Decoding the determinants of early career retention in public accounting firms

Purpose This study examines factors that influence professionals' tenure during their initial public accounting careers. Design/methodology/approach Using survey data, the study employs ordered logistic regression analyses that include mentoring experiences, performance, gender, educational attainment, and firm size as explanatory variables, and tenure length as the dependent variable. Findings High performance (having a CPA credential) and having a mentor in the first three years of employment are positively associated with longer tenure in initial public accounting careers. While career development function of mentoring – specifically, having a mentor who opens the door to challenging assignments – benefits both genders, technical assistance from a mentor significantly improves tenure for women only. Women who participate in a combination of both formal and informal mentoring are more likely to have longer tenure. Conversely, firm size and advanced educational attainment are negatively associated with tenure. No statistically significant gender differences were observed in overall tenure length. Originality/value The study empirically highlights the importance of different functions and types (formal, informal, or both) of mentoring, performance, and gender in shaping initial tenure in public accounting.