Firm Trends: M&A and Advisory Services (E2304064)

Philip J. Whitman is president and CEO of Whitman Business Advisors, LLC. Phil specializes in succession planning, mergers & acquisitions, strategic talent acquisition and practice management consulting.

With firm management experience ranging from three partners, twelve employees, and $2 million in annual revenues to one of the Top 30 CPA firms in the Nation, with 48 partners, 400 employees and almost $100 million in annual revenues, there’s nothing Phil hasn’t seen.

Prior to practice management, Phil spent nearly six years as a multi-unit owner-operator of a National restaurant franchise, which is where he began honing his knowledge of labor law, human resources management and organizational leadership. His accounting firm experience includes audit work at Price Waterhouse, and tax work at Spicer & Oppenheim.

Whitman has authored articles and has chaired numerous committees for the New York State Society of CPAs. He has been a featured speaker for various state societies of CPA, international CPA firm associations as well as a presenter for CCHs annual user conference. He has served as conference chair of the Foundation for Accounting Education’s Practice Management Conference and the CFOs, Controllers and Financial Executives Conference. For over 20 years he has advised firms across North America, working with top management in overseeing day-to-day operations to ensure efficiency & profitability.

David Wolfskehl is the president and CEO of DGW and Associates. The company has launched The Practice Building Team, a consulting firm dedicated to helping professional firms accelerate their growth. This year, the company will also launch The Succession Planning Group, committed to helping owners of privately held businesses maximize the value of their greatest asset, their businesses. Additionally, The Strategic Planning Group helps companies, nonprofit organizations and other enterprises organize, facilitate and implement strategic planning that will accelerate organizational success. Mr. Wolfskehl believes passionately in the importance of entrepreneurs interacting. To facilitate such interaction, he currently serves as a president of the Entrepreneur Organization, chair of the CEO roundtable for the Somerset County Business Partnership, and entrepreneur in residence for IFEL, an idea incubator located on the NJIT campus. IFEL not only helps budding entrepreneurs, but also supports economic development in urban areas. Mr. Wolfskehl has received several business awards, including the ARC employer of the year award, and was a finalist for the Fortune Small Business Boss of the Year award. Mr. Wolfskehl is the author of The Micro-Niche Method: The Pathway to Premium Pricing and Increased Profitability for Today’s CPAs.