Ernst & Young LLP’s Irvine office has a new leader,a year after Michael Bertolino took charge of the accounting firm’s Orange County operations.
John Belli, managing partner of Ernst & Young’s San Diego office, is set to take over the Irvine office on July 1.
Bertolino, managing partner in Irvine for the past year, was promoted to regional managing partner for tax services for the firm’s Pacific Southwest area, which includes offices in Southern California, Nevada, Colorado, Hawaii and Arizona.
He’s set to oversee close to 550 employees and split his time among seven offices in the Pacific Southwest area.
Bertolino, wife Carol and son Enzo are set to keep their OC home, he said.
“My family and I love it here so we are very happy to remain part of this incredible community,” Bertolino said.
Belli, who has been a partner at Ernst & Young’s Buffalo, N.Y., and San Diego offices for 31 years, now will oversee the firm’s OC workers, daily operations and its assurance, tax, transactions and advisory practices.
Bertolino and Belli will report to Peter Griffith, vice chair and area managing partner of the Pacific Southwest.
Belli worked with Bertolino while managing Ernst & Young’s San Diego office, where Bertolino was a partner for many years.
“Mike and I are very close,” Belli said. “He’s worked with me on a lot of engagements.”
Belli specializes in assurance and advisory work for technology and consumer products companies.
He said he expects his experience working in San Diego should help in OC.
“There are a lot of similarities between San Diego’s business environment and Orange County’s,” Belli said. “Both areas have fast growing companies in a lot of industries.”
Belli’s been more involved with OC in recent years, he said.
He said he wants to win clients here by getting involved with business groups, universities and charities.
About 400 Workers
Ernst & Young has about 400 workers at its Irvine office, according to the Business Journal’s 2007 list of accounting firms.
It’s the second largest accounting firm after Deloitte & Touche USA LLP, which alone among the Big Four has a consulting practice as part of its 811 workers in Costa Mesa.
In addition to Deloitte, Ernst & Young’s main rivals here are other global players such as KPMG LLP in Costa Mesa and Irvine’s PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP.
Ernst & Young’s local clients include chipmaker Broadcom Corp. and drug maker Allergan Inc., both of Irvine, and Santa Ana-based vocational college operator Corinthian Colleges Inc.
Belli said he expects the Irvine office to stay busy with assurance, tax and advisory work as more companies rework their business plans to adapt to a slower economy, tight credit market and rising costs.
“There are certainly challenges in the marketplace based on the current U.S. economy,” Belli said. “We’re seeing more companies looking for ways to help them manage their costs.”
Ernst & Young, among other accounting firms, is seeing a boost in work related to changing tax laws, Belli said. Increased scrutiny from the Securities and Exchange Commission and the 2002 Sarbanes-Oxley Act also continue to generate work, he said.
The firm is seeing less work related to initial public offerings as the market has slowed and some companies are shying away from the expenses of being public.
Instead, Ernst & Young is seeing a spike in work on acquisitions from large companies and private equity firms looking to buy small to midsize companies, Belli said.
More Work
Belli, who sits on Ernst & Young’s global advisory counsel, said the firm also is getting work related to local companies doing more business with companies around the world.
The weak U.S. dollar is spurring more foreign companies to look at local businesses for acquisition or investment, according to Belli.
Growing global business could push more companies to adopt an accounting standard used in Europe and Asia, the International Accounting Standards Board’s International Financial Reporting Standards, Belli said.
It could be a boon for accountants as companies that already conform to generally accepted accounting principles would need guidance in navigating new rules.
“In a global economy you have U.S. companies and foreign companies looking at each other’s financials with different standards,” Belli said. “This could help clarify everything.”
Ernst & Young could recruit more accountants at its Irvine office this year, particularly in its advisory practice, Belli said.
A self-described golf junkie, Belli is house hunting with his wife and two daughters.
This summer, the family plans to move from Rancho Santa Fe to Newport Beach, possibly the city’s Corona del Mar neighborhood, he said.
