At a glance
- Accountants in small firms face unique stressors beyond technical work.
- Burnout can manifest through subtle behavioural changes before a crisis.
- Technology and boundary-setting can provide protective guardrails against practitioner burnout.
Research reveals 57% of accountants report work pressures damaging their mental health, while more than half of UK practitioners suffer from stress and burnout.
The pressure extends beyond technical demands. Some practitioners may become an unofficial confidant or emotional wellbeing counsellor for clients facing financial and personal crises, particularly in regional and rural communities. This emotional labour, combined with limited resources, creates unique pressures that larger accounting firms have the resources to better manage.
The warning signs
Psychologist Kirsten Forgione identifies burnout as a type of exhaustion characterised by specific factors.
“Burnout isn’t just ‘feeling tired’ or ‘having a rough week’. It’s a measurable workplace phenomenon with three core components: emotional exhaustion, depersonalisation and reduced personal accomplishment,” she says.
In small accounting practices, listening to clients talk about their (often intertwined) financial and emotional issues, including relationship breakdowns and substance abuse, can contribute to burnout.
The symptoms affect not just practitioners but also their practices. Left unchecked, burnout can lead to decreased productivity, poorer team dynamics and reduced client satisfaction, creating a dangerous cycle where service quality and wellbeing deteriorate.
Shaun Bettman, Principal at Eden Emerald Mortgages, has witnessed these patterns firsthand in his small firm.
“You don’t usually see someone crash,” he says.
“What happens is that they start replying later than usual. They forget small things. They get snappy. You ask if they’re okay, and they say yes, but you know they’re not. In a small team, people don’t want to complain. They feel like everyone else is just as overloaded.”
Little research has been conducted locally to study burnout patterns in Australia, but that’s about to change. The IPA-Deakin SME Research Centre launched the Australian Accountants & Bookkeepers Wellbeing Index in February 2025 to establish a first-of-its-kind wellbeing benchmark for the industry. In just three months, it’s collected an impressive 2,672 responses.
Strategies for small firms
Carol Leow-Taylor, Senior Research Fellow at the IPA-Deakin SME Research Centre, emphasises strategies to reduce burnout in small firms must be tailored to the market’s specific challenges.
Among the support strategies she recommends are boundaries and relationship management.
“No after-hours responses and using empathetic assertiveness to show consideration for a client, whilst also asserting when you are and aren’t able to meet with them, can be useful boundaries to have in place,” she says. “Client engagement letters also help to clearly define the scope of your services, helping to prevent misunderstandings and limit scope creep.”
Technology can also provide protective guardrails against burnout when used strategically.
Leow-Taylor recommends three key areas for automation. “Automate invoicing, reconciliations and reminders through Xero, MYOB and Quickbooks to free up your time for higher-value work,” she says.
Digital scheduling tools like Calendly can establish clear availability boundaries, while CRMs like Karbon can help manage deadlines and reduce manual follow-up. Each solution targets specific pressure points that contribute to practitioner stress.
“No after-hours responses and using empathetic assertiveness to show consideration for a client, whilst also asserting when you are and aren’t able to meet with them, can be useful boundaries to have in place.”
Carol Leow-Taylor, Senior Research Fellow, IPA-Deakin SME Research Centre
For those experiencing persistent overwhelm despite these measures, more fundamental practice changes may be necessary to reduce cognitive load. Leow-Taylor recommends contracting bookkeepers during peak season and focusing on the value of client relationships instead of the volume – updating fees, offering packaged services and setting a limit on new client intake could help.
Building resilience through connection
Peer connection offers powerful protection against burnout for small practice accountants who struggle to reach conventional mental health support due to their disconnection from peak bodies and traditional wellness programs.
Leow-Taylor says monthly peer meet-ups, online discussion groups through professional associations like the IPA, or mentoring arrangements fill this gap by creating tailored support that addresses both professional and emotional needs.
“Structured conversations and training can help reduce isolation, provide a sounding board for complex issues (whether these be financial, business, emotional/personal distress), and validate experiences by seeing others deal with similar pressures,” she says.
These peer connections can also serve as vehicles for mental health literacy training, but Leow-Taylor emphasises more could be done to reduce the source of stress, given training is often a response strategy.
“The sector needs to mitigate and control the work pressures, or the other stressors through prevention and early intervention strategies so that accountants don’t end up getting to this stage of burnout – and training alone won’t cut it.
“For example, for a sole trader, what does job autonomy or control look like when the line between work and home is blurred? Is it about embracing flexibility but still establishing some boundaries around when you will and won’t work?” she says.
Insights from the IPA-Deakin SME Research Centre’s Counting on U program show that combining relationship-building skills with Mental Health First Aid can help financial professionals understand client distress while also offering tips on how to identify signs of mental ill-health and protect one’s own wellbeing.
More information on IPA-Deakin SME Research Centre’s Counting on U program here.
