Tag: Partners

(UPDATE 2) SEC Charges Deloitte Tax Partner with Insider Trading

~ Update includes clarification of partner’s employment status and statements from accused’s attorneys via MarketWatch.

~ Update at circa 7:20 pm ET includes statement from Deloitte

If you thought all this insider trading fun was just for hedge funds you would be sorely mistaken. Deloitte seems to have another case of a partner who can’t seem to control himself when he gets some insider info. Earlier this year, former Deloitte Vice Chairman Tom Fla> shelled out $1.1 million to settle charges with the SEC.

This time around, it’s still a family affair – husband, wife, wife’s sister and brother-in-law job – and it went overseas:

The Securities and Exchange Commission today charged a former Deloitte Tax LLP partner and his wife with repeatedly leaking confidential merger and acquisition information to family members overseas in a multi-million dollar insider trading scheme.

The SEC alleges that Arnold McClellan and his wife Annabel, who live in San Francisco, provided advance notice of at least seven confidential acquisitions planned by Deloitte’s clients to Annabel’s sister and brother-in-law in London. After receiving the illegal tips, the brother-in-law took financial positions in U.S. companies that were targets of acquisitions by Arnold McClellan’s clients. His subsequent trades were closely timed with telephone calls between Annabel McClellan and her sister, and with in-person visits with the McClellans. Their insider trading reaped illegal profits of approximately $3 million in U.S. dollars, half of which was to be funneled back to Annabel McClellan.

The UK Financial Services Authority (FSA) has announced charges against the two relatives — James and Miranda Sanders of London. The FSA also charged colleagues of James Sanders whom he tipped with the nonpublic information in the course of his work at his London-based derivatives firm. Sanders’s tippees and clients made approximately $20 million in U.S. dollars by trading on the inside information.

So not a bad haul. The kicker is, Annabel was also employed at Deloitte, working in the London, San Jose and San Francisco offices. The McClellans provided information to the Sanders on several companies including Kronos, Inc., aQuantive, Inc. and Getty Images.

The SEC brass gave their standard scolding. First, Enforcement Chief, Robert Khuzami, “The McClellans might have thought that they could conceal their illegal scheme by having close relatives make illegal trades offshore. They were wrong.”

And San Fran Director Marc Fagel, “Deloitte and its clients entrusted Arnold McClellan with highly confidential information. Along with his wife, he abused that trust and used high-placed access to corporate secrets for the couple’s own benefit and their family’s enrichment.”

But the real story here is the second instance of insider trading charges against a Deloitte partner this year. The firm successfully sued Tom Flanagan back in January but you have to wonder if there isn’t some flaw with the firm’s internal oversight. Not long after the Flanagan suit, we reported on the 475 reprimands for internal noncompliance in 2009. Those reprimands did not mention insider trading specifically but over 200 of them were related to independence violations. Pattern? You can weigh in below.

Anyone with any knowledge on this story is invited to get in touch with us. as it is not clear if there has been any internal repercussions yet. Messages (including voicemail, carrier pigeon and morse code) left with Deloitte have not been returned (see statement below).

UPDATE: McClellan’s attorneys are not amused by the SEC’s little stunt:

Lawyers for Arnold McClellan denied charges Tuesday by the Securities and Exchange Commission that the former Deloitte Tax LLP partner was involved in a big insider trading scheme. “Arnold McClellan denies the SEC’s claims and will vigorously contest them,” Elliot Peters and Christopher Kearney of Keker & Van Nest LLP said in a statement on behalf of McClellan. “He did not trade on insider information, and there will be no evidence that he passed along any confidential information to anyone.” McClellan “had no financial incentive to commit the actions alleged,” the lawyers added. “He is a conscientious, law-abiding professional with a 23-year unblemished track record of client service at Deloitte to prove it. We will see the SEC in court.”

