When two Top 25 firms merge, size is the obvious headline. But, according to Accounting Today, for Baker Tilly and Moss Adams, the story isn’t about getting bigger, it’s about getting better. 

“M&A is important going forward in how it makes us better, not how it makes us bigger,” said Moss Adams chairman and CEO Eric Miles, who’s set to lead the combined firm starting January 2026. The merger officially closed in early June, but conversations started almost a year ago over lunch in Chicago. From the beginning, both sides had a shared vision: serve the middle market with more precision, depth, and reach. 

Baker Tilly CEO Jeff Ferro, who’ll stay on through the end of the year, put it plainly: “How do we immediately bring more value to our clients?” That means taking Moss Adams’ West Coast tech expertise eastward and sending Baker Tilly’s real estate and financial services west. The strategy also opens more doors for staff: “How do we accelerate our people’s careers? Giving them more opportunity, making sure our teams are excited?”

Geography still matters. Expect continued growth in metro hubs like New York, Boston, San Francisco, and Dallas. But industry tuck-ins are just as critical, especially on the advisory side. “We probably haven’t scratched the surface on the types of complimentary services that we could bring into our middle-market client base, so we’ll continue to do that,” Ferro noted. 

Both firms are laser-focused on the middle market. They’re not chasing the Fortune 1000, and they don’t want to be the Big Five. Instead, they’re doubling down on clients who are growing fast and need nuanced, scalable support 

“I don’t think it’s a zero-sum game,,” Miles said. “I think it’s great for the mid-market if these firms have a real focus and understand the needs of the mid-market.” And that, they believe, is what will make the merger matter. Not headcount or headlines, just the work.