Winter 2013
Building on a Legacy The power of family drives Malco’s success
breaking down Gambling tax implications
focus on Lease accounting
get to know Floyd Trouten
going for gold Trends in Leadership Development In cities across the country, young corporate and
www.SSandG.com 800-869-1834 info@SSandG.com AKRON 301 Springside Drive Akron, OH 44333
civic professionals have greater opportunities to
CHICAGO
develop and strengthen their leadership abilities
225 West Illinois St., Suite 300 Chicago, IL 60654
through local organizations. Organizations such as Leadership Akron, The Cleveland Leadership Center, Leadership Greater Chicago, Columbus Young Professionals Club, and Harnessing Young Professional Energy (HYPE) in Cincinnati are fulfilling a need in our business society to nurture and develop essential skills for our future leaders, ensuring their place as the next generation of our companies and communities. Leadership skills have rarely been taught in the workplace. In the past, individuals had limited opportunities to hone those abilities. Now, employees with the resolve and ambition to become champions of their organizations can work to develop a vision and establish a foundation that enables them to become our future decision makers. When I was growing up in public accounting and increasing my leadership roles, I — like many others of my generation — was left to my own devices. I was expected to basically figure things out for myself. The leaders of today and tomorrow have guidance, support, and a networking base of like-minded individuals practically at their fingertips. It’s an amazing thing to witness this paradigm shift as heads of businesses and civic organizations increasingly recognize the importance of educating and mentoring employees. More and more businesses are relying on young professional organizations but also starting to develop in-house programs. This will ensure that those eager to take the helm will be ready to bring their companies into the future. We all are trying to grow our businesses, but to grow, we must understand the value of a good leader. This is something especially important in an uncertain economic environment such as the one we are currently in. Not every business leader is a good teacher, but he or she can look to outside organizations for quality educational programs that could lead to positive outcomes within the business. Much like the mission of The E.W. Scripps Co. that states, “Give light and the people will find their own way,” leadership organizations have been established as a forum for people to work together, collaborate to strengthen the leadership base, establish solutions, and serve the communities in which they work and live. When our young professionals have the proper education, success is inevitable.
CINCINNATI 11500 Northlake Drive, Suite 210 Cincinnati, OH 45249
CLEVELAND 32125 Solon Road Cleveland, OH 44139
COLUMBUS 300 Spruce St., Suite 250 Columbus, OH 43215
DES PLAINES 1665 Elk Blvd. Des Plaines, IL 60016
ERLANGER 3940 Olympic Blvd., Suite 340 Erlanger, KY 41018
RALEIGH 3737 Glenwood Ave., Suite 100 Raleigh, NC 27612
SKOKIE 8707 Skokie Blvd., Suite 400 Skokie, IL 60077
SS&G HEALTHCARE SERVICES 275 Springside Drive Akron, OH 44333 800-288-2818
SS&G PARKLAND 32125 Solon Road Cleveland, OH 44139 800-869-1834
SS&G WEALTH MANAGEMENT 275 Springside Drive Akron, OH 44333 800-871-0985
Paytime Integrated Payroll Solutions 31105 Bainbridge Road Cleveland, OH 44139 800-579-9529 Send letters to the editor and story ideas to Solutions@SSandG.com
Mark Goldfarb, CPA Managing Director
IRS Treasury Regulations require us to inform you that any tax advice contained in the body of this communication was not intended or written to be used, and cannot be used, by the recipient for the purpose of avoiding penalties that may be imposed under the Internal Revenue Code or applicable state or local tax law provisions.
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SS&G is a founding member of LEA Global, an international professional association of independently owned accounting and consulting firms.
first person Floyd Trouten Title: Director, Tax Education: Bachelor of Arts in economics and business administration from BaldwinWallace College Hometown: Bridgeport, Ohio Year I joined SS&G: 2007
My first job: I walked through my hilly neighborhood and delivered newspapers for The Wheeling News-Register when I was 8 years old. The word that best describes me: Consistent
My business philosophy: Do the right thing.
I am a member of: Baldwin Wallace University, trustee and executive committee member; Holy Name High School, board member; Myeloma Foundation, board member; Nehring Family Foundation, board member; OMCO Holdings and Subsidiaries, board member; State Trooper of Ohio, board member; Martindale Electric Co., board member; Old Meadow Farm Company Inc., board member
The greatest innovation of the last 10 years: Wireless communication. It’s unbelievable how it allows you to get things done. While I was on a family vacation in Siena, Italy, I was able to walk around the town while working on a business deal. If I weren’t doing this, I would: be a football coach. I’m most proud of: my family.
