49th Annual Western Pennsylvania Tax Conference

JASON C SKRINAK

FIRM POSITION

Jason Skrinak is the Founder of Pivot Consulting LLC. With over 20 years’ experience in public accounting, he is highly regarded throughout the region for his deep knowledge and expertise in SALT consulting. As a State and Local Tax professional consultant, he has specialized knowledge in various Pennsylvania taxes including sales and use, corporate net income, and the bank shares tax. He has also assisted with numerous multi-state tax issues dealing with various corporate taxes.

Jason has significant experience representing taxpayers before Pennsylvania’s Board of Appeals and the Board of Finance and Revenue. In addition, Jason has testified before the PA Senate Finance Committee on topics including state tax reform.

PROFESSIONAL & BUSINESS HISTORY
Prior to Pivot Consulting, Jason was the Leader of RKL’s State and Local Taxes (SALT) Practice. In his role at RKL, Jason was responsible for overseeing the growth and development of the firm’s SALT practice, helping identify tax-savings opportunities, ensuring compliance and representing taxpayers in tax controversies. Prior to joining RKL, Jason was a Principal and State and Local Tax Practice Leader for a regional firm. In addition, he brings more than 11 years experience as a SALT professional with a “Big Four” firm with an office in Harrisburg.

EDUCATION
B.S. Accounting, Villanova University

PROFESSIONAL ACTIVITIES & MEMBERSHIPS

• American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA), Member
• Pennsylvania Institute of Certified Public Accountants (PICPA), Member
• PICPA’s State and Local Tax Committee, Member and Former Chair
• PICPA’s Conference of Pennsylvania Taxes, Member and Former Chair
• PICPA’s Fiscal Responsibility Committee and PICPA Legislation Committee, Member
• Board of Auditors, Lower Paxton Township, Member

AWARDS & RECOGNITION

• Leadership Harrisburg Area, Graduate
• PICPA 40 Under 40, Class of 2009
• PICPA South Central Chapter’s 2013 Volunteer Service Award

PERSONAL
Jason resides in Lower Paxton Township with his wife and two children and enjoys attending sporting events, golfing and spending time with his family.

THOUGHT LEADERSHIP

Quoted in Feb. 9, 2016, Central Penn Business Journal story, ‘You have to run with what you have’: Pa. budget uncertainty makes it hard for businesses to plan ahead for tax obligations

Giulia provides services that include preparation of financial statements, compilations, reviews and tax returns; tax research; auditing; planning; and analysis. Giulia’s accounting and financial consulting experience includes stints at several local public accounting firms and the tri-state AAA organization. In addition to other responsibilities she has analyzed and evaluated software systems and reviewed large[1]scale branch office operations. She holds a bachelor’s degree in accounting from Saint Vincent College, where she held both a National Honor Society Merit Scholarship and a business and economics scholarship. Giulia has volunteered her professional skills in assisting a variety of non-profit organizations, including the Pennsylvania Association of Nurse Anesthetists. She served on the Board of Directors of the Jane Holmes Residence, where she chaired the Finance Committee and served on the Steering Committee. She is also a Social Security Administration representative payee for the disabled and has aided enlisted soldiers and their families in conjunction with the U.S. military’s Morale Welfare and Recreation program.

John H. Higgins, CPA.CITP
Chief Partnership Officer
Strategic Advisor
CPA Crossings LLC

John serves as a strategic technology advisor to CPAs in the planning and deployment of effective technology solutions and workflow automation. As a co-founder of CPA Crossings, John specializes in facilitating the development of strategic technology plans, paperless workflows, client portal solutions and a comprehensive digital practice model. John recently co-authored "Ten Steps to a Digital Practice in the Cloud", published by the AICPA. This book provides CPAs with a strategic roadmap for taking their firms online by leveraging cloud computing. John also developed an innovative model for delivering live CPE courses that utilize the Apple iPad to provide electronic course materials and an interactive classroom environment. John’s primary qualification is his passion for helping CPAs achieve success by leveraging technology. He has extensive knowledge and experience working with CPAs throughout the country.

Qualifications and Experience:

• Actively involved in working with local, regional and national CPA firms over the past 25 years in the implementation of technology to automate business processes.
  
• Awarded for being one of the Top 25 Thought Leaders in the accounting profession by The CPA Practice Advisor (www.cpapracticeadvisor.com) in 2011, 2012 and 2013.
  
• Co-author of "10 Steps to a Digital Practice in the Cloud," published by the American Institute of CPAs.
  
• Facilitated hundreds of planning sessions and retreats to develop strategic plans, technology plans, workflow design, innovative client services and more.
  
• Nationally recognized speaker and author on technology issues affecting the CPA profession, with an emphasis on transforming to a digital practice model.
  
• Author of the annual Document Management Software Review for the CPA Practice Advisor magazine.
  
• Former national consulting partner with a top 10 CPA firm.
  
