Strategic Advisory Board (cont.)

James A. Cordova, CPA Jim Cordova serves as chairman of the Tax and Accounting Services Practice at Windes and McClaughry. Jim has more than 15 years of experience in public accounting and specializes in analysis and selection of business entities, business dissolution, reorganizations, mergers and acquisitions, multi-state taxation, foreign parent and subsidiary compliance, and real property tax strategies. He serves a wide variety of clients in manufacturing, real estate, retail, construction, freight, warehousing, wholesale, and fuel, as well as high net worth individuals. He is a frequent author and speaker on such topics as grantor trusts, life insurance trusts, and S-Corporation taxation issues. Jim is a member of the AICPA, California Society of Certified Public Accountants, Tax Practice Management Committee, North American International Tax Committee, and serves as Baker Tilly Tax Liaison.

Donald J. DeGrazia, CPA, ABV is a senior shareholder with Gold, Meltzer, Plasky & Wise. A graduate of LaSalle University, Don is licensed as a CPA in New Jersey and Pennsylvania. He is a member of the AICPA, the New Jersey Society of CPAs, the Institute of Business Appraisers, and serves as Chair of the Business Valuation Committee of the New Jersey Society of CPAs. Don has attained an Accreditation in Business Valuation (ABV) from the AICPA signifying experience and expertise in the valuation of businesses. He also specializes in federal and state taxation, multi-state taxation, matrimonial taxation, and tax nexus issues. Don has provided court and arbitration testimony in various matters, including matrimonial, minority stockholder, and economic damages litigation, as well as bankruptcy proceedings, and has been qualified as an expert witness by the federal and state courts. He has prepared valuation reports for businesses and professional practices for purposes of estate planning and compliance, succession planning and mergers & acquisitions. He has also prepared damage study reports in connection with stockholders, insurance claims, contract breach and lost profits litigation. Don has represented companies and stockholders in mergers, acquisitions, sales, and startups of businesses and professional practices. He has chaired and been a frequent speaker and panelist at various national and international conferences and webinars as well as state and local seminars conducted by the AICPA, the NJSCPA, the PICPA, the American Bar Association, the New Jersey Administrative Office of the Courts, and the New Jersey Institute for Continuing Legal Education covering business and professional practice valuation, forensic accounting and federal taxation. He is Global Chairman of Integra International, Inc., a worldwide association of independent accounting and consulting firms. He is past president and a member of Integra's Americas, Asia, and Australia board.

Tom Gibbons, CPA Tom Gibbons is an attorney and a CPA. He has over 30 years of extensive accounting, tax and litigation experience in working with animal agriculture, farming, family planning, estate planning, financial planning, manufacturing and international taxation. He has been a past speaker with the National Broiler Council, National Chicken Council, Federal Tax Institute, National Steel Tank Institute, Arkansas Bank Holding Company and the AICPA Tax Institute. Tom has been with FROST, PLLC since 1978.

Martin L. Greenberg, CPA  is Managing Partner of Rosen Seymour Shapss Martin & Company LLP (RSSM). He joined the firm in December of 1979. He is responsible for a diversified client base, including the beverage industry, importers and distributors, manufacturers, the ad specialty industry, and the real estate industry. Martin has approximately 28 years of experience providing accounting and auditing services. He also has a strong tax background and specializes in tax planning for closely held businesses, as well as high net worth individuals. Martin has extensive experience with start-up companies and, because a number of these companies do not have the wherewithal to hire a CFO, he has acted as a liaison between the accounting department and management, providing high-end accounting decisions. Martin also provides consulting services, including business valuations, mergers and acquisitions, estate planning, litigation support services, and stockholder and employment agreements. He has testified as an expert witness on numerous occasions on behalf of his clients. He serves on the firm's executive committee and was responsible for spearheading the marketing efforts of RSSM. Martin is also the Past Chairman of the firm's marketing committee. He is a graduate of Iona College in New York. He is a CPA in New York and a member of the AICPA, the New York State Society of Certified Public Accountants, and the Association for Accounting Marketing. He has lectured on various subjects in the accounting and tax fields. Martin has also served on the Advisory Council to Independence Community Bank.

Ed Hanley, CPA   Ed Hanley is a Director and Principal with Shea Labagh Dobberstein. He has extensive experience in all aspects of the real estate industry and in providing tax advice to closely-held businesses and high-net-worth individuals. He was admitted to the bar in Massachusetts in 1996. He started his tax career with the international accounting firm of Ernst & Young, LLP in Boston. In 1991, he transferred to Ernst & Young's national tax department in Washington, D.C., where he specialized in real estate and pass-through entity taxation. Ed also served as tax counsel at GE Capital Corporation before moving to Providence, RI, where he practiced in its largest regional accounting firm for four years. Ed recently completed three semesters as an adjunct lecturer in economics at Brown University.

