Make it Account at the Mount

3/7/2022

CPA, Columnist, and Professor Frank Manzi Shares the Ins and Outs of Accounting—From Undergrad to CFO

Accounting has consistently topped the list as one of best bachelor degrees for upward mobility and growth after college. But how can a student know if accounting is the right major when planning out how they’ll launch a successful career?

When it comes to business, accountants are at the center of information—their understanding of the language and operations of business increases their value and can lead them to such fields as finance, marketing, information technology, and project management.

At the Mount, accounting is a highly regarded and growing program. With full support from the Department of Accounting, Business, and Economics, students engage with faculty who are leaders and experts in business—ready to discuss and share industry knowledge, consumer trends, corporate responsibility, and so much more. It’s audit and a bag of chips!

We invite you to meet just one of those dedicated faculty members: Frank Manzi.

Currently serving on the Future of Accounting Education committee for the New York State Society of CPAs (NYSSCPA), Professor Manzi has been working diligently to develop program curricula to meet the changing demands of business. During his time in committee meetings, he’s also had the opportunity to interact with the editors of The CPA Journal—known by many as the ‘voice’ of the accounting profession—who have invited his collaboration through a series of written columns. With two already published—“The Five Hats of the CFO” and the “The Skills of the CFO”—we’ve been eager to sit down with Professor Manzi and learn more about his insights into accounting as a profession and the benefits of our program here at the Mount.

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How did you become involved with The CPA Journal? Have you written for them before or did you become acquainted with them as a result of your professional background?

Frank Manzi (FM): As a Certified Public Accountant (CPA), I have practiced in the field of finance and accounting for the past 35 years and am an active member of the NYSSCPA, which sponsors the publication of The CPA Journal. When I began to teach, it was important that I remained current within my profession and that I was on the frontlines with regard to changes within the field of education of future accountants. In order to maintain that edge and to provide Mount students with the most current direction in the industry, I became a member of the NYSSCPA Future of Accounting Education committee. There, I engaged with fellow academics, as well as current practitioners in the field of accounting and finance. As such, I am writing a number of articles for The CPA Journal and other publications, including several chapters in the forthcoming book: The Past, Present, and Future of Accountancy Education and Professions, expected to be published this summer.

When I met the editor of The CPA Journal at several NYSSCPA committee meetings, he was very passionate about a column that he wanted written, CFO to CFO. After much discussion, he thought it would be great if Mark Martinelli, current Executive Vice President & Chief Audit Executive at Synchrony Financial, and I were to collaborate on a four-part series addressing the current and future issues faced by CFOs of public and private companies. Mark has over 30 years of financial services experience and deep audit expertise to his role. Between his knowledge with risk management and my many years of financial and operations experience in industry, we make a great team.

In your first column, you talked about “The Five Hats of the CFO.” How can current and prospective students prepare to become financial stewards, communicators of financial results, leaders of financial planning and analysis, drivers of internal controls and process improvements, and strategists?

FM: Excellent question. These are critical topics that I address in many of my accounting and finance classes, and which allow our students to be at the forefront of the changes in the field of accounting and finance.

From a professional business perspective, these objectives take time to attain and generally come by obtaining an accounting degree and a position in a firm that leads to progressive increases in the depth and breadth of the business. We instruct, as professor practitioners, providing our students with real world experience in addressing each of the hats of the CFO. The accounting courses we teach are geared toward providing the students with a better understanding of the skills they must focus on to be successful in business. And I’m not merely referring to just accounting classes—our business core requirements are an excellent primer for a career in business, too! Unique to the Mount is the heavy emphasis, not just on accounting courses, but on the foundational courses that provide the students with a deeper understanding of all aspects of business.

In addition, our program places tremendous emphasis on ethics and integrity in the workplace. Our leaders serve as ethical stewards within various firms and institutions. And our mission here at the College finds its way into the world of business in the important role played by our students who come to form their consciousness within the firm.

How will the Mount’s accounting program prepare students for successful careers in accounting and finance?

FM: I teach my students to never think of themselves as an accountant—to never put themselves into a little box that defines them. My students are taught to be business professionals with accounting skills.

Accounting is the language of business. I want my students to understand and use that language and related skill set wherever they go with their careers. Everything about our approach is about tying theoretical accounting concepts into the practicalities of running a business. We provide students with the analytical skills they need to understand the cost and revenue drivers of a business. We also stress their role as moral stewards who provide their firms with a safety net to maintain the proper balance, ethics, and integrity of the actions of the organization.

How does the Mount’s program stand out from other programs?

FM: Of course, at the Mount, we give our students the overall technical framework of training in our various accounting classes—just like any accounting program does. But, unlike many other programs, we emphasize the development of the whole person. Our liberal arts training provides students with the ability to become thought leaders. They are able to deal with complex issues and also be guided by a set of ethical business principles that provide a greater strength to the business enterprise within which they serve. And we take a real business practitioners’ approach to teaching to give the students a better picture of the real world.

Additionally, we seek to create a unique environment where students can develop their professional skills. As such, we’ve established the Accounting Society, which has multiple objectives—including inviting guest speakers (from a variety of fields, such as forensic accounting, data analytics, strategic management, and information technology) to discuss current issues that businesses must address, and creating a professional organization where students can engage in a variety of career development events. As a professional society, our students have even sponsored the College’s professional business networking event, open to the entire campus community. And the Society continues to expand its reach by building strong relationships with our graduates, bringing them back to the campus to support undergraduates from each and every area of study. This type of student leadership has resulted in students and alumnae/i connecting in very powerful and supportive ways.

There are so many ways to highlight our program, but one more way ours stands out is that we have developed a strong relationship with a number of accounting and consulting firms who take our students on as interns with the intent to hire them upon graduation. This has proven to be a very successful effort and an exceptional opportunity for our students, with very positive outcomes for our accounting majors.

What are the three most important things a student should do or keep in mind if they want to become a successful accounting professional and/or a CFO? For example, are internships the best way to secure one’s future in the profession?

FM: There are so many ways students can advance their opportunities and launch their career as an accountant, but one of the most important things to remember is that, here at the Mount, we provide comprehensive academic advisement support to our students every step of the way in their professional journey. This is unique to the Mount and certainly to students studying accounting. We’re here from the day they step foot on campus to the day they walk across the commencement stage, ensuring our students receive the personal attention they deserve in every aspect of their academic career—and their professional career.

But, to break it down into specifics, here’s the three most important things students should keep in mind:

• Internships are extremely important, but what’s really important about them is that they’re plural. Students should strive to get more than one internship to further expertise, connections, and their own network. It’s always best to have experience in public accounting and in corporate accounting type roles.
• Students must have a strong understanding of business ethics and where the flexibility in accounting and finance lies with respect to providing advice and options.
• And, students must have the ability to synthesize varying bits of data into usable decision-making information. It is critical for students to understand the linkage of financial information to operational activities and events.

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It’s safe to say that Professor Manzi knows the ins and outs of accounting—and he’s been busy this semester making sure his students are really working their assets off! Professor Manzi has proven his dedication to his students both within and beyond the classroom, and his recent involvement with the NYSSCPA is just another example of how so many Mount professors seize every opportunity available to them for the benefit of their students.

Forging a career in accounting is an incredible learning experience and can lead professionals with accounting skills to progress throughout the corporate world. Are you ready to start your accounting career at the Mount? Learn more about our stellar program in accounting and apply today!