People & firms on the move: Grant Thornton appoints COO, first transformation MP

December 27, 2019 1:53 PM

Rea & Associates completes annual Help Can Hunger competition; KPM promotes six; and more CPA news.

FLORIDA

Deborah Lynn Curry, Tallahassee-based president and CEO of the Florida Institute of CPAs and president-elect of the CPA Society Executives Association board of directors, was appointed to membership on the Florida Board of Bar Examiners by the Supreme Court of Florida, succeeding retiring member Robert Shaw and with a term extending through Oct. 31, 2022.

ILLINOIS

The living room in Grant Thornton's Chicago headquarters

Grant Thornton, Chicago, announced several leadership changes. The firm appointed David Hazels, who joined the firm in 2002, as national managing partner of advisory services, responsible for the strategic direction and operations for a range of service areas. He takes over the role from Jim Peko, who has been appointed COO, and has been with the firm since 2006. Renato Zanichelli, who has been with GT since 1994, was named national managing partner of tax services, succeeding Jamie Fowler. Fowler, who has been with the firm since 2003, now becomes Grant Thornton's first national managing partner for transformation, leading the firm in creating new products and services for clients and managing the firm’s own technology and transformation efforts. Nichole Jordan, who joined the firm in 2003, was named regional managing partner of the central region, taking over from Wally Gruenes, who will retire in August 2020.

KENTUCKY

Erica Horn (center) and Bloomber Tax Advisory Board members

Erica Horn (pictured, center), associate director of tax services at Dean Dorton, Lexington, was named Bloomberg Tax’s State Tax Author of the Year for Direct Taxes. Horn received the award, presented Dec. 16 at the Bloomberg Tax Advisory Board dinner in New York City, for her work on the Kentucky Chapter of the Corporate Income Tax Navigator.

MASSACHUSETTS

Blumshapiro, Cranston, was one of four companies in Rhode Island to earn a 2019 Common Good Award from Rhode Island Monthly, which recognizes businesses of all sizes in the state that inspire philanthropy in their employees. Blumshapiro was selected as a winner in the medium-sized company category. In other firm news, Heather Bearfield was hired as a partner in the advisory services group in the Boston office. Additionally, audit partner Jennifer Hogencamp was appointed to the Global Audit Advisory Board.

NEW JERSEY

More than 100 members from the New Jersey Society of CPAs, Roseland, visited high schools in the state in 2019 to educate students about accounting careers as part of the CPA Career Awareness program. Throughout the year, NJCPA members discussed the profession with more than 3,000 students in local schools and ways students could apply for scholarships from the NJCPA Scholarship Fund.

OHIO

Scott Moyer, a principal in the firm’s Zanesville office, attempts to take the traveling Help Can Hunger trophy from Maribeth Wright, a principal in the firm’s Cambridge office

The staff of Rea & Associates, New Philadelphia, participated in the firm’s annual friendly competition of collecting food for local nonprofits and food banks, where the office that collects more pounds of food per employee wins, and every dollar collected counts as two pounds of food. The winning office will also secure an additional $500 donation from the Rea Foundation, donated to their charity of choice, and be able to display the “Help Can Hunger” traveling trophy in their office for the next year. This year, the Zanesville office came out on top of the firm’s 11 other offices, collecting 8,874 pounds of food (493 pounds per employee). Their donation, as well as the additional $500 prize, was given to Christ’s Table, a nonprofit soup kitchen in Zanesville. The Rea Foundation also awards second place with a $300 donation and third place with a $200 donation, which was given to The Salvation Army of Painesville (Mentor office) and the Backpack Food Program (Millersburg office), respectively. The firm has collected an overall total of more than 370,000 pounds of food since starting the Help Can Hunger food drive competition in 2003.