It will come as no surprise that money is a great way to keep staff engaged – but you may be surprised by some of the ways top firms find to distribute it.

A roundup of recent announcements from accounting firms and companies across the country.

With qualified accountants of all levels of experience hard to come by these days, some firms are starting to wonder if they should look beyond the profession for staff.

Employees and firms can’t improve without guidance and feedback – and the best firms are making sure it flows both ways as often as possible.

You can take a day off, but e-mail and mobile devices mean you’re still at the beck and call of all the people back at the office – unless the office is closed.

If there’s one thing New York Mets manager Terry Collins taught us during the World Series, it’s to go with your gut.

Time is money, they say, and at many top firms that means that employees get to spend time like it was cash.

Disengagement is lowering the profitability and viability of accounting firms across the country – but there are some simple ways to start re-engaging your employees, according to staffing issues expert Sandra Wiley.

The economy added a surprisingly robust 271,000 jobs in October, including 3,400 jobs in accounting and bookkeeping services, sending the unemployment rate down one-tenth of a percent to 5.0 percent, the lowest rate in seven years.

Around 70 percent of your firm’s staff are either coasting or are actively disengaged from their jobs, according to staffing issues expert Sandra Wiley -- and some of that may be your fault.

An old diagnosis of incompetence needs some updates

As the accounting profession ages, firms of all sizes are learning that the best way to ensure that there will be a next generation of leaders is to develop them yourself.

How to develop young staff without them heading for the door

Once you’ve shown your staff the path to success at your firm, you need to start helping them walk that path, with resources and guidance.

Employers added 182,000 jobs in the private sector last month, according to payroll giant ADP, although there were slowdowns in some areas, including professional and business services and among large companies.

Small businesses continued to hire more workers last month, but the pace of job growth is slackening, according to a new report.

All too many firms fail to offer employees a clear career path – and that’s a clear incentive to seek employment elsewhere.

It’s getting harder and harder for firms to differentiate themselves, so they need to take every chance to reinforce their unique qualities.

The need to fill an open position can sometimes be so strong that firms are willing to take any warm body – but one of the keys to long-term retention is to spend a little more time in the hiring process.

Consider some of the things our profession is doing that might be restricting younger people from advancing.