This is the second of four parts about my career in accounting. Here are the four topics:
My Career in Accounting: The CPA Exam and Licensure
My Career in Accounting: The CMA Exam and the Becker Course
My Career in Accounting: Changes
My Career in Accounting: The State of the Profession
Shortly after passing the CPA exam and getting my test results in August 1975, I began teaching for the Becker CPA Review Course. Becker was the biggest of over 200 CPA review courses in the U.S. and bigger than all the others combined. I ended up teaching for Becker for 25 years and worked with Mr. Becker himself quite a bit.
In the early 1990s, I urged Mr. Becker to add a CMA Review to the course offerings. At the time, the CMA was an up-and-coming exam for accountants not in public accounting. That is, for most accountants. I built a business plan and developed most of the curriculum for the CMA Review. Then I helped with the nationwide rollout of the CMA Review Course.
Since I was the originator of the Becker CMA Review, I thought it only fitting that I take that exam. Like with the CPA Exam, I passed all four parts on my first try, in 1993. Of over 4,000 people taking the exam, I got the second highest scores and the silver medal awarded by the Institute of Management Accountants. Clearly, I had over-studied.
While the CMA exam and credential were worthwhile, they never caught on the way I hoped they would. But the knowledge I gained has been useful ever since.
At the turn of the millennium, I gave up teaching as my job responsibilities became greater. This was about the time I was transitioning from being a Controller to a Chief Financial Officer. It was also about the time that the Becker Review Course was sold to a publicly traded company and things just weren’t the same.
My job responsibilities increased mostly because I had made the transition from Controller to Chief Financial Officer. If you’re wondering what the difference is, think of a controller as looking backwards, historical. A controller is responsible for all accounting through financial statements, analysis and next year’s budget. The CFO looks forward. They look forward for years or decades. They evaluate strategic options, look at acquisitions and dispositions. The CFO usually is in charge of risk management in the broadest sense. Put another way, the CFO is the financial partner of the CEO.
At one point in my career, I was promoted from CFO to Co-President and then to CEO. It was a great opportunity to be responsible for a whole company, including the sales and marketing functions. It rounded out my experience in so many ways.
That experience has been invaluable as I work with clients. Typically, I work with the owner of the business, who is also the CEO. I’ve been in their shoes.
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