Perfecting the Wheel

I always say that we do things at Marcum the way we do them because it’s the best way we know how at the present time. But that doesn’t mean we are contented with the status quo. To the contrary, the wheel is never quite round enough, and we are always working to ensure that our services and portfolio of practice specialties continue to evolve to meet the ever-changing and expanding needs of our clients. Sometimes that means finding a better way to do something we already do well. Sometimes it means innovating a new service. As the fourth quarter of 2016 enters the homestretch, here is an overview of some of Marcum’s more recent advances:

INTERNATIONAL: We’ve been pretty active on the international front this year. We formed a joint venture in Dublin, to create a new service center for our hedge fund and private equity fund clients. Marcum RBK (Ireland) Limited, which is a partnership with Ireland’s largest independent accounting and business advisory firm, completes our service coverage in all three leading fund domiciles – the United States, Grand Cayman and Ireland.

We also agreed to become the exclusive U.S. member firm of ECOVIS International, a global accounting and advisory network with members in 60 countries on six continents. Effective January 1, Marcum will represent the organization’s sole presence in the United States. Our affiliation with ECOVIS will complement our membership in the Leading Edge Alliance, another global network of independent accounting firms, of which Marcum is a founding member, and further expand our service capability for our clients conducting business internationally.

In another global development, Marcum Bernstein & Pinchuk, our China affiliate, formed a new venture in Beijing this fall that provides a range of consulting solutions to Chinese companies, as well as multinational companies with operations in China. MarcumBP China Consulting joins MBP’s five existing offices in Beijing, Hangzhou, Shanghai, Shenzhen and Guangzhou, to deepen the range of professional services available to our clients.

DOMESTIC: Here on the home front, we have put a lot of effort into expanding our calendar of “tent pole” events. We have found that staging conferences that address topics relevant to specific industry sectors and market needs is a great way of delivering extra value to our clients and contacts, while enabling them to network with each other and form new business relationships. I mentioned quite a few of this year’s new undertakings in my post-Labor Day column on September 9 (“Happy Fall“), but I can tell you that the one still remaining in 2016 is the Marcum Alternative Investment Manager Forum, which will take place in New York City on November 2. This forum is aimed at educating fund managers on the cusp of SEC registration about how to operate successfully in a regulated environment. Larry Kudlow, the economic commentator, will be our keynoter. It is sure to be a great addition to our conference portfolio.

If you’ve never been to a Marcum tent pole event, you can check our events calendar periodically to see what may be coming up in your area (www.marcumevents.com).

In the category of improving an existing service offering, I am proud to say that our SEC Practice group has had a banner year. Marcum achieved two industry distinctions in the first six months of 2016, recording the most net new SEC clients of any U.S. accounting firm and also capturing the greatest IPO audit market share among non-Big Four firms. The good news continued in the third quarter, which made four straight periods that Marcum was among the top five IPO audit firms in the country.

All in all, I have to say that 2016 has been a great, rewarding year thus far, and we are looking ahead to what comes next with positivity and enthusiasm. Of course, it should go without saying – but I am saying it anyway – that Marcum’s success is entirely dependent upon the trust and success of our clients and referral sources. Without you, we would have no reason to get up in the morning, and certainly no impetus to keep improving the ways that we service you. We thank you for your business and your faith in us, and encourage you to keep your expectations high. That’s what motivates us every day.

P.S.
Monday is my mother’s 84th birthday. Happy birthday, Mom.