Vault’s Verdict

HCVT is ideally looking for smart, proactive team players with a strong work ethic. Strong communication skills and the ability to work under pressure to meet deadlines are also ideal. For students, HCVT runs a valuable internship program that offers interns hands-on experience, exposure to the firm culture, and many networking events and opportunities. For its full-time staff, HCVT provides access to many development opportunities, including extensive formal and informal training, resources and incentives for CPA licensure, a mentorship program, access to partners, and tuition reimbursements for a master’s degree in taxation.

Although hours can be long and demanding during the busy season, the firm goes to lengths to make sure its employees have a healthy work/life balance. Initiatives such as “recharge weeks,” a hybrid work schedule, and generous PTO go a long way toward making sure employees have a high quality of life. As for salaries, insiders say they’re competitive and on par with peers, while bonuses get slightly lower reviews. Benefits, though, are extensive and include many wellness offerings, including counseling sessions meditation, yoga sessions, and nutrition discussions.

The firm’s DEI efforts and initiatives are also extensive. HCVT’s DEI committee is genuine and authentic, and professionals of all levels at the firm are actively involved in it. Insiders say HCVT is a very diverse firm and constantly working towards being more inclusive. As for HCVT’s business outlook, the firm has been growing steadily and is expected to continue to grow in the near future. HCVT recently went through a change in leadership, and while some insiders say it’s too early to accurately assess the new leadership team, others say they’re encouraged by what they’ve seen from new management so far.

EMPLOYEE REVIEWS

Hiring Process

“HCVT is looking for someone who can communicate and be a team player while also being an independent worker. The first interview is a phone call with our HR rep, then the second round is four interviews back-to-back with coworkers in the department they are looking to join.”

“I believe the firm is looking for an individual that shows confidence in not only their knowledge and skills of basic accounting but also in how they work under pressure to meet deadlines, ask for help, and communicate with project seniors and managers. This is important as you may get multiple assignments with different managers competing to have their work done first.”

“The candidate goes through multiple interviews with employees from different levels. The interviewers' feedback comes in pretty quickly, and the callback process is usually fast as well. An ideal candidate for us is someone willing to accept the challenges of public accounting and know the rewards that come from it.”

“Our ideal candidate is someone who is smart and hardworking. The work that we do here is very complex, and we work long hours. Since our firm is always growing, if you can keep up with the workload, there is room for you to make partner.”

Interview Questions

“There are three parts to our second interview which are: Determine Fit Into Practice, Business Aptitude Assessment, and Q&A with a Staff/Senior. There is also an additional part for business management interviews: a Client Service & Technical Assessment. Within these, we ask questions such as: How well do you handle stress? and Are you able to multitask?”

“Describe a time you had conflict—how did you resolve? What would people say are your strengths and weaknesses? How do you handle the pressure during work? Why should we hire you?”

“What are some of the lessons you've learned in working in a team-based setting? What are some of your strengths and weaknesses? Tell me about a time when you've had to deliver bad news for a client and how you approached this. How do you work when it comes to deadlines, delegating tasks, conflicts, etc.”

“What leadership roles have you had previously? Name a time when you were under pressure to meet a deadline—what did you personally to not get overwhelmed? What skills did you learn in your student/work life that you believe make you valuable? Describe an event that caused you to rethink your approach to a difficult situation.”

Internship Experience

“You get to do work that reflects what a staff would be doing. There are fun events during the summer internship that are great for networking and building relationship with fellow peers and future colleagues.”

“I would say the best aspects of my internship was getting to experience hands-on work for the first time and having it explained to me in a way that made really good sense for my level.”

“The best aspects of the experience were seeing the work environment as well as the type of work that may be expected of me. The worst aspect was not enough diverse work to show a prospective staff what other work they may encounter in the field.”

“Best parts: Hands-on experience, learning about the company culture, fun events with the intern group. Though still entry level/basic tasks, I felt I got to do a good variety of billable work (not just coffee runs, making copies, etc.) Worst: Summer can be slow, so workload seemed low at times.”

Career Development

“The availability of both performance-focused and more generalized mentors is an incredible addition to the basic training program. Most folks obtain more than the minimum 40 hours of training each year through a combination of internal and external offerings, which supplements the on-the-job training received. There are many opportunities to progress whether in audit, tax, business management, or in our internal finance and operations teams.”

“I like that the firm allows for promotions nearly every year starting out. I also like that the firm is large enough to provide a steady platform for growth within the company and as a professional, given the amount of resources and kind of clients we see at our firm. I also like that they allow you to get multiple promotions without the CPA.”

“I appreciate the care and attention that everyone in the senior and manager groups give to the staff; they dedicate significant time to grow the skills of their newest employees. My only qualm would be as a niche-driven firm, it is rather difficult to get engagement experience outside of one’s assigned niche practice.”

“Fast promotions and development if you're performing well. All higher-level individuals are willing to teach, and the firm has a master's in taxation reimbursement program for employees.”

Quality of Life

“HCVT encourages employees to take time off and not work during vacations. Several months out of the year it is difficult to take time off with the cycles of deadlines. This is not unique to HCVT. However, when there are life events—family weddings, etc.—HCVT makes accommodations for our employees so they won’t miss these important moments.”