And just to clarify, McClellan is no longer with Deloitte, leaving the firm in June of this year. Deloitte spokesman Jonathan Gandal emailed us the firm statement (see below) still hasn’t returned our call (busy day, right?) but managed to give a statement to and was quoted by Reuters, saying that he was “shocked and saddened” by the allegations and “If the allegations prove to be true, they would represent serious violations of our strict and regularly communicated confidentiality policies.”

UPDATE 2: Here is the full statement from Deloitte:

“We are shocked and saddened by these allegations against our former tax partner and members of his family. If the allegations prove to be true, they would represent serious violations of our strict and regularly communicated confidentiality policies. Deloitte is committed to safeguarding non-public client information and has cooperated with the SEC throughout its investigation. The SEC does not allege any wrongdoing by Deloitte in this unfortunate matter.”

Complaint_Deloitte

KPMG Partner-cum-Poet Resists Urge to Create Verse on His Blackberry

Believe it or not, employees of Big 4 firms possess talents that have nothing to do with elaborate spreadsheets, coffee and bagel consumption or fantasy football.

A perfect example of this would be Arun Kumar, a “battle-tested” partner in KPMG’s Silicon Valley office. Mr Kumar is a poet, who recently published a collection of 39 poems entitled “Plain Truths.” And regardless of his almost certain reliance on his BlackBerry, he manages to set it aside for the sake of his art.

Kumar, a partner at accounting and consulting giant KPMG, knows another kind of poetry. A poetry of nature and relationships, of whimsy and wisdom, a poetry of words that can be written on planes or between planes or in the quiet of the evening, but never, ever, on a BlackBerry.

“A poem, for me, is visual,” Kumar says at his Mountain View office. “Seeing it is quite important, so I can’t imagine — on a BlackBerry it’s not the same.”

So not only is Kumar a man of professional integrity, he also is one of artistic integrity, resisting the eyestrain and temptation to double-thumb inspiring words on to a 2.5 inch screen that may or may not be lost after he drops it one too many times.

But even more surprising (and disappointing) than his commitment to his craft, is Kumar’s ability to avoid penning poems related to his job. “Most [poems] are far removed from his work,” the article states, despite the undeniable muse that is life inside the House of Klynveld.

Arun Kumar, of Silicon Valley s KPMG office, finds poetry on the human side of the ledger [Mercury News]

(UPDATE) Ex-Grant Thornton Partner Gabriel Azedo Arrested in Spain

~ Updated includes statement from Grant Thornton International in final paragraph.

The South China Morning Post is reporting that former Grant Thornton partner, Gabriel Azedo was arrested in Spain, citing “people with knowledge of his detention.”

Gaby was on the lam for over year and has allegedly stolen HK$91 million (around USD$11.7 million) from those close to him, although one of his alleged victims doesn’t see this as a half glass full situation:

Yesterday one of his alleged creditors, racehorse owner Archie da Silva, said: “I don’t know whether to be happy or not. Just because he has been arrested doesn’t mean we will get our money back. It could be a very tedious process to get him back to Hong Kong.”

Arch’s concerns about bureaucratic nightmare that is extradition seem to be well-founded, as the article explains that getting Gaby back to Hong Kong really isn’t going to be easy:

“There is no bilateral agreement between Hong Kong and Spain but a transfer under multilateral treaties the two jurisdictions are signatories to, or under provisions in Spanish domestic law, are two areas that can be looked at,” the person said.

However, it is likely extradition could involve a lengthy legal and diplomatic process because Hong Kong has no Surrender of Fugitive Offenders Agreement with Spain.

Another officer linked to the case said: “It’s really up to Spanish authorities to decide whether to hand over the man to us. They could ignore our request as there is no legal obligation for them to hand over Azedo.”

We contacted Grant Thornton International to see if they wanted to comment but have yet to hear back. It goes without saying that this story is pretty strange/intriguing so, we’ll continue to follow the developments.

