The firm recently cancelled the annual holiday party and downgraded the post-tax-season celebration. This felt like a visible signal that cost-controls are taking priority over culture and staff morale.
Layoffs have been widespread, including partners being let go “left and right.” According to public reporting, BDO USA has cut “dozens” of jobs across audit, tax and advisory to manage a large debt load.
The aggressive expansion strategy (speedy acquisitions of mid-size firms) appears to be outpacing the internal capacity and coststructure: the firm is shouldering what one article referred to as a USD 1.3 billion loan facility from Apollo Global Management with interest around 9%.
As a result of the debt and cost pressure, internal sentiments suggest morale is weakening: newer hires are wondering about job stability; longstanding teams feel more siloed and pressured to deliver profitability.
Communication from leadership seems uneven: while the firm insists cuts are “business as usual,” many employees interpret what they’re seeing (cancelled events, cost-cutting) as a signal that things are tight.
The “culture of fun” or team bonding that used to be part of the post-tax celebration seems diminished: fewer social events, less visible investment in employee experience.