Pros on the Move – July 2022

Armanino LLP, one of the 20 largest accounting and business consulting firms in the U.S., today announced it welcomed tax partner Matt Baldwin effective immediately and expanded its office lease in Denver, more than doubling in size. The moves respond to the firm’s rapid growth in the Mile High City region, as staff has jumped from about a dozen in 2019 to nearly 100 today.

Baldwin joins the firm after stints at EKS&H and most recently at CliftonLarsonAllen. Having served clients in public accounting since 2009, he specializes in corporate and private equity tax. He also brings extensive experience in transactional tax issues, M&A transactions and ASC 740 income tax provisions. Baldwin is a Colorado CPA and member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants. He received his bachelor’s and master’s degrees in accounting from New Mexico State University.

Hogan Lovells continues to grow Corporate & Finance capabilities in New York with tax lawyer Jessica Millett

Global law firm Hogan Lovells recently announced the arrival of tax lawyer Jessica Millett as a partner in the firm’s Corporate & Finance practice group in New York. She is the sixth Corporate & Finance partner to join Hogan Lovells’ New York office this year. Millett joins from Duval & Stachenfeld, a boutique law firm, where she served as chair of that firm’s tax practice.

Millett focuses her practice on U.S. tax issues that arise in complex real estate transactions, notably real estate private equity investments, Qualified Opportunity Fund structures, and cross-border investments. She regularly advises clients on tax structuring and documentation for real estate acquisitions, joint ventures, restructurings and refinancing arrangements, including inbound and outbound investments, and structures involving REITs.

Her practice also includes representing sponsors and managers of, and institutional investors in, private investment funds including real estate, distressed debt, and hedge funds, and advising on tax-efficient structures for cross-border securities offerings (debt and equity) and private equity transactions. Millett has experience advising financial institutions on a variety of tax and compliance issues including U.S. withholding and information reporting rules, and tax treaty planning and is currently the chair of the Subcommittee for Foreign Investors of the ABA Tax Section Real Estate Committee.

Millett earned her law degree from Duke University School of Law and her B.A. from Johns Hopkins. Following graduation from Johns Hopkins, she spent two years in the Peace Corps as an education volunteer in Burkina Faso, West Africa.

LBMC Names Five New Shareholders; Growth and Strategic Initiatives Lead to Promotions within Firm’s Primary Service Lines

LBMC, a top 40 advisory and business consulting firm in the nation, is proud to announce the addition of five shareholders to align with the firm’s continued focus on serving clients in the advisory, cyber risk, data insights, healthcare and high net wealth space. The new shareholders are comprised of four team members promoted within LBMC and one new to the LBMC family.

• Robyn Barton, Shareholder, Risk Services, leads LBMC’s HITRUST service line, one of the firm’s fastest growing services. Barton has played a key role in establishing LBMC as one of the nation’s leading providers of HITRUST assessment and consulting services. She serves on the HITRUST Assessor Council and is a regular speaker at HITRUST conferences and events around the U.S. A graduate of Middle Tennessee State University, Barton holds certifications in CISA, CRISC, CISM, QSA, CCSFP, CHQP and CDPSE.
• Melissa Cothran, Shareholder, Wealth Advisors, leads LBMC’s Family Office Practice. Cothran joined LBMC in 1999 and has continually built and maintained longstanding, multigenerational client relationships during her tenure with the firm. She has more than 24 years of diversified tax experience and specializes in large and complex income tax returns for individuals, trusts, and estates, as well as tax planning and individual tax consulting. Cothran holds her bachelor’s degree from the University of Kentucky and her CPA and PFS.
• Laura McGregor, Shareholder, Audit, is a leader within LBMC's Healthcare Audit practice. Since joining LBMC in 2009, McGregor has been a core contributor to the growth of LBMC’s healthcare practice. She leads healthcare audit training for LBMC and is actively involved in recruiting, mentoring, training, and managing teams. McGregor holds her MBA from Tennessee Technological University and is CPA. She a member of Leadership Health Care and the Nashville Healthcare Council.
• Van Steel, Shareholder, Risk Services, leads LBMC’s cybersecurity consulting service line and has established LBMC as a national expert in the field of cyber risk assessments. Steel has been instrumental in growing the practice through recruiting, retention, coaching and mentoring. He joined LBMC in 2018 and has more than 20 years of experience in IT advisory/assurance and cybersecurity consulting. Steel has served clients across many industries, including three of the largest financial institutions in the world and a U.S. healthcare governing body. He holds his bachelor’s degree from Kutztown University of Pennsylvania and CISA, CISSP, and CCSFP designations.
• Jon Hilton joins LBMC as Practice Leader of the firm’s Data Insights division. Hilton has more than 20 years of experience as a senior data leader, data strategist, and data scientist helping organizations leverage data to achieve their business goals and objectives. He is an honors graduate of West Point – United States Military Academy and holds a Master of Information and Data Science from the University of California, Berkeley. His skills include Machine Learning, AI, Deep Learning, Python, Data Strategy, Data Governance, Data Engineering, and Data Visualization. Hilton served as an Officer and Leader in the U.S. Army, where he was awarded the Bronze Star and the Army Commendation Medal.

Organic Valley Announces Food and Beverage Executive as New Chief Financial Officer

Organic Valley, the country’s leading farmer-owned cooperative of small organic family farms, recently announced that Stephen Famolaro would be joining the cooperative as its new Chief Financial Officer. Famolaro is a Certified Public Accountant and a Certified Management Accountant with more than 30 years’ financial experience. He holds a certificate in Production and Inventory Management.

Famolaro’s past roles include CFO of Naked Juice and Century Snacks. He also brings experience in dairy from his time at Dean Foods.

Organic Valley CEO Bob Kirchoff said the cooperative, which is also one of the world’s largest organic consumer brands, will benefit from Famolaro’s strategy and insight into its financial planning process.