UPDATE, circa 10:45 am ET: A Grant Thornton International spokeswoman provided us with the following statement regarding the matter:

“We understand from media reports that Gabriel Azedo has been arrested in Spain and that he may be the subject of extradition proceedings to Hong Kong. He was a member of the global leadership board of Grant Thornton International until his dismissal in October 2009. Immediately following his disappearance, Ms. Angela Gardner, a close relative of Mr. Azedo, filed a lawsuit in Hong Kong against Grant Thornton International Ltd but this was subsequently dismissed by the Hong Kong court.

While the situation is highly regrettable for the individuals concerned, this is now a matter for them and for the Hong Kong courts.”

Garden Stater Needs Help Choosing Between Ernst & Young and Deloitte

Welcome to the “Thank Tim Flynn It’s Friday” edition of Accounting Career Couch. In today’s post, we have soon-to-be Big 4 employee wringing her hands over which firm to choose in New Jersey – Ernst & Young or Deloitte. Will the wrong decision put her career on the path to ruin? [effect]

Looking for career advice? Is your integrity being challenged? Need ideas on how to woo an unresponsive accountant addicted to love? Email us at advice@goingconcern.com and we’ll help you chase down the love of your life (or recommend a good lawyer).

Back to our Garden State go-getter:

I have received an offer for a full time position at both Ernst & Young and Deloitte, NJ offices. I am coming right out of college and would like to get input on which one to choose. Both of them are really great and I like the people at both places- although I can say that I felt better taken care of with Ernst & Young (they had partners calling to extend the offers and made many follow up calls to make sure they get all your questions answered.

I have been going through some company reviews for both, and it seems to be that the major complaint for EY is the salary raises and the limited opportunities for career advancement (I would like to know if this is accurate information). As per Deloitte, the main complaint seem to be the long hours- which is expected for a Big 4, however career advancement seems to be very good. – once again I would like to know if this is accurate and if it is true that career advancement is better at Deloitte than it is at EY.

I would really appreciate your help as I need to get back to these companies within a month and it is a very large decision to make.

Dear Jersey Girl,

Our knowledge about the Garden State amounts to a just a few things:

1. Medford and Byram Township seem like nice places to be from.

2. The Nets suck.

3. Pretty much anything from The Sopranos.

4. No matter how convenient it is in reality, we don’t like taking the PATH.

None of these points help you. What we can tell you is that effort made by the E&Y partners may be the tie-breaker. If everything between the two firms seem the same and the E&Y partners won big points with you, that’s who you should choose.

Now. Your concerns in the other two areas are a little unfounded. First – Ernst & Young’s most recent salary increases were better than Deloitte’s until the recent mea culpa by the Green Dot Gang so if nothing else, they’re staying competitive.

Secondly – we’re not sure what you mean by “limited opportunities for advancement” but E&Y is a huge firm with plenty of opportunities. Plus, if you want something to happen, you’ll make it happen. Doors don’t slam shut just because you choose one firm over another. Plus, the path to partner is long with a big parking lot right in front of it.

As far a long hours are concerned – this has been covered ad nauseam. You’re working lots of hours no matter what. This should not be a decision point.

As far as the specifics about the offices across the Hudson, we’ll leave that up to the peanut gallery. Help the girl out.

Former KPMG Chairman Walter Hanson Passes Away

Walt was elected chairman of Peat Marwick at 39 and served in that role until he retired in 1980.

We weren’t aware of this but the firm actually has a “Walter E. Hanson Award” that recognizes “a KPMG partner for delivering exemplary client service, providing visionary leadership and displaying the highest standards of integrity.”

So while Walt’s name isn’t in the lobby (and thus, no Warhol treatment) this award sounds pretty good. The firm’s press release is after the jump.

WALTER E. HANSON, FORMER KPMG CHAIRMAN, DIES AT 84
First Chairman of Peat Marwick International

NEW YORK, Oct. 28 – Walter Edward Hanson, former Chairman of KPMG, died after a long illness at his home in Newport Beach, Calif., his family has disclosed. He was 84.

