BerryDunn CEO Sarah Belliveau expects further growth in the accounting firm’s health care and government practice areas this year.
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Six months after taking the reins of Maine’s largest accounting firm, BerryDunn CEO Sarah Belliveau anticipates continued growth in 2022.
The Portland-based firm, which was up to 711 employees at last count, offers accounting, assurance and consulting services to clients nationwide and overseas. Consulting clients include hospital health systems and universities.
Anticipating a busy year, Belliveau expects further growth in the firm’s health care and government practice areas as well as in outsourced accounting services to clients.
“We’re seeing a lot of opportunity in that market,” she says. “With all the labor shortages and challenges, organizations are looking for creative and alternative ways of filling accounting roles from part-time help to full-time back office.” BerryDunn steps in either by supplementing what a company already has in place or providing an entire team.
Internally, the tight labor market and the ongoing “Great Resignation” have prompted BerryDunn to think creatively about recruiting, which Belliveau views as an opportunity to tap a more diverse talent pool not limited by geography.
“Such a significant percentage [around 35%] of our employees are home-based, so we’re being pre-emptive about trying to access that talent,” she says. “That’s a big area of opportunity and focus.” The firm’s spacious new office at 2211 Congress St. is also a big hit, she says, noting that “our space was very much designed for work groups and collaboration.”
Another priority this year is “making sure we are being really creative and innovative in how we’re performing our services for our clients and being as automated and innovative as we can be,” Belliveau says. Rather than auditing a client only at year’s end, for example, the aim is to spread that work out throughout the year and then “being a lot more thoughtful about when we have to be on site.”
Outside of managing the firm, Belliveau advises health care and nonprofit clients, many of whom reached a “critical point” with staffing during the pandemic and received government relief funding.
“With that comes a lot of compliance and regulatory oversight, so there’s a lot of opportunity there to help clients make sure they’re compliant.”