Michael A. Polito, CPA
Retired partner at Deloitte & Touche LLP
NJCPA President 2001/02

I don’t do things for the reward that goes on the wall. I do things because, if I’m going to do it, I’m going to do it wholeheartedly.

When I sat down to think of what I did when I was president, I would say most of my achievements came after I was president. Before my presidency, I was a trustee of the Society and in the Professional Conduct Committee. When I transferred from my New York practice to New Jersey, I met the NJCPA treasurer at that time and he said, “Why don’t you get involved in the Society?” I asked, “What can I do?” He said, “Let me think about it for a moment.” That’s how I got involved in the Professional Conduct Committee (1988/89), which I remained involved with for about eight or nine years. Then I chaired it.

I don’t do things for the reward that goes on the wall. I do things because, if I’m going to do it, I’m going to do it wholeheartedly.

If you come into the NJCPA and say, “what can the Society do for me?” Don’t bother. It’s not something that you say if I get this, I’ll get a promotion. It’s something you do because you want to do it.

One of my achievements in the Society, unknowingly in the beginning, was the Scholarship Committee. In 2002, Jack Dailey, one of the most outstanding people I ever met in my life, and I decided to give up our royalties for the Law & Ethics courses we wrote and taught. Both Jack and I said we don’t want the royalties; let’s do something with the royalties. So, that’s why we said any royalties we get goes to the Scholarship Foundation. We didn’t know at the time that it would accumulate into more than $500,000 over the years. It was something we wanted to do; it was a labor of love. All of a sudden, I’m getting awards. I never wanted that.

In today’s profession, it’s very difficult to make a living when chargeable hours means everything. To give a little is what’s important. Get on a committee. That’s the important thing. The Law & Ethics programs attracted people from other countries and other continents — that was an achievement. What did I get out of the program? I became a public speaker. That’s another thing I took away from the Society. People don’t understand this is what the Society is all about. Get involved. You’ll benefit more than what you’ll do for them. I tell all young people to join the Society. Don’t just join the Society but find things you like to do at the NJCPA.

(A scholarship is awarded annually in Mike’s name. He is the 2022 NJCPA Lifetime Leader Award recipient.)

I am proud that we not only survived, but emerged from COVID a stronger organization, prepared to meet the opportunities and challenges of the future.

I am incredibly grateful and honored to have served as the NJCPA president for the fiscal year 2020/21. This timeframe means I will be known as the “COVID president.” While the lockdown of the fiscal year resulted in some disappointment in not being able to connect in person with our members, I was fortunate for the opportunity to lead our board and to interact with more of our members and leaders remotely than would be possible if we remained with the in-person model. I witnessed firsthand the amazing leadership of our NJCPA staff and volunteers as we navigated from almost all in-person CPE and networking to 100-percent remote. While I will never again take for granted the benefits of in-person connectivity, I observed the increase in member engagement in the virtual world as our participation rates rose substantially. This crisis allowed us to advance the inevitable hybrid approach to member engagement and will permanently transform our Society’s ability to serve members. I am proud that we not only survived, but emerged from COVID a stronger organization, prepared to meet the opportunities and challenges of the future.   

(Alan originated and proposed the New Jersey Business Alternative Income Tax [BAIT] and led an extensive effort with the NJCPA in the law’s passage with New Jersey legislators and Governor Murphy’s administration.)

The bottom line is the New Jersey Society of CPAs really put me on the roadmap. It really elevated me as a thought leader in our profession. No matter where I go — I speak in California, Texas, at other state societies and all over the world — it’s all because of the NJCPA.

The NJCPA was the very first professional association that I got involved with — 36 years ago right when I started my career at Withum. There was a Monmouth/Ocean Chapter meeting in my office. I was asked, “Can you help us? We need somebody that can take pictures.” I was 22. That was my start. I went to Monmouth/Ocean Chapter meetings, and I took pictures. That led to meeting all these great people, all the way up the ladder to eventually becoming president. We used to go to the Get-Away conventions; my kids grew up at the conventions. They got to know other state society families. My involvement allowed me to balance work and life. My wife would go. There’s no way I would have been able to juggle all my workload, be president and see my family.

When I became president of the state society, my involvement taught me to delegate; it helped me grow as a professional. It introduced me to the AICPA; as president you have a seat on AICPA Council and that lasted a number of years. That led to my position on the AICPA Board of Directors — that would never have happened had I not been involved at the state society level. My reputation about technology followed me. The bottom line is the New Jersey Society of CPAs really put me on the roadmap. It really elevated me as a thought leader in our profession. No matter where I go — I speak in California, Texas, at other state societies and all over the world — it’s all because of the NJCPA. My involvement in the state society is not just my most memorable, it had the most impact on my entire life. When I come back and speak at NJCPA conferences, I get so much satisfaction, particularly the Annual Convention in Atlantic City. I go up there and I’m home.

One special memory was when I was nominated to be president, Paul Stahlin told me that my term would fall on the 20^th anniversary of his term as NJCPA’s president. Also, the two of us each have four daughters, three of whom share the same first name; Maggie, Emily, and Katie. I teased my fourth daughter during my convention speech that I would be changing her name from Abigail to Helen in honor of Paul’s service to NJCPA. 

