PSA: Even in This Market, It’s Still Uncool to Quit Your Big 4 Job Without Notice

Posted on by Adrienne Gonzalez
an exit sign

I was a bit surprised by the responses to this question on r/Big4 about quitting without notice. It seems even in this market we are in agreement that the least you can do is give the customary two weeks. Best case scenario they cut you loose immediately so you don’t drag your team down, steal trade secrets, and fill your firm-issued laptop with porn and viruses now that you are no longer a member of the trusted inner circle. Worst case scenario, you grind out two more weeks which isn’t so bad relatively speaking when you consider the average life expectancy of a public accountant of 54 years.

Let’s see what the peanut gallery says:

Of the two dozen or so comments in response, this one pretty much sums things up:

[A]as much as I know Big 4 is exploitative, this is a bit unethical to just disappear. Not sure if you are on any projects but your team members surely would appreciate the heads-up.

That last part is the important part. The firm couldn’t care less if you go (assuming you are a low level cog and not someone important) but your team will notice. They are already overworked, underslept, and possibly near the breaking point. Chances are you’ve been operating on a skeleton crew for some time, one less body will be felt.

Do you want to be that guy (or gal)? When they say accounting is a small world this is what they’re talking about. Not that some Big 4 partner you’ve interacted with a handful of times will bring your name up on the golf course and tell some client about how you left your team in the lurch so you could go chase a better salary, those people have watched thousands of people leave over the years. No, what they mean is that if you dip out suddenly when everyone is already buried in work then you are a dick and everyone will know it.

Put in your two weeks like the responsible professional you are and then just coast until mid-November. THAT is the way. Plus you don’t know what’s going to happen when and if the economy takes a dump in the future (it will), as much as you are loath to accept this there is a possibility that some day in the future you may need to come crawling back to the firm. If you burn that bridge, you won’t have that option. Unless you are at risk of an immediate mental and emotional breakdown, just stick it out a little longer and leave the right way. Copy us on the farewell email, please.

Oh and good luck at the new job. It’s not at all a glaring red flag that they want you to start immediately. Surely it’s because of the skills and talent you bring to the table and not because they’re just as overworked and chaotic as the Big 4 firm you’re about to leave.

Related: A Field Guide to Quitting a Job in Public Accounting
Somewhat related: Yes, You Can Quit During Busy Season

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Starting off – if unemployment doesn’t improve by 2012, Obama won’t be able to blame PwC:

KS: It seems like the firm is always hiring, how does that 45,000 compare with 2008 and 2009?

PL: It’s certainly higher than it has been in recent years. For the US, we’re hoping to hire around 10,000 this year. Those numbers are about 60% higher than they were for 2009 or 2010. About 6,000 of those are campus hires and 4,000 are on the experienced side.

Rumors of our acclimating to social media at a snail’s pace have been greatly accurate but only because we were waiting for The One:

KS: When PwC announced the LinkedIn [partnership], some articles said PwC has been slow to embrace social networking — is that accurate?

PL: Well, we were waiting for the right place at the right time. LinkedIn was a really good match for us.

Poaching, on the other hand, we’re all over that:

KS: I always try to ask about poaching. Is PwC hiring from competitors much these days?

PL: Because I think we are hiring more people, there’s more activity there. That’s always been a place we like to stay competitive.

Once you land those people, how do you keep them? Well, it helps if you come to grips with the fact that the last week of the year is pointless and you tell everyone to stay home. Secondly, you replace the old swag:

KS: Is PwC doing anything new to increase retention?

PL: We’ve had some great stuff on the retention front. We had an annual shutdown between Christmas and New Year’s where we closed our firm. That’s a terrific thing for us. I can tell you, you really get a chance to disconnect. Not only are you on vacation, but no one else is working. It gets people rejuvenated.

And we’re always doing stuff. Our new brand was a really great and exciting thing. We all have new bags for our computers that have our new colors for the new brand.

Right, the new brand! That was exciting. Sure, there might have been some kvetching at first but now that everyone has calmed down it’s really what makes us different from other firms:

KS: So how does the culture differ from a company like Deloitte?

