The Transition Coaches Series

The first of many “Transition Coaches” was met upon graduating from Bellarmine College (now University) in May 1984 and subsequently starting at Touche Ross in June.  After surviving a week of new staff training and sitting in “Dress for Success” Class learning about an individual's colors as Spring/Summer/Fall or Winter  it was time to prepare for the CPA exam and learn about the infamous “Schedule”.  The tool for staff scheduling then was a thirteen column green pad, a ball point pen and many bottles of white-out!  New staff, experienced staff, and supervisors all were living the life of professional adventures on what was inked on the “Schedule”.  Sunday night departures to clients in Kentucky and potentially surrounding states was a norm then with returning arrivals on Friday evenings.  Friendships were made and bonding time provided during the car rides and weeklong professional comradery over client time, meals and road warrior motels.  

Destination Community Banks in Greensburg, Middlesboro, Pineville, Paducah and London KY were some of the early stops that led to me being rewarded with the first “Transition Coach” Phil Mattingly.  Phil jumped in and got engaged in coaching and teaching me the landscape for the path of being a Big Eight (now Big Four) staff accountant and the importance of passing the CPA Exam.

Phil guided me through the intricacies of the Firm office expectations and Partners’ personalities, the value of the client relationship and most importantly the importance of the development of those following your path in the Firm.  There was a culture among the young Touche Ross professionals the commitment to developing your replacement to meet the demands of the Firm in providing quality service to the clients we served knowing that many of us would have short lived commitments to the demands of the Big Eight Firm.  Phil excellently exhibited this trait as He passed it on to those he supervised and worked with.

Phil and I enjoyed many years of Touche Ross softball teams, after work staff adventures and lottery “pool play” on betting who would still be at the Firm the next year as we made our selections on the current employee phone extension list.  I don't believe this was an HR approved activity but we survived anyway.

The most memorable experience was on a more personal note as Phil, myself and two other fellow Touche Ross (Deloitte at the time) ventured in April 1989 on a seven-day, seven-game, five city baseball trip to Pittsburgh, Cleveland, Chicago, Milwaukee and Cincinnati. 

Phil invested over eight years with Touche Ross/Deloitte (outside the norm of most Big Six at the time in years experience) leaving there in 1990 and went on to many successful career chapters at Brown Forman before retiring from there in 2019 as the VP Director of Internal Audit.  While at Brown Forman, Phil’s core value of “coaching up” professionals continued for many years.

Over many decades to this date, We still enjoy baseball games with our annual Louisville Bats Baseball outings with many of our fellow Touche Ross Alumni - a time we all look forward to.  Maybe one day we will “relive” the seven-day, seven-game, five city baseball trip from 1989.

Thank you Phil Mattingly for being you and your ground values!

My chapters at Touche Ross began in 1984 while the Firm was the 2nd largest CPA Firm in Kentucky.  The Firm had very large recruiting classes the first few years I was there.  Subsequently thereafter the Firm started terminating staff.  A new office managing partner continued to expect the revenue growth which didn’t occur at the pace of the previous years. I survived the cuts of a couple dozen staff accountants and seniors.  To this day, I am not sure how I was a “survivor” based on perceptions of my early career, perceived rankings of staff. I had been working in all industries - health care, retail, construction, retail , non-profits and financial institutions (most billable hour area).  At this pivotal time at the Firm my second career transition coach arrived which resulted in me migrating primarily to the financial institutions (FI) area.  My new transition coach had been working within other Touch office locations most recently visiting offices and leading seminars on networking, marketing and sales.  He even brought his roadshow to Louisville which led to his transfer here.  Senior Manager Bob Gray was assigned the leadership in the FI  area and I was his new lead senior and soon to be manager for the FI Team.  Bob played a key role as my second transition coach and positioned me to prosper in my new role.  This transition ultimately led to an enhanced relationship and experiences under my “Master of the Craft” Mentor Joe Blitzko later during this period (see previous Series on Mentors to learn more about the Master of the Craft).

Bob challenged me in taking key leadership roles on client management with FI CFO’s , Presidents and Audit Committee members.  Client situations allowed me to unleash my beginnings of experiencing “emotional intelligence” in these situations.  Bob’s coaching both directly and indirectly allowed me to learn and grow while experiencing downturns in the Big 8 migrating to the Big 6 during this time with the merger of Deloitte.  Critical decision making mistakes and proactive successes were experienced in managing challenging changes in the FI industry.  During the Savings and Loan Crisis and early 1990’s commercial banking crisis led to over 500 failed FI’s during 1989 to 1991.  Learning experiences seem to have more life impacting effects during the worst of times than the consistency of normalized good times.  The transitioning coaching relationship with Bob allowed me to grow from our efforts both during good and bad decisions with clients during this period.  One of the most valued learning experiences from this period was the importance to ensure client engagement management are aware of any potential report findings that may rise to more senior level client executives.  This lesson was learned when many smaller immaterial potential audit adjustments were included on our final proposed audit adjustments schedule reviewed with the Bank CEO and President.  My first experience of having a client beat his fist on the conference room table and raise holy &#*** at us for such items being added unknowingly to them.  Gladly, this happen after the CEO and President left the room.