I first became involved with the NJCPA from my retired partner and past president, Mike Polito, grabbing me by the ear and telling me that I needed to get involved in the Society. Soon after, Ralph Thomas and I decided to get together for lunch. Ralph wasted no time popping the BIG question.  He said, “Kyle, what can the NJCPA do for you and Deloitte?”  I had no idea how to respond, and I certainly wasn’t prepared for that question. But fast forward 12 years later when I was nominated to be president, and I found myself in a position to be able to answer Ralph’s question with confidence, and the answer was quite simple — NJCPA provides us with opportunities to make an impact, to engage with students and young professionals, to be active in committees, and most importantly, to take leadership roles so that we can contribute to the overall success and well-being of our membership and our profession.

One of the most important accomplishments when I was president was bringing DEI to the forefront by engaging our Board of Trustees and NJCPA leadership to make DEI an imperative in everything NJCPA does as an organization and in support of our profession. Also, securing over $100,000 in funding to support college scholarships for underrepresented minority students.

I will always remember singing Johnny Cash’s “Ring of Fire” not once, but twice, at our annual Convention after-party. 

At that time, some states allowed CPAs to have practice privilege. One thing we worried about was keeping New Jersey's CPA license reciprocity on the same level as all the other states.  To accomplish this, we had lots of discussions with New Jersey’s legislators.

I was president of the NJCPA in 1977/78, which was a time of growth. Our membership during my term was 5,000 members. About 10 years later, when Doug Stives was president, our membership had grown to 10,000. During my presidency, a visit was made to every chapter to learn about what members thought the Society was doing well and not doing well. 

At that time, some states allowed CPAs to have practice privilege. One thing we worried about was keeping New Jersey's CPA license reciprocity on the same level as all the other states. To accomplish this, we had lots of discussions with New Jersey’s legislators. 

A quote I said many years ago about my career in the accounting profession can still be applied today: “It was a delight – only a few headaches and a whole lot of joy.”

There was so much pride at that time in getting the message out about the value of the CPA credential and figuring out ways to get people to understand it. Today, there’s tremendous pride in having been part of such an important time in the association’s history.

At the time I joined the Society in 1979, the CPA profession and its national and state organizations were taking first steps into public relations and advertising — what was once unheard of was becoming acceptable. These changes brought new questions for CPAs on independence and services CPAs could provide. So, the role of the Society was changing — representing membership in legislative initiatives with state boards, on state, federal tax and business issues and in development of strong continuing education requirements and ethics enforcement. The challenge to support the members in this era of change and provide a platform where CPAs could be seen as valued leaders in many aspects of our state community was great. 

It was an exciting time and a tremendous career opportunity for me. I came on staff as the first director of public relations. I was able to create public relations and communications programs from scratch. It gave me a wonderful opportunity to learn about those areas, but more importantly, to work on outreach to the business community, not only to members and local chapters, but to the outside world. This meant getting the message out about the value of the CPA profession to other audiences, including the media (newspapers, radio and television); educational institutions; and legislators, as well as building strong, effective programs highlighting all aspects of how a being CPA can bring value to businesses, clients and one’s own career. The job involved diving into the breadth and depth of what it means to be a CPA to the business community, positioning and targeting those messages to all significant audiences in the state, and building a foundation forever with more and more effective outreach. 

Despite the changes and advances in technology since then, the effectiveness of those PR and communications efforts to all the different audiences still rings true. When I think about what technology existed back then — including doing press-on lettering for brochures or reel-to-reel public service announcements, then delivering them to stations all around the state — times and methods have changed, but the message is the same — the tremendous value of the CPA.

The Society does a really nice job of advocating for its members. I think the fact that we advocate for our members is probably the top thing we can do to bring our profession forward.

I started by getting involved at the chapter level and with committees. I was at the Bergen Chapter and then worked up the ranks at the chapter level. I was then involved at the state level and eventually the Board of Trustees and the different offices of secretary and treasurer and all the way up to the presidency. I felt it was an accomplishment to be able to do that and to give back time to the Society because I think the Society is so important to all CPAs. During my presidency, there were two things that happened that stick out in my mind. The first one — I want to call it the reincarnation of the Uniform Accountancy Act — was to try and get it so that all the states would have reciprocity. It started with trying to get the law passed in New Jersey to say “Yes, New Jersey’s on board with using a reciprocity-type approach, making it simpler and easier so that it would be standard around the country.” And so, during my term, the New Jersey Legislature passed it. There was a lot of education that went into it. It affected the year of my presidency, talking with the State of New Jersey and getting the Legislature on board was a stepping-stone.

And then second was the train ride to Washington that was sponsored every year by the New Jersey Chamber of Commerce. The Society was the sponsor when I was president. We were prominently displayed everywhere. I got to make a couple of speeches. I introduced people and I was on the dais. It was exciting to represent the Society in Washington.

Governor Corzine and a lot of CEOs and different members of the Chambers of Commerce along with politicians and lawmakers were there. It was pretty interesting that we were able to get our name out — in the public into other CEOs’ heads and for them to think about the Society as a partner and as a resource. I think there was a perception prior to that — and hopefully doesn’t exist anymore — that accountants were a sleepy group that works in the back office. And that’s not the case. We’re advising our clients; we’re on the forefront of laws. We understand the tax laws and other laws and how they impact New Jersey residents and businesses.

