What does it mean to be a CPA in 2024?

Welcome 2024!

OSCPA wrapped the year in December with our Professional Issues Update, reminding me of all we accomplished in 2023 as CPAs in Oregon and nationally. It also made me excited about the future. With a new year comes new challenges, which become new opportunities.

One month into the new year, I feel grateful as we continue our momentum. In the words of Jim Collins, pushing our flywheel faster and faster to create momentum and move from good to great as a Society:

The flywheel effect is a concept developed in the book Good to Great. No matter how dramatic the end result, good-to-great transformations never happen in one fell swoop. In building a great company or social sector enterprise, there is no single defining action, no grand program, no one killer innovation, no solitary lucky break, no miracle moment. Rather, the process resembles relentlessly pushing a giant, heavy flywheel, turn upon turn, building momentum until a point of breakthrough, and beyond.
The flywheel, when properly conceived and executed, creates both continuity and change. On the one hand, you need to stay with a flywheel long enough to get its full compounding effect. On the other hand, to keep the flywheel spinning, you need to continually renew and improve each and every component.
― Jim Collins, Turning the Flywheel: A Monograph to Accompany Good to Great

Here are five great ways to build our flywheel momentum in 2024:

Get involved to make a difference. Our members are awesome, giving their time and brain power to make not only our profession great but also our association. Our volunteers keep us all afloat with their behind-the-scenes work, for which we are grateful. Whether you participate on committees or in chapters, network or help others find new opportunities, your impact matters. Join us!

Support our sister organizations. The Group Health Trust offers insurance programs for OSCPA affiliate firm members so they can save money and access quality care. The Legislative Action Committee supports candidates who understand our profession and assures that our voice, knowledge, and expertise is part of the conversation. The OSCPA Educational Foundation awards scholarships to students pursuing a CPA career in Oregon to help them meet their goals in a financially sustainable way. Help support the Foundation so they can continue their good work!

Engage our young professionals. Our future isn’t only at universities, but also at high schools and community colleges. Diversifying and strengthening our pipeline ensure our profession’s future, and we continually see this through our Career Showcase event and our Young Professionals Committee. Tell someone about your career. Share your story and share the OSCPA’s story. Stories build connections and connections help us broaden our reach and bring others into the profession. Being a CPA is all about helping. Our younger generations want to make a meaningful impact. Help them understand just how we do that through the work we do. Tell your story!

Connect with and support each other. The online Bridge platform builds connection and community across geographies and helps us communicate, problem solve, and spread news and knowledge. In addition to Bridge, we also have opportunities to connect at events and educational programs. Build connections, share resources and knowledge, and make the profession stronger through all of us working together. Build connections!

Embrace change. When we look to the future, not just to today, we can create new solutions, forge new relationships, and improve our lives and the lives of our clients. Our profession is changing, and change is good. Change allows us to adapt and grow. Embrace change with joy and gratitude!

We made great strides in 2023, and I’m confident that together we can continue to meaningfully shape what it means to be a CPA in 2024. Thank you for joining me as we continue to build excitement and energy to see where our flywheel will take us. I have no doubt it will result in good-to-great in 2024 and beyond.

With gratitude,
Tracy Allen, CPA, CCIFP
2023-24 OSCPA Chair

Read more about our OSCPA Board of Directors.