Auditors on the job
April 8, 2011
Just another day at the office…or is it? Here’s a couple of our auditors on a job last week. Nice uniforms!
Fruit and Cookie Friday Begins Again
January 28, 2011
Another busy season tradition kicks in this week…Fruit and Cookie Friday. Our yummy delivery of Honey Bell oranges from Corner Produce in Pike Place Market started the day off right. Take a look at Bob, Jared and Erika enjoying their breakfast. You’ll notice Jared is wearing a bib…recommended and provided with our fruit delivery!
Our employees have started a Busy Season Biggest Loser Challenge (Thanks, Ashlea!) and I wonder how it will affect our cookie consumption? If you look closely, you’ll see Bob has a doughnut on his plate…he must not be trying to win.
PS Employees Volunteer at Rotary First Harvest
January 4, 2011
For the past couple of years, we’ve had a team of employees volunteer at Rotary First Harvest on a weekend day in December. Partner John Smolke, an active Rotary member, spearheads the efforts and enjoys getting everyone involved.
Two years ago we packaged carrots, and last year it was pears. This year everyone was sorting boxes and packaging food boxes for emergency food banks. We had over 20 employees and spouses and everyone had a great time.
Public Accounting Dress Code?
December 22, 2010
Earlier this month, the Swiss Bank UBS released a 43 page dress code guide for its employees. The manual also provides detailed tips on hygiene and personal grooming, ranging from appropriate hair dyes and accessories to underwear and socks! Interested in showy accessories, trendy eyeglasses, and black nail polish? Not if you work at USB.
Here at Peterson Sullivan, our everyday dress code is “Business Casual.” You won’t see a lot of ties and suits unless we are meeting with clients.
Last holiday season, our staff created a Casual With a Cause Campaign. On selected Fridays in November and December, everyone pays $5 to wear jeans to work. The money we raise gets donated to a local charity. This year we picked our client Kindering Center to benefit from our campaign.
Here you can see that Doug, Bob, David and Keaton took the dress code to a new level when they all showed up in argyle sweaters on the same day.
Holiday Party Fun
December 10, 2010
It was a great night at the Lake Union Cafe where we gathered for our annual holiday party. Music from the band Slacker got everyone dancing and the food was fabulous! Some of our new employees showed up and it was great to see them mingling with new co-workers.
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Audit Team Travels
November 16, 2010
Wonder what you might be doing at Peterson Sullivan? Sometimes a picture says it best.
This week, Sr. Manager Bob Bowman, Senior David Motes, and Associate Keaton Wersen are auditing a client in Maine. They found a minute to squeeze in a photo opportunity with Paul Bunyan!
Pregnant during busy season?!
November 2, 2010
Everyone is talking about work/life balance these days, which sometimes seems out of reach in public accounting. Especially during busy season, when accountants are working 60- 70 hour weeks, achieving balance is difficult. Imagine being pregnant on top of all that! Senior Courtney Janicki has successfully navigated not just one, but two, pregnancies, both during busy seasons. Let’s hear how she did it.
Q: Did you time your pregnancy to occur during busy season?
While a summer due date never appealed to me, a March due date wasn’t exactly what I had in mind either. With my first pregnancy, my husband and I found out in July that we were pregnant, which meant I was due in early March. Not ideal timing for a CPA, but we were simply overjoyed to be expecting our first child. With our second child, we hoped for a June due date. When we found out the due date was in late April we said, ”Well, it’s better than March!”
Q: How did your clients respond to your busy season pregnancy?
I’ve been with the firm for over five years, and in that time formed strong relationships with my clients. When I told clients of my upcoming due dates they were genuinely excited for me. Many of them would check in periodically to see how I was doing. Especially as I got into the third trimester, clients seemed even more prepared with necessary audit and tax information and provided resolutions to questions quickly, which in turn enabled our team to get a finished work product to them even earlier than originally thought. It turned out to be a win-win. I was determined that the pregnancies not be a negative experience for me, for the firm, or for the clients we serve.
Q: What adjustments did you have to make at work to make it successfully through busy season while you were pregnant?
I made the conscious decision that my pregnancies would be positive experiences. I started by talking to the Partners, Managers and HR and developing a clear set of expectations, and establishing an open line of communication well in advance of the actual busy season. Remaining flexible and organized were extremely important. There are lots of doctors appointments (especially during the third trimester) and I found myself coming in early in the morning or bringing work home in the evening so that the midday appointments wouldn’t interfere with getting work done. I got a Blackberry so that even if I was running to appointments I could check email while I was waiting for the doctor. And, I started packing a lunch so I wouldn’t have to spend time during the day going out and buying lunch. More than anything keeping an optimistic attitude allowed for a successful busy season.
We’re Growing!