The best part about my job: is the vast diversity of businesses and people I get to meet and work with. The best piece of advice I’ve received: Don’t worry about your failures. My mentor, Fletcher Gleason, told me this when I was first starting out in public accounting. The biggest challenge I’ve overcome: I had a speech impediment. I had a tough time saying words, and I stuttered. I went to a voice specialist to work on it, and now I frequently speak at seminars and give presentations. If I could change anything in my career: I wouldn’t change anything. You can’t change what’s in place. You learn from everything you go through. Trial by fire is what matters and builds character.
I hope I never: lose my sense of identity and purpose. A little-known fact about me: I enjoy attending Broadway shows, the orchestra, museums, and reading classic literature. And on the night of tax day last year, I went to a Springsteen concert with my family. My next goal to be met: short term, getting healthier; long term, planning for what retirement will be like. My favorite place in the world is: Cleveland. It’s my adopted home, and it’s great here. When I get discouraged, I: pout and mope for a couple hours, then I go to the gym to work myself out of it.
If I could give one piece of advice to executives: it’s to learn from your failures and go forward.
My attitude toward change is: it’s the only constant thing in life, so you might as well enjoy it.
A great leader is: someone who helps make everyone else more confident and allows them to garner the accolades. You’re just the guiding hand in the background.
I’m inspired by: watching others succeed.
The business/business leader I admire most is: Winston Churchill. He was always forever vigilant.
Success is: based on how you define it for your time in life. Right now, for me, it’s about raising my four kids, having a fine family and looking toward the future. There’s a motto at Baldwin Wallace: The future belongs to those who prepare for it. j
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industry Playing the odds
The tax implications of gambling and how to report your winnings and losses
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f you’ve ever bought a lottery ticket, placed a bet on a horse race, or spent an evening at a casino, you’ve engaged in the popular American pastime of gambling. But if you’re a casual gambler, like most, you probably spend far more time researching blackjack strategies than you do the tax code as it relates to the game. Frank Taylor, director of tax, says it’s surprising how many people who hit the jackpot on slots or who clean up at the craps table don’t understand the tax consequences of winning. “Nobody really worries about it until they get that first Form 1099 or W-2G for a taxable gambling winning,” Taylor says. “And then they want to know, ‘How much can I deduct from it? What are the implications?’”
Hidden tax The key to avoiding tax penalties from gambling — and an IRS audit — is to educate yourself about tax issues and reporting laws for gambling income and losses. “People don’t realize that anytime you win, whether it’s part of a game of bingo or $20 on a scratch-off lottery
“Nobody really worries about it until they get that first Form 1099 or W-2G for a taxable gambling winning.” — Frank Taylor Director of tax
ticket, any gambling winning is taxable,” says Jeff Tubaugh, associate director of tax. Certain types of gambling activities carry special tax issues, as well. For example, with online gambling, a common tax trap is “constructive receipt” of income, which states that any money earned through online gambling activities is taxable as gambling earnings, whether you actually touch the money or not. “People have argued that you have to pull that money out of an account or take physical receipt of it, but that is
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not true,” Taylor says. “The fact that it is credited to your account online is enough to create income in the view of the IRS.”
Records are your responsibility Even casual gamblers need to treat gambling as a business, tracking revenue and expenses, says Tubaugh. The type of gambling activity that you engage in will determine which tax reporting forms you receive. Under the law, casinos and other payers of gambling winnings are required to provide individuals with a Form W-2G if, in a single year, they earn: j $1,200 or more in gambling winnings from bingo or slot machines j $1,500 or more in proceeds — winnings minus amount of the wager — from keno j More than $5,000 in winnings — winnings minus the wager or buy-in — from a poker tournament j $600 or more in gambling winnings — except winnings from bingo, keno, slot machines, and poker tournaments — and the payout is at least 300 times the amount of the wager Yet, regardless of whether a W-2G or other tax reporting document form is issued, the IRS says it is up to the taxpayer to track activity. This leads to another tax pitfall for many gamblers: reporting losses. “Those who don’t know the tax code may think that if their losses exceed their income, then there’s nothing to report,” Tubaugh says. “But most people I’ve worked with from a tax perspective have more losses than wins, which is how this industry makes its money. However, even with more losses than wins, individuals can still end up paying tax.” If gains and losses net out to zero at the federal level,
you may still owe state taxes on your gambling winnings if you live in a state that doesn’t permit a deduction for gambling losses such as Ohio. IRS reporting requirements also indicate that individuals must report all winnings and losses — in state and out of state — separately on their federal income tax returns, with earnings on the individual 1040 recorded as “other income” and losses recorded on the itemized deduction page.
