The New Jersey Society of CPAs welcomes June M. Toth, CPA, CFF, CITP, CGMA, principal at WilkinGuttenplan P.C., as its 2024/2025 president on June 1, replacing outgoing president Edward G. O Connell, CPA, CGMA, CFF, CFE, a partner at Withum.
Making Waves
To know June is to understand that she makes her presence known in the boardroom, when providing expert testimony, with NJ-CPA-PAC trustees and in the classroom. Part of that is attributed to having a father from New Jersey and a strict mother from the Shenandoah Valley.
What sets June apart is her non-traditional path to principal at WilkinGuttenplan, P.C. Typically, you may begin your career with a large firm and then maybe join or create a small firm. I ve done the polar opposite. I was not looking for this opportunity; it was presented to me and was not taken lightly, said June, a co-founder and managing member of zbt Certified Public Accounting & Consulting for more than 30 years.
She was approached by Ed Guttenplan, CPA, MBA, CGMA, co-founder of WilkinGuttenplan, initially due to the onset of a retiring quality control partner. While her primary focus at WilkinGuttenplan is quality control, she is actively engaged in many parts of the practice, including non-attest and assurance services. I continue to do quite a bit of what I was doing before, such as originating clients, she added, noting that culture was important. When I sat down with the partners, the firm culture is what really attracted me.
At the time of her hiring, June had already made tremendous strides in all facets of her life both personally and professionally. When her husband, Ed, who was a union pipefitter, hurt his back on the job and their son, also named Ed, was just six years old, she went from working part-time to supporting the family. We had to swap roles, and I had to become the primary financial provider. I learned how to build relationships to create strategic networks. I had to develop my practice and became responsible for the household, she said. Being in a small firm, I had a lot of diversity in practice. I was exposed to a variety of practice areas, which gave me a well-rounded background.
Keeping the Pathways Open
Given June s determined nature, she was well-prepared for her leadership role at the NJCPA. As president, she intends to focus on widening the career pathway for aspiring young professionals. If you want to be an entrepreneur, work your way up the ladder in a CPA firm, or be in private industry. Having the CPA license can open doors and help you to be more successful, she said. The president of Roots & Wings, a nonprofit for aged-out foster youth in Denville, June will also work towards breaking down barriers to entry into the profession. There s a pressing need for greater diversity and inclusion in the CPA profession, reflecting the rich tapestry of the communities they serve, she added.
According to June, who believes heavily in paying it forward and is a member of the Accounting Advisory Board of her alma mater, Rutgers Business School, mentoring is a responsibility. I mentor students at Rutgers, which has a mentoring program for students and those focused on getting to the finish line to pursue their CPA license.
She also teaches CPE courses at the NJCPA and is actively engaged in the Accounting & Auditing Standards Interest Group. I got involved in the Society at the suggestion of Jim Hardenberg [NJCPA Chief Learning Officer]. I credit him with helping me to develop professionally and where I am today. she said. Once I started connecting with those in the interest groups, I saw my technical abilities develop. We would collaborate outside of the interest group. More importantly, I developed many relationships there. And those relationships became friendships as well as strategic business relationships, she added.
When June is not physically building relationships in New Jersey, she and her husband can be found in their pickup trucks with their three golden retrievers heading to their RV on the Eastern Shore of Virginia, or to fish on their boat in Cape Charles. There, June catches up with friends and family and openly admits to getting her hillbilly on.
Learn more about June at njcpa.org/about/board.