Vault’s Verdict

Frank, Rimerman is ideally looking for motivated, hardworking team players with strong academic records, good communication skills, and the ability to manage their time and stress well. For students, the firm runs an extremely valuable internship program. Interns rave about the rotational structure, which allows them to gain experience in various service lines. Training, team-building opportunities, and access to senior staff also get good reviews. For its full-time staff, Frank, Rimerman offers excellent formal and informal training, an apprenticeship model that fosters growth, and the ability to steer your own career, allowing you to gain exposure to areas and clients you’re interested in.

Work-life balance is another strong suit at the firm, which goes to great lengths to ensure its staff have balance. Remote work options, generous PTO (outside of busy season), a supportive culture, and understanding leadership all help to boost balance. That said, there is still a busy season, but it’s more manageable than it is at competitor firms, given the work-life initiatives that Frank, Rimerman offers. As for compensation and benefits, insiders say they’re competitive and slightly above average; the health insurance options, 401(k) matching, and PTO policies get very good reviews, while the lack of bonuses gets lackluster reviews.

Meanwhile, inclusion efforts get very good reviews. Insiders say the firm has a lot of women in high-level roles and continues to demonstrate a genuine commitment to creating an inclusive environment where all people feel valued. With respect to Frank, Rimerman’s business outlook, while several insiders say the verdict is still out on the firm’s new managing partner, the firm is growing fast, increasing revenue, clients, and headcount. As a result, most insiders say the outlook is very good.

EMPLOYEE REVIEWS

Quality of Life

• “The firm genuinely values work-life integration and demonstrates flexibility when personal situations arise. There’s a supportive culture where people look out for each other—the community aspect is real, not just marketing language. Leadership understands that sustainable careers require balance, and there’s respect for personal time outside of peak periods. The Silicon Valley location offers excellent quality of life, and the firm’s focus on technology clients creates an intellectually stimulating environment. Remote work options provide meaningful flexibility.”
• “The firm really promotes work-life balance. We are required to work 40 hours outside of busy season. During busy season, hours usually don’t exceed 60. The firm also wants people taking PTO outside of busy season. They want people to get their work done, but they also want people taking time off and other personal time. I like that our hours are quite flexible. If I have dinner plans one night, I can log off early that day and then make up the hours a different day during the week.”
• “The best aspect is that if you are efficient and can manage your workload, you can build a great work schedule/have a great work-life balance that is atypical for a public accounting firm. The chargeable hours asked for all roles is very healthy. The worst aspect is that while the charge goal is reasonable, departments will never stop badgering people to work more billable hours even in the slower seasonal months when there isn’t that much work to go around.”
• “It’s hard to comment on the work-life balance in terms of weeks because our work-life balance really is judged on an annual basis. Some points of the year there is no work-life balance (expected; it’s public accounting) but the time is made up for with a calmer off-season. I think the firm does a good job with keeping billables lower in the off-season as a result of the busy season. Also, they have a nice PTO policy that helps with work-life balance.”

Compensation

• “The firm’s salary, benefits, and perks are overall slightly above average.”
• “I feel like the salary at my firm is pretty good. Raises are based on performance and the market. The tax department has a bonus for coming into the office a certain number of days. This replaced the hours bonus and I actually like it a lot better. My firm has pretty good benefits too. They offer 10 free therapy sessions, 401(k) matching, free meals during busy season, lunch on Thursdays in the office, and some other things.”
• “Compensation is competitive for the Silicon Valley market, and the firm recognizes that cost of living here requires strong base salaries. Benefits package is solid with good health insurance options, 401(k) matching, and fantastic PTO policies. Perks like professional development stipends and conference attendance demonstrate investment in people beyond just base compensation.”
• “Salary is comparable to other public accounting firms in the area. There are no year-end bonuses, so total compensation is probably lower than other firms. The firm changed the bonus system this past year to be based on office attendance, which discriminates against remote employees who have no alternative. 401(k) match is low but typical for public accounting. The firm used to provide meal stipends for busy season, but they are planning to remove them in 2026. The replacement program does not provide any incentives for working long busy season hours and excludes remote employees—the firm is focusing on increasing office attendance.”

Career Development

• “Career development is baked into everything we do, and there have always been opportunities to advance for those that want to. Mentoring, coaching, career counseling, and on-the-job training are all core to our firm.”
• “The firm invests significantly in technical training and creates real opportunities for professionals to develop specialized expertise in complex accounting areas. There’s a genuine commitment to developing people through hands-on client work, conference presentations, and internal knowledge-sharing. The culture supports growth through apprenticeship—working directly with experienced professionals on challenging engagements. Partners are accessible and invested in mentoring, and there’s flexibility to pursue areas of interest like industry specialization or thought leadership.”
• “Best: You receive lots of formal and informal training as you go through the ranks before you become a manager. This is effective at establishing a technical base that can be levered towards managing all aspects of the job as well as aspects in life. Worst: As you become more experienced and are able to carry the engagements, there is less and less coaching.
• “Best: You truly have the steering wheel to drive your career. If you want more out of it and are in search of further career development opportunities, you can definitely find them. If you want to be passive and just cruise along, then it really is in your hands. But there are many opportunities to continue your career and building on the foundation of a strong accounting knowledge and getting to work with various tax returns and types of clients. Worst: High performers are sought after and it becomes hard to say no to more and more work. This leads to higher hours on average for those types of performers and you sometimes need to be protective of your time while also saying yes to good learning opportunities. But good mentors can fight for you and be there for questions to help you through.”