The work relationship with Bob expanded to his family experiencing many enjoyable times including the early manual days of fantasy football recordkeeping, family cookouts, client road trips, and getting to know his family.  Twenty years later in my career I had the opportunity to work with his son Derik Gray at MCM CPAs & Advisors.  

Bob went on to work for that “fist” beating Bank client and then ventured back into the CPA world.  This time practicing more specialized consulting areas regularly utilizing his presentation skills for both AICPA and State CPA Society continuing education sessions.

Thank you Bob Gray for your engagement and experiences!

During the 1990’s, the constant defensive measures of trying to maintain clients in a Big 4 Firm especially in the Kentucky market led to reflection on a change in my career path.  That change evolved with the consideration of moving to a new Firm.  This resulted in the resurfacing of a Touche/Deloitte Alumni friend who played a positive role for me while serving on several of his clients while he was at Touche.  This Touche/Deloitte Alumni was instrumental in providing an opportunity to learn that a small percentage of ownership is better than a 100% of management.  A new runway was evolving to become a CPA Firm Partner in my early 30’s. 

Summer 1993 led to me leaving Deloitte and joining Strothman and Company CPA’s as a Manager with a targeted client base threshold and timeline to join the Partnership.  Bill Carroll was the “Transition Coach” - change agent to make this happen and led to me being a Strothman Partner within 18 months after joining them.  This new chapter is one of the most critical of my career.

When I joined Strothman their staff totaled a few dozen professionals.  I could see the upside of the growth cycle of this Firm and became engaged in contributing to the recruitment of professionals to handle the evolving growth.  I believed this was a great way for me to build and support my relationships with the Firm’s Partners and to my gratification of connecting and coaching professionals at an early age.

Bill regularly coached me while at Touche while working on several clients - his lifelong saying “Are we done yet?” still echoes in my ears today and was reborn again when joining Strothman.  The pleasure of rekindling our relationship was a great process in my professional growth as he guided me in Firm matters as it relates to a fellow partner and the management of a client base and contribution to the Firm.  Being attentive to Bill’s efforts on “crucial conversations” was the beginning of acknowledging the importance of balancing temperament and humility to address issues at hand.  Some of the most memorable moments evolved around the Annual Partner Strategic Planning Retreat every November at Mammoth Cave National Park - a day and half of bonding in the secluded woods of KY in a rustic facility.  But no time for cave tours!

Bill continued to provide insights to Firm matters and support me as I progressed at the Firm.  Bill was always a “role model” in coaching professionals and has touched many professionals during his years at Touche/Deloitte and Strothman.

Like many other Transition Coaches and Mentors, the work relationships expanded to lifelong friendships and experiencing the joy of their family members.  Bill was blessed with a great wife, daughters and son that I have enjoyed crossing their paths for decades.  No doubt his children were instilled with the importance of hard work!

Thank you Bill Carroll!  Now “Get to Work”!

Upon completing five blessed years maturing professionally at Strothman and embracing the impact of its Managing Partner and my 3rd Transition Coach, the desire to move on to discovering a new path was increasing.

During a Father/Son trip to Chicago for some Cubs games in the Summer of 1998, I shared with my Dad about arriving at a critical career evaluation period with multiple paths being considered.  Most of which all focused on me trying to have an impact on those around me and the environments I enter while maintaining my independence and autonomy.

Those options included:

• Entering the Seminary

• Moving into Politics

• Starting my own Firm

• Seeking a CFO position in a large company

My Mentor Father was quick to be direct with me on his thoughts and ratified my most considered option of starting the next chapters in creating my own Firm.  

The following April 1998 was the trigger date for the change.

The 1990’s saw a decade of lots of reflection - professionally, personally, spiritually and humanitarianly while reaching a critical birthday entering the 2000’s – age “40”.  It was time to venture out and begin the first real step towards having my own CPA Firm.

This decade led to many years active in Church - Sunday school, extended session , youth coaching and building great friendships and being blessed in a great Men’s Group.  This resulted in the introduction of the next transition coach for my path to future Sole Firm Ownership.  Rick Fields (Rick Fields and Company) and I merged to create Fields Hawkins & Company CPAs.  The foundation for what was to later come with The Hawk.  Rick was a grounded professional - seasoned in smaller sized CPA firm client services and internal administration of Firm oversight.  He had some great individuals with him including an excellent Office Manager who made my transition and new venture more rewarding.

Working with Rick allowed me to learn more about the intricacies of running a CPA Firm and the importance of timely and effective billing.  We learned to collaborate on how our different practices could be effective while using shared resources on the administrative professionals and certain tax professionals in the Firm.  Understanding and working through cost allocations , working with vendors including the importance of software platforms and use of professional societies were other core standards that provided value in the decades to follow.

Rick and I experienced our practices becoming very focused strategically whether relating to service areas both traditional and expanded areas to industry focus and complexity.  This ultimately led to our decision to separate our Firm into our own individual Firms to allow us to grow in those areas that interested us the most.

This decision ultimately led to Hawkins Company CPAs and provided a highly complex and competitive Firm starting in 2005.

I appreciate Rick Fields for his critical role as a Transition Coach who oriented me in the inner workings of running your own CPA Firm and provided the foundation to explore new opportunities in some highly competitive and complex service areas and industries.

Bless you Rick Fields, your family and the relationships experienced at both the church environment and our time at Fields Hawkins.