During a career at KPMG that spanned more than 23 years, Mr. Hanson, who died Sept. 24, was widely regarded and admired for his business insight and determination by both his colleagues and clients. He became the first Chairman of Peat Marwick International in 1978.

Mr. Hanson joined KPMG in 1957 as a partner in charge of its transportation practice, later as partner in charge of the New York office, and was elected Chairman of the U.S. firm at the age of 39, serving in that role from 1965 until his retirement in 1980.

He was born on Oct. 17, 1925, in Adelphia, N.J. After serving with the U.S. Naval Air Corps, he graduated from Lafayette College in 1949. He became a certified public accountant and joined the Minneapolis & St. Louis Railway Co., where he rose to the position of Vice President and Comptroller.

Numerous academic and civic honors were conferred upon Mr. Hanson. He served as a member of the Board of Trustees at Lafayette College for 18 years, nine of those as Chairman. In 1984, the firm established the Walter E. Hanson/KPMG Peat Marwick Professorship of Business and Finance endowed chair at Lafayette. In June 1977, he received an honorary Doctor of Laws degree from Lafayette. In 1979, the Citizens Union of New York City presented him their Distinguished Service Award.

Mr. Hanson served for 15 years as a member of the Board of Governors of the United Nations Association of the USA. He was a member of the Advisory Council of both the Harvard Business School and the Stanford University Graduate School of Business. He also served as a member of the Board of Visitors of the Graduate School of Management-UCLA and Duke University Business School.

Following his retirement in 1980 from KPMG, he served as a member of the Boards of Directors of many companies, including CIGNA Corp, Fidelity Investments, Chesebrough-Ponds, and Insurance Company of North America. Mr. Hanson was founding Chairman of the Maritime Center in Norwalk, Conn. In 1983, Mr. Hanson was awarded the Gold Medal of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants, the profession’s highest honor.

Commemorating Walter Hanson’s contributions, KPMG created the Walter E. Hanson Award in 2003 to recognize and honor a KPMG partner for delivering exemplary client service, providing visionary leadership and displaying the highest standards of integrity.

Mr. Hanson was one of America’s top sailboat racers. He raced for many years on Long Island Sound and along the East Coast. He twice won the Marblehead-Halifax Race and was the Northern Ocean Racing Circuit winner. In addition, he was a member of the New York Yacht Club and served for many years on its Board of Trustees.

Mr. Hanson is survived by his wife, Elizabeth, children Katharine (Greg Hurray), Elizabeth (Edward) Lawlor, and Barbara (Samuel) Maropis; grandchildren Jeffrey Hurray and Matthew, Abigail, and Casey Lawlor; a sister, Emma Freeman and brother, Irwin.

In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the Alzheimer’s Association and/or Lafayette College.

About KPMG LLP
KPMG LLP, the audit, tax and advisory firm (www.us.kpmg.com), is the U.S. member firm of KPMG International Cooperative (“KPMG International.”) KPMG International’s member firms have 140,000 professionals, including more than 7,900 partners, in 146 countries.

Former Big 4 Employee Has Some Thoughts on the Motivation Behind Becoming a Partner

For many of you in public accounting, the idea of becoming a partner in your firm is either a career aspiration or a thought that borders on lunacy. A few might fall in between those two spectrums but if you ask most people, they’ve got a pretty definitive answer on the “do you want to be a partner?” question.

Awhile back we received a message from a former Big 4 rank and file who had some thoughts on the matter:

When you enter Big 4 as an associate, the assumed goal is to make Partner. This seemed like a great goal at first, kind of like making it to the 12th grade in high school, or getting a degree (or two) from a good college. Or maybe even being voted in as the President of your sorority or fraternity. Take your pick. It’s the culminatied work, dedication, a little luck and a dash of favoritism from the Powers on High. However, the more I worked in B4, and the more I saw the “pyramid” continue to rear its ugly shape, I became appalled that anyone could WANT to be Partner.


