The Philip L. Kintzele School of Accounting Strategic Plan

The Philip L. Kintzele School of Accounting is committed to preparing accounting professionals who make meaningful contributions to their organizations, communities and the profession.

Our strategic plan guides how we support student success, strengthen faculty and staff excellence, build relationships with professional partners and foster an inclusive learning environment. Together, these priorities help ensure that our students graduate prepared for what's next.

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Our mission and vision

Mission

We foster student success by providing an exceptional and impactful educational experience that equips graduates with the skills and knowledge to thrive in their profession and personal lives.

Vision

We will be known for preparing accounting professionals who make a meaningful and lasting impact on their organizations, communities and the global profession.

Core values

  • Integrity: A steadfast adherence to the principles of honesty, trustworthiness, reliability, transparency and accountability.
  • Respect: Consideration of the rights, opinions and ideas of others in a fair and thoughtful manner.
  • Compassion: Empathy, concern and support for the needs and challenges of others.
  • Inclusiveness: Conducting the activities of the school in a way that embraces shared governance, inspires acceptance and welcomes diversity into our community.
  • Equity: A mindfulness toward ensuring opportunities and resources are cultivated and shared in a manner that takes context, nuance and specificity into account.
  • Social responsibility: Fostering citizenship to promote the public good, environmental sustainability, global understanding and informed political engagement.
  • Excellence: Expectation that all activities are conducted with attention to quality and the highest levels of academic and professional standards.
  • Innovation: Supporting progressive and meaningful research, creative activity, teaching and practice that advances knowledge and solves problems.

Strategic priorities

To fulfill our mission, our strategic plan is built around four key initiatives:

Through these strategic initiatives, we continue to strengthen accounting education, support student success and prepare graduates to make a lasting impact in the profession.

Initiative 1: Enhance student learning and success

Student success is at the center of everything we do. Through professional preparation, experiential learning opportunities and personalized support, we help students develop the knowledge, skills and experiences needed to succeed in accounting careers.

Objective A: Increase the proportion of accounting majors intending to pursue a professional certification (e.g., CMA, CPA, CIA).

Tactics

  • Hold an annual Professional Certification Information Session for accounting majors.
  • Leverage CMA Exam Scholarship opportunities through the IMA.

Measure

  • Year-over-year comparison of the proportion of students who indicate on the accounting exit survey that they intend to pursue a certification.

Resources needed

  • Contingent on current funding levels, no additional resources are needed at this time.

Objective B: Increase or maintain the proportion of graduating accounting majors who have secured full-time employment in an accounting-related field within six months of graduation or pursued either the military or graduate school.

Tactics

  • Support Career Fairs and other Career Development events.
  • Encourage classroom visits by recruiters.
  • Support employer networking events.
  • Encourage students to use College and Career Development Services.
  • Encourage participation in professional development activities and events.

Measure

  • Year-over-year comparison of the proportion of accounting graduates who indicate on CMU's destination survey that they have secured full-time employment or pursued graduate school or military service within six months of graduation.

Resources needed

  • Contingent on current funding levels, no additional resources are needed at this time.

Objective A: Increase the proportion of accounting majors who participate in Registered Student Organizations.

Tactics

  • Support student organizations.
  • Include student organization information in major welcome emails and chairperson communications.

Measure

  • Year-over-year comparison of the proportion of students who indicate on the accounting exit survey that they participated in a business-related Registered Student Organization.

Resources needed

  • Contingent on current funding levels, no additional resources are needed at this time.

Objective B: Increase or maintain the proportion of accounting majors who complete an internship.

Tactics

  • Foster relationships with employers.
  • Encourage students to join LinkedIn.
  • Promote internship benefits through faculty advising.
  • Communicate internship and leadership opportunities through chairperson updates.
  • Improve resumes through participation in the PLK-SOA Resume Workshop.
  • Request resources that help students stay on track academically while completing internships.

Measure

  • Year-over-year comparison of the proportion of students who indicate on the accounting exit survey that they completed at least one accounting internship.

Resources needed

  • Contingent on current funding levels, no additional resources are needed at this time.

Objective A: Increase retention for accounting majors.

Tactics

  • Partner with Beta Alpha Psi to promote tutoring.
  • Share successful teaching strategies during faculty meetings when appropriate.

Measure

  • Year-over-year comparison of second-to-third-year retention rates for accounting majors.

Resources needed

  • Contingent on current funding levels, no additional resources are needed at this time.

Objective B: Reduce the proportion of students who perceive they have taken more credit hours than expected.

Tactics

  • Inform CBA Student Services of preferred pathways for timely graduation.
  • Invite CBA and MBA advisors to faculty meetings.
  • Enhance consistency in expectations across accounting courses.
  • Continuously review accounting major maps.
  • Maximize opportunities for double counting coursework.
  • Monitor trends in hours to graduation.
  • Promote the accelerated MBA program.