That was a very good platform for us to say that accountants are not just followers in the back room, but we’re actually helping to shape the consensus and shape the thinking around certain laws or prospective laws. We advocate a lot more now than we did then.

The Society does a really nice job of advocating for its members. I think the fact that we advocate for our members is probably the top thing we can do to bring our profession forward. And then I think it’s the education that we provide. We would try to help any member. It didn't matter whether they were a sole practitioner or a Big 4 individual. If they were a member, we tried to help them. That’s a society.

Back then, I wrote about an increasing number of our new members as being female, diversity training, lifestyle change and the virtual workplace as part of our life… sound familiar? That was 1994. As Lee Iocca said, “You either lead, follow or get out of the way.”

I came into my practice in 1973. A past president of the Bergen Chapter, who was one of our partners, said, “There’s a Society chapter meeting tomorrow night and you should go,” and I did. In 1977, I went to my first State Society annual meeting. Those meetings used to be out of state. Once attending one of those meetings when my wife was pregnant with my son, she was tired so we sat down, and I said to her, “I’m going to be the president of the State Society someday,” and she looked at me and said, “well, that’s good, maybe you should start out by being president of the Bergen Chapter.” So, I got a leadership position and started moving through the Bergen Chapter. Eventually I became president and Chapter Operations Chairman.

The Society became a community. I was from a relatively small firm. When I was president, we were seven or eight people. If you look at the lists of the presidents, most of them are not from that demographic. I was just a guy from a small town in New Jersey that got to be the leader of 13,000-plus members — that was a big thing. What did it mean to me? I was an Eagle Scout and volunteered to be in the Marine Corps. It ended up not happening, but the reason I wanted to be in the Marine Corps was to be a leader. When I was president, we had the incoming Convention in Scottsdale, Arizona and outgoing in Bermuda. My wife went. My dad went and my sister went. My two children went. I paid for all of them to attend. That’s just the way it was done. It was a sense of community. All of our families went. My son, who was at Georgia Tech at the time, read part of my speech to the attendees reminding them of my goal to be president when my wife was pregnant with him.

We also explained about the importance of being president to our clients. I logged over 1,000 hours working as president. I was out of the office a lot. We had a hard-wired carphone. We were on Wang computers then and a telephone modem connection to the Society office.

One of my best friends at the time was Z. Thaddeus (Ted) Zawacki, who was the Society’s 1992/93 president. Now deceased, he also came from a small firm. We pledged we would both be there for each other. He eventually could not finish his presidential term due to cancer. All of us moved up to do the different term functions. His distinctive letter “Z” was at the lower left-hand corner of the Society letterhead for the year of my presidency. Ted’s wife still comes to the Convention dinner.

As president in the mid-1990s, I quoted Leon Martel, author of the book, Mastering Change: The Key to Business Success, which still rings true today about the accounting profession. He said, “We live in a world of change, yet we act on the basis of continuity. Change is unfamiliar; it disturbs us. We ignore it, we avoid it; often we try to resist it. Thus, when we plan for the future, we prefer to assume present conditions will continue. But they rarely do. As a result, we experience unnecessary losses and miss unseen opportunities. If we could learn to anticipate change and to prepare for it, we could make it work for us, not against us.”

Back then, I wrote about an increasing number of our new members as being female, diversity training, lifestyle change and the virtual workplace as part of our life… sound familiar? That was 1994. As Lee Iocca said, “You either lead, follow or get out of the way.”

What everyone will go back to when they hear my name is legislation. We did not go into office expecting all this legislative stuff. The legislative agenda we were dealt was tort reform and privity. Privity started in 1988 when the Society tried to pass it, but it was defeated by the bankers. That generated a whole discussion about how we run our legislative process within the Society and what we need to do. In 1994, we moved the legislation from the Banking Committee and brought it through the Judiciary Committee, who understood what it was to be sued. That bill was fought right to Governor Christine Todd Whitman’s desk. She signed it with no publicity on a Friday. It was an accomplishment of the State Society’s. I was in Committee hearings and testifying. I was the guy in the newspapers, on TV and was speaking around the state, but it was the Society’s accomplishment. Years later, it was challenged in the New Jersey Supreme Court, and it was successfully upheld. Governor Whitman’s attorney, who had told her not to sign the bill in 1995, was now sitting on the State Supreme Court and actually wrote the affirming opinion. We turned her 180 degrees. We phrased it as “controlling work product.” We previously had the worst laws in the whole country besides Louisiana and Wisconsin. That has saved a lot of CPAs over the last 28 years. “New Jersey is OUR Business,” was a good theme at that time and still works today.

For me, it was never about the job, it was always about the people — our members, the business community, staff, students and aspiring CPAs. I don’t even consider it advocating; speaking about this great profession comes so second nature.

As I look back over the years, there have been so many meaningful connections made with New Jersey Legislature, state CPA societies, the American Institute of CPAs (AICPA), the National Association of Black Accountants (NABA), the New Jersey Chamber of Commerce and other business organizations, as well as many New Jersey colleges and local-area high schools that I consider them all milestones for the Society.

