Career moves

Wolters Kluwer business CCH announced that Mike Sabbatis has been named to the newly-created position of president for CCH Tax and Accounting U.S.

The board of directors of McGladrey & Pullen LLP has elected David R. Scudder to the post of managing partner.

Neal D. Spencer, partner-in-charge of BKD LLP's Kentucky and southern Indiana offices, will take over the reins of the entire firm this summer.

Financial Executives International has named Michael P. Cangemi as its new president and chief executive.

Gerry Golub, who helped build Goldstein Golub Kessler LLP into one of New York's most high-profile and progressive firms, announced that he will retire after a 44-year career in public accounting - the last 25 spent as managing partner of GGK.Golub, 67, a multi-year member of Accounting Today's Top 100 Most Influential People roster, will officially step down in mid-January. "It's just time to turn over the reins to other people and look for new horizons," he said. "There's a number of things I'm looking at now where I feel my experience can be of service."

A CPA will take over as the Securities and Exchange Commission’s chief financial officer and associate executive director of finance.The appointee, Kristine Chadwick, had most recently served as the chief financial officer for the Department of Agriculture's Farm Service Agency, Foreign Agricultural Service, and Commodity Credit Corporation. She will replace Margaret Carpenter, who is retiring in January after 32 years in the federal government.

JPMorgan Chase & Co. has hired Stephen Cutler, the former chief of enforcement at the Securities and Exchange Commission, as its top legal officer.Cutler, 45, left the SEC last year after playing a central role in the agency's investigations into historic corporate fraud and trading abuses. Since leaving the SEC, Cutler has been working at Washington-based Wilmer Cutler Pickering Hale and Dorr LLP, where he is a partner and co-chairs the securities practice. Cutler will begin working at the bank in February as its executive vice president and general counsel.

The Washington headquarters of the Internal Revenue Service reopened to the agency’s employees last week, following some $25 million in repairs made necessary after massive June flooding.

The Financial Accounting Standards Board appointed Judith H. O’Dell, CPA, as chair of the standard-setter’s newly formed Private Company Financial Reporting Committee.

Gerry Golub, who helped build Goldstein Golub Kessler LLP into one of New York’s most high-profile and progressive firms, announced that he will retire after a 44-year career in public accounting -- the last 25 spent as managing partner of GGK.

The former chairman and chief executive of CNA Insurance Cos. has been named chairman of the Financial Accounting Standards Advisory Council.

The Internal Revenue Service modified a $103 million contract for the management of paper tax returns in November, according to a published report.According to the Washington Post, the original plan to turn over the filing, storage and retrieval activities at seven IRS centers to a contractor Dec. 1 was altered so that, for now, the outsourcing will occur at just two centers. In a statement, the IRS said the conversion was scaled back "to ensure that a sufficient number of employees with the required training and security clearances are in place to manage the files during the upcoming filing season."

Scott Taub, the longest serving of the Securities and Exchange Commission’s deputy chief accountants, will leave the commission later this year.Taub, 38, had served as acting chief accountant for nine months beginning in late 2005 until Conrad Hewitt started in the position in mid-August. Prior to serving as a deputy, Taub spent most of career with Arthur Andersen and as a professional accounting fellow in the Office of the Chief Accountant between 1999 and 2001. He returned to the office in September 2002.

National CPA and business advisory firm RSM McGladrey named Joe McSpadden as senior vice president of marketing and sales.

CPA Dennis Scott was elected to a second term as president of the National Conference of CPA Practitioners during the organization’s 28th annual conference, held in Philadelphia in mid-October.New members of the Board of Directors for 2006-07 were also announced during the conference.

KPMG LLP has realigned its most senior private-equity partners to form the U.S. Private Equity Group. The dedicated practice will collect the firm’s extensive experience to serve the largest funds in the rapidly growing private-equity market.KPMG named Donald C. Spitzer as national managing partner for the new group.

Internal Revenue Service Commissioner Mark Everson announced the of two new deputy commissioners, in personnel moves effective Dec. 1.Kevin Brown, currently the commissioner of the IRS Small Business and Self-Employed Division, will become deputy commissioner for Services and Enforcement, responsible for overseeing the agency’s four operating divisions, Criminal Investigation and the Office of Professional Responsibility.

The continuing business boom has generated a demand for accountants in every sphere that will make seasonal staffing during tax time more difficult than ever, say industry observers."If you're looking for tax people, they're not easy to get, and whoever you do get will be a lot more expensive," said Mike Hurley, vice president of tax for Tampa, Fla.-based Kforce Inc. "Either employees have a good deal where they're at, or they're burned out. Those that have good tax people are making sure they can hold on to them, while others are just getting out of the game. It's hard to find experienced tax people."

In response to a senator’s inquiry, the Government Accountability Office will review the operations of the Securities and Exchange Commission’s enforcement division and compliance department.

Mortgage giant Freddie Mac has hired a former health care finance executive to help heal the self-inflicted wounds of a multi-billion dollar accounting scandal.The chief financial officer of Health Net Inc., Anthony "Buddy" Piszel, will take on the same role at Freddie Mac in November. Piszel will replace Martin Baumann, who oversaw Freddie Mac's $5 billion earnings restatement before leaving the government-chartered company in March. Baumann recently began a new position with the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board.