Tax Accountant/ CPA

About Linkenheimer

Interested in joining a fun, vibrant culture that puts people first? Want to make a real impact on your clients and your community? Solve interesting problems as a team? Travel to exciting locations as a firm (recent trips include Palm Springs for our retreat and El Salvador for our eye care project).

For 94 years, Linkenheimer has been the trusted advisor for businesses and individuals who value expertise, stability, and genuine partnership. We've built our reputation on deep technical knowledge, proactive planning, and relationships that span generations — with both our clients and our team. And we've been named a Best Place to Work for 14 years running, which is not an accident.

Here's what makes us not-so-typical: we don't just prepare returns and file them. We're an advisory-forward firm that helps clients make better decisions all year long — entity structure, succession, cash flow, business valuation, the strategic stuff that actually moves the needle. And we back that work with a modern tech stack that frees our people to think, advise, and go home at a reasonable hour.

We don't strive for work-life balance. We live it — and we champion it.

We A.C.T. Differently

• Approachable — We engage with genuine interest, respect, and open minds.
• Care — About our clients, co-workers, and community, locally and globally.
• Team — Our success comes from selfless action, collaboration, and commitment.

The Opportunity

We're looking for a licensed CPA (or CPA-eligible tax professional) with approximately 4-8 years of public accounting experience to join our tax and advisory team. This is the right seat for someone who wants to go beyond compliance — dig into tax strategy, build lasting client relationships, and help shape how a forward-thinking firm delivers advice.

What You'll Do

Tax Excellence & Strategy

• Prepare and review complex individual, business, trust, and estate returns
• Research federal and multi-state tax law to surface planning opportunities
• Build proactive strategies that improve client cash flow
• Stay ahead of tax law changes and translate the impact for clients

Advisory Partnership — the part that sets us apart

• Serve as a trusted advisor on the tax implications of real business decisions
• Guide clients through entity selection, succession planning, and tax-efficient structures
• Analyze financial statements to find planning opportunities others miss
• Provide strategic counsel on transactions, investments, and growth
• Translate complex tax concepts into plain-English, actionable advice

Relationship Building

• Develop deep, long-term client relationships
• Anticipate needs and bring recommendations before you're asked
• Collaborate with clients' attorneys, financial planners, and other advisors
• Show up to client meetings with confidence and expertise

Tech-Forward, On Purpose

We invest in technology for one reason: to give our people their time back. Not to squeeze more hours out of the day — to hand those hours to family, hobbies, and the stuff that makes life good.

That means the grunt work gets handled by the right tools so you can spend your energy on strategy and clients. Our stack includes CCH Axcess, Microsoft 365 with Copilot, Fathom (so you're present in meetings instead of scribbling notes), CoCounsel, Power BI, and AI tools like Claude woven into how we actually work day to day.

You don't need to be a technologist. But if you're curious about how AI and automation can make expert work faster, sharper, and a lot less tedious — you'll fit right in. We'll teach you the tools. You bring the curiosity.

What You Bring

Technical Must-Haves

• Bachelor's degree in Accounting, Finance, or a related field
• 3–10 years of tax-focused public accounting experience
• Active CPA license in good standing, or CPA-eligible with a real commitment to licensure
• Strong knowledge of individual and business taxation
• Comfort reading and analyzing financial statements
• Tax software experience (CCH Axcess preferred)

Essential Soft Skills

• Communication — you can explain a tax strategy in plain English
• Problem-solving — creative approaches to complicated situations
• Relationship builder — genuine interest in understanding client goals
• Detail-oriented — accuracy matters, obviously
• Curious — you like learning, including new tools and tech
• Team player — collaboration over lone-wolf heroics

Bonus Points For

• Estate and trust taxation
• Multi-state taxation
• Compilation and review experience
• Advisory work: cash flow modeling, business valuation, succession planning

Why Linkenheimer

Stability with room to grow. We've been around since 1932 with a rock-solid reputation, low turnover, and seasoned professionals who become genuine mentors. You'll have the opportunity to build a career here, not just a seasonal gig — with a clear path to leadership, client ownership, and a book of business, with firm support behind you.

A culture that holds up. Clients who respect your expertise. Teammates who've been together for years, not months. And community involvement that goes well beyond a logo on a banner — our people give back locally and abroad, including opportunities to join international service and eye care missions. Add leadership that actually understands and protects work-life balance, and an environment where asking questions isn't just allowed — it's how we get better.

Compensation & Benefits

• Competitive salary: $80,000 – $160,000, based on experience
• Comprehensive health, dental, and vision insurance
• 401(k) with a 3% company contribution — regardless of what you contribute
• Generous PTO (we know tax season is intense)
• Professional development support: CPA exam, CPE, conferences
• Work location: Santa Rosa, CA, with hybrid schedule available

The Perks That Make Us Different

• Annual firm retreats — recent stops include a San Francisco Giants game at Oracle Park, Palm Springs, San Diego, and Alaska.
• Firmwide international vacations — we've taken the whole team to Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Mexico, Italy, Spain, and Croatia. Yes, really.
• Team building that's actually fun — we celebrate wins together, in ways people remember.

Your Future Here

At Linkenheimer, tax professionals build careers. You'll have the chance to develop deep expertise in specific industries or tax areas, take the lead on client relationships, mentor newer team members, help shape how the firm tackles emerging issues, and grow a book of business with the firm in your corner.

Ready to Join Our Legacy?

If you want a firm where your technical skills come with real relationship-building opportunities, where you can go deep instead of staying a generalist, where culture and stability matter as much as the work, and where your career can grow alongside a firm with 94 years behind it — we want to hear from you.

To apply: Send your resume and a cover letter telling us why tax gets you excited (yes, we know that sounds nerdy — we're okay with that). Tell us what draws you to advisory work, and how you see yourself contributing to our next 90 years.

Equal Opportunity

Linkenheimer LLP is an equal opportunity employer committed to building a diverse and inclusive team. We provide equal employment opportunities to all employees and applicants without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, age, disability, genetic information, marital status, veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state, or local law.

Reasonable accommodations are available throughout the application and employment process — just let us know. Employment is contingent on a successful background check and federal work-eligibility verification, and is at-will. This role involves extended computer work, use of standard office equipment, and occasional lifting of up to 20 pounds.