October 28, 2010
Our firm announced this week we will combine with the Seattle office of Anderson ZurMuehlen & Co. PS, an accounting and business advisory firm based in Montana. Our two Seattle firms will operate as Peterson Sullivan LLP effective Nov. 1.
This marks the first significant expansion of Peterson Sullivan, whose services and client mix are closely aligned with Anderson ZurMuehlen’s Seattle office practice.
“This joining of practices is an exciting step for our firm, and we found an ideal fit in Anderson ZurMuehlen,” said Chris Russell, Partner at Peterson Sullivan. “Both firms operate under high standards of client communication and service, and the Seattle partners and staff of Anderson ZurMuehlen will add to our extensive experience across many industries. Combined, we have the right resources to help position our firm for continued growth.” The combined strengths of the new organization will deliver increased value and expanded tax, audit and accounting services to individuals and businesses of all entity types facing a wide range of industry-specific issues. Together, the firms will provide enhanced client services including income and estate tax planning, international tax consulting and compliance, real estate investment services and accounting controls and system design.
“We’re looking forward to beginning this new chapter as Peterson Sullivan,” said Joe Wilcynski, vice president of Anderson ZurMuehlen’s Seattle office. “We know that joining our firms under a shared vision not only offers advantages to our clients, but is also valuable to our professionals’ continued growth.” Anderson ZurMuehlen partners Joe Wilcynski and Rob Keasal will become partners at Peterson Sullivan, and are two of the 10 former Anderson ZurMuehlen staff making the transition to Peterson Sullivan.
Anderson ZurMuehlen will consolidate its operations at Peterson Sullivan’s downtown Seattle office where it will become a team of 100 employees led by 13 firm partners. Peterson Sullivan was founded in Seattle in 1952 and has steadily grown over the past six decades. The firm views the addition of Anderson ZurMuehlen Seattle as part of an overall strategy to increase services to clients throughout the Northwest region.
“Combining the Seattle office of Anderson ZurMuehlen with Peterson Sullivan was a logical next step,” said Dale Freidig, owner of the Seattle management consulting firm The Freidig Group, who introduced the two firms. “Both firms work hard to get to know their clients while providing a great environment for their staff. Together, they’ll create an even stronger organization capable of helping more clients while offering their professional staff added opportunities. It’s a great fit.”
Indoor Volleyball Champions!
October 26, 2010
Congratulations PS Indoor Volleyball Champions! Our winning team, Hit for Brains, won the final game against Taint Prolapse 3-0.
Hit for Brains and Taint Prolapse each won one of the regular season games against each other making this final match the rubber match. Both teams put up a great fight with scrappy plays and determined kills. Michael Kay, from Hit For Brains, gave 110% at the net with many smashing kills and blocks that left Taint Prolapse wondering where that guy came from. It was Michael’s awesome net presence combined with his teams fantastic defense that proved to be the winning combination. After a great season for both Hit for Brains and Taint Prolapse, Hit for Brains was this leagues Softcore Champions.
Camp Fire USA Centennial Gala Auction
October 7, 2010
As we mentioned on Tuesday, it’s fundraising season for many nonprofits in the Puget Sound. On Saturday, October 2, Ray Holmdahl, Matt Matson, Jim Schneidmiller, Bob Bowman, Michaela Baylous and Jessica Hewitt attended the Camp Fire USA Centennial Gala Auction.
The event was hosted at the Grand Hyatt in downtown Seattle, and over 200 people came together to raise $161,500 for Camp Fire‘s youth development program. Michaela gives us a first-hand account of what the night was like:
I had the pleasure of attending Camp Fire’s dinner auction. This was my first time attending an event like this, and it was a lot of fun. It made a great excuse to get dressed up for a “date night” (not quite like Steve Carell and Tina Fey’s). The evening started with drinks and a silent auction. I enjoyed a lemon drop while looking at the wide variety of items up for grab while my boyfriend, Michael, started his Christmas shopping. He ending up winning a wooden motorcycle/rocking horse for his nephews.
Then we were seated for the live auction and dinner. The live auction was LIVELY. John Curley, auctioneer, definitely kept the crowd entertained and engaged. The live auction portion started off with a game of “heads or tails”. The auctioneer flipped a coin and the participants guessed if it would be heads or tails. The last person standing won $400 towards their auction purchases. There was some incredible luck. The coin was heads 4 times in a row! What are the chances? I was out the first round when I guessed tails.
Then the auction started. Just about anything you might want could be purchased, including a vasectomy (ha!). Other items, such as weekend getaways were more popular. It was fun watching people bid against each other and watching others place bids just to raise the price to support a great cause.
Dinner was delicious. Guests had the choice of salmon, filet mignon or a vegetarian option. I chose the salmon and it was fantastic. Dessert was a dense chocolate cake with raspberries. Yum!
It was a very enjoyable evening for all attending, and we raised a lot of money to support Camp Fire. Definitely a success.