Laws vary state to state As more states venture into casino gambling to take advantage of the associated tax revenue — Ohio opened casinos in Cleveland, Columbus, and Toledo in 2012 — more casual gamblers must familiarize themselves with state-specific laws for reporting taxable gambling winnings and losses. Each state has its own rules and regulations governing the taxation of gambling winnings and losses. For example, residents in one of the seven states with no personal income tax — Alaska, Florida, Nevada, South Dakota, Texas, Washington, and Wyoming — will pay federal taxes on gambling activities but no state or
Each state has its own rules and regulations governing the taxation of gambling winnings and losses.
local tax. However, nonresidents who gamble in those states will owe state taxes on those winnings in their resident state if it is one of the 41 states that tax gambling winnings. Incurring income or losses from gambling activities out of state is common, which is why many states — including Ohio — offer a nonresident tax credit for individuals who pay gambling taxes to another state. For example, “If you go to Atlantic City, N.J., and you have a filing requirement in New Jersey, you would pay tax in New Jersey but then there’s a place on the Ohio tax return where you calculate how much of a credit you receive against the tax on your Ohio return,” Tubaugh says. Different states also have different tax rates, so if you gamble in a state with a lower gambling tax rate than that of your resident state, you could owe the difference in taxes in your home state. Ohio also has numerous municipal taxing authorities that tax gambling and lottery winnings at the local level. If you win big in an Ohio city, you could have a local filing requirement ranging from 0.5 to 2.85 percent, Tubaugh says. j Follow any changes or updates to gambling taxation at www.SSandG.com.
Keep a record of gambling activity It’s critical to keep accurate records of gambling earnings and losses to comply with state and federal reporting laws but also to minimize any taxes you may have to pay, says Robert Jackson, associate director of tax. Individuals who itemize are allowed to use losses from one type of wager — such as poker — to offset winnings from another type — such as the lottery — on their federal tax returns. However, this is not allowed without proper documentation. In addition to requesting your records from casinos and other gambling institutions, follow these tips to help you document your gambling activity. Use a player’s card. Casinos are responsible for issuing a W-2G form for amounts exceeding certain thresholds, which is why most casinos have a rewards club that players can sign up for with a driver’s license. Each time you play, the casino uses your card to keep a digital record of your earnings and losses. At the end of the year, it will send you links to your online statement, which includes details of how often you played, your income, and your losses. Record key information. If you use cash to wager, you must keep manual records of receipts and disbursements to determine gains and losses, says Jackson. The same goes for gambling in establishments that don’t maintain records of play. In such cases, he suggests recording the following information, at a minimum: j The date and type of each specific wagering activity j Name and address of the gambling establishment j Anyone present with you as a witness j The amount won or lost Keep track of tickets. The lottery only tracks those who win over a certain amount, so the responsibility falls on the player to determine his or her net winnings. Don’t discard losing lottery and instant tickets, which will tell you how much you wagered each year. Go digital. Any record — including ATM slips, witnesses, and even photos — that can verify the amount of money you wagered will help document losses or reduce taxable gains. With today’s technology, it’s simple to keep track of these items digitally. Scan receipts and record photos and documents with your smartphone or tablet for easy access.
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case study
Building Legacy on a
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eth Glauberman enjoys the holiday season as much as anyone but it’s the time after the holiday party at Malco Products Inc. that he really looks forward to. It’s when he and his father, Stuart, retreat to an office and read through past end-of-year speeches that have been delivered to employees at the annual party. “It’s fun because we’ll come back here and sit in his office and chat about how the year was, and what the successes were and what the challenges were,” says Seth. “I’ll pick three or four speeches — they could be my dad’s, they could be my grandfather’s — and you see just how far we’ve come as a company.” Malco — a Barberton, Ohio-based specialty chemical company that employs nearly 300 people and does business around the world — was launched in 1953 by Stuart’s father, Murray. Its key focus is on professional automotive appearance products and contract manufacturing of consumer cleaning products. Stuart took over as president when his father died in 1987 and he and his brother, Jay, provided the leadership; Seth came on board about seven years ago and is vice president of sales, responsible for the Presta and Malco professional automotive divisions. Seth appreciates the role his father and grandfather have played in helping the company get to where it is today and is eager to put his own stamp on the business that is such an integral part of the Glauberman family. “I’ve been given an opportunity where I get to build something, and at some point, I can take a step back and see that all the effort and where we’re moving the organization is paying off,” says Seth. Glauberman says the results of his son’s hard work and dedication to the business, which is celebrating its 60th anniversary, are already quite evident. “He’s in the process of strengthening our Presta product line in the collision repair industry and building it,” Glauberman says. “Ten or 15 years from now, he’ll be able to look back and say, ‘I know it’s a family business, but I built this.’”
