Strategic investment in accounting is no longer a niche topic reserved for the largest firms. As firms confront succession challenges, capital constraints, talent shortages, and the need to invest in technology, leaders are exploring a wider range of ownership and growth models — from traditional mergers to alternative practice structures and private equity-backed platforms. This panel will examine how the investment landscape is changing, what is driving interest in outside capital, and how firms of different sizes are thinking about long-term sustainability and growth. Private equity’s appeal has largely centered on access to capital for technology, M&A, new service lines, and liquidity for partners, while also introducing a very different operating mindset for firms.

Private equity transactions in accounting are evolving quickly. What began as a relatively new source of capital for a handful of firms has become a more sophisticated market with changing deal structures, different investor expectations, and new questions around governance, leadership control, compensation, and exit strategies. This panel will explore how PE deals are being structured today, what firms should understand about recapitalizations and future liquidity events, and how the role of investors is changing as the profession moves deeper into its PE era. 

For many firms, the decision to pursue private equity is not theoretical; it is a complex leadership conversation that touches every aspect of the firm, from culture and governance to partner economics and long-term strategy. In this session, accounting firm leaders who have evaluated — and in some cases pursued or declined — private equity will share how their leadership teams approached the decision-making process.

Panelists will discuss the internal conversations that shaped their thinking, the questions partners asked, the concerns that surfaced, and the factors that ultimately influenced their direction. This candid, experience-driven discussion will provide attendees with practical insight into how firm leaders are evaluating private equity today — and what they learned along the way, whether they moved forward with a deal or decided to remain independent.