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  • Smith takes reins as MACPA's 66th president
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Smith takes reins as MACPA's 66th president

By Bill Sheridan
MACPA Electronic Communications Manager

Gray Smith has some big shoes to fill, and he knows it.

"The MACPA has had a great history of leaders," said Smith, a partner with Ernst & Young in Baltimore. "I'm not sure what it is, but the association has always found very good people to fill its leadership roles. And it's not a rubber-stamp leadership. There are very healthy debates on issues at the association."

On July 1, Smith joined that honor role by becoming the MACPA's 66th president. He succeeded John Wilson, who officially passed the gavel on to Smith at the association's annual meeting on May 17.

Smith takes the helm with the profession facing a number of challenging issues. Chief among them are proposed legislative and regulatory changes that have risen out of Enron's ashes, and Smith says protecting the public and the profession through legislative activities should remain one of the MACPA's top priorities this year.

But there are other challenges as well.

"I don't think the profession will be the same over the next 20 years as it has been over the past 20 years," Smith said. "A number of changes are impacting CPAs and we have to deal with these issues."

Among them:

• A lack of understanding among the public of what CPAs do and what their responsibilities are. Smith calls it an "expectation gap" between what CPAs do and what the public thinks they do. "At one time that expectation gap was not a significant issue," he said, "but it's gotten wider now and we have to deal with it." Smith hopes to start a dialogue with members and the public about CPAs' responsibilities and the future of the profession, including issues such as specialization, required education, oversight and litigation. Smith said the profession also must deal with what the public wants a CPA's responsibility to be as it relates to management fraud and business failure; what role and responsibility management and a company's board will take related to management fraud; and the balance between increased cost of audits and changes in auditors' responsibility for management fraud and business failure. "We're not going to come up with the answers here in Maryland alone," he said, "but I'd like us to at least start the dialogue and get people thinking about these things."
• Recruiting new students to study accounting and become CPAs. "This is a great profession," Smith said, "and in order for it to remain a great profession, student recruitment needs to be a priority."
• Finding new ways to connect with and remain relevant to members. This includes identifying future trends, offering resources and information about current issues, and providing members with timely, relevant education. "It's our job to look on the horizon and identify what changes are going to occur or should occur, and shape what changes do occur," Smith said. "The typical member doesn't have time to do that, so we need to do it for them. We need to ensure that we also remain relevant to our members in industry, government and education."
• Placing renewed emphasis on membership recruitment and retention. Increased membership allows the association to provide more of the products, services and information Maryland's CPAs need to do their jobs. Said Smith: "I'd like to make sure we're really in tune with our members, that we're providing what they want and that we're relevant to them."

His ascension to the MACPA presidency caps a whirlwind year for Smith. A former partner in Arthur Andersen's Baltimore office, Smith and his co-workers watched as allegations of obstruction of justice and an ensuing trial toppled the once-great firm.

"It was a very difficult year," he said. "But I'm very proud of my former Andersen partners, especially those locally. Everyone's head and actions were in the right place. People easily could have been looking to cut deals for themselves. Instead, the whole idea was, let's make sure we serve our clients, let's make sure we protect our people as much as we can, and let's make sure we do something orderly so as many people as possible land in a good place."

Smith has since moved to Ernst & Young LLP, but he is left with fond memories of his years with Andersen. But the realization remains that, like many issues facing CPAs, the Enron / Andersen fallout affects not only the Big Five but the entire profession. Andersen and its former partners have paid a very significant price for issues that are not just Andersen issues, but are issues of the entire profession.

"I hope as a profession, we focus on the real issues that require reform and not just take quick, 'public-friendly' actions and move on," Smith said. "If this does occur, the enormous cost my former Andersen partners and I paid will have been wasted."

As the MACPA's president, Smith has an opportunity to help shape the professional lives of CPAs in Maryland, and he's ready to get started.

"The association has accomplished a lot over the years, and the first thing I want to do as president is keep that momentum going," he said. "I think that will be easy to do as I will be working with an outstanding board and staff. The way the association is set up means you're leading a team, and the most important thing you need to do is motivate and not stand in the way of the work the team is doing. There's a lot of energy there."