
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Big 4 Accounting Firms Podcast: Accounting Career Tips and Accounting News
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Now displaying: February, 2017
Feb 28, 2017

In this episode we cover #envelopegate and what it means for PwC. PwC are just the nerdy accountants at the Oscars right? Not anymore. PwC wanted to be celebrities too. Now they are, but not for the reasons they wanted to be. 

We cover the following topics

1. What went wrong at the Oscars for Pricewaterhousecoopers

2. What this means for PwC's brand

3. What PwC was supposed to be doing at the Oscars and how that led to this error. 

4. Why the failure by the PwC partners at the Oscars reflects poorly on their staff

On a night where the 2017 Oscars were supposed to be all about Hollywood sticking it to Trump, they became about a big 4 accounting firm known as PwC.

PwC counts the ballots for the Oscars and has done so for 83 years. By all accounts they counted the ballots this time as well. What they didn't do was hand the presenters Warren Beatty and Faye Dunaway the right envelope. 

Will PwC lose the Oscars engagement? Will PwC lose fees on this engagement. What does this huge mistake mean for PwC's brand. 

What will happen to Brian Cullinan and Martha Ruiz. 

Warren Beatty ended up announcing La La Land as the winner for Best Picture instead of Moonlight. 

Who is Brian Cullinan? Who is Martha Ruiz? We provide both of their backgrounds in this podcast episode

Check out our coverage on our site below:

 https://www.thebig4accountingfirms.com/the-blog/pwc-fails-oscars-envelope/

https://www.thebig4accountingfirms.com/the-blog/pwc-oscars-2017-edition/

Feb 23, 2017

Blockchain has been in the news a lot lately. This is especially true for the big 4 accounting firms, PwC, Deloitte, KPMG and EY. 

They have been forming partnerships trying to come up with solution for their clients. Blockchain has the potential to disrupt many industries, so the big 4 need to advise their clients on how to avoid being left behind. 

In this podcast episode we go over a brief summary of what a blockchain is. We also discuss why a blockchain might matter to the Big 4.

Lastly we go over what each firm is doing in the blockchain marketplace. 

To learn more about blockchain visit our site:

https://www.thebig4accountingfirms.com/the-blog/blockchain-big-four-accounting-firms/

Feb 16, 2017

In today's episode we discuss what causes stress at the big 4 accounting firms.

Do you hear all the rumors about the big 4 being stressful but aren't sure why they are stressful. We go over several factors in today's podcast episode. 

Do you think all the stress just relates to the long hours at PwC, KPMG, Deloitte or EY? No, that is just a symptom of the larger problems. 

Long hours do cause stress but that isn't the only reason stress exists at the big 4.

Some of the reasons that stress exists are:

1. Lack of mentorship

2. Underbidding by other accounting firms

3. Lack of goals and expectations

4. Long hours

5. Face time at the office (No, not the app)

6. Poor project management

7. Client focus

8. Client demands

Do you have thoughts about what causes stress at the big 4? Do you have questions about what we discussed on this episode? Visit our site and leave a comment on our forum. 

https://www.thebig4accountingfirms.com/

Feb 13, 2017

PwC back in court over MF Global

As you may recall PwC settled a lawsuit earlier this year that threatened its existence. That case was the Taylor Bean case that we covered here in great detail.

Taylor bean’s bankruptcy trustee was seeking $5 billion in damages.

PwC is facing another such case with MF Global. The MF Global moderator is also seeking billions of dollars. The MF Global moderator is seeking $3 billion in damages which is a decrease from their initial request of $10 billion in damages.

That case was all set to go to jury selection this next week, but both parties have agreed to seek mediation first. The judge wanted them to seek out mediation before the case goes to a lengthy trial.

The law firm representing PwC in the MF Global case is the same law firm that defended them in the taylor bean case. The name of the firm is King & Spalding. There is also a key witness in the MF Global case that was utilized in the Taylor Bean case. The witness is Lynn Turner who was a key witness in the Taylor bean case.

This mediation could result in a settlement, but if not the judge said that he would get them back on the court calendar in a matter of weeks.

Will PwC settle the case?

EY Indonesia fined by PCAOB

EY has had some trouble this year.

Ernst & Young settled with SEC over their audit of Weatherford.

EY also settled with SEC over independence issues.

They have once again settled with a regulatory agency. This time EY is settling with the PCAOB.

The Indonesian member firm of EY was fined $1 million for audit failure, noncooperation and standard violations. This really shows the PCAOB’s global reach here.

The fine relates to a 2011 audit of an Indonesian telecommunications company.

There was a lot of trickery going on in this investigation. The PCAOB stated that workpapers were being created during the investigation. It will be interesting to see whether EY has another bad year of audit sanctions.

Do you think EY will have another bad year?

KPMG’s Inaugural Data Analytics class selected


Last week KPMG selected the inaugural class for their Masters of Accounting with Data and Analytics program.

We previously covered that KPMG will pay for your masters degree if you choose to major in their data and analytics program.

The first class of 52 students was selected last week. Each participating university, Ohio State and Villanova, will have 26 students.

Visit our site for more details:

https://www.thebig4accountingfirms.com/the-blog/pwc-back-court-mf-global-ey-indonesia-fined/

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