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Advisory

Professionals on the Move – Jan 31, 2020

Professionals on the Move is a roundup of recents accounting firm promotions.

pros on move

Professionals on the Move is a roundup of recents accounting firm promotions.

Sylesh Babu joins Sikich as audit partner

Sylesh Babu recently joined Sikich, a global company that specializes in technology-enabled professional services, as a partner in the company’s audit and assurance practice. Babu has nearly 30 years of experience providing accounting and audit solutions to manufacturers and distributors and professional services organizations.

Before joining Sikich, Babu was a partner at Plante Moran. He began his career in India before working at BDO in the United Arab Emirates for seven years; later joining Blackman Kallick in Chicago and has performed assurance and due diligence work for private and public companies in the United States, Europe, Middle East and India. His technical expertise spans financial statement audits, review and compilation services, field examinations, agreed-upon procedures, due diligence, and forensics. Babu works in the firm’s Naperville, Illinois, office.

Nathan Wechsler & Company Supervising Senior Joins Board of Directors

The regional accounting firm of Nathan Wechsler & Company, PA recently announced that Ashley Kinville, CPA recently joined the Board of Directors of Second Start. She will serve as treasurer. 

Kinville joined Nathan Wechsler & Company, PA in 2017; specializing in serving nonprofits, performing single audits, and providing attest services for closely-held businesses, including audits and reviews.

A graduate of the University of New Hampshire’s Peter T. Paul College of Business and Economics, Kinville holds both a Master of Science in Accounting and a Bachelor of Business Administration with a Concentration in Accounting. In addition,  Kinville is a member of the New Hampshire Society of Certified Public Accountants’ Young Professionals Committee and serves on the Finance Committee of the New Hampshire Coalition Against Domestic and Sexual Violence.

Gumbiner Savett Inc. Announces a New Departmental Leader

Gumbiner Savett Inc., a full-service public accounting firm based in Southern California, has a new leader for its tax department with Valerie Colin, a senior tax shareholder in the firm, assuming the position.

Colin will replace David Thaw, CPA, MST, who recently stepped down after seven years at the helm.

Colin celebrated her 25th anniversary with the firm in 2019 and has more than 35 years of experience in tax, accounting and business consulting.

Armanino Adds 11 New Partners for 2020

Armanino LLP, one of the 25 largest accounting and business consulting firms in the U.S., today announced the promotion of nine new firm partners effective Jan. 1, 2020, as well as two new partners joining the firm. This new group of partners includes professionals in tax, audit, risk assurance and advisory, and consulting practices across six offices throughout California, Texas and Washington.  The new partner class includes:

Todd Bishop, Risk Assurance and Advisory Service partner, works remotely where he helps lead the firm’s internal audit, SOC and SOX teams. He has more than 19 years of audit and consulting experience in Big Four firms.

Katy Brown, Tax partner, is located in the San Ramon office and brings more than a decade of experience in public accounting. She focuses on serving nonprofits and works with exempt organizations in a variety of capacities, including consulting on formation, board governance and ongoing compliance requirements.

Peter Burns, Audit partner, is based in the San Francisco office and brings extensive audit experience in the technology industry, including at a Big Four firm, having provided assurance and auditing services to a variety of technology companies.

Jon Chin, Audit partner, is located in the San Jose office and has been serving in public accounting since 2007 as an intern at Armanino. He provides audit and business consulting services and works extensively with clients in the technology industry.

Jarrett Ganan, Tax partner, is based in the west Los Angeles office and joined the accounting profession in 2011. He brings diverse experience from various industries and specializes in partnership tax compliance and has extensive experience dealing with the tax planning aspects of structuring business ventures and transactions.

David Greenamyre, Tax partner, located in San Jose, began his career in public accounting in 2009, including spending several years with a Big Four firm, specializing in corporate taxation with a focus on ASC 740 income tax accounting and theory.

Ryan Guyton, Tax partner, is located in the Dallas office and is a seasoned tax and advisory professional primarily serving privately held businesses with revenues ranging from $5 million to over $600 million through his expertise in income and estate tax planning, wealth transfer & succession planning, merger & acquisition consulting. 

Isaac Peace, Audit partner, is based in the Dallas office and has been serving the accounting industry since 2005. He focuses on audit, attestation, internal controls and business advisory in the technology, real estate and financial services industries.

Eric Thomas, Consulting partner, is based in San Ramon and brings more than 20 years of experience serving nonprofit and for-profit organizations. He focuses on helping nonprofits with their finance and accounting needs and works with a diverse group of clients on their digital transformation.

New partners joining firm:

Rich Asiodche, Audit partner, is based in the Seattle office and has been a member of the accounting profession since 2002 and spent 14 years with a Big Four firm. His experience spans across various industries including life sciences, technology and emerging growth, advising on mergers and acquisitions, financial statement audits, and integrated audits.

Mike Goral, Tax partner, is based in the west Los Angeles office and leads Armanino’s Cannabis Tax practice. A tax professional since 1989, he spent time with multiple Big Four firms and has significant experience in federal, state and local tax from both an accounting and legal perspective.

Warren Averett Announces 2020 New Members

Warren Averett is pleased to announce that five individuals have been promoted to Members of the Firm.

Niki Dean, CPA (Pensacola)

Niki Dean serves the financial institution industry with a specific focus on serving credit unions. She provides services including opinion audits, reviews, agreed-upon procedures, employee benefit audits and compliance reviews.