Victor K. Hausmaninger, CPA   is CEO of Hausmaninger Benoe Lang & Alford, CPAs (HBLA). He has practiced as a CPA in Orange County since 1964. Vic's background includes extensive experience with professional service corporations, manufacturing, high technology, real estate, financial institutions, construction, and distribution. He is a member of the AICPA and California Society of Certified Public Accountants, serves as Director for YMCA of Orange County and the International Bible Society, and serves on the Executive Council of the College of Business, Cal State Fullerton. Vic holds a B.S. in accounting from California State University Fullerton.

Josh Hayes, CPA   Josh Hayes is a partner in the Phoenix office of Eide Bailly LLP. He has more than 14 years experience in public and private accounting, with areas of expertise ranging from taxation of large international businesses to closely held businesses and the taxation of their owners. Josh Provides guidance concerning acquisitions, spin-offs, and other tax-free corporate reorganizations, from due diligence review of the transaction to post-closing implementation. He also provides design and development for transactions and tax minimization strategies for businesses operating in multiple jurisdictions and countries. Josh is experienced in all phases of tax controversy, including representation before the IRS examinations branch, appeals branch, and multiple state departments of revenue. Clients include companies in various industries, including manufacturing, transportation/distribution, wholesale/retail and construction. He is a speaker on taxation topics at regional industry conferences.

 

Ryan L. Losi, CPA   Ryan L. Losi, CPA is shareholder and Executive Vice President for Piascik & Associates, P.C. in Richmond, Virginia where Ryan leads the firm's international tax practice. His knowledge of complex international tax areas and transactions has enabled Piascik & Associates to serve as a CPA partner and advisor to the Commonwealth of Virginia's economic development programs. Ryan is widely considered as a thought leader on taxation topics such as international business, real estate, manufacturing and healthcare. He has presented at numerous organizations and universities, including Siemens USA, BB&T, U.S. Export-Import Bank, Virginia International Business Council, Virginia Conference on World Trade, South Carolina International Trade Conference, Council for International Tax Executives, James Madison University, Virginia State University, Virginia Economic Development Partnership and many others. Ryan serves as an adjunct professor for the Executive MBA program at Virginia Commonwealth University. Prior to joining Piascik & Associates, Ryan served with the “Big Four” international accounting firms of PricewaterhouseCoopers, LLP, and KPMG, LLP.

 

David P. McKelvey, CPA    David P. McKelvey is a tax and business consulting partner at Friedman LLP's New York headquarters. David specializes in the construction and real estate industries. Over the past 20 years he has worked with some of the largest contractors and real estate owners in the country, who seek him out for a unique blend of expertise of business and personal tax issues. He applies his knowledge and practical ideas to meet the needs of these clients, their banks and other credit grantors, including sureties and factors. David is an experienced writer and speaker, addressing a wide range of topics including income taxes, sales taxes, multi-state planning, capital gain planning, ESOPs, insurance captives and tax planning. He has been a featured speaker at the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants' Annual Construction Conference. David received a B.A. in Accounting from Western Connecticut State University. He holds the prestigious PFS designation from the AICPA for financial planning, and maintains SEC Series 7 and 66 licenses as well as life insurance licenses.

 

Jeffrey S. Pawlow, CPA   Jeff Pawlow entered the accounting industry in 1995 as the Director of Marketing for Smith & Gesteland, LLP, a large local accounting firm in Madison, WI, and subsequently held the same position with RubinBrown, a “Top-100” firm headquartered in St. Louis, MO. Jeff began his accounting consultancy in 1998 as the Executive Vice President and Director of Consulting Services for Waugh & Co., where he practiced for 14 months prior to forming The Growth Partnership (TGP) in December of 1999. In addition to serving clients and helping build TGP into the industry's only full-service consulting firm, Jeff is a frequent author and speaker. He was recently named as one of the profession's “Top 100 Most Influential People” by Accounting Today and as a “Rising Star” by the Southern Illinois Business Journal. He has also been repeatedly recognized by Inside Public Accounting as one of the profession's “Most Recommended Consultants.” Jeff has been published or featured in numerous industry publications and has served as the Editor-In-Chief of CCH's Journal of Tax Practice Management. He is currently on the Editorial Advisory Board of the CCH Journal of Practice Management.

