Cutting back
Clark, Schaefer, Hackett & Co. is an Ohio-based accounting and
consulting firm with six offices spread throughout the Buckeye
State. The company's services include tax, assurance,
qualified plan design, administration and auditing, litigation
support, internal audit, outsourcing, business transactions and
valuations, and financial planning.
Clark, Schaefer, Hackett ranked No. 68 in Accounting Today's 2008
listing of the top accounting firms in the U.S by revenue.
Though the firm saw an increase of 4.9 percent in its annual
revenue, its rank on the charts slipped from the 2007 list.
The company also eliminated nearly 8 percent of its workforce in
2007, trimming its total employees to 232 as of March 2008.
Clark, Schaefer, Hackett earns about 45 percent of its revenue from
audit and attest services, 37 percent from tax services and 18
percent from other services.
Ohio born and bred
Clark, Schaefer, Hackett & Co. has its roots firmly in Ohio
soil. Virgil Clark established a small accounting practice in
Middletown in 1938; it remained a one-office firm until 1961, when
Clark added another location in Cincinnati. With partner Bill
Schaefer at the helm the business expanded to include an office in
Springfield in 1967, moving on to Columbus in 1980 and Dayton in
1983.
Schaefer stepped down in 1992, paving the way for Pete Hackett,
who served as president and chairman until 2002. Neil
O'Connor became president that year and took the chairmanship a
year later, handing the presidency over to Tom Hazelbaker.
O'Connor retired from the firm in June 2007; William Hummel, who
was once named one of the best tax practitioners in the United
States by Money magazine, was appointed chairman.
Health care concerns
Clark, Schaefer, Hackett strengthened its health care practice in
September 2008 when it acquired Clemans Group, a consulting firm
that provides services to hospitals and practice groups as well as
physicians, dentists and health care professions. Clemans
Group was founded in 1992 by Ted Clemans and operates out of
Springfield, Ohio. Terms of the deal were not disclosed, but
Clemans and partner Bill Clayton will both join Clark, Schaefer,
Hackett as principals. The Clemans Group is now part of the
firm's Health Care Industry Group.
The new leaders
There was a reorganization of leadership in Clark, Schaefer,
Hackett in July 2008 as the firm appointed a new chairman and new
president. Carl Coburn, who previously served as
shareholder-in-charge of the Cincinnati office, took over the
position of president of the firm after serving with Clark,
Schaefer, Hackett for 22 years. He replaced Thomas
Hazelbacker, who will move to a new position as chairman of the
firm, replacing William Hummel. Coburn's primary area of
expertise is in financial services, particularly financial
statement disclosure and public company accounting and disclosure,
business valuations and litigation support. He is an active
member of his community, serving as district auditor for the Boy
Scouts of America, head of the financial committee and chairman of
Elders for Faith Christian Fellowship Church, and an employee
coordinator for the United Way.
The ONE
One of the industries that Clark, Schaefer, Hackett serves is
not-for-profits. The company serves approximately 200 clients
in its not-for-profit industry group with budgets ranging from
$250,000 to more than $30 million.
The firm helps to support not-for-profits in the community through
a program called "The ONE" (Organizations of Noteworthy
Excellence). The ONE program is collaboration with the United
Way of Greater Cincinnati, the Greater Cincinnati Foundation, the
Pfau Foundation and the Haile/US Bank Foundation, which gives
grants to not-for-profits that have demonstrated excellence.
The company awards four $2,500 cash prizes for companies that excel
in the following categories: performance, principle, process and
people. There is also a $10,000 prize for the overall best
firm. Clark, Schaefer, Hackett holds year round events
relating to the ONE programs.
Beyond the Midwest
Clark, Schaefer, Hackett & Co. was a founding member of AGN
International, a global network of tax and accounting firms.
As of 2008, AGN International boasted 197 member firms in 90
countries, including 455 offices, and approximately 8,800 partners
and staff. Clark, Schaefer, Hackett is included in AGN's
North America division, which includes 52 CPA/CA firms with a
combined revenue of $625.6 million throughout the U.S., Canada,
Mexico and Puerto Rico.