I will always be proud of the train rides to Washington and working with lawmakers to help shape the policies of importance to our members and their clients, such as Governor Corzine signing the mobility legislation for CPAs; thwarting efforts to adopt a sales tax on professional services; Governor Christie signing legislation to phase out New Jersey’s estate tax; serving on former New Jersey Senate President Sweeney’s Economic and Fiscal Policy Working Group; and Governor Murphy signing the New Jersey Pass-Through Business Alternative Income Tax Act (BAIT). But I will also cherish the one-on-one conversations, the golf wins and missteps, the side jokes and the many handshakes along the way, particularly at our conventions — both the Getaways and those in Atlantic City.

Together, we have been able to accomplish a lot, though there’s still more to do in enticing our youth into this great profession, encouraging a diverse workforce, strengthening our foothold in state and local government, maintaining the importance of our chapters, and keeping the relevancy of our Society for the next 125 years. 

Going to AICPA Council meetings and seeing what goes on at Council, we at the NJCPA have been one of the leaders in the U.S. when it comes to being at the forefront of issues and challenges facing the profession. I give a lot of that credit to Ralph Albert Thomas and former members of Council.

During my presidency, I really made it a personal challenge to visit all the chapters — and I got to every chapter at some point during the year. I looked around and saw many, many people who had been active for a long time, and I made it also my personal mission to give out the NJCPA Distinguished Service Medallion to people who really deserved them.

One of my most special memories of being president was at a chapter meeting for the Hudson Chapter. One of my colleagues from years ago, Alan Preis, had been a real staunch supporter of the Society and an expert speaker in New Jersey taxation, but never got a Medallion. There were many members who also deserved them. So, I gave out about four that night. And I remember Alan almost had a tear in his eye that night. That was really special for me because we had actually worked together when I started in public accounting in the early ’70s. Another one was giving a Medallion to Donna Foxman, who had again been a very active member. She helped form a Nonprofit Committee, and I caught her by surprise. It was at a CPE meeting, I think, and she had no idea. I completely caught her off guard, which again was just so thrilling for me. I like doing it, and especially when the members didn't expect it.

I started to get active when I was a partner at the Curchin Group in Red Bank and my partner, Doug Stives, was already very active and was the Monmouth/Ocean Chapter president and George Curchin was a past president of the NJCPA. This was right around the time mandatory CPE was coming in around 1987/88. So, Doug came into my office and said, “You know, we’ve got to get somebody active in CPE. Ready? I think you’re the guy. So, why don't you get involved in the chapter? We have to know what’s going on. We have to be at the forefront of this and what it’s going to mean for CPAs and the profession.” I volunteered for the chapter’s CPE Committee, which was a new committee at that point. When you volunteer and do some good things, they ask you to stay on and do more. So ultimately, I became an NJCPA trustee, an officer and eventually president. So that was really my initiation to being active in the state Society — starting at the chapter level, as many, many of our members have.

After serving on the chapter board, I got involved in the Accounting and Auditing Committee because I felt with all the changes that were going on, it was really important to connect with other members and understand how they were interpreting new laws and regulations. It was very helpful for me to make those connections and serve on that committee for a number of years.

During my committee involvement, I took a liking to advocacy and getting to know our elected officials, and that’s what got me involved with the NJ-CPA-PAC. I thought it was important to know the elected officials and know I could contact somebody if a client ever had an issue. It was really important to make those connections, so advocacy has always kind of been in my blood.

When serving as chair of the Governmental Accounting and Auditing Committee, there was a very sensitive issue that came up that got a lot of attention within the Society. There was a state senator at the time who brought an issue out to the forefront about why New Jersey municipalities are not on Generally Accepted Accounting Principles for governments. And it became a real hot issue within the committee. Bernie Gingras was the NJCPA president at the time, and Bob Garrity was the executive director. It resulted in many of us going down to Trenton to legislative hearings. I will never forget — there must have been at least 60 CPAs at this hearing, some of them giving testimony. When the state senator from Mercer County looked around the room, he said, “Wow, I never knew accounting was so exciting.”

The involvement in the Society by the larger firms is fantastic, and they support and underwrite a whole lot of what we do. But so much of our constituency and our membership really is those smaller sole proprietors. And I really wanted to give them a voice.

What I focused on the most during my presidency was trying to bring a voice to the smaller practitioners in our state. We’re kind of unusual in New Jersey in that we have so many firms, but so many of them are small or solo practitioners. The involvement in the Society by the larger firms is fantastic, and they support and underwrite a whole lot of what we do. But so much of our constituency and our membership really is those smaller sole proprietors. And I really wanted to give them a voice. During my presidency, we did some coffee roundtables around the state to get their input on certain things. That was one of the best parts of my presidency — going around and getting to meet so many of the other members who I wouldn’t normally see just because of geographics or scheduling. I have so many special memories. I've made so many fantastic friends. There’s a group of us that take a standard picture every year at the NJCPA Convention. I have them lined up on my desk over the years as we all continue to age. It’s those relationships and those moments that are special.

