MEMBER STORY
all trades and become a better manager of your time.” He adds, “Every mistake costs time and money so I find myself performing more review and oversight of my work. Going from being an employee to a business owner is a major shift, but it has been a rewarding and empowering experience.”
A CPA’s Journey to Set Out on His Own BY KATHLEEN HOFFELDER, NJCPA SENIOR CONTENT EDITOR
The COVID-19 pandemic shifted expectations, altered workspaces and provided a new new sense of reality for just about everything and everyone. For Matthew M. Rambaran, CPA, MBA, it provided the impetus he needed to launch his own accounting firm. With nearly 12 years of experience gained while working at small and midsize accounting firms throughout New Jersey and Pennsylvania, Matthew was more than ready this past January to head out on his own. “I was feeling a bit burned out from the last two years of COVID. Accountants were quick to adapt to remote working, but the volume of work had compounded due to new stimulus programs, revenue recognition, extension of tax deadlines and other COVID economic factors. There was a lot of pressure, but at the same time, the economic landscape presented tremendous opportunities. I felt the timing was ideal and opportunity abundant so I said, I’m going for it,” recalls Matthew, now the owner and managing member of Rambaran Accountants & Advisors in Lambertville.
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SUMMER 2022 | NEW JERSEY CPA
Putting all his expertise to work, Matthew’s firm specializes in outsourced accounting and bookkeeping, small business tax and technology support and implementation. “We focus on automating processes and implementing technologies to create efficiencies that simplify basic and sometimes complex accounting functions.” Prior to launching his firm, Matthew worked at CliftonLarsonAllen (CLA) as a controller of outsourced accounting serving the telecommunications industry, was an assurance manager at RSM US LLP and worked at other accounting firms in southern New Jersey. “When COVID hit, I was working for CLA. With the introduction of the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP), I became deeply immersed in the subject. Over the last two years I covered PPP and other COVID stimulus topics, developing technically and further evolving my confidence through public speaking opportunities,” he explains. After making the move to his own firm, he acknowledges, “You become a jack of
DEI’S INFLUENCE Being an immigrant from Trinidad and Tobago and moving to New Jersey with his parents when he was a toddler also helped shape Matthew’s decision to launch his firm. “Growing up in an immigrant household, the pursuit of the American dream has always captivated me. My family’s immigration story continuously inspires me and has cultivated an entrepreneurial spirit within me. The courage to take risks is part of my history and thus it has inspired me to launch my practice.” In harmony with this upbringing and heritage, Matthew heralds diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) as critical drivers of his community involvement. He currently serves as an NJCPA Diversity & Inclusion Task Force member and has served as a board member of the Philadelphia Chapter of the National Association of Black Accountants (NABA). “Serving on the NABA board has allowed me to share my experiences and insights with students and peers who look like me with the intention of building a pipeline of diverse professionals,” he says. “As a business owner, I have a renewed outlook on DEI with a focus on helping other diverse professionals explore entrepreneurial aspirations.” Not one to forget his childhood pastime of skateboarding and biking, he currently serves as a board member of Freedom Skate Park, a program supporting inner-city kids in Trenton.