• Member of the AICPA Business & Industry Hall of Fame.
  
• Past Chair of the Michigan Association of CPAs.
  
• Past member of the AICPA Council and CPE Advisory Committee.
  
• MACPA Innovative User of Technology award recipient.

Daniel J. Desko, CISA, MBA
Manager, Internal Audit and Risk Advisory Services
Schneider Downs & Co., Inc.

Dan joined Schneider Downs’ Internal Audit practice in 2010. He has more than 10 years of experience, including several years with a local firm specializing in serving financial institutions. Six years of that experience included information systems services for several industries and in computer platforms that included Windows, IBM, OpenVMS and Unix/Linux and Oracle systems. He has more than five years of experience in performing information technology audits.

Dan also has experience providing internal audit co/outsourcing and consulting services across various industries. Services that Dan has provided include Sarbanes-Oxley 404 control design and testing, SSAE 16 (SOC 1, 2 and 3) control design/testing/report development, general computer control development and testing, IT risk assessment/analysis, information security program development, network security assessments, internal penetration assessments, information systems general control reviews, information security and privacy assessments (GLBA, HIPAA, ISO 27001, FFIEC), PCI DSS compliance services, data analysis, business continuity and disaster recovery plan development and testing.

Storme Sixeas delivers critical insights on federal tax policy and politics for Deloitte’s clients across a broad spectrum of industries, analyzing legislative proposals and providing political intelligence based on ongoing interaction with Congressional members and staff.

Prior to joining Deloitte in 2015, Storme served as a House of Representatives leadership aide on Capitol Hill and then spent a dozen years as a corporate policy lobbyist, covering issues including tax, trade, federal contracting, and technology policy. Before entering the government relations and policy arenas, Storme spent several years in financial and technology journalism, working in various reporting and editing capacities, including at the Financial Times Group in London.

After growing up around the globe as an Air Force brat, Storme earned a Bachelor of Journalism from the University of Missouri-Columbia and an MBA in financial management from George Mason University.

Storme is a past chair and current board member of the Tax Coalition, a professional organization for women in tax policy from Capitol Hill, the Administration, and the private sector; and she is the US chair of the British-American Project, a transatlantic leadership network lovingly referred to by its members as “organized serendipity.” She is also the founder of DC’s most politically diverse co-ed book group, the Bibliophages, now in its 18th year; is an avid swimmer; and can crew a sailboat in a pinch.

Daniel P. Lynch, Founder and Managing Partner of The Lynch Law Group, has been a practicing attorney for more than 28 years. His areas of strength and experience include securities litigation, commercial litigation, employment law counseling and litigation, business succession planning, mergers and acquisitions, and general corporate transactions. Dan helps individuals and businesses, ranging from small, family-owned, and middle-market companies to large corporations, move forward and achieve their goals by providing innovative, yet practical solutions to the issues they are facing.

Dan is well-known throughout the Pittsburgh business community as a success-driven leader with superior organization and communication skills and an entrepreneurial approach to his practice of law. He has been recognized for his exceptional service and professional achievement by Best Lawyers in America (2021) and Pennsylvania Super Lawyers (2020 and 2021).

Dan began his career with a six-year tenure at Reed Smith after completing a one-year clerkship for the Honorable James H. Brickley, Justice of the Michigan Supreme Court, and a one-year clerkship for the Honorable Carol Los Mansmann of the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit. He served as CEO of a start-up software company and vice president and general counsel of a middle-market logistics company before founding his own law firm in 2002. 

In addition to his practice of law, Dan is a frequent speaker on the topic of business development for attorneys and professional service providers. He has presented to several Pittsburgh-area organizations, as well as state and county bar associations most recently including the Pennsylvania Bar Association, Washington County Bar Association, and the Lancaster Bar Association. His book, Building a Million Dollar Book of Business, Principles and Behaviors For a Successful Law Practice, has been endorsed by business leaders throughout the region as a must-read, practical guide for any professional seeking to grow business through developing and nurturing relationships

Dan is actively involved in the business and legal community and has held leadership positions with the Butler County Bar Association (BCBA) and its charitable affiliate, the BCBA Foundation, serving as president of both organizations (2020) and as vice president of the BCBA (2019). He served as a board member of the Pennsylvania Venture Captial Association (2016-2018) and the Fort McIntosh Club (2013-2015), and he currently serves the Disciplinary Board of the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania as a member of the Hearing Committee (three-year term 2019-2022). 

In addition, Dan is chairman of the North Catholic High School Parent Communication Committee. He has volunteered as a coach for the Cranberry Township Athletic Association and for Saint Kilian Parish School in Cranberry Township, where he also served as director of the school’s Education Improvement Tax Credit (EITC) Program.

Dan and his family reside in Fombell, Pennsylvania. He enjoys traveling, competing in triathlons, playing soccer and golf, hiking and other outdoor activities, reading, cooking, and spending time with his wife and four children.