We’ll just briefly chime in here to say that equating high school graduation to making partner is a bit of stretch (and we let a lot of things go). We know lots of people that graduated high school that could barely operate velcro sneakers.

Back to the rant:

The obvious reasons why someone would want to make Partner? Money, fame, money, power, money. Let’s be honest, it’s pretty much just for the money. But at the cost of what? More often than not: a tough family life (perhaps divorced, an affair or five, missed family dinners), working on the weekends, hardly seeing your kids due to work (e.g. weekend working, wining and dining clients, etc), and – the part that disturbed me the most – the fact that you are making your money from the “blood, sweat, and tears” of the miserable little minions working til all hours of the day and night for YOUR profit. I honestly don’t think that I could ever, in good conscious, become a partner, knowing the levels of stress I (directly or indirectly) put on my little “worker bees.”

Okay, time to jump in – to insinuate that partners (and aspiring partners) are simply motivated by money is silly. For starters, most partners will never pull down the salaries that the Jim Turleys and T Fly of the world are pulling down. Secondly, there are plenty of people working in public accounting – believe it or not – that really enjoy the auditing/tax/advisory work they do. If this is something an individual is aspiring to do long-term, having some skin in the game (“your profit”) is a worthwhile goal.

As for as personal lives go – more than 50% of human beings that get married end up getting divorced, so that’s weak and most partners (at least in our experience ) are not the lady-killer/man-eaters that you describe.

Continuing on:

Perhaps it is this mentality alone that makes me wholly unfit to ever be a partner or even a C-suite bigwig. Perhaps being a female I see the dog-eat-dog corporate world at a level that is far too emotional and compassionate.

But then again, who knows? Perhaps, hypothetically, by the time I finished the long uphill journey to Partner, clawing my way to the top, I would be so engrossed by the money and power that I wouldn’t have the time or space in my thoughts to think of the “little people” that were making my money-making factory churn. I would be immune to their complaints, responding with, “Stop your whining. We’ve ALL been there before. Just keep putting in your time, and everything will turn out okay.”

“Engrossed by money and power”? Now we’re getting ridiculous. This is public accounting, not an über-competitive hedge fund or the hallowed walls of the U.S. Capitol.

Once you make partner, the struggle is just beginning. Being at the top of the totem pole for an individual team might seem like a powerful spot but it’s anything but. The politics reach a whole new level when you make partner that most of us can’t even imagine. So, while you may think that partners consider staff and managers “little people” many of them probably feel like little people as well. Plus, they have significant (and sometimes grossly unrealistic) expectations placed on them, so any pressure you’re feeling, they’re likely feeling it as well.

Partners are still human and they have to make hard decisions that affect people directly and most of them are consciously aware of this. How each of them handles that responsibility is obviously different but you make them sound like soulless robots and that’s simply not the case.

So what’s the motivation, partners? If our reader is right, then proceed to tell us your stories of fame and fortune (yachts, trips to Monaco, et al.). But if you want to set the record straight then we invite you to level with the haters out there.

Earlier:
The Partner Track: Open Thread

PwC Partners Providing NY Employees a Way to Avoid Travel, Family for Thanksgiving

As the days shorten, leaves fall and men waste hours in front of the talking box, it can only means one thing: The Holidays will soon be upon us. This also means that lots of traveling and family time – two things that can make the holidays a less-than desirable time of year.

Luckily for PwC employees in New York, two partners have opened their hearts and homes (not literally) so that you may avoid those two nuisances entirely:

To the People of the New York Metro Practice:

The upcoming Thanksgiving holiday break provides us with a wonderful opportunity to enjoy the company of family and friends and to reflect on all we have to be thankful for. However, we recognize that some of our people may be far from home (such as our people who are on tour from various other PwC offices) or may just not have somewhere to spend Thanksgiving Day. If you don’t have plans, Tim Ryan, Assurance Leader and Bill Cobourn, Sectors & Markets Leader will host (along with their families), a special Thanksgiving Day meal.

