Pease & Associates, CPAs has been recognized as one of the top public accounting firms in the United States after earning a coveted spot on Inside Public Accounting’s 2019 Best of the Best list. Out of 550 eligible firms that participated in the IPA Survey & Analysis of Firms, Pease & Associates stood out as a highest-performing practice, a distinction that places the Cleveland-based firm among an elite group of just 50 honorees nationwide.
This article answers a question every business owner eventually asks: what does it actually mean when a CPA firm is named one of the top public accounting firms, and why should that matter to the people who rely on its work? The sections below explain the methodology behind the Best of the Best designation, how Pease & Associates earned it, and what the recognition signals for clients.
What the Inside Public Accounting Best of the Best List Means
Inside Public Accounting (IPA) releases its Best of the Best list every year to spotlight the top public accounting firms based on rigorous financial and operational benchmarks. The ranking is not a popularity contest or a self-nominated award. IPA evaluates hundreds of firms using a broad set of metrics, including revenue growth, profitability, staff retention, and operational efficiency, to identify the 50 practices that other best of the best accounting firms should strive to emulate.
For a mid-market firm like Pease & Associates, making this list signals more than prestige. It validates the firm’s business model, client service approach, and ability to compete with much larger national practices. According to Inside Public Accounting, the firms on this list consistently outperform their peers across every major category the survey tracks.
The benchmarks IPA uses mirror the standards that define the broader profession. The accounting industry’s leading body, the Association of International Certified Professional Accountants, promotes similar measures of quality, integrity, and operational discipline. A firm that performs well against IPA’s survey is, in effect, demonstrating the same characteristics that professional standards bodies hold up as best practice.
How Pease & Associates Earned Its Ranking
Pease & Associates did not simply maintain its standing in 2019, the firm accelerated its growth. On IPA’s separate ranking of the top 400 largest public accounting firms, Pease jumped from number 267 in 2018 to number 243 in 2019. That nearly 10% improvement in rank moved the firm into the top 250 accounting firms in the country, a milestone that reflects sustained client acquisition, service expansion, and revenue growth.
Kuno Bell, Managing Partner of Pease & Associates, credited the achievement to the firm’s people and its client base. “We were able to achieve the Best of the Best ranking because of our dedicated people, along with our loyal base of entrepreneurial clients,” Bell said. That combination of a committed workforce and a strong client roster is a hallmark of top public accounting firms that consistently outperform industry averages.
Growth of this kind rarely happens by accident. It comes from a deliberate focus on expanding the firm’s accounting services and deepening relationships with clients who themselves are growing. As entrepreneurial businesses scale, they demand more from their advisors, and a firm positioned to meet that demand captures the revenue and reputation that drive a higher ranking.
Why the Best of the Best Ranking Matters to Clients
For business owners evaluating which CPA firm to trust with their finances, third-party rankings provide an objective benchmark. The IPA Best of the Best designation tells prospective clients that a firm has been independently vetted on the metrics that matter most: financial health, growth trajectory, employee satisfaction, and service quality.
Clients of best of the best accounting firms benefit from working with a practice that invests in its people, maintains strong operational discipline, and delivers results that meet national standards of excellence. For entrepreneurial businesses in Northeast Ohio, Pease & Associates’ primary market, this recognition reinforces that they have access to nationally ranked expertise without the overhead and impersonal service that often comes with the largest national firms.
There is also a practical dimension. A firm that retains its staff and reinvests in training preserves the institutional knowledge that makes complex engagements run smoothly. Clients of such firms experience fewer disruptions, more consistent service, and advisors who understand the history and nuance of their accounts.
The Services Behind the Recognition
Pease & Associates has served Northeast Ohio for more than 20 years, growing to multiple offices and more than 90 employees while maintaining the personalized attention that established its reputation. The firm’s service lines span the full spectrum of what top public accounting firms offer, including audit and assurance, tax compliance and consulting, business consulting, buy-side advisory, mergers and acquisitions, estate planning, and employee benefit plan services.
