Shop Talk: Stretching Out In Central Mass.
Late last year, Grant Thornton, one of the largest accounting firms in the United States, bought Westborough-based financial services company CCR to expand the company's presence in New England. The Westborough operation is led by Scott Levy, who —when he's not working — likes to practice magic tricks as a hobby.
Accountants sometimes have to deliver sobering news to their clients. Is that the toughest part of the job for an accountant?
I would say it is one of the toughest things. But it's all really in how you present it and how proactive you are in presenting the bad news. So from my perspective, delaying that bad news doesn't do anyone any good. It creates more stress later and I'm very emphatic in talking to my partners to ensure that when we do have some sobering talks that we need to have done with a client, it needs to be done now.
How does the recent acquisition of CCR in Westborough help Grant Thornton?
From our perspective, the Westborough location really helps us expand. … That was one of the reasons we actually did like it and one of the reasons why we're keeping this location as well as all the other locations. … We have clients outside of Boston, but sometimes were at a competitive disadvantage because they want someone closer to them, and this gives us that opportunity.
What are the two biggest things that cause your clients to lose sleep?
Sales and (with that) understanding how they can generate profitable sales. They're looking at what can they do (regarding their) competitors. They're trying to figure out what new markets can they go into, staying ahead of the curve, being more innovative than their competitors, whatever they can do to get that advantage to be able to sell. I would say the second thing is that they know there's high unemployment, but finding good people is still a problem and retention of good people is still a problem.
Which industry faces the toughest burden when it comes to regulatory and legal requirements for which clients seek your company's advice?
Public companies, just as a rule, have a lot more regulations because of Sarbanes-Oxley and stuff like that. If you go to industries, then you have financial services (which is) very heavily regulated … I would say that not-for-profits have regulations because of the requirements to have different types of audits done, so that they have to have good internal controls, good compliance requirements, and there's reporting that goes with all that stuff.
You have your finger on the pulse of many business issues. How do you see the U.S. and global economies over the next year?
If I knew that answer ... (laughs). It's tough. I read the confidence indexes of the various things that I get (from various organizations). It is so hard to say. … Overall, from the trends people see out there, I think that people are feeling more confident but where that confidence (goes) based on what's happening in Europe and stuff like that, it's hard to say. … Everyone's (proceeding) with caution at this point.
What about the next five years?
I think long term, within five years, the economy would be back in full force. To me, it's a Catch-22, because people won't invest until they see the economy improving. And the economy can't improve until people invest.
Still practicing magic?
Clients always … said "Hey! Can you make my numbers black?" (laughs) There's only so much magic I can do. n
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