We would like to invite you and your friend, spouse, significant other, or children — and we can all celebrate this special day together. As some of you know, Tim has six children–so there will be fun for both adults and children. This festive meal will be held on Thanksgiving Day (Thursday, November 25) in the afternoon at a Manhattan venue to be announced. To help us plan for this event, please indicate your interest in attending using the link below. If you respond “yes” we will follow up shortly to provide additional details.

Please recognize that if you already have plans for the holiday, you are not being asked to change them.

This unprecedented display of generosity is quite welcome considering past behavior by some partners in other cities but we do have questions:

1. Is there a short list for the “Manhattan venue” and will attendees be allowed to vote on the locale?

2. Will the “kids table” consist of non-partners as well as kids or will all the adults be allowed to sit together regardless of title?

3. What’s the “saying grace” situation? Also, will there be assigned seats or is it going to be like boarding a Southwest flight?

4. Will table manners be of the Judith Martin or Emily Post persuasion?

5. What’s on the menu? Is going to be the typical fare or are we going non-tradish? Is it catered or are Tim and Bill going cheap and making it potluck?

6. Open bar?

7. Are certain topics of conversation off the table? Examples may include but are not exclusive to: A) The new logo B) AIG C) Deloitte’s ascension to #1.

8. Will there be an open call for entertainment or is the pianist from DC going to step up again?

You have to agree that all of the above are important but are we missing anything? If you’ve got more questions, leave them below.

There Are Some Cranky McGladrey Mofos in Minneapolis

Last week McGladrey announced the promotion of 21 lucky ducks to the big kids’ table. Mining the comments, you would find some indication that even with the 21 newbies, the number of partners is probably a net negative due to “laid off and departing partners.”

We received a tip recently that seems to echo these thoughts, telling us that a number of managers and partners have left the Minneapolis office, including a “head partner.”

We asked around and discovered through another source that this “head partner” was a gentleman by the name of Will Roche, a veteran of the firm:

I am not saying but just saying no one in is happy in Minneapolis. Will Roche was forced out after 34 years

And through another non-McG source we were able to confirm that Mr. Roche is no longer with the firm. So! Maybe it’s a simple case of out with the old, in with the new at Mickey G’s? If that’s the case, is C.E. Andrews next? Dude is pushing 60. Discuss below.

PwC Partner Desperate for Courageous Pianist Has Prayers Answered

It was only yesterday that we learned about a PwC partner that was thrown a curve when their regular pianist up and cancelled for a Monday night fiesta. The partner, not wanting to disappoint/disgust his guests, challenged everyone he knew to find the stones to stand up and say, “Yes, I play piano and I am courageous and I will dazzle your guests and be ‘well fed’ in the process!”

Frankly, we had our doubts this would get pulled off. Fortunately for this partner and his guests, a small miracle occurred:

. . . and the answer is, we’re courageous and talented! I received quite a few offers from people willing to play or with ideas on friends or relatives who could possibly help us out. More importantly, we received a number of replies from people simply stating that they wish they could help out and that they wish they had maintained their piano studies. So, what should we make of this little episode in our lives here at PwC? First, it is a reminder that at PwC we act like family and help each other out.

Second, it is a reminder that we have many courageous people who are willing to step up to a challenge. In a later note, I will highlight some of the individuals who responded and volunteered. In today’s note, I simply want to highlight the contributions of Craig Wilderman, the individual chosen to play last night. Craig played beautifully despite the fact that he hasn’t been playing regularly in recent times. Craig displayed an ability to jump from music genre to music genre — he was actually quite impressive. Perhaps the final message I have for you today is that when you can steal a moment or two away, it is probably a good idea to rekindle old passions and hobbies. I believe that Craig found sharing his piano talent with us last night to be very personally rewarding as well.