Barry Resnick, CPA   Barry is a Partner at The Resnick Druckman Group and plays a major role on the firm's management team. Barry contributes significantly to developing and executing the strategy for the growth and success of the firm. Barry also has many client responsibilities as the Partner in Charge of the Closely Held Family Business Practice Group. In 1998, Barry merged his firm with that of his brother, Jeff Resnick. Together they built a new firm, The Resnick Group, developing a practice that flourished under their combined leadership and vision for a firm with a sincere commitment to serving the middle-market business community in the New York metropolitan area. In keeping with their strategy for growth, the Resnick Group then merged with a highly regarded NYC firm, Druckman and Hill, LLP, that had been in existence for over 65 years.

Jeffrey Resnick, CPA   Jeff is the Managing Partner at The Resnick Druckman Group. Jeff ensures the strategic direction and growth of the firm, works with other partners to oversee the day-to-day management of the organization, and assumes client responsibilities as well. As the voice and face of the firm, Jeff has been a featured columnist for Newsday “Ask the Expert,” and has been published and featured in various media. In addition, Jeff has lectured to the NYS Dental Society; St. John's Hospital; NYS Chiropractic College; Citibank management teams; various dental study groups; various groups of podiatrists and other doctors; Brooklyn Bar Association; Volunteer Lawyers Project; and Primerica Financial Services Group; and has been a frequent speaker on 1031 Exchanges.

Philippe Camus (Technology, R&D) Philippe Camus is currently Chairman of the Board of Directors of Alcatel-Lucent. He has served as co-Chief Executive Officer of the European Aeronautic Defense & Space Company (EADS), of which Airbus is a division, and for many years as senior management for both Lagardère SCA and Caisse des Dépôts. Additionally, Mr. Camus was designated an Officer of the French Légion d'Honneur and received the Cross of the German Merit Order. He is a graduate in economics and finance of Institut d'Etudes Politiques de Paris, a graduate in physics of Ecole Normale Supérieure, and holds a doctorate degree in actuarial science from the Institute des Actuaires.

 

John T. Dillon (Manufacturing, Services) John Dillon most recently served as Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of International Paper. His current affiliations include membership on the boards of directors of Caterpillar, Inc., DuPont, and Davis Petroleum Corp. He serves as Chairman of the Board of Directors of TestEquity, LLC. Throughout his professional career, Mr. Dillon has served as Chairman of the Business Roundtable, Chairman of the Board of Governors of the National Council for Air and Stream Improvement, Chairman of the Board of the American Forest and Paper Association, Chairman of the Board of Directors of the National Council on Economic Education, and member of the President's Advisory Council on Trade Policy and Negotiations. Mr. Dillon received his master's degree from the Columbia University Graduate School of Business.

Thomas R. Johnson, EA   Tom has over 20 years of experience in the accounting and tax field assisting individuals and small business clients. In 2001 he became a partner at Johnson, Harris & Goff, PLLC. The industries Tom specializes in are construction, engineering, and manufacturing. Tom's recent area of focus is federal and state government credits, specifically in cost segregation studies and research & development credit studies. His experience with international tax, maintaining active membership with the National Society of Accountants for more than a decade, and the firm's affiliation with IGAF Polaris has allowed Tom to serve clients both nationally and abroad.

Bobby Kocol (Business Strategy) Bobby Kocol has more than 27 years of experience, most recently with StorageTek, where as Chief Financial Officer he helped orchestrate StorageTek's acquisition by Sun Microsystems in a $4.1 billion deal. During his tenure, Kocol was the primary interface to the financial analyst community while he directed and managed the financial planning for the global operations of a $2 billion business. He was instrumental in developing corporate strategic plans, successfully implementing effective internal controls over financial reporting in line with Sarbanes-Oxley requirements, and drove significant financial improvements since his appointment as the CFO in 1998. Bobby also has worked for Documation and General Motors in various positions. He holds a Master's Degree in Business Administration from Florida Technology University and a Bachelor of Science Degree in Accounting from Mississippi State University.

Len Schutzman (Business Strategy) Mr. Schutzman has more than 30 years experience as a senior financial executive at several industry-leading companies. He served as Vice President of Finance and Chief Financial Officer at Pepsi Cola International, Senior Vice President and Treasurer at PepsiCo, and the Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer at Frito-Lay. In addition, he served as Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Triad Capital Corporation, an investment company that specializes in financing small and minority-owned businesses. He has also served on the Board of Directors for Cendant Corporation and Twin Labs, and was Chairman of the Board at SkyAuction.com. Mr.Schutzman is a CPA and holds a Bachelor of Science from Queens College and a Master of Science from the University of Rochester. He is also an executive professor of business strategy and entrepreneurship at the University of Rochester's William E. Simon Graduate School of Business.