1. From the Cincinnati Business Courier:
http://www.bizjournals.com/cincinnati/news/2016/02/01/exclusive-
one-of-cincinnati-s-largest-accounting.html
EXCLUSIVE: One of
Cincinnati’s largest accounting
firms has a new chief
SUBSCRIBER CONTENT:
Feb 1, 2016, 1:54pm EST Updated: Feb 1, 2016, 2:11pm EST
For the first time in its 25-year history,
Cassady Schiller & Associates now has a
managing partner who isn’t one of the
founders.
Cassady Schiller, one of Cincinnati’s
largest accounting firms, promoted
Mike Clark to the top slot as part of the
firm’s succession plan.
Clark takes the reins from David
Cassady. Clark had been director of
Cassady Schiller’s wealth management
business. The 49-year-old Clark has
been with Cassady Schiller for more
FOR THE EXCLUSIVE USE OF MCLARK@CSA-
CPA.COM
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2. Mike Clark is Cassady Schiller's new
managing partner.
than 21 years, serving in several
assignments and taking on growing
leadership responsibilities.
Cassady is now the firm’s chief growth
officer. He’ll focus on increasing the
number of client relationships, working
more with clients, developing future
leaders within the firm and continuing
his involvement in the community.
Cassady and Bob Schiller, who founded
the firm 25 years ago, both will remain
heavily involved in the firm, Clark told
me on Monday in an exclusive interview.
Each of them are in their late 50s.
“I’m the bridge between the founding
partners and the next generation,” Clark
told me. “We started thinking about
succession planning a couple of years
ago. We decided we don’t need to merge to grow. David and Bob have
been in charge here for 25 years. We decided not to wait until they’re
not here to make this change.”
Cassady and Schiller have no plans to leave anytime soon, Clark said.
“They expect to be around here for quite a while,” he said. “Their line is
they’re having fun and they plan to stay a while.”
Clark plans to emphasize innovation at the firm. The tax season has
been condensed because clients receive tax documents later than they
used to. Cassady Schiller is using more technology to make it more
efficient. That’s just one example, Clark said, of how it’s using
technology to improve the service it offers to clients.
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3. The firm also plans to expand the consultative services it offers, such
as mergers and acquisitions, company valuation, succession planning
and wealth management, he said.
Plenty of accounting firms have merged lately, including five at the
end of last year. The aging of partners who are nearing retirement has
been a driving force behind the mergers. That makes Cassady
Schiller’s move significant in that it reflects its plans to remain
independent.
“We feel like we have more opportunities if we don’t merge,” Clark
said. “That doesn’t mean we wouldn’t acquire some smaller firms. But
we’ve been approached a lot (by potential acquirers) and we’ve
decided we want to continue the good thing we have going on.”
Cassady Schiller made a couple of other changes at the same time.
Jim McGrath takes Clark’s spot as director of wealth management
services. McGrath joined Cassady Schiller in early September as a
partner and has been involved in the wealth management services unit
known as CSA Financial Advisors. He had worked in investment
management for the previous 15 years, mostly with Johnson
Investment Counsel.
Heather Bucher, who had been CFO, is now COO. She’s in her early
40s and is part of the next generation of leaders that Clark mentioned.
The firm has nine partners and 55 employees. It has grown steadily, at
about a 10 percent clip per year on average, Clark said. Cassady
Schiller is Greater Cincinnati’s 11th-largest accounting firm with 28
CPAs, according to the most recent Courier research.
Steve Watkins
Staff Reporter
Cincinnati Business Courier
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