First, how annoying would it be to read the emails from “people simply stating that they wish they could help out and that they wish they had maintained their piano studies.” Save it people. What you’re really saying is, “I can’t play a lick but I would if I could and I thought you should know that!” You’re wasting the man’s time. He needs talent, not your bullshit excuses about how you quit when you were a junior high.

But luckily there was a real hero in the mix. We did some snooping around and found a Craig Wilderman on LinkedIn who is in the vicinity but his keyboard talents are not anywhere on his profile. We felt confident that we had our man and we tried shooting him an email to get the scoop on 1) songs played – did he take requests? 2) the hottie situation 3) was he, in fact, “well fed” 4) what form the “external gratitude” has taken so far.

But the most important question for Craig is, is he considering leaving the confines of his cube to go on the road to provide his talents for other partners desperate for in-home talent at a modest charge? It sounds as though he could make a run at it but maybe he just needs some encouragement. We say, go for it Craig. We can’t bankroll you but are more than happy to provide moral support.

PwC Partner, Not Wanting to Disappoint Guests, Has Open Call for Courageous Pianist

When you become a partner at a Big 4 firm, there are many unexpected challenges that you will face. You may have a trusted senior manager quit in the middle of busy season. You may discover that someone who you thought was your best friend is actually primo inventory from the jerk store. And if you’re really unlucky, you may get bombed at a happy hour (allegedly!), then slug a couple people (allegedly!), kiss a couple more (allegedly!), not remember a thing, claim that you were roofied and have a stranger call you up out of the blue and ask you about it.

Anyway, we’ve been informed of another bitch of a situation that can arise when you become partner – when the entertainment for your little soiree cancels on you at the last minute:

From: [redacted]
To:
Cc: [redacted]
Date: 10/04/2010 01:24 PM
Subject: Are you courageous or just talented?

All —

I am having an event at my home tonight and my normal pianist has canceled on short notice. This is a test of the courage of you as a group of people.

I know someone is out there in our midst who in their spare time is a really good pianist. I would be eternally thankful if those of you to whom this note applies, would volunteer to help me out tonight. I know we hire people with many talents — the question is — do you have the courage to display them? The event is from 6:00 – 9:00 PM in McLean. You will be well fed. If you are interested, please contact [redacted]. Hopefully we’ll get more than one taker, and we will figure out who we should use.

The fact of the matter is, my event this evening will survive the lack of a pianist. What I am really trying to figure out is what we as a people at pwc [Ed. note: nice usage of the low caps!] are made of.

Thank you,

Jesus. Talk about a conundrum. And since Big 4 partners don’t pull down the kind of dough that could afford them a short-notice call to Elton, Harry Connick, Jr., or even a cheap Liberace impersonator, throwing a line out into the employee talent pool was the only option this partner had.

Unfortunately, since this opportunity was on such short notice, anyone with the necessary skills that is now just learning about it is SOL. With any luck however, you can volunteer your services as a solid pinch-hitter for future reference. God knows how that comes in handy.

Presumably you don’t have to be the next Mozart but if you can pull off some singalongs such as “Piano Man,” “Friends in Low Places,” and “Sweet Caroline” that will go a long way to nailing down that “eternal” gratitude (for a future event of course).

Promotion Watch ’10: McGladrey Names 21 to Partner/Managing Director

Cake and punch all around, natch. And if you’re lucky, pictures with your McGladrey-sponsored golfer of choice.

Oct 01, 2010 – MINNEAPOLIS (October 1, 2010) — RSM McGladrey, Inc., and McGladrey & Pullen, LLP, leading providers of assurance, tax and consulting services under the McGladrey brand, recently announced the promotion of 21 employees to partner/managing director roles, effective Oct. 1.