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Photos: Kevin Kopanski
The power of family drives Malco’s success
from left: Sheri Glauberman, Lauren Osina, Stuart Glauberman, Seth Glauberman
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“My dad realized early on that if you want to have relationships with your family when you have work obligations, sometimes you have to bring them together.” — Lauren Osina Malco Products Inc.
In the early days of Malco, the company produced automotive after-market chemicals. “In the 1950s, gasoline, oil additives and appearance products were typically sold by wagon jobbers,” Stuart Glauberman says. “They would sell out of a small truck or stepvan. As those companies in the 1950s transitioned to discount stores, mass merchandisers and auto parts stores, it really gave us an opportunity to build an exclusive automotive line that was sold to gas stations, service stations and car dealerships.” Glauberman earned a chemical engineering degree from Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh, but his primary area of interest when he came to work at Malco in 1973 was manufacturing. He spent most of his efforts in manufacturing, starting as a production supervisor, and eventually was responsible for engineering and maintenance of the facility. He played a pivotal role in the launch of Malco’s consumer contract business that is still a significant part of the company today. Like his son has done in recent years, Glauberman sought to put his stamp on the business in those days. But also like his son, he very much admired his own father and the way he built Malco. “My dad was the type of person who could put a business on his shoulders and carry it himself,” Glauberman says. “Whether it was buying materials, formulating products, understanding the financial aspects of the business or developing relationships with customers, he could do it.” Glauberman’s father was very committed to the business, but he was also deeply aware of what his employees brought to the company and always made time when they needed to speak to him. “It didn’t matter what was going on in his life,” Glauberman says. “Somebody could always walk into his office and have a conversation, and they knew they had his undivided attention.” When it came to his sons and their career paths, Murray
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did not take the “find-your-own-path” approach that Stuart would take decades later with his own children. “My script was always written by my dad,” Glauberman says. “Go to school, get a degree in engineering, come back to the family business, be involved in the community and raise your family in Northeast Ohio. I followed that script.”
Working with family When Seth needs his father’s time to talk about the business, Glauberman makes the same effort to give him his undivided attention. But sometimes, in order to do that, he has to ask his son to wait a bit. “When he pops in and wants to talk about a business situation, it’s hard for me to disengage from what I’m doing,” Glauberman says. “So we always schedule a time. For example, he came in this morning and said, ‘Dad, I really need a few minutes together.’ I said, ‘How long do you need?’ It was about 45 minutes and I asked if it needed to be done today. He said that tomorrow was fine. So I said, ‘Let’s do it tomorrow afternoon.’ We’ll set aside a time to really engage on whatever he needs.” The environment is different when it’s a family business. Seth says it’s easy to slip into a conversation about work outside of the office. “When I first started, there were times I’d call him at 10 o’clock at night to ask him a question,” Seth says. “He shared with me that he doesn’t know anybody else at Malco calling him at 10 o’clock at night to ask him a question that can wait until the next day. He’s worked hard to set boundaries. If it’s an emergency, let’s talk about it. Otherwise, let’s talk about it tomorrow.” Seth’s sister, Lauren Osina, has been around Malco all her life, but only came to work at the company last summer. She’ll eventually head up the company’s consumer division, responsible for products such as Zud Cleanser, Twinkle Silver Polish and other consumer household products. She likes the fact that her father let her set her own career path. But she was also very fond of the exposure
Photos: Kevin Kopanski
Building the business
www.malcopro.com
she got to Malco as a child. “My dad realized early on that if you want to have relationships with your family when you have work obligations, sometimes you have to bring them together,” Osina says. “Seth and I had the opportunity to meet with clients at night and hear about Malco. At a young age, it gave me some incredible social skills to interact with adults. The fact that we were in the family business and my dad would bring customers home at times really taught me how to socialize with adults and develop the social skills that I have today. That really molded my personality and my character.” Stuart says the idea that his children were aware of the importance of Malco to the family and they gained a fondness for the business very early. “I have two preschool booklets, one from my daughter and one from my son,” Glauberman says. “On the front, it says, ‘Introducing my Dad.’ My son has a picture he drew of me sitting behind a desk with a tie on. My daughter said, ‘Malco is the best place to go because they have wonderful snacks.’ The truth is, at the end of the day, they both had that exposure.” Another key person in Glauberman’s life is his wife, Sheri. She was the one who encouraged her husband to entertain customers in their home. “I think our international customers enjoyed the time spent with my family,” Glauberman says. “Lauren would always read about their home country so that she could be knowledgeable in her discussions, like knowing that cricket was the favorite sport in Pakistan. And Sheri was always my confidant and was where I would go if I just wanted someone to listen.” And as in any family business, there needs to be someone from outside the family who understands the intricacies and changeable factors that affect both a family and a business. “My administrative assistant, Nancy Lyons, has worked with me for 25 years,” Glauberman says. “Few people know or understand more about my life challenges both at work and home than Nancy. Both women know my idiosyncrasies.”