I think our Society has the biggest opportunity to really transform our industry and to support the next generation in what we’re going to need to do. It’s a fabulous profession. It’s just got some antiquated ways about it that are not attractive to the next generation.

There are a lot of visionaries involved in the Society, and there’s certainly the involvement of the AICPA. Reach out to the NJCPA. They will help you break the mold of what I call “the old school” or just the history and the legacy of what our profession has been. It doesn’t have to be 80-hour work weeks. It doesn’t have to be that you don’t want to be partner because you see how much the partners in your firm work and you don’t want to do that. You want work-life balance. It doesn't have to be what it was, and the support from the people at the NJCPA is really going to help you understand that and get there if maybe you want to start your own firm.

That was how I started to meet other students who were involved and other professionals who were involved and even the employees at the NJCPA who were fantastic and that is what originally sucked me in. And I’ve had a problem saying no. I sort of just went down the “yes” road, and everything the Society threw at me, I happily accepted. And I've not regretted a moment; I only wish that there was more I could be involved in and continue to participate.

For many years, the preparation of estate tax returns was considered the practice of law. We petitioned the New Jersey Supreme Court and received a favorable ruling that the preparation of estate tax returns by CPAs was not considered the practice of law. Such returns could then be prepared by CPAs.

In the mid-1980s, no one had heard of the internet let alone emails and texts. The internet did not exist except possibly in parts of the military. Cell phones were years away. There were no emails or texts. Fax machines, voice mail and answering machines were just becoming popular. Word, Excel and other software programs were new, and we marveled at what these programs could accomplish. Almost all accounting functions were performed with a No. 2 pencil or pen.

Virtually all communications with members consisted of in-person meetings and telephone calls, supplemented with hard-copy mail. Despite the absence of modern technology, communication was substantive and surprisingly seamless. Announcements of upcoming events and new developments were sent regularly and frequently to 6,000 to 8,000 members. The NJCPA office staff consisted of 11 employees. The friendship of fellow members and staff was a very special part of my life and career. My professional life was greatly improved by membership in the NJCPA. I’d like to pay tribute to our leaders at the time — Bob Garrity and Merryl Richards (formerly Bauer) — for doing such an outstanding job for New Jersey CPAs.

CPE, as we know it today, did not exist. At that time, all CPE was conducted by chapters and 15 to 20 very active committees. Chapters held monthly dinner meetings with guest speakers. Annual all-day tax seminars were held by many chapters with member volunteer speakers. They each would be attended by more than 100 members. Volunteer Society members presented almost all technical and professional education programs supplemented by outside volunteer speakers from various business communities. Some of the meetings involved outside participation by attorneys, bankers, industry, faculty members, government agencies and others. There were also numerous interviews of members by the print media, radio and even television. 

Around the time of the Society’s 75^th Anniversary (1972/73), the annual meeting was held in Marbella, Spain, and side trips were available across the Mediterranean to various places, including Tangier, Morocco, from the Rock of Gibraltar. Travel to Spain was arranged with two chartered jets. The mid-year meeting around that time was celebrated at the old Playboy Club in Sussex County.

During my presidential term, several notable events occurred at the Society:

• The first computer was purchased. It was a Wang computer which was the major brand at the time. I believe Dell, Apple, Microsoft and others did not yet exist. Our computer had a single terminal. There was a very spirited debate among the Trustees and chapters about whether such a step was needed. Fortunately, a majority of the Trustees prevailed, and the computer was purchased and became operational. Previously all financial records were kept manually in ledgers. Membership and other records were maintained in various formats.
• For many years the preparation of estate tax returns was considered the practice of law. We petitioned the New Jersey Supreme Court and received a favorable ruling that the preparation of estate tax returns by CPAs was not considered the practice of law. Such returns could then be prepared by CPAs.
• New Jersey was one of only six or seven states that did not have mandatory CPE requirements. We asked two past presidents to coordinate with the State Board to implement mandatory CPE.
• The NJSCPA Newsletter was published four times a year. The coverage of activities was significant. It illustrated the significant bottom-up contributions made by the members of chapters and committees.

We were still in the middle of the pandemic when I became president, but we were an incredible resource and source of stability for our members in a very unstable time.

When I started at Bowman & Company back in 1986, Bob Marrone (a past NJCPA president) and Lisa Donahue asked me if I would be interested in being on the board of the Southwest Jersey Chapter. Of course, I had to earn my stripes and I helped Bob Marrone when he was treasurer. I was then offered a board position and I worked my way through the chairs.

Being an involved member of the NJCPA has helped me both professionally (as I have developed a working network) and personally (as I have developed a number of friends who my wife and I socialize with). My family enjoyed the Getaway Conventions and we were able to give my children the experience of visiting Hawaii, California, Arizona, Nevada, Puerto Rico, Bahamas and Florida many times. My children still talk about the memories that they had with the CPAs.

One memory that I still smile about is when the Convention was at Disneyworld. One of the dinners was at Animal Kingdom, and we had a special area where the park was only open for us. The Yeti roller coaster was in this area, and Carl Specht and Dan Marrone (Bob Marrone’s son) and I just kept riding the coaster. Carl would shout “one more time,” and we just kept riding. Today, when I see Carl at a Society event, he always says “one more time.”

