Part of the Zicklin Talks Business Webinar Series Accounting firms are attracting private equity investors at a significant pace and scale. The rewards can be substantial, helping them invest in cutting-edge technology, streamline their operations, adopt more flexible business models, and improve their ability to recruit talent in a competitive market. But this shift also raises critical questions when a firm that is traditionally structured around partnership and professional ethics becomes just another portfolio company. How do PE-backed accounting firms balance the expectations of their PE investors with their own core values of independence, transparency, and client trust? Can an accounting firm maintain its culture and professional standards under PE ownership? In this webinar, Larry Zicklin and his guests will explore the growing wave of PE investments in accounting. They will discuss how big it is and what’s driving the trend, how it’s reshaping firms, and what it means for the future of the profession. Larry Zicklin (BBA ’57) leads the conversation with Prof. W. Robert Knechel, Director, International Accounting and Auditing Center, and Distinguished Professor and Frederick E. Fisher Eminent Scholar in Accounting, University of Florida; and Shiraz Kajee (BBA ’02, MS ‘03), Chief Financial Officer of SLR Capital Partners, a private credit-focused asset manager. Dean Bruce Weber offers introductory remarks, and Associate Dean Gwendolyn Webb moderates the Q&A. #zicklinbusiness #baruchcollege #privateequity