PL: It’s hard for me to say on that, because I haven’t been a part of their culture, but I would say our new brand launch this fall really defines our culture. The colors are really vibrant and warm. We took that really long name and shortened it up. Our new logo can be really animated. I think that’s really what we’re trying to bring out in our culture.

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New Leadership Appointment Causes Unrest Inside Deloitte Advisory

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Today we have more controversy from inside the house of D but this time it is from a sub-group in the Enterprise Risk Services (aka Advisory or “ERS”) practice. There have been a number of recent leadership appointments within ERS but one in particular that caused a Deloitte partner to reach out to GC. This individual belongs to the Security and Privacy Practice (“S&P”) which consists of approximately 80-90 partners and has been recognized as one of the “12 leading global information security & risk consulting service providers” by Forrester Research Leader for their expertise in this area, according to the Deloitte website.

According to our source, the issue that has caused concern amongst many partners in the S&P group is that the new leader does not have extensive experience in the Security & Privacy area. Our source explained to us that a recent theme inside the firm has been “leading from the front” best encapsulated by leaders like Theodore Roosevelt, Winston Churchill and others who lead based on setting an example. The feeling of the S&P partners is the most recent appointment is based more on cronyism rather than qualifications and past performance.

The leader of the ERS group who makes the appointments is Owen Ryan, a Deloitte veteran who has held several leadership positions at the firm and has led ERS for the past 2-3 years. Our source told us Mr. Ryan has run the advisory practice creating an environment of cronyism and nepotism by appointing individuals, including family members, closest to him and that this appointment in S&P has partners saying this is the latest example of “the emperor having no clothes.” S&P supposedly has many qualified partners who have held leadership positions in the past who could lead the group but were passed over. This has many of them worried about what will become of their reputation as a top service provider in the area and how clients will perceive this appointment.

We spoke to a former Deloitte partner who worked in the Securitization and Structured Products Group (also part of ERS) who confirmed these allegations of nepotism and cronyism. “I wouldn’t go so far to extrapolate what occurred in our group to others,” the former partner said, “but that was certainly my experience.”

Despite this, one insider who is familiar with the leadership at Deloitte described Mr. Ryan as a “results-oriented businessman” who is cognizant of how “his decisions will reflect on him.” This source further told GC that “[Mr. Ryan] would not compromise the potential success of the ERS group by appointing someone to a leadership position who wasn’t qualified.”

Mr. Ryan’s no-nonsense style has manifested itself into some interesting behavior. Our original source told us that he takes attendance at ERS partner meetings and fines individuals $20 for using their BlackBerrys or speaking to neighbors during them. Our source said the money collected goes to charity.

Mr. Ryan did not respond to our voicemail requesting an interview.

The concern in S&P is understandable; an outsider leading a niche group would rankle the feathers of the most laid back partner. However, these decisions are rarely made in a vacuum and Mr. Ryan has his own superiors to report to. The other aspect to consider is the difference between technical leadership and what one source called “visual” leadership. There are many partners capable of leading a practice based on technical merits but the vision and flexibility needed to keep a group progressive in a fast-paced market does not always accompany technical expertise. Quite simply, if the leadership appointments that are made on Mr. Ryan’s watch do not prove successful, he will certainly be held responsible, but there is a lot of concern that the reputations of many of the firm’s best service lines may suffer in the process.

3 thoughts on “PSA: Even in This Market, It’s Still Uncool to Quit Your Big 4 Job Without Notice”

  1. Your employer can fire you without notice and it’s not seen as unethical… so you should be able to fire your employer without notice. It isn’t this person’s fault that their team is overworked. Being scared of burning bridges only benefits the partners of your firm. Don’t stay at a job you hate. Leave ASAP.

    1. When you join a company, typically there are company policies which you agree to that govern these things. Some employers will mandate a certain notice period. If that doesn’t exist, then I agree. Leave at your whim. If it does, then you can still do what you feel is best, but it doesn’t mean the Company won’t abide by their own policy. Just food for thought. People also sue for wrongful termination all the time, and they either end up winning or settling, in which case the employer is not nearly as powerful as you are making them sound.

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