When I reflect on my time as president, I realize how lucky I was to follow the leadership of Alan Sobel. We were still in the middle of the pandemic when I became president, but we were an incredible resource and source of stability for our members in a very unstable time. NJCPA staff distributed information in emails and on Connect as soon as they were aware of it and provided virtual education. When I think back, I am extremely proud of the NJCPA for all that was done for our members.

The Society was, and is, my professional organization, and I believe my involvement helped shape my career in both education and exposure to the many facets of our profession. I don’t claim to have any super achievements, except that I was the second female president, which to me meant a lot because I thought that was very big for female accountants.

I didn’t have a desire to be a role model. I wanted to break through and break down the discrimination I experienced as a girl. My father was the one who always told me I could do whatever I wanted, but my experience told me otherwise. I wanted to break down barriers but wasn’t sure how to do that.

At 18, I became a secretary in a small public accounting firm only because I couldn’t find a bookkeeping job and that was my ambition. I worked my way into becoming a bookkeeper, thinking that was what I wanted. However, I soon wanted to do accounting, so I worked my way into that. Soon, I was training incoming staff accountants/CPAs. Within a short time, they were all earning more than me because I lacked a degree. I quit my job, went to college, took the CPA Exam and passed and re-entered the field.

I was determined to show that women belonged in the field so that those who followed might meet with less resistance and discrimination. My attitude was, “say yes when opportunity arose and figure it out later.” I was never sure I could do what I was asked but decided nobody else necessarily knew either, so I might as well give it a try. I went into forensics because there was no woman’s voice at the table of experts when values were being determined, especially in divorce. Too many times I heard only men determining a woman’s financial fate. A wife’s contributions were undervalued or never valued in the mutual financial situation of a marriage. Eventually, I left public accounting and became the executive director of the New Jersey Lottery to bring the value of a CPA to state government. It’s amazing to me how few CPAs there are working in state government.

I may have ended up a role model but that wasn’t my intention. I saw closed doors and wanted to open them. When they did, I pushed through and took my place. I tried to do it with professionalism so as to earn respect. I wanted to be an equal, nothing more. I wanted the women who came after me to see the path forward, mainly because when I entered the profession, I was the only woman working as an accountant in my field in my county that I knew of. And I was the first CPA from Ocean County who was female that I knew of.

The Society was, and is, my professional organization, and I believe my involvement helped shape my career in both education and exposure to the many facets of our profession. I don’t claim to have any super achievements, except that I was the second female president, which to me meant a lot because I thought that was very big for female accountants. Being in the Society and sometimes being one of the very few women in the room, having leadership positions meant a lot to me and becoming president was not only a big honor, but I thought it was something that needed to happen in order for women to see that they should have an equal place in our Society and our profession. I also have to acknowledge the encouragement of former NJCPA Executive Director Merryl Richards (formerly Bauer), who was somewhat of a mentor to me in taking on this role.

I first got started in the NJCPA because of politics. I knew many of the local elected officials. The NJ-CPA-PAC solicited donations from us, and I knew the process of distributing those donations out to people seeking office throughout the state. I knew it was non-partisan, and I decided to go to a PAC meeting and advocate for our local-running elected officials. I made a presentation on why the Society should support those in our county because I knew that we would have contacts with them. I knew that we would be able to bring up accounting issues with them. My mission worked. Our candidates were supported by the PAC, and I became involved. From there I started going to CPA meetings. Little by little, the more you get involved, you join your local chapter, you go to meetings, you meet people, it becomes your professional association and you begin to realize all the benefits of it.

The bylaws changes create an inclusive approach to give members added support and resources needed to navigate their individualized paths towards licensure as a CPA.

The most important accomplishment that happened during my presidency was the passing of the bylaws changes. This is a critical step forward for the NJCPA and the accounting profession as a whole. The changes create an inclusive approach to give members added support and resources needed to navigate their individualized paths towards licensure as a CPA.

The NJCPA has played a critical role in my professional career by providing access to leadership and public speaking opportunities. Through my involvement in the Society, I have engaged with colleagues and other professionals across the state which has allowed me to not only grow but thrive in my career. 

Some of the intangible benefits are the numerous friendships and memories that I have made along the way. One very special memory that is near and dear to my heart is the encouragement that I received from my family and colleagues when I informed them about my nomination to be the next president of the NJCPA. In my mind, I was conceiving every possible reason why I might not be able to take the role. My family immediately said to me, “You have to do this!” They were 100-percent right and gave me the encouragement I needed to take that leap forward. 

I saw guys serving as NJCPA officers who were older and wiser than me, and they loved the Society. I thought at the time, “Wouldn’t it really be cool to be president someday?” And I got that wish 15 years later.

In 1989, when I came in as president, I was 42 years old. At that time, I was the youngest male — the loose cannon. Everybody else had been in their late 50s and 60s. One of the highlights of my presidency was the Annual Meeting in London. We had prearranged that the doors at the end of a grand ballroom at the Grosvenor House Hotel in downtown London opened up and in came the Queens’ military band. Our group of stuffy old CPAs went nuts. I remember one of my now-deceased partners, who most people said was pretty dry, literally stood up on a chair and was screaming.