Sharing the rewards The end-of-the-year holiday party is when Malco shares its accomplishments from the past year. But Glauberman says it’s critical that employees are recognized throughout the year for all that they contribute to a business. “We have a continuous improvement program that we call Results Forum,” Glauberman says. “We meet
three to four times a year and employees from all walks of the business give presentations on some continuous improvement project. We started it in 1996. We also do Results Sharing. We take 20 percent of pretax profits and share it among all the full-time employees. “Everybody is invested in the success of the company.” Glauberman says he and his brother, who helped lead the business until his death in 2004, thought they were doing a good job of staying in touch with their employees. But they realized they needed to go a little further. “One day we realized that casual conversation isn’t providing employees direction and communication,” Glauberman says. “You have to do it in a formal environment and you have to be consistent. I do it in groups of 30 or 40 employees. That is a better environment than all of the employees together. The first thing I do is take them out of their work environment. They know that hour that we spend together is important.” And even though you may see them every day and may assume they know how you feel, you’ve got to make the effort to share feedback with family members in a family business. “That’s probably a weakness of mine,” Glauberman says. “I know a lot of times, I don’t give Seth the positive feedback that any employee needs. It’s almost like I wouldn’t expect anything different. So I am careful now to make sure Seth hears from me when he’s done a really good job or when maybe he could have looked at it from a different point of view.” Seth says the relationship that he and his father have is part of what makes Malco such a great place to work. Both children said they appreciate their father’s gentle approach when it came to their career paths and the influence, both spoken and unspoken, that he’s had on their lives. “When people ask how I would describe my dad as a role model, I tell them that he’s honest, he gives fair feedback, and he gives straight answers,” Seth says. “I think people truly look at him as someone who is the bedrock of the organization. They have confidence in the organization because they have confidence in him.” His sister says that she and Seth feel the responsibility to keep a great thing going in Malco. “In a family business, you’re provided an opportunity,” Osina says. “My father shared his vision with us and we’re going to want to provide our children with the same opportunity.” j How to reach: Malco Products Inc., 330-753-0361 or www.malcopro.com
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focus on Lease accounting
Proposed standards add leases to the balance sheet
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he final proposed changes in leasing standards are scheduled to be released in the first quarter of 2013. And the modifications, originally described in an exposure draft issued in August 2010 by the Financial Accounting Standards Board and the International Accounting Standards Board, could have a substantial impact on business and financial concerns. The comment period resulted in a large number of questions and comments, delaying the project while the boards went into a redeliberation process. The new standards are expected to take effect no earlier than Jan. 1, 2016, allowing businesses and other affected entities time to establish a strategic plan, says Marc Newman, associate director with SS&G’s real estate group. If your business leases office or other space, equipment, or vehicles, the proposed standards could have a significant impact on your financial statements. The new standards exclude leases that have a maximum possible lease term of 12 months or fewer, including any options to renew. “By far, the biggest change is that all leases will become part of the balance sheet,” says Dustin Minton, assurance director. “No longer will they have an option of being off balance sheet. It will certainly gross up the balance sheet and change the presentation of the income statement.” The proposed standard will effectively eliminate all operating leases and require the lessee to recognize an asset and liability on a company’s balance sheet, Newman says. Newman says the “right-of-use” approach would require the lessee to record an asset for the right to use the underlying asset and a liability, which would reflect the payments due over the term of the lease. The liability initially would be measured at the present value of lease payments, discounted using the lessee incremental borrowing rate or the rate charged by the lessor. “The right-of-use asset would be measured initially at the amount of the liability plus any direct costs, less any lease incentive received,” he says. “This initial measurement and recognition should be made as of the lease commencement date, the date when the lessor makes the underlying asset available to the lessee.”
