Michelle Wroan serves as both the managing partner of KPMG’s downtown outpost as well as the hub leader for the firm’s Pacific Southwest region.
Wroan, who has spent more than 32 years with KPMG, spoke with the Business Journal about changes she anticipates under the second Trump Administration and how she helps the company retain talent.
Speaking generally, how in your eyes is the accounting industry faring in Los Angeles and Southern California right now?
The accounting industry in L.A. and Southern California remains strong, with steady demand across public accounting and corporate finance roles. The region’s diverse economy – spanning entertainment, technology, health care, real estate and financial services – continues to create opportunities. Companies are looking for professionals who can help navigate an evolving regulatory environment, complex financial reporting requirements, and strategic business decisions.
With the second Trump Administration now underway, do you anticipate any changes to the business climate that will keep accountants busy working with their business clients?
Businesses are closely monitoring potential policy changes, particularly in tax and trade, but it’s too early to determine their full impact. What we’re hearing from clients is that they remain focused on agility and resilience as they prepare for shifts in the regulatory landscape.
Tax policy will be a major focus, with the approaching expiration of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, bringing uncertainty around corporate rates, deductions and incentives. Beyond the TCJA in 2025, the C-suite – and businesses of all sizes – will continue to grapple with the ongoing implementation of the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development’s global minimum tax and the future of the regime should the U.S. not comply, and a wave of regulatory changes, including changes introduced by the Inflation Reduction Act, the corporate alternative minimum tax and potential tariffs. These three things (the expiration of the TCJA provisions, included) make up what KPMG refers to as the “Tax Policy Trifecta.”
On the trade front, potential tariff changes are prompting companies to continue reassessing supply chains. Many have already moved toward near-shoring and re-shoring, with 81% of executives expecting most of their U.S.-serving supply chains to shift to the Americas (KPMG’s Proximity Premium report).
What steps is your operation taking – if any – to implement new technologies such as generative AI software?
KPMG aIQ, our AI transformation program, is focused on upskilling and empowering our 36,000 people to embrace the new tools available to them and translate the power of the technology into better experiences for our clients, greater day-to-day job satisfaction and more rewarding careers. The deployment of Copilot for Microsoft 365 to all KPMG partners and professionals and advancements in Audit and Tax AI technologies are examples of how we are embedding AI into existing tools or workflows that employees are already using, encouraging faster adoption and accelerating innovation for our clients and firm.
AI and GenAI are transforming the landscape of financial reporting specifically, driving innovation and improvements in quality and efficiency. At KPMG, we’ve embedded our GenAI assistant directly into KPMG Clara, our global smart audit platform, for 90,000 auditors around the globe. This capability helps auditors refine risk assessments, develop substantive testing procedures and enhance audit documentation. This is just the tip of the iceberg. As our technology teams and auditors gain more experience with GenAI, we expect to accelerate innovation across our audits. More broadly, the benefits of AI will accelerate as firms continue investing in and deploying new capabilities, which will transform the competitive positioning of finance functions in business strategy.
Given the turnover options in the accounting industry, what do you do to increase accountant retention at your office?
The accounting industry, like many professions, is managing a dynamic labor market and an evolution in how we work – including shifting expectations around flexibility, workforce upskilling and a culture that prioritizes well-being. At KPMG, we are continuing to examine workflows to create space for connection, foster friendships and drive a sense of belonging among our employees. The growing workforce shortage in accounting is another major issue, and while it is not impacting firms of our size yet, we are paving the way for change by becoming the first large accounting firm to advocate for developing alternate paths to CPA licensing.
What is your outlook on remote working in 2025?
At KPMG, we have a hybrid work model that enables our teams to be intentional with where and how they collaborate. We’re taking a bottom-up approach where our people, teams and their leaders determine the best days and ways to come together in person, while also aligning with client needs and requirements. We know that it can’t be a one-size fits all solution, so while we’ve established organization-wide principles and guidelines, we’re empowering individual functions, practices and groups so they can determine a day-to-day experience that works best for their people, clients and other stakeholders. And that day-to-day experience might look a little different depending on where a person sits and what their role entails.
