Blum Shapiro is the largest regional accounting and business consulting firm based in Connecticut and one of the largest in New England. We have over 170 professional and administrative staff, making us a consistent member of the top 100 accounting firms in the U.S., as ranked by the major industry publications.
Our size has allowed us to develop expertise and dedicated staff in our primary service areas-privately held businesses, non-profit organizations, and governmental entities. We continue to adhere to the same belief embraced by our firm's founders more than four decades ago -to offer customized services to meet client's individual needs. This belief translates into a commitment to provide every client with three things: the personalized attention of a partner, specialized knowledge of the client's company and industry, and resources tailored to our client's needs. Over the past four years, we have successfully acquired over 60 clients formerly served by national CPA firms.
Privately Held Businesses
Our client base includes a broad range of businesses, including major concentrations of clients in manufacturing, distribution, construction, auto dealerships, healthcare and real estate. We enjoy close interaction with our clients and understand clearly that our true objective is to help the owners and managers of those businesses achieve their financial goals. Some of the customized service offerings for business owners include entity structuring to maximize tax benefits, management and family succession planning, and estate and trust planning.
Our tax department includes over 35 dedicated tax professionals, with specialists in state and local tax, corporate and individual tax planning, sales and use tax, and cost segregation.
Services to Non-profit Organizations
Non-profit organizations have unique needs and Blum Shapiro has made a significant investment in staffing, training and services to meet these needs. In fulfilling your mission of service, you play a vital role in serving communities. We serve more than 120 organizations, including independent schools, social service agencies, long-term care facilities, government-funded residential and day treatment programs, trade associations, and community and private foundations. We perform financial statement audits, provide tax services, and specialized consulting services. We meet with audit or finance committees prior to our fieldwork and after completion of financial statements and audit reports to ensure the scope and results of our work are clearly understood.
Municipal and Governmental Clients
Throughout our history as a firm, we have served as auditors for municipal and quasi-governmental organizations. Our current client base includes over 18 of these entities, many of which have been clients for over 10 years. In addition to our role as auditor, we assist many local municipalities in managing the financial aspects of school construction programs, enhancing their revenue stream, as well as assisting with technology planning and implementation.
Non-Audit Services for Publicly Traded Companies
The advent of Sarbanes-Oxley legislation has changed the way in which accounting and auditing services are provided to publicly held companies. Blum Shapiro currently assists with Section 302, Officer Certification and Section 404, Management Assessment of Internal Controls. We additionally offer consulting and technology services, tax planning, and compliance and audits of employee benefit plans.
Resources Available Worldwide
We are an independent member of Baker Tilly International, a network of high quality, independent accounting and advisory firms. Baker Tilly International is the 8th largest network in the world by fee income and is represented by 128 firms in 85 countries. Firms within the network adhere to the same high quality standards and share skills, resources and expertise to create best practices.
Blum Shapiro is a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants and belongs to the Private Companies Practice Sections and the Center for Public Company Audit Firms. As required by our profession’s quality control and oversight program, Blum Shapiro has successfully completed seven quality reviews performed by independent CPA firms. We regularly alert clients to changes that will affect their industry and help them anticipate the effects of new tax laws and industry trends, as well as provide advice on a wide variety of topics of interest. Quarterly industry specific newsletters, client alerts, a record retention guide and year-end tax planning guides are just some of the information available to Blum Shapiro clients.