I remember the people. Bob Garrity was a very, very special person. We were as fortunate to have him as we are to have our current executive director. Often Bob and his wife, Ruth, would come to dinner with my wife and me. We went to see Frank Sinatra in New York one time. My sides would hurt, he’d have me laughing so much.

When I first got my CPA, I remember they were giving the proclamations to the outgoing officers. I was truly impressed. I saw guys serving as NJCPA officers who were older and wiser than me, and they loved the Society. I thought at the time, “Wouldn’t it really be cool to be president someday?” And I got that wish 15 years later.

We give members the opportunity to advance their professional skills and support them in getting to leadership positions — leadership building. The Society is very instrumental in professional growth.

One of the most memorable accomplishments at the NJCPA was dealing with the State Board of Accountancy and the regulators. Like those who succeeded me as president, advocacy was a big deal — politically, it was a big deal. Making sure that we prevent certain laws was important. When I was president and we had the 150-hour rule, we had to modify some things in the statute that had taken place as a result of our political involvement. Without having a team of volunteers and professional staff very little could have been accomplished. We were and we are lucky and delighted to have the amount of volunteers and staff who were able to do that.

Another thing that comes to mind is the movement of the annual Convention from a traveling convention to an in-house Convention which took place during my presidency. We made an intentional shift to one that would be in state. The objective was simply to attract more members who are volunteers at the chapters and committees and have more engagement. I think I might have missed one Convention since. Otherwise, I tried not to miss it. It’s always a huge success. It allows members to network, which is one of our objectives at the Society — not only with other CPAs but other vendors, exhibitors and bankers. One year it was so great; I was at three different Conventions between those in state and out of state.

CPE and networking with other professionals were a big part of the reasons for joining the Society. When I joined in 1983, there was no required CPE at that time. The CPE was voluntary. You might have some requirements professionally. Even back then, I would say that the Society gave me a lot. I started teaching seminars; it was a wonderful way to improve my skills and knowledge with professionals who were practicing in the field. The Society definitely delivered on so many different levels — not just in accounting. We give members the opportunity to advance their professional skills and support them in getting to leadership positions — leadership building. The Society is very instrumental in professional growth.

Most important to me is the type of camaraderie shared by CPAs; that is unique to our profession. It is truly one of a kind.

My brother, V. Peter Traphagen Jr., CPA, who was our managing partner, emphasized the importance of volunteerism and encouraged me to attend a Bergen Chapter function. I met a variety of talented professionals who empowered me to act. It was like getting on a roller coaster: Fast paced, exciting and extremely rewarding. Years later, I was honored to become the Bergen Chapter president; it is an honor I still cherish. That role led to my involvement in Society functions including the NJCPA Convention. I met a jovial, friendly member who spent the day with me on an Everglades airboat, not realizing until the evening festivities that I had spent the day with then Society President Paul V. Stahlin, CPA — a true inspiration and a future mentor.

Most important to me is the type of camaraderie shared by CPAs; that is unique to our profession. It is truly one of a kind. Our challenge, and one that I am passionate about, is to engage a new generation of volunteers to participate in rewarding leadership experiences, to leverage technology and to promote the exceptional value of our credential.

We are CPAs — trusted advisors — who serve the public interest. It is a most rewarding profession.  

I made a lot of friends and a lot of business connections through the Society. It’s a great way to network. I think everybody should take advantage of the Society in that respect.

Following Brad Muniz’s presidency, it was “fun” for me — I never knew what was real and what he was making up. I used to have to say, “Are you serious?” and I would go to Gerard Abbattista and I’d ask, “Gerard, is that really true? Do I really have to do that?” Being able to set the future of the Society, go in the direction that we all as a committee decided to go and help the rest of the members see the benefit of the Society was really important for me. 

There was a vote that went on during my presidency on allowing non-CPAs into the Society, but that was a little bit of a challenge. I think the message of why we wanted to expand the membership of the Society is better today than the messaging was back then.

For me on a personal note, I was working for 10 years, and my firm split up. It was a very hard market back then. I was very involved in the Society’s Middlesex/Somerset Chapter. The president of that chapter was looking for a manager. I reached out and they hired me on the spot. After a few mergers, we became Withum. I’ve had a fantastic career. It’s definitely from my connections with the Society that I was able to continue my career.

I made a lot of friends and a lot of business connections through the Society. It’s a great way to network. I think everybody should take advantage of the Society in that respect. One early memory was helping at the Society committee meetings at hotels, and the first person I met was Sharon Roma. She was late coming to the meeting, and she sent a message to the hotel that she was going to be late. I had no idea who she was, but that was the first person I really remember meeting outside of the firm I was with, and I still know her today. So, it’s just a great way to start meeting people. And then you grow into meeting people like Brad, who I definitely enjoy speaking with. I think we play off each other really well and hope we can continue doing that.

I think the Society is a great platform for young CPAs. It can be whatever they want it to be. I hope they see the benefit that we have had in our careers and take that and run with it because it’s a great platform for them.

The greatest reward that I received was the friendships and relationships I made. These are treasures that have lasted over the years.