The firm serves clients across a diverse set of industries: construction, distribution, healthcare, manufacturing, motion picture, nonprofit, real estate, and professional services. That industry breadth, combined with deep technical expertise, allows Pease to serve as a single-source advisor for complex, growing businesses, the type of client relationship that drives the financial performance IPA measures in its annual survey.
This combination of broad service capability and focused industry knowledge is difficult to replicate. A firm that understands the tax treatment of a construction contract and the audit requirements of a nonprofit can advise a client through situations that a narrowly specialized practice cannot. That versatility is part of what separates the highest-performing firms from the rest of the field.
What Sets Top Public Accounting Firms Apart
The firms that consistently appear on IPA’s best of the best accounting firms list share several characteristics. They grow revenue faster than their peers, often by investing in advisory services that go beyond traditional compliance work. They retain staff at higher rates, which reduces hiring costs and preserves institutional knowledge. And they maintain strong profitability, which allows them to reinvest in technology, training, and talent.
For Pease & Associates, these traits are not abstract goals, they are the operating principles that earned the firm its ranking. The firm’s focus on entrepreneurial clients creates a natural feedback loop: as those businesses grow, so does the firm’s revenue and scope of work. That alignment between client success and firm performance is a defining trait of the best public accounting firms to work for and work with.
Sustained performance also depends on a culture that attracts and keeps talented professionals. Recruiting experienced accountants is competitive, and firms that build an environment where people want to stay gain a measurable edge. The result compounds over time: lower turnover, deeper client relationships, and a reputation that draws both new clients and new hires.
About Inside Public Accounting
Inside Public Accounting (IPA), founded in 1987, is published by The Platt Group. IPA produces both the award-winning INSIDE Public Accounting newsletter and the National Benchmarking Report, two of the most widely cited resources in the accounting profession. The Platt Group also consults directly with managing partners, CFOs, and thought leaders to help firms improve their performance and strategy. The IPA Best of the Best list and full rankings of the top 400 firms are published annually and can be accessed through the IPA website.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the Inside Public Accounting Best of the Best list?
The IPA Best of the Best list is an annual ranking of the 50 highest-performing public accounting firms in the United States. Inside Public Accounting evaluates firms using financial and operational metrics drawn from its annual survey of more than 500 eligible firms. The designation recognizes firms that outperform their peers across categories such as revenue growth, profitability, and staff retention.
How are public accounting firms ranked by IPA?
IPA ranks firms using data collected through its annual Survey & Analysis of Firms. The evaluation covers a broad range of financial metrics, including revenue per partner, net income, and growth rates, alongside operational indicators like staff turnover and utilization rates. Firms are scored and ranked against peers of similar size.
Why did Pease & Associates make the 2019 Best of the Best list?
Pease & Associates earned the designation by outperforming peer firms across the financial and operational metrics IPA tracks. The firm also jumped from rank 267 to 243 on the IPA Top 400 list, reflecting nearly 10% year-over-year growth in its national standing. Managing Partner Kuno Bell attributed the result to the firm’s dedicated team and loyal entrepreneurial client base.
What services does Pease & Associates offer?
Pease & Associates provides audit and assurance, tax compliance and consulting, business consulting, buy-side advisory, mergers and acquisitions, estate planning, and employee benefit plan services. The firm serves clients in construction, distribution, healthcare, manufacturing, motion picture, nonprofit, real estate, and professional services.
What makes a CPA firm one of the best public accounting firms?
Top public accounting firms typically share several traits: above-average revenue growth, strong staff retention, high profitability, and deep investment in advisory services beyond traditional compliance. These firms also tend to maintain strong client relationships and reinvest in technology and talent development.
Is the IPA Best of the Best list the same as the IPA Top 400?
No. The IPA Top 400 ranks accounting firms by size, primarily measured by revenue. The Best of the Best list is a separate designation that recognizes the 50 highest-performing firms based on a broader set of financial and operational metrics. A firm can appear on one list, both, or neither.
