Member Q & A

Q: How long have you been in the profession? Where did you go to school and what made you decide to become a CPA?

A: I have been a CPA since 1972. I graduated from…Long Island University in June 1968. A friend of the family told me if I had an accounting background, it would help me in any business field I might choose to go into.

Q: What category do most of your clients fall into?

A: We handle medium-sized, non-public companies. Most of the clients I handle are in the wholesale diamond or jewelry business. I obtained a diamond certificate from the Gemological Institute of America. This helps me to understand my clients’ problems and businesses to a much better degree.

Q: What do your clients most frequently rely on you to do?

A: I am the managing partner...I handle the administration of the firm as well as oversee clients I handle. My clients rely on me for consulting work, which is how I spend the majority of my professional time away from the administration of the firm.

Q: What are the biggest differences between your work-related concerns and the work-related concerns of CPAs who belong in industry or in other practices? What are the similarities?

A: The biggest differences are probably the number of clients I have as compared with the number of people that CPAs in industry or other practices report to. I handle nearly 100 companies personally. There are a lot of interesting and different personalities involved, as you can imagine. While many are in the same industry, they handle different types or sizes of goods. Some require more handholding than others and are much more demanding. I have no doubt that this also pertains to some CPAs in industry who have many subsidiary companies that they oversee.

Q: Do you believe the public has an accurate understanding of what the CPA brand represents? Do you think it’s necessary to better market the CPA image to the general public? If so, what can state societies do to accomplish that task?

A: I do not believe the public has an accurate understanding of what the CPA brand represents. The CPA has evolved since I’ve been practicing from an auditor/taxman to a business consultant capable of handling many types of clients’ needs. The American Institute of CPAs after 100 years all of a sudden tells us that the only thing we are enfranchised to do are audits or the attest function. This never stopped our profession from going forward in our practices and performing for our clients any professional service that we are capable of rendering. We have practiced outside the box for decades now. That is why we are considered the most trusted professional.

I believe it’s essential to better market the CPA image to the general public. The radio ads help but the perception can only be changed through what people see. CPAs need to be seen more on television both on business shows as well as on a regular show. Stuart Kessler (a past Society President, current member of the Future of the Profession Oversight Committee and liaison to the Recruitment for CPA Careers Committee) has been pushing for this for years and he’s right. It’s the only way the perception of what a CPA is and does will ever change.

Q: What are some initiatives you would like to see undertaken to widen the appeal to students who might be considering pursuing the certification? What are some initiatives already underway to attract students to the profession?

A: I believe that the AICPA…is just beginning to reach our target market. They will be spending $25 million over the next five years to entice students to go into our profession. In addition, they will be going after students at an earlier age. They will be starting at the middle-school age. This is significant since it will be before they have already made up their minds. They are also focusing on…areas that are of interest to the students.

Q: As chairman of the Future of the Profession Committee, how do you see the future of firms shaping up in the near future, beyond recruitment? How will the role of the firm change over the next 10 years? How will mergers affect firms? How will new regulations affect the profession?

A: I see further consolidation in our profession. In addition, I believe that in an effort to be a full service organization, firms will…be owned by companies like Citigroup, G.E. and the like. This will help to attract students to our profession due to the benefits both professionally and financially available from being part of such large and diverse organizations. I also believe there will be a further contraction among the Big Five. Mergers aside from the Big Five are creating a number of very large local firms that have so far been able to compete with the Big Five in particular locales. I question just how much growth these firms can sustain before they run into the same type of problems their predecessors had in the 1970s. I believe if we don’t get our house in order, then problems like Enron will help to force government regulation down our throats. I believe we have only seen the tip of the iceberg in this connection.

Q: What, in your opinion, is the primary reason for a decline in accounting program enrollment?

A: I believe that the decline in accounting program enrollment is due to three things. First, our starting salaries are too low. Students see what other professions start with and we’re just not comparable. This must and will be changed in order to correct the situation. Second, the perception of what a CPA is and does must be adequately and properly portrayed…it will take time but this must be made a priority. Third, the booming economy has made jobs plentiful over the last 10 years. As this is now changing, we will have a better opportunity for increasing enrollment when they see that our profession is always in need of good people and we stay busy especially during an economic downturn.

Q: Do you think CPAs in industry are affected the same way by trends in accounting and auditing as you are?

A: Absolutely. They are subject to the same rules and promulgations as those in public accounting.

Q: What are some of your core objectives for the coming year professionally? What do you anticipate to be your biggest challenges?

A: Dealing with the recession and how it will affect our individual and corporate clients is probably the biggest challenge we will face. Many people are facing a downturn in the economy for the first time in their lives. This will not be easy for many. Jobs will be lost and many businesses will go under. It will require a lot of handholding, guidance and understanding on our part. The vast changes already made, and those that probably will be made to the tax code, will require an enormous effort on the part of all practitioners to properly advise their clients.

Q: Do you believe the Society adequately represents your interests? If not, what could be done to make sure you receive fair representation?

A. I have been involved with the NYSSCPA on a committee level since 1974. Back then, you got involved to help further your career and give something back to the profession. I got much more than I bargained for. I’ve met many wonderful people whose friendship I’ll cherish forever. I’ve met people who have professionally helped me to become a better person and accountant. I’ve gotten more out of my involvement with the NYSSCPA than I could ever have given. Being a vice president of the Society for a year, a director, one of the trustees of the Foundation for Accounting Education for four years, a chairman of numerous committees and one of the state’s representatives on the AICPA Council for three years has meant so much to me personally. The NYSSCPA, I believe, more than any other state society, has represented its members’ interest to the fullest extent. The Society in the last several years has listened to its members and gone up against the AICPA concerning both the portal (CPA2Biz) and the global credential, two extremely important issues to us all. In some cases we stood alone, but we stood fast. The Society works for its members and I’m proud to be a part of it.