“HCVT does a great job at making sure employees have a good work/life balance. The hybrid model has been very successful so far and gives people the best of both worlds. I hope they continue to strive to do what works for employee health.”

“Without a doubt, public accounting is a demanding profession, and we often deal with challenging deadlines. That said, the firm’s efforts to balance these expectations with recharge weeks (currently two per year), holidays, and generous PTO really helps. The firm is very much a family, and there is a lot of support for folks at every stage of life.”

“I think my firm does a great job of allowing a flexible schedule. You are able to choose which days of the week you have to go in now that we have transitioned from fully remote to two days in the office per week. Overall, this firm treats their staff as adults and professionals and doesn’t micromanage us, which is a huge plus. I think now that we are going back into the office, the team comradery will only get better. I love that the partners treat the staff well and are approachable. The work has been a very healthy amount in relation to what I've seen and experienced in public accounting, and we are staffed well enough to spread work out.”

Salary and Benefits

“Overall, I think our firm is very generous in its compensation. Up until the beginning of this year, we paid overtime. We increased employees’ salaries significantly to make up for the overtime pay they would be ‘losing’ for the switch. We introduced a bonus program for staff and seniors. We have a 401(k) matching program. We pay for parking. We have a gym on site at our office. We have snacks and drinks. We generally pay for lunch and dinner for our people during our busier times. Since the pandemic, we have allowed people to work from home. At the beginning of the year, we just implemented a two-day-a-week work from office policy (not three or four days like other firms). We are very employee-friendly.”

“The salary is comparable to what is generally offered among other firms in the area. The extra hours in busy season used to equate to overtime pay, but now we have moved to a salary pay structure. Bonuses could be improved and be more performance-based.”

“The firm provides a solid base salary. The recharge weeks are helpful in allowing me to take time away from the ‘busy-ness’ and are effective in ‘recharging’ me to work effectively when returning. Only other incentives I’m left wanting are gym/lifestyle credits and a 401(k) match, although I’m grateful for current benefits.”

“Salary is on par with others but not higher than comparable firms at the same position. Good health benefits, profit-sharing plan, hybrid work arrangement, tuition reimbursement, and an adequate amount of vacation per year. Vacation can be limited to certain times of the year and staff on hand to cover.”

Wellness Efforts

“HCVT offers free meditation classes over Zoom during busy seasons. They have also offered to pay for one or two mental health counseling sessions for people who need them. The biggest wellness effort they provide is giving us off the whole week of 4th of July and Thanksgiving as recharge weeks. These are paid time off and help us stop working and recharge.”

“HCVT offers counseling sessions annually, meditation, and yoga sessions. We allow flexibility on hours to give employees time in the morning or after work to exercise so they don't have to do it at dawn or in the evenings.”

“Our group had a wellness contest one busy season where we earned points and prizes for following healthy routines around exercise, eating, sleeping, mental health, etc. I feel like the partners are really concerned for our personal wellness, and I have personally been allowed a lot of flexibility to accommodate my disability.”

“There are nutrition and DEI discussions. Some office have on-site gyms with instructors. There are also on-site bike rentals. Meditation Mondays and Yoga Wednesdays during busy season are awesome!”

Diversity, Philanthropy, and Green Initiatives

“HCVT started a DEI initiative that includes regular evaluations, group discussions, educational sessions, and updates to our recruiting and hiring practices to help eliminate bias in hiring. We are a very diverse firm, and HCVT is working regularly towards inclusion.”

“DEI committee is genuine and authentic, and higher-ups are actively involved in it. I’m glad to be working at an organization that not only recognizes but also promotes diversity and inclusion.”

“HCVT has a very active DEI committee that provides informative and educational content on a monthly basis. Often, fun games with prizes are held to encourage employees to participate, learn, and widen their knowledge and understanding of people/cultures different from their own. There is a group called ‘Women at HCVT’ that supports the path of women within the firm, and there are already many female partners. There is also a Teams channel for Working Parents that is a great resource for those of us wearing many hats. Charitable service is encouraged, and a certain number of paid work hours can be used to serve. Holiday charity drives are done in each office for local charities.”

“HCVT takes DEI very seriously and has a DEI Committee composed of several partners and employees of all levels. The DEI Committee is very active throughout the year and sponsors programs on a monthly basis, including town hall meetings on various topics.”

Business Outlook

“The firm is doing very well in winning and retaining engagements, and I am confident in our continued success. Firm management is newly minted, so it remains to be seen what strategic direction the firm takes, but I am confident in their leadership thus far.”

“Business outlook appears to be very good. However, there have been recent changes in leadership and quite a few significant changes since the change in leadership, most of which seem to be negative (return to office policy, removal of OT for staff/seniors).”

“A lot of things have changed for 2024, and I think we are all trusting leadership at the moment that these changes will make for a better firm culture. But we will have to see the impact and result of these changes when we look back at them in 2025.”

“Our firm has been a leader in mid-size firms for a long time, and I do not see that changing any time soon. If anything, I see us becoming more competitive with the Big 4.”