Bryan R. Dees, CPA (Tampa)

Bryan assists clients with growing their business and all of their tax needs. He specializes in tax consulting and compliance for large corporations, including closely-held companies, and accounting for income taxes for financial reporting purposes.

David Foreman, CFP (Birmingham)

David Foreman serves as the Director of Financial Planning and as a Senior Client Consultant for Warren Averett Asset Management. David coordinates and interacts with clients regarding various financial matters, such as retirement planning and investment management.

Allie Tschirhart, CPA (Tampa)

Allie Tschirhart works with business owners to help their companies grow by minimizing their tax liability. She also provides tax planning and compliance services for S Corporations, Partnerships and C Corporations.

Adam West, CPA (Birmingham)

Adam West focuses his practice on serving closely-held companies in a variety of industries, including manufacturing, distribution, technology and hospitality. He is also proficient in identifying incentives and improved filing positions on a current and ongoing basis for continued tax savings.

Martin joins UHY Advisors Mid-Atlantic Tax Practice

UHY Advisors, Inc. and UHY LLP (UHY) recently announced that William Martin, Jr. has joined its tax practice as Principal. Martin, who will be based in the firm’s Columbia, Md., office, will be responsible for providing proactive and customized tax advice to a diverse group of clients.

Martin concentrates on small businesses with an emphasis on medical practices, law firms and retail establishments. He has extensive experience in federal and state income taxes for corporations and individuals.

Martin has a Bachelor of Arts degree in accounting from the University of Baltimore, and is active in many organizations including The Associated Italian American Charities of Maryland, The Appian Society, La Dolce Vita and Columbus Celebrations, Inc.

Christine Cornejo Joins Lavine, Lofgren, Morris & Engelberg, LLP

Lavine, Lofgren, Morris & Engelberg, LLP recently announced that Christine Cornejo has joined the firm as a client accounting services manager.

Cornejo has more than 20 years of experience providing accounting services to a wide range of industries, including asset management, manufacturing and distribution, non-profit and e-commerce.  Prior to joining LLME, Cornejo served as senior vice president of accounting for a large private equity firm and has also held controller positions for a variety of businesses and industries over the course her career. 

Cornejo received her Bachelor of Arts degree, cum laude, in economics/finance from Cal State Northridge and has a California CPA license.

 

WithumSmith+Brown PC Welcomes Kim Waldman to New Business Development Role

WithumSmith+Brown (Withum) PC, a top nationally ranked advisory and CPA firm, has announced the appointment of Kim Waldman to its New York City office team where she will spearhead all business development initiatives for its Financial Services Group.

Waldman possesses more than 20 years’ accounting and business development experience within the alternative-investment and digital-asset industries. Throughout the course of her career, she has collaborated with asset managers, institutional investors, enterprises and industry partners to address complex fund administration and operational solutions. Waldman has forged numerous relationships with some of the industry’s most prominent alternative investment entities and will continue to build and foster relationships with both emerging and well-established organizations.

Marks Paneth Names New Partner-in-Charge of High-Net Worth Group

Leading accounting, tax and advisory firm, Marks Paneth LLP, has announced that Joseph Giampapa, CPA, was named Partner-in-Charge of its High-Net-Worth Group. In this new role, Mr. Giampapa will oversee the Group’s continued growth and unparalleled commitment to client service. Mr. Giampapa succeeds Robert J. Hughes, EA, who has assumed a new role as Principal-in-Charge of Marks Paneth’s Boca Raton, Florida office.

Mr. Giampapa has more than 15 years of experience providing tax planning, preparation and consulting services to high-net-worth individuals, partnerships, corporations, estates, trusts and private foundations. He is based in Marks Paneth’s New York City headquarters.

Nathan Wechsler Announces New Team Member

The regional accounting firm of Nathan Wechsler & Company, PA is pleased to announce the addition of Janet Lizotte to their professional team.  Lizotte joins the firm as a certified public accountant, and is responsible for managing the engagements for all clients transferred from her former firm, Cady & Hoar PC., to Nathan Wechsler & Company, PA.

A graduate of the University of Denver, Lizotte holds a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration and is currently affiliated with the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA) and the Vermont Society of Certified Public Accountants (VTCPA).

 

Private Wealth Attorney Joins BakerHostetler in California

BakerHostetler announced today the addition of Cynthia D. Brittain to its Private Wealth team, resident in its Costa Mesa office. She was previously a partner at Katten Muchin Rosenman LLP.

Brittain’s robust background in private client services includes advising domestic and international high net worth families on cross-border planning and sophisticated domestic wealth transfer strategies. With her background in financial services, Brittain also advises on fiduciary issues that arise during trust administration, and has represented financial services firms with trust-related matters.

Brittain received her LL.M. from the University of San Diego, her J.D. from California Western School of Law and her B.A. from The University of North Carolina.

Katz, Sapper & Miller recently hired Danny Charles as Director, Transaction Services

Katz, Sapper & Miller recently announced the hiring of Danny Charles as Director, Transaction Services. Working with private equity firms and strategic investors, Danny helps buyers quickly understand the complete financial picture and risk profile of their acquisition targets in order to address any deal issues early in the transaction process. He also works with sellers and investment banks to address and mitigate deal issues prior to going to market, helping preserve company value and increase the transaction’s certainty of closing.

Danny received both a Bachelor of Science degree in accounting and a Master of Accountancy degree from the University of Kentucky, and is currently a member of the American Institute of CPAs and the Tennessee Society of CPAs.