“Our new partners and managing directors have demonstrated the power of truly understanding our clients’ needs and proactively contributing to their success,” said C.E. Andrews, president and COO for RSM McGladrey. “They display the firm’s core values of relationships, excellence and integrity every day in their interactions with clients, potential clients and with one another. It’s a pleasure to recognize their significant contributions.”

“These employees have consistently proven their ability to gain a deep understanding of our clients’ businesses, aspirations and challenges,” said Dave Scudder, managing partner and CEO of McGladrey & Pullen, LLP. “They have used this understanding to develop innovative insights and expertise unique to each client and industry that we serve.”

The complete 2010 class of partners and managing directors includes:
Name Line of Business Location
Donnovan Maginley Assurance Florida
Doug O’Connor Assurance Illinois
Linda Dehner Assurance California
Steve Gradl Assurance Minnesota
Tasha Kostick Assurance California
Wes Getman Assurance Atlanta
Allison Egbert Assurance Boston
Kevin Vannucci Consulting Connecticut
Brian Holmes Consulting Illinois
Lawrence Levine Consulting Illinois
Dean Nelson Consulting Boston
Diego Rosenfeld Consulting Boston
Rob Frattasio Consulting Boston
Greg DeVino Tax Florida
John Majer Tax Florida
Tay Reeder Tax Georgia
Phil Wasserman Tax New York
Brian Blacklaw Tax Illinois
Mindy Cozewith Tax Georgia
Rebecca Sheridan Tax Texas
Jim St. Germain Tax Boston

McGladrey Announces New Partners and Managing Directors [PRLog]

Experienced Associate Concerned About New Hires’ Salary; Is Having a Sit-down with a Partner a Good Idea?

Today in accountant avarice, a youth took a cut prior to their start date last year and now wonders if this year’s crop will be raking in more. Will bringing injustice to a partner’s attention help?

Have a question about your career? Need help crafting the perfect prose in an email to your firm’s CEO/Managing Partner? Are you a firm thinking about getting a makeover but don’t know where to start? Send us an email to advice@goingconcern.com and we’ll give the best free advice you can possibly find.

Back to our accountant in the poor house:

I work at a regional firm for about one year now. Prior to my start date my offer was reduced due to the economy. After recent discussions with the partner, I was told that I will be getting a “raise” but even after the bump, my new salary is below my original offer amount. Is there any chance, new hires coming in can make more than I, because my revised offer seems below market and I think my firm will be offering higher salaries to the new hires to remain competitive? Also, should I bring this up to the partner’s attention because I don’t think that they know my salary has been reduced and how would I go about doing this?


First, before we answer your question more directly, we should point out that worrying about what other people are making at your firm will drive you crazy. But because of the world we live in, knowing whether a co-worker is making more or less than us is a God-given right, we understand your desire for this knowledge.

As to whether the new grasshoppers at your firm are making more than you, we suggest checking out our salary thread from late last year, our map that shows salary by region and this year’s Big 4 starting salary thread to give you an idea where you fall on the scale.

But the short answer is, yes, it is possible that your first year associate is making more than you.

Now, what to do about that exactly? Well, before you scream at the cruel and unusual universe for being completely unfair to you, do your research and get a really good idea of what you think you should be making. Nothing will get you thrown out of a partner’s office faster than, “I need a raise because I said so.”

But market research may not be enough. You’ll need to demonstrate to the partner getting your pitch why you’re a valuable resource for the firm and point to specific accomplishments that support your argument. As a second-year associate, that can be a pretty tough sell.

What have you accomplished in the past year? Are you making it rain? Are you a trusted go-to on anything and everything for your clients? Are you involved advancing the firm’s brand and culture and mentoring other colleagues to do the same?

Partners like to hear about all that stuff because A) it gets their blood boiling in the nether regions and B) it means that you care about making them (i.e. the firm) more money and advancing its reputation.

So yes, you can bring your concerns to a partner but be prepared to sell yourself all over again because it’s a “what have you done for me lately?” situation.