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The shock of seeing Arthur Andersen fall from accounting icon to code word for spreadsheet shenanigans has slowly worn off for New Jersey employees of the company.
It's been purged by the reality therapy of urgent talks with executive recruiters as Andersen partners try to unlock themselves from covenants that bound them to the firm.
Andersen's Roseland office, where 135 accountants and staff managed blue chip clients like Merck and Wyeth a few months ago, has been rocked by the same jolts that have spun the firm into an irreversible downward spiral since March.
Over the last two months, dozens of junior- and mid-level accountants have jumped ship to other public accounting firms or corporate clients. Top partners are heading out the door as quickly as they can negotiate exit agreements with the firm.
So far, Deloitte & Touche and KPMG appear likely to pick up the largest number of former Anderson people. PricewaterhouseCoopers has probably received the biggest boost to its client list by snaring both Merck and Wyeth.
Last week, Skip Braun, who had been the lead audit partner with Andersen's technology group in New Jersey, jumped to Deloitte to join the technology, media and telecommunications group in its Parsippany office. Some 20 Andersen accountants are slated to follow Braun as part of the deal.
Meanwhile, Andersen partners Pete Lori and Hank...