All partners are Certified Public Accountants and
members of the AICPA and related state societies. New staff accountants are
required to meet our high selection standards.
As a registrant with the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board, our staff
members are required to maintain and improve their skills by completing a
minimum of 120 hours of continuing professional education every three years. In
addition, applicable state societies require completion of 80 hours of
continuing professional education every two years. These requirements are
generally fulfilled by attending seminars and workshops sponsored by the AICPA,
state societies and industry associations. These continuing professional
education courses cover a wide variety of subjects. Staff members attend those
seminars which are relevant to the organizations whom they service in order to
develop expertise in a particular industry. These courses generally provide
information regarding new developments and significant current trends in those
industries. The firm also conducts regular in house training programs focusing
specifically on accounting, auditing, tax and regulatory aspects of mutual
funds and other investment companies.
Our partners serve on the AICPA and other committees responsible for accounting
and auditing issues which impact many of our clients.
Service Team
Audits are generally staffed by a partner, manager, senior accountants, and
various assistants. The client service team we have selected has the
professional experience and knowledge to provide you with the required services
and to become trusted and proactive business advisors. The quality of work of
staff assistants is assured through appropriate supervision.
The quality of our service depends upon the skill, experience and professional
competence of our people. Criteria established by the firm for staffing an
engagement are:
- industry experience
- An engagement team designed with client continuity in mind
- adequate supervision.
Partners in charge of each engagement are actively involved members of the
audit team. Years of continued association with an organization provide them
with an intimate knowledge of its business well beyond the accounting and
auditing aspects. Many clients find this to be an invaluable attribute when
seeking an objective sounding board for new ideas or problem solving.
Continuity of key personnel is also vital. We strive to maintain continuity of
key members of our client service team. Consequently, we only rotate partners
on SEC engagements, which require partner rotation every five years, and
strive, to the extent possible, to maintain continuity of other members of the
client service team. Our clients do not serve as "training grounds" for
our personnel. Continuity assures a more knowledgeable audit, conducted in a
more efficient manner with minimal disruption to your staff. We can assure you
that all audit team members will have the required experience and that the
quality of staff will always be at a high level.