Spokane's two largest accounting firms, Moss Adams LLP and LarsonAllen LLP, are in the midst of some revamping as a result of unrelated actions that also affect multiple offices elsewhere in the U.S. Local representatives for both firms say, though, that they expect the changes to be positive, resulting in strengthened industry focuses and, ultimately, more clients.

Minneapolis-based LarsonAllen, which just over a year ago bought the assets of longtime Spokane accounting firm LeMaster Daniels PLLC, has announced it now is merging with the Milwaukee-based Clifton Gunderson accounting firm. Pending final regulatory approval, the merger will take effect Jan. 2. The new firm is to be called CliftonLarsonAllen and will span 25 states.

"The advantage (of the merger) is there is some industry-specific expertise that allows us to pursue other client relationships and enhance current ones," says Scott Dietzen, Spokane-based LarsonAllen executive principal of the Pacific Northwest region. The Spokane LarsonAllen office employs about 50 people on the seventh floor of the Bank of America Financial Center, at 601 W. Riverside.

As one example, Dietzen says both firms have big practices in banking, but Clifton Gunderson serves publically traded financial institutions, while LarsonAllen has more privately held bank clients.

Meanwhile, Seattle-based Moss Adams, which operates on the 17th and 18th floors of the Bank of America Financial Center, has announced it is realigning many of the firm's office and practice groups in a bid to streamline operations.

In Spokane, those steps mean that Moss Adams' 95 employees here will work more closely with the 60 employees at the firm's Yakima office, says Rick Betts, Spokane managing partner. The two offices already have worked to streamline their operations in the past year, and many of those changes will take effect Jan. 1, says Tom Stevenson, a partner and former longtime Spokane managing partner, who is retiring the end of this year.

With the coordination, the two Moss Adams offices will tap into each other's industry strengths more extensively than they have in the past, while consolidating administrative functions. For example, the Spokane office's human resources specialist will handle hiring and personnel issues for both offices, Betts says.

He adds that Moss Adams in Spokane has a strong client base in telecommunications, financial services, manufacturing, and construction and real estate. The Yakima Moss Adams office has expertise in food and agricultural industries.

"It's a grouping of our offices to work more closely together so we don't trip up on each other, and we coordinate our industry groups," Betts says. The Spokane and Yakima offices are the firm's only two Eastern Washington locations, and aligning them means both can have a larger impact in Eastern Washington, Idaho, and Montana, Betts says. "The purpose is more client service. It will be a matter of leveraging off each other's expertise."

Betts adds, "Every office still has a managing partner. We're not eliminating positions to consolidate functions."

In September, Moss Adams combined with Warinner, Gesinger & Associates LLC, a boutique CPA firm based in Kansas that has about 20 employees and specializes in the telecommunications industry, Betts says. That office now operates under the Moss Adams name as a satellite location for Spokane, which serves the telecommunications industry nationally, Betts says.

"We have clients in 41 states, so that gives us much greater geographic accessibility to our clients in the Midwest and the eastern part of the United States," he says.

Although accounting firms nationally are making shifts such as those taken by LarsonAllen and Moss Adams, the industry is doing well, LarsonAllen's Dietzen says. In general, such merger-and-acquisition news among CPA firms isn't a reflection of a poor economy, he says.

"CPA firms are generally pretty healthy," Dietzen says. "That's generally not a reason for mergers and acquisitions in the industry."

He adds, "There are two reasons. One is the demographics; there are a lot of baby boomer CPAs in smaller practices looking for an exit strategy. The second reason is there's so much complexity, and (clients) are looking to expand internationally. CPA firms have to have a depth of resources to serve those clients, so coming together and bringing those skills together build better resources."

Similarly, Stevenson asserts that the restructuring by Moss Adams isn't being done because of the current sluggish economy. He says the coordination among offices and industry specialty groups meets a strategic goal to increase the amount of time that the firm's staff spends face to face with clients.

"We're trying to make sure to allow our partners and staff to spend more customer time and less administrative time, so we're streamlining administrative work as much as possible," Stevenson says.

He adds, "Our goal is to bring premier client service. That means being the trusted adviser, the person that really understands not just the accounting and taxes, but also understands their business."

Moss Adams, with 21 locations in the Western U.S. and Kansas, says it now ranks as the nation's 11th largest certified CPA firm after combining with Warinner, Gesinger & Associates. On its website, Moss Adams reports it last year had total revenue of about $316 million. It claims to be the largest accounting firm in Washington state, with four West Side offices in Seattle, Tacoma, Everett, and Bellingham.

Clifton Gunderson, with revenue of $253 million last year, and LarsonAllen, at $285 million, both are considered among the Top 20 accounting firms nationally. With the merger, a press release said, the combined firm will become one of the top 10 largest CPA firms in the country.

"As a Top 10 firm, the unique thing is the focus will remain on privately held businesses versus publicly traded companies," Dietzen says. "Clearly, privately held companies are doing work internationally, so just by having the size, we will be able to assist those firms even more effectively."

Both Clifton Gunderson and LarsonAllen have a national voice when the Internal Revenue Service seeks comments on rules in accounting and auditing, he adds. "Both have a strong reputation in speaking to how rules and standards are established," Dietzen says.

Overall, both firms have a strong client base in the health care industry, Dietzen adds, as well as in wealth management. He adds that Clifton Gunderson brings a focus on assisting federal government agencies, while LarsonAllen has a number of nonprofit clients.

"The combined firm will have a very strong presence in nonprofit governmental assistance," Dietzen says.

For Moss Adams, Betts says the coordination with Yakima also means further strengthening service for many industries by aligning expertise found in those individual offices. For example, Yakima also is strong in health care knowledge, but that office doesn't have the expertise that staff in Spokane has in accounting services for financial institutions or telecommunication clients.

Adds Stevenson, "We want people who gain more expertise in a certain industry. Each person will narrow down to one or two industries."

He says that Moss Adams for several years has encouraged travel to client locations. "Our focus is to have fewer offices but really be willing to let our partners travel to see clients," he says. "We can build expertise and individuals who really understand what makes the business work."