Inclusion Efforts

• “I think my firm does a pretty good job with inclusion. We have a lot of women in higher-up roles. I think there are about an even number of male and female tax partners. Sometimes, it doesn’t feel like we get a lot of female interns, but we end up having about an even number of men and women in each starting class. The firm is very diverse in relation to ethnicity. I think the LGBTQ+ diversity comes with the people hired. The firm doesn’t actively search out these people, but there are a handful of people in this community that work at my firm. We also have some internal groups that host meetings relating to these communities.”
• “The firm demonstrates genuine commitment to creating an inclusive environment where people feel valued. There’s visible diversity in leadership and a culture that emphasizes respect and professionalism. The firm supports flexible work arrangements that accommodate different life circumstances, and there’s openness to diverse perspectives in client service and problem-solving. Women are well-represented in professional roles at all levels, including top leadership.”
• “The firm has many groups that promote DEI and are welcoming to all. There’s also diversity within the leaders of the firm, which makes me feel like I can be like them one day.”
• “Plenty of DEI type initiatives that are grassroots—not something that is forced but where employees and allies naturally wanted to create spaces. In leadership, there is lots of diversity and treating others with respect is a core value.”

Business Outlook

• “The firm’s outlook overall is very good. Our growth continues every year. We have increased revenue, new clients, and more employees. A new managing partner took over last year. I think we are still getting used to his style of management. A lot of people weren’t excited for him to take over, but all the partners have a lot of faith in him. It always takes a while to get used to change, so it might just take some time for us.”
• The firm is exceptionally well-positioned in a strong market. Our Silicon Valley location and specialization in technology companies, venture capital, and high-net-worth individuals creates a natural competitive moat—we're serving exactly the clients who define this ecosystem. The expertise we’ve built in complex accounting for tech companies, stock compensation, revenue recognition for SaaS, and VC fund accounting is genuine and differentiated. Client retention is strong because of deep relationships and specialized knowledge that larger firms can’t easily replicate. The firm’s reputation in the market is excellent, and we continue to attract quality clients. The 800-person size is a sweet spot—large enough to handle sophisticated work but small enough to be nimble and client-focused. Employee morale is generally positive, with people who are genuinely invested in the firm's success and client service.”
• “I previously had a lot of confidence in our leadership. I think I still have a lot of confidence in my departments leadership (that hasn’t changed); however, we have new leadership now and a lot of changes have been occurring so the verdict is still out on that sentiment.”
• “Best: The firm is transparent about the business outlook and we continue to grow like crazy. It has been eye-opening seeing the changes and growth in the six years I have been here. Worst: We just had changes in leadership within the tax department and as a managing partner. It isn’t the worst aspect of the firm, but it is new and will be interesting to see what direction the firm goes in next.”

Intern Experience

• “You get the ability to learn in depth about both tax and audit, in addition to a small amount of other practices. This helps you get an understanding of all areas before making your decision to pick an entry-level position.”
• “The internship was a fun experience that had a focus on team building. I was able to get experience in different areas of public accounting (audit, tax, family office). The slightly bad part is that some of the training sessions were done online, as some trainers worked from another office in a different city.”
• “My favorite aspect of the internship is its rotational structure, which allows interns to gain exposure to different service lines and understand each team’s responsibilities. This makes the internship especially valuable for students who are still exploring which area they want to specialize in. Additionally, the team members are very helpful and supportive, which creates a positive and collaborative work environment. Overall, I have no complaints about the internship.”
• “The  experience was excellent. Great opportunity to test out the different departments (Tax, Audit, ACFO) that the firm has to offer. Everyone was nice and helpful. I received great training and fantastic support. The training and skill development were first rate.”

Hiring Process

• “The process itself is quick. Callbacks usually occur within less than a week of the interview. The interview itself is relaxed, as half of the questions are just normal communication between two individuals. As in, recruiters will ask about your school and hobbies to ease any interview stress and then jump into any questions.”
• In-house recruiting team is growing and professional. They take time to screen each candidate thoroughly before a multi-person interview with several professional staff and partners. Firm is seeking motivated individuals willing to learn on the entry level side, and strong technical and client service skills from experienced hires.”
• “Ideal candidate would be a strong performer, good grades, work ethic, involvement in initiatives.”
• “The interview and callback process was seamless and comfortable. They were looking for someone that could manage their time and handle stress well. Also someone that was able to collaborate with others and demonstrate effective communication.”

Interview Questions

• “What are you hoping to gain or achieve from this role? Have you learned anything about the accounting profession that has surprised you? When you think about the company you’d like to join, what’s important to you? How do those things align with your values? Describe a time you took initiative outside of class. In a group setting, what role do you often find yourself in? What accomplishments are you most proud of? What’s a piece of feedback you received that helped you grow? Is there anything else you’d like us to know about you? As public accountants, what value do you think we bring to our clients? Tell me about a time when you had to manage multiple competing deadlines. How did you handle it?”
• “Honestly, most of the hiring process is getting to know the person rather than specific questions about the accounting industry or their schooling. That is how it was when I was hired, and that’s the continued process when I help with recruiting events and any hiring interviews. The big question for us at the end when we fill out the review form is: Would you like to work alongside this person? It is less about the technical knowledge as an entry-level individual and more about the personality and attitude of the person.”
• “What makes you a good candidate for this role? Why do you want to work here instead of other firms?”
• “What do you like about public accounting? What draws you into our firm specifically? What’s your future plan or what do your goals looks like?”

UPPERS

• “Great, nice, helpful people; friendly, collaborative, welcoming culture.”
• “Opportunities for career growth and development.”
• “Interesting clients.”

DOWNERS

• “Busy season hours.”
• “Still getting used to new management..”
• “Compensation.”