It was a great honor and privilege to have served as the president for the centennial year. The theme for that year was, “Vision, Value, Leadership: One Hundred Years and Beyond.” Or, as they say in Ireland, the site of the 99^th Annual Meeting, “Luach, Cainnearach: Cead Bliain agus Thall.” The year was filled with numerous events and accomplishments. Just to mention a few: a day to see a Trenton Thunder game, a day at the Camden Aquarium, a Mid-Year Gala in Atlantic City, CPA night at the Performing Arts Center, the Society’s own railroad car on the annual Chamber Train Ride and the New Jersey Senate and Assembly declaring May 6 as “CPA Day” to recognize our 100 years of history and to award over $100,000 in scholarships.  Besides the social events, we held the first Policial Impact and Business Issues Conference, hired a lobbying firm, installed cutting-edge technology, held the first Business Leadership Conference and held a joint meeting with the Financial Executive Institute. It was a special year for the Society and for me.

The greatest reward that I received was the friendships and relationships I made. These are treasures that have lasted over the years. And, finally, on a more personal note, I will be finished paying off my speeding tickets in another three years!

Through my involvement at the Society, I met some of the finest people in the profession, and I think that’s an undersold aspect of the NJCPA. I tell this to all the folks in my firm. You’ll meet some of the best people you’ll ever want to work with as colleagues.

I see the NJCPA presidency as a collective effort. I was privileged to be in a long line of great leaders of the profession. I consider my time at the NJCPA as president and through the officerships and Board to be some of the most meaningful professional experiences I’ve had.

I also think the Society is a role model of how a high-functioning organization should work. The staff were amazing, and it’s just well thought out. Everybody does their jobs with a smile, welcoming the members. It’s a great jumping off point, as I’m involved in all kinds of other nonprofits. I think about how it was done at the Society, and it was always done the best way. I would relate that to wherever I was. Through my involvement at the Society, I met some of the finest people in the profession, and I think that’s an undersold aspect of the NJCPA. I tell this to all the folks in my firm. You’ll meet some of the best people you’ll ever want to work with as colleagues.

My parents were always involved in organizations in the community. It was just part of my DNA. At my first job, someone was a member of the Society’s Middlesex/Somerset Chapter. Those were the days when we would have evening dinner events. You were able to talk with all different age brackets of people in the profession. I enjoyed my time there and worked my way up. I was eventually president of the chapter. I’ve also always been interested in education, so I joined the CPE committee. I met a lot of people there.

Then I went through somewhat of a hiatus as our firm grew and my attention was focused internally, and then, at some point, I was ready to get back in touch again and get involved. I found it as rewarding as it was when I first started, but I think the catalyst was the first firm I was in. I found it really helpful for me as a professional as a foundation for the world beyond the cubicle I was working in. That’s what I tell our staff now. “We want you involved because you’ll see the world of accounting beyond the partitions of your cubicle and what we do in our own little firm.” We kind of go overboard in sending people to the NJCPA Convention because it’s really a great opportunity to introduce them to what the world is about. And we love to hear their reactions to the things they hear at the Convention. For some of them, it’s a gigantic eye opener about the world and what’s coming. But when we experience it together, when we’re back in the office, there are more points of connection between us and more understanding of each other’s perspectives.

When I sell the Society to the people in my office, I think about a place where I have resources available, and I am a resource to others. The love you take is equal to the love you give.

It’s great to see an organization like this sustain for 125 years. I’m glad to be even a small part of it and hope it continues for 125 x 2 more years. The funniest and relieving memory I have is being done with my presidency and seeing Frank Boutillette having to deal with certain issues. That was fun. The great part was building a relationship and friendship with Frank and others, and you just don’t realize what’s going to happen from that. It’s extremely rewarding.

When Don Meyer asked me what’s going to be my agenda as president, I said I need to know the strategic position of the Society first because this is a big ship, and I can’t take my agenda and turn the ship into a different angle; I have to keep guiding in the direction that the Strategic Planning Committee wants. Fortunately, I didn’t have too many issues to deal with. As president, I had some legislative and membership matters, but I was able to maintain and steer it without incidences coming up.

I first got involved in the young CPAs and later got involved with the chapters. So, that’s the evolution of how I got, and stayed, involved in the Society. I’ve always been with organizations that supported the Society and other presidents, like Alan Sobel, who supported the Society. And I wouldn’t continue to be involved if I didn't have friends like Frank Boutillette. We started as professional associates at the interest group level.

When I sell the Society to the people in my office, I think about a place where I have resources available, and I am a resource to others. The love you take is equal to the love you give. It’s the sharing of resources among everybody, and the knowledge is amazing. You are able to talk with people and ask questions and not be judged. And they’re able to reach out to you. And I've learned that from when I first started getting involved in the early ’90s — you’re able to find people to talk to and make connections.

You see people at the Society’s committees who are very professional, maybe arguing, but then you see people at the Convention hanging out as friends; it’s great, multidimensional. 

We have to make those avenues of leadership at the chapters available to the next generation of young CPAs if they want them. I hope they do want to build the next 125 years. They have to feel that this is theirs. If they don’t, they won’t gravitate towards it.