“If I could do it all over again, I probably would have paused after I graduated [to get the CPA],” Crystal reflects. “I didn't have a mentor either to kind of walk me through that accounting journey at school. My mom's path was different. She's not a CPA, either. … [But] it still brought me on a path that was just as fruitful. I was still able to work with the Center for Audit Quality and work in the accounting field.”

She credits her talent with diversity and inclusion work to her whole lived experience as a woman of color and her career in accounting.

She also credits her predecessor, who held to the National Association of Black Accountants’ motto of “Lift as you climb.” She saw Crystal’s passion for expanding accounting through diversity and felt it was a great opportunity to lift up a fellow woman of color.

The status of diversity in accounting today

Crystal and Stuart walk through the results of the most recent AICPA and CIMA Trends report, which covers the demographics of people entering and occupying various positions in accounting firms. While women currently outnumber men in graduating with accounting degrees, the numbers are bleak for people of color.

Starting out, people entering the accounting field are 60% white and 40% non-white. Naturally, these numbers shift by graduation because people who enroll may not complete their coursework, as in any other profession.

However, Crystal observes on the podcast, “Hiring into the firms is about 70% white [and] 30% non-white. That's been pretty stagnant for several years. We're trying to get more than that 30% into the profession.”

Another area for improvement is how many women and people of color are partners at their firms. The number of women in partnership roles is slowly increasing, but remains around 39%. Meanwhile, only about 18% of partners in CPA firms are non-white.

As the professional landscape continues to shift toward remote work, Crystal hopes that these trends will change—beginning with greater consideration for women in leadership roles.

“There are firms now that are remote only, and it evens out the playing field for the caregivers. Women are often—not only, but often—the caregivers for a parent or a child,” Crystal explains. “And so it does affect women.”

Inclusion and equity matter

Discussions about diversity are usually framed as ‘DEI’, an acronym that stands for diversity, equity, and inclusion. Crystal points out that it’s pivotal not to forget the E and I when considering the D.

“There are all these different elements that we don't necessarily think of on a day-to-day basis that we need to be working on to make our environments inclusive for everyone,” Crystal says on the podcast. “Getting diversity in the door is one thing, but then the E and the I are just as important, right? How are we giving everybody equitable opportunities and making everybody feel like we belong here?”

While many default to thinking about race and ethnicity when it comes to diversity, Crystal notes that there’s more to it. Gender identity, sexual orientation, disability, and generational diversity are just as relevant and important to consider.

Regarding disability, Crystal tells Stuart of the AICPA and CIMA's recent work with employees with autism and hearing difficulties in the workplace. To amplify the voices of those affected, it’s focused on making it easier for them to give suggestions on how to accommodate varying abilities.

Diversifying the people portfolio

How can the accounting industry become more diverse as a whole? Crystal has a two-pronged approach.

The first part is to get accounting back into high schools, whether that be through accounting classes or career discussions.

As previously mentioned, many accountants decide on their vocation because they either know an accountant or have taken some accounting or financial literacy classes. But this isn’t possible in all school districts—so it’s a matter of outreach to make sure high school students know about their options.

The second part of Crystal’s plan: making sure that accounting students see people who look like them in higher positions.

“All that work that we're doing in high schools doesn't even matter if [students] don't see themselves in the profession,” she says.

“If you're joining a career, and you see that there are no women in leadership at that organization, [you’d think] ‘Why would I want to work there? What if I go there, and I see that there are no people who look like me who have my cultural background? Do I feel like I'm included? That I'm valued there?’ Probably not. And so how do you change that to make your business or your workplace a place where everyone who walks through that door feels like they're valued there?”

Both parts of Crystal’s strategy go hand-in-hand, requiring firms to look inward at how diversity is being managed and elevated.

Changing the narrative in your firm today

Change is necessary to diversify the accounting world, but where should a firm begin? Crystal admits that it’s not intuitive.

“I don't think I learned how to be an inclusive manager. No one ever gave me training on that,” she says.

Some good ground rules to set for uncomfortable discussions: Assume positive intent. Consider how the intended audience might feel. And suspend the right to be offended.

According to Crystal, it’s ultimately not about barking ‘correct’ feelings at others—but instead, listening and being open to learning.

“We know what we might touch on some topics that might be sensitive, but we realize that we're all learning and trying to grow from each other. So if you say something wrong, we will correct you. We know that was not your intent. People can let their guard down and just talk and learn. We give each other grace.”

As an African American woman specializing in audit, Crystal Cooke is no stranger to being “the only one in the room.” In an industry dominated by white men over 55, she had a tough decision to make.