ASL Recognized as a 2026 Best CPA Firm for Women and Best CPA Firm for Equity Leadership

Campbell, CA (October 27, 2026) – Abbott, Stringham & Lynch (ASL) was named to the Accounting MOVE Project’s 2026 Best CPA Firm for Women and Best CPA Firm for Equity Leadership lists.

The annual Accounting MOVE Project examines the factors that help women advance in public accounting and the workplace practices that can either support or impede that progress. Now in its 17^th year, MOVE tracks women’s representation across career levels while examining the policies, practices and workplace experiences that influence advancement.

The 2026 Accounting MOVE Project report examines caregiving’s impact on careers and leadership pipelines. The report found that 65% of firms surveyed have seen caregiving influence career progression during the past year, with mid-career professionals most often affected. 47% have seen employees defer or slow promotion or partnership, and 47% have seen employees decline leadership opportunities. 41% have experienced resignations related to caregiving.

Among the topics explored in this year’s report:

• The State of Women in Accounting: Where women are gaining ground in the leadership pipeline and where gaps remain.
• Why Caregiving Is Getting So Much Attention Now: The demographic, economic and workplace forces bringing a longstanding issue into sharper focus.
• The Career Cost of Caregiving: Firms overwhelmingly say caregiving falls on women, yet most can’t say whether women pay a bigger career price for it. We look at why that gap matters and what it may be hiding.
• When Flexibility Works: What separates flexibility that protects a career from flexibility that merely keeps someone employed, including workload management, trust, caregiver visibility and consistent policies.
• Money, Opportunity, Vital Supports and Entrepreneurship: What the 2026 findings reveal about the four MOVE factors and where firms are making progress or still have work to do.
• What Firms Can Do Next: Practical questions and recommendations firms can use to examine their own career paths, leadership pipelines, flexibility and support systems, starting with the managers who aren’t yet ready for the caregiving conversation.

With women holding 53% of partner and principal positions and 80% of director roles, ASL demonstrates strong female leadership representation. The firm also takes a practical approach to workload management, using scheduling technology to monitor capacity and redistribute assignments when necessary. Regular coaching, defined career paths, and individualized flexibility help employees pursue advancement while managing changing personal responsibilities.

About Abbott, Stringham & Lynch (ASL)

Founded in 1977, ASL offers a wealth of experience in delivering high quality services and specialties to its clients. The Firm works with both emerging and middle-market privately held businesses to enable them to thrive in their markets. The Firm collaborates with high-net-worth individuals – owners, founders, and executives – to help them protect and grow their wealth. ASL identifies untapped opportunities, challenges, and solutions, enabling clients to make the effective and timely decisions today that lead to a fuller and more secure tomorrow.

Designed to facilitate quality decisions, ASL’s services cover corporate tax planning and compliance, assurance and accounting, estate and gift tax planning, litigation support, succession planning and valuation. The Firm’s services are contextualized by its specialties in real estate, construction, technology, international, family wealth and individual tax, manufacturing and distribution, nonprofit organizations and renewable energy.

In May 2026, Abbott, Stringham & Lynch acquired ArightCo, Inc., a finance and accounting solutions firm specializing in outsourced finance, accounting and strategic advisory services. This acquisition expands the Firm’s ability to provide scalable outsourced accounting and finance support to its clients as their needs evolve. Continue reading at Abbott, Stringham & Lynch Acquires Finance & Accounting Solutions Firm, ArightCo.

About the Accounting MOVE Project

Since 2010, the Accounting MOVE Project has measured and supported the advancement of women at accounting and consulting firms, combining workplace data with research into the policies and practices that influence women’s careers. The project uses the MOVE methodology, developed by Wilson-Taylor Associates, Inc., which examines four factors essential to women’s career success:

• M – Money: fair pay practices
• O – Opportunity: advancement and leadership development
• V – Vital supports: work-life programs that remove barriers
• E – Entrepreneurship: operating experience for managing or business ownership

MOVE is the only annual benchmarking project that both counts and advocates for women in the profession. MOVE is made possible by support from its sponsors.

About the Author