Rachael Higginbotham, Marketing Director
800‐259‐2922
rhigginbotham@pncpa.com

Baton Rouge, LA

August 23, 2017 by INSIDE Public Accounting

Name: Dan Gardiner
Firm: Postlethwaite & Netterville (P&N)
Title: CEO and Managing Director-Elect

Accomplishments:

• Selected as incoming Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director of one of the largest CPA and consulting firms in the Gulf Coast and the only IPA 100 firm based in Louisiana
• Leads P&N’s tax and consulting services groups to provide innovative business consulting services for clients throughout Louisiana
• Serves as president of the Baton Rouge Chapter of the Society of Louisiana CPAs.
• Served as corporate controller for a regional consumer packaged goods and distributions company and as corporate controller and financial reporting manager for a publicly traded international leasing company

It will be one year until you take over the top role at the firm. How are you preparing now?

Our firm has a well-defined succession process, which began over a year ago. In this last year of the transition, I will continue to work alongside P&N’s current CEO, Bill Balhoff, and the executive team on the strategic initiatives of our firm. Our firm was founded on the principle of providing the highest quality client service and that principle has been the hallmark of our growth and success over the years. A good portion of my time this year will be spent ensuring that our team knows that our culture and our foundation will not change with this transition.

P&N is a fast-growing firm and the largest based in Louisiana. With one office outside the state, in Houston, is the firm planning to expand in that area?

While we’ve had a Houston office for just over two years, we have had a strong client base for much longer, and are continuing our plans for growth in that market. Our main focus is ensuring our clients receive the highest in quality service. We have very talented resources in Houston and expect to continue our expansion of all service areas, assurance, tax, consulting and technology, in the greater Houston area. While we have growth goals for each our markets, we are more focused as a practice on having the right talent in place to ensure healthy growth that will lead to long-term relationships. Fortunately, given the close ties between Louisiana and Houston, we already have strong brand recognition, which is helping attract great talent.

You took an eight-year hiatus from the firm to work in industry. What did that experience teach you that you brought back to the firm?

I’ve always enjoyed the accounting profession, but in industry I did not feel the same level of passion about my work as in public accounting and consulting. For me the relationships you build with clients, the diversity of the engagements, and the focus on continual improvement are what drew me back to professional services. P&N’s consulting practice was the perfect fit for me and my experience, as it allowed me to leverage many of the experiences I had in industry. Additionally, being on the client side of the equation has reinforced to me the client service values our firm lives. I have plenty of real world experiences to share with our team members as they learn how to become trusted advisors.

As tax leader for the firm, are you concerned about automation changing the way you do business? Excited? Both?

Cognitive computing is predicted to automate or eliminate up to 40% of basic accounting work by 2020, according to Accenture. I believe that technology is going to be one of our greatest opportunities in the years to come. Automation can benefit our teams and clients by providing efficient and consistent delivery of service. In our own practice, we focus on integrating technology into business and accounting processes, which has helped many of our clients overcome significant challenges. However, I am certain that now more than ever we must have more personal relationships with our clients. Clients still want someone who can sit across the table and give them confidence that they have the professional team that can solve their challenges.

Final thoughts?

Our industry is going through tremendous change. We are doing things differently than ever before and thinking of things in different ways. And it is going to take our talented professionals to bring about the change that we need to continue to thrive as a firm. With innovation and a focus on our clients’ needs, we will be able to compete now and into the future.

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