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Grant Thornton Names Mike McGuire CEO-elect

Posted on by Caleb Newquist

Looks like Grant Thornton opted for something other than a Costanza lookalike for their next CEO.

According to a Grant Thornton press release, JMM assumes the role of CEO-elect immediately and will take over for Stephen Chipman on January 1, 2015. Naturally, he's looking forward to it: "I am honored to have the opportunity to lead Grant Thornton,” McGuire said. "I am deeply committed to the firm’s values, strategy and furthering the global brand. I look forward to working with our talented people to position the firm for long-term success."

How about some background?

Previously, McGuire served as the national managing partner of Markets, Industry, People & Culture, and was the managing partner of Grant Thornton’s Carolinas practice, which includes offices in Charlotte and Raleigh, N.C., and Columbia, S.C. He also served on the firm’s Partnership Board. Prior to joining Grant Thornton, McGuire spent 20 years with Arthur Andersen in numerous roles of increasing responsibility, including as Audit practice leader for the Carolinas.
To our knowledge, McGuire would be the first Arthur Andersen alum to be CEO of a major accounting firm. C.E. Andrews served as McGladrey's President and Chief Operating Officer while it ws owend by HR Block, so technically he never was CEO of the firm. What? These things matter!
 
Anyway, this development lines up with the announcement last November that the firm's Board was extending Stephen Chipman's tenure as CEO through the end of 2014. The press release sums up SC's tenure thusly:
[Chipman] was named CEO in 2010 and significant enhancements were made during his tenure — returning the firm to a trajectory of growth and increasing the firm’s revenue by 15 percent during the last two fiscal years. The firm embraced initiatives to better serve its clients through the establishment of a shared services center in India and the launch of the China, India and Japan business groups. The firm extended the breadth and depth of its services through a number of strategic acquisitions, including its acquirement of MarketSphere’s Oracle Solutions business unit, continuing to accelerate the double-digit growth of its Advisory Services. Chipman played a prominent role in the development of a global strategy and brand for the Grant Thornton worldwide organization and transformed the firm’s marketing organization, increasing brand exposure through traditional and social media channels.
Okay, Purple Roses of Chicago — how do you feel about your future fearless leader? Let us know in the comments and if you have some insider knowledge about this development, email us. 

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Unfounded Rumor of the Day: Grant Thornton and Moss Adams in Merger Talks

This week we learned that Dixon Hughes and Goodman & Co. would be wedded in CPA firm bliss on March 1st. We’ve also seen a couple of smaller mergers announced this week in the tri-state area: Rosen Seymour Shapss Martin & Company LLP and Kahn, Hoffman & Hochman, LLP formed Kahn Hoffman & Hochman and Morrison, Brown, Argiz & Farra, LLC and ERE, LLP.

But eheard a rumor that trumps all of these:

The new rumor is that Grant Thornton and Moss Adams are merging. I have it on good authority (an industry consultant and the MP of a California firm).


Okay, so not exactly rock solid but intriguing enough for us to ask around. So far, Grant Thornton spokeswoman Kristi Grgeta has not returned our emails or voicemails and Moss Adams has declined to comment at this time. We’re poking around with other sources but still waiting to hear back.

So for now, let’s just go with the hypothetical. If GT and Moss were to combine, it would make them the 5th largest firm in the U.S., narrowly edging out McGladrey, with about $1.5 billion in revenues, going by Accounting Today’s most recent figures. Currently they are 6th (GT) and 11th (MA) on the AT100 list and 6th (MA) and 23rd (GT) on Vault’s flagship ranking. Their combined forces would have nearly 800 partners and over 7,100 total employees, if you assume no layoffs.

While all that might serve Stephen Chipman’s desire more dynamic clients (and perhaps more blogging fodder?), it would certainly require a few more hand-written notes. Not only that but GT already has a presence in every major market that Moss Adams does unless they’re looking to mine the Eugene, Oregon market for LOSERS and have reconsidered their divestment in Albuquerque. Also culturally, this seems like a strange fit as GT strikes us as pretty buttoned-down while Moss Adams is more laid back but maybe we’ve got that wrong. You tell us.

Regardless, Grant Thornton has voiced interest in merger possibilities and picked up Huron Consulting’s Disputes & Investigations practice last year, so who knows!? Both firms just closed the books on 2010 and maybe they’re laying some groundwork?

So, what do the GT and MA people make of this? Hell, anyone can chime in, we’re just finding this particular rumor pret-tay interesting. Some things make sense and some don’t, so we’ll leave it to you to hash out. And of course, if any of this sounds familiar because, you know, you heard something in a meeting about this very topic, email us. We’ll update you with anything we hear.

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