Measure

  • Year-over-year comparison of the proportion of accounting majors reporting they took more credit hours than expected.

Resources needed

  • Contingent on current funding levels, no additional resources are needed at this time.

Initiative 2: Support faculty and staff success

Faculty and staff are essential to delivering a high-quality accounting education. We support professional development, scholarly activity and continuous improvement to ensure students benefit from current knowledge, strong teaching and meaningful engagement.

Objective A: Increase or maintain the quality and number of faculty publications.

Tactics

  • Provide financial support for submission fees.
  • Work with the Dean's Office to provide access to data and software.
  • Support research that impacts theory, policy, practice and pedagogy.

Measures

  • Year-over-year comparison of publications categorized as enhanced or higher under CBA research criteria.
  • Year-over-year comparison of the proportion of SA-eligible faculty with accepted manuscripts.

Resources needed

  • Contingent on current funding levels, no additional resources are needed at this time.

Objective B: Maintain compliance with AACSB faculty qualification requirements.

Tactics

  • Review AACSB qualification status during Article 6 reviews, reappointment, promotion and tenure decisions, and annual evaluations.

Measure

  • 100% compliance with AACSB qualification standards.

Resources needed

  • Contingent on current funding levels, no additional resources are needed at this time.

Objective C: Increase or maintain participation in workshops and conferences.

Tactics

  • Financially support faculty and staff attendance at conferences and workshops.

Measure

  • Year-over-year comparison of faculty and staff participation.

Resources needed

  • Contingent on current funding levels, no additional resources are needed at this time.

Objective D: Increase or maintain faculty presentations at workshops and conferences.

Tactics

  • Financially support faculty attendance and presentations.

Measure

  • Year-over-year comparison of faculty presentations.

Resources needed

  • Contingent on current funding levels, no additional resources are needed at this time.

Initiative 3: Support outreach, engagement and sustainability

Strong connections with employers, alumni, professional organizations and future students create opportunities that enrich the accounting experience and strengthen the profession.

Objective A: Increase or maintain faculty participation in engagement activities.

Tactics

  • Support professional and social events.
  • Encourage stakeholder participation in School of Accounting activities.
  • Hold annual or biannual advisory board meetings.
  • Support Meet the Recruiters and Dialogue Days.

Measure

  • Year-over-year comparison of faculty participation in at least three engagement activities annually.

Resources needed

  • Contingent on current funding levels, no additional resources are needed at this time.

Objective B: Increase faculty participation in professional and academic accounting communities.

Tactics

  • Financially support memberships in professional organizations.
  • Financially support attendance at professional and academic events.

Measure

  • 100% of faculty participate in an external professional or academic accounting community.

Resources needed

  • Contingent on current funding levels, no additional resources are needed at this time.

Objective A: Increase or maintain faculty participation in outreach events.

Tactics

  • Encourage faculty participation in events such as CBA Day, Fire Up Fridays, CMU and You Day and similar programs.

Measure

  • Year-over-year comparison of faculty participation in at least two outreach activities annually.

Resources needed

  • Contingent on current funding levels, no additional resources are needed at this time.

Initiative 4: Foster an open and inclusive culture

We are committed to creating an environment where students, faculty and staff feel welcomed, supported and empowered to succeed. Diverse perspectives strengthen learning, collaboration and the accounting profession.

Objective A: Maintain a student and faculty diversity profile similar to that of the College of Business Administration.

Tactics

  • Advertise faculty opportunities broadly.
  • Encourage participation in activities that create awareness and promote acceptance of diversity.

Measure

  • Year-over-year comparison of School of Accounting demographics relative to the College of Business Administration.

Resources needed

  • Contingent on current funding levels, no additional resources are needed at this time.

Objective A: Review departmental bylaws to mitigate potential bias.

Tactics

  • Organize a Bylaw Review Task Force.
  • Review bylaws and present recommendations to faculty.

Measure

  • Updated bylaws that mitigate potential bias in hiring, promotion and evaluation processes.

Resources needed

  • Contingent on current funding levels, no additional resources are needed at this time.

Objective B: Increase awareness and understanding of inclusivity.

Tactics

  • Invite guest speakers to faculty meetings.
  • Seek faculty input on areas where additional information would be helpful.

Measure

  • Annual participation of guest speakers focused on awareness and inclusivity.

Resources needed

  • Contingent on current funding levels, no additional resources are needed at this time.

Objective C: Foster a sense of belonging among students.

Tactics

  • Invite guest speakers.
  • Create an accounting student advisory committee.
  • Encourage faculty participation in student-focused events.

Measure

  • Year-over-year comparison of student exit survey measures related to belonging.

Resources needed

  • Contingent on current funding levels, no additional resources are needed at this time.