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But after that, when you start effectively paying off the debt, there are a few ways to present it in the income statement. No longer will it be rent expense. A piece of that payment will be interest expense, and a piece will be amortization expense, Minton says. The presentation on the income statement would depend on whether the lessee acquires and consumes more than an insignificant portion of the underlying asset over the lease term, Newman says. “If the lessee consumes more than an insignificant portion of the leased asset, the lessee would recognize amortization expense for the right of use of the underlying asset on the straight-line basis and interest expense calculated using the effective interest method,” Newman says. “This also is referred to as the interest and amortization approach.” If the lessee determines it will not acquire or consume a significant portion of the underlying asset, the single lease expense, or SLE, approach should be applied. “Under the SLE approach, rent expense would be calculated based on a straight-line basis and appear on the income statement as a single line item. Further, amortization of the right-of-use asset would be calculated as the difference between the total straight-line rent expense and the current period interest expense incurred from the liability,” says Newman. “Companies can prepare themselves by developing a strategic plan that incorporates the new standards, which will impact various financial ratios, loan covenants, and potentially the company’s borrowing capacity. There also will be additional costs such as educating accounting staff to purchasing or upgrading existing lease software.” j
the last word with Gary Shamis
Specialization
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ow things have changed. When I joined SS&G in 1981, it was a very small CPA firm. I could count everyone on two hands and have room left over. In those days, the general rule was that CPAs who practiced in the small- and middle-company markets were generalists. The CPA skillset was a lot of accounting and tax and a little bit of assurance services. Clients usually hired you based on a referral and the human chemistry that prevailed, and the number of requests for proposal and formal proposals was one or so every few years. And doing business was a lot easier than it is today. The business basics are the same but the number of laws, rules and regulations has changed everything. The flattening of the world and the ability to do business everywhere has also complicated the art of doing business. The result is that clients seldom hire based upon referrals and chemistry anymore. The complexities of the world have moved the business in favor of specialization and specialists. The reason clients hire us today is their perception of what we know about their business and how they conduct business. The way SS&G conducts our business and develops our model is now based upon specialization in technical and industry areas.
“The reason clients hire us today is their perception of what we know about their business and how they conduct business.”
We have professionals who spend 100 percent of their time focusing on a specific area or industry, such as state and local taxes (SALT) or restaurants, to name just a few. This is how we — and you — do business today. This new model leaves a lot behind. The old chemistry, the longstanding client-service person, the legacy relationships with long-time clients and the value of experience have all been minimized. However, wise clients try to find a balance among specialization, relationship and experience. j
SS&G doubles size in Chicagoland Firm surpasses 500 professionals SS&G has merged with Silver, Lerner, Schwartz & Fertel (SLSF), a professional accounting and business-planning firm serving the Chicago metropolitan area. The merger adds 45 professionals to SS&G’s roster of 475, doubling the number of its professionals in the Chicagoland market. Michael L. Perlman, SLSF’s managing partner, will serve as managing director of SS&G’s newest office in Skokie and oversee the firm’s Chicago-area presence. SS&G’s roster now surpasses 500 professionals for the first time in its history. The addition marks the third merger in the Chicagoland marketplace since 2010. “SLSF is a great firm with terrific clients, and we’re excited to begin a new year with such a stellar group,” says Gary Shamis, managing director of SS&G. “When we entered the market in October 2010, we naturally planned for growth. But the rate at which we’ve experienced it has surpassed all expectations.” The merger will enhance SS&G’s restaurant, health care, real estate, and nonprofit practices and provide SLSF clients additional value. “SS&G and SLSF have similar service-oriented, client-focused, employee-centric cultures,” Perlman says. “Those factors, combined with the fact that we’re both entrepreneurial, independent firms, make it a natural fit.”
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32125 Solon Rd. Cleveland, OH 44139
Did you realize that SS&G can provide you with an electronic copy of your tax return or financial statement? SS&G offers clients the complimentary service of a secure client portal, which gives businesses and individual clients: • convenient access to important documents • the ability to upload and download large files • quick, paperless transfer of information • secure financial information For details on our password-protected portal, or to participate in this value-added program, please contact your SS&G professional or go to www.SSandG.com/clients to get started.
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