Skip to the content of the web site.

Quick Links

 

accnews - keeping SAF alumni informed

Alumnus takes charge at BDO

Farlinger and firm have strong UW ties

“It’s a very exciting time to be moving into the CEO role at BDO!“ says UW Accounting alumnus Keith Farlinger (BMath ’77), who is  taking up the reins there this fall.

“I’m coming into it at a time when both our Canadian firm and our international organization have ambitious new strategic plans,” he says. ”I’m looking forward to working with our partners to implement these plans -- and to getting the word out about BDO’s abilities to service the needs of clients.”

Farlinger, currently BDO Dunwoody LLP’s Toronto Region managing partner and a former UW Accounting Alumni Assocation president, expects to encounter several challenges.

The biggest one faces all accounting firms, namely the implementation of International Accounting Standards (IFRS) in Canada.

“This is a significant change from our Canadian standards,” he observes, “and it represents a lot of work and education for us.” 

As well, the profession is facing a shortage of CAs as baby boomers retire, so attracting young people into the fold will merit his attention too. 

Another challenge is unique to Farlinger’s own organization: he wants to convince the world that BDO is a viable alternative to the big accounting firms. 

“Everyone knows the top four firms,” the new CEO concedes, “but in many ways BDO is the best-kept secret at number five!”

BDO’s Waterloo connection

What’s not a secret is BDO’s traditionally strong ties to UW. Over the years the firm has hired many generations of Waterloo Accounting and Finance students.

Currently the firm counts 108 UW alumni in its ranks, and in just the past five years it has employed 170 UW co-op students on work terms.

“Needless to say, UW is a big part of our firm,” summarizes Farlinger, who is a School of Accounting and Finance Fellowship Honouree. ”We have participated in fundraising for the new building, and we will have a room named in our honor. We are also proud sponsors of the WATcase competition.”

But the link is personal as well. “The University of Waterloo has played a big role in my own career,” says Farlinger with no hint of hesitation. He identifies problem solving and teamwork as among the most valuable ideas and practices that he learned at UW. 

“My training helped me focus in on issues and work through them in a systematic way to come to a resolution,” he explains. “And groups of us worked together on our courses. So now I’m a big believer in bringing groups together, as they bring different viewpoints and different ideas to the table.”

The bond between BDO’s new chief executive and UW goes still deeper. 

“In part it’s because I started there as relatively insecure 17-year-old kid, and graduated with a career, a job -- and a much better understanding of life,” he says. ”It’s literally where I grew up.“

“Waterloo was actually the catalyst to get me into accounting,” adds Farlinger, who hails from Cornwall, Ontario. “I was good at math in high school, and I had enjoyed an accounting course. I needed a way to pay my way through university, and when I read about the Math/Accounting Co-op program in the UW calendar, I knew it was for me.”

He spent his first four co-op work terms in Cornwall with BDO and then transferred to Toronto. This experience not only taught him about the profession, it provided important life lessons about achieving balance in his life and career.

A number of his BDO partners are also UW graduates, something Farlinger attributes to their shared desire as students to seek a good place to work “rather than look for the biggest accounting firm in the world.”

Keys to success

“A wise partner told me early in my career that his success was all about helping other people,” says Farlinger, who has just stepped down as the ICAO’s head, “and that has been the approach to a lot of what I have done.”

“When I look for something new to do -- whether it is in BDO, or the Institute of Chartered Accountants -- I look to get involved where I can help.” 

“Whether it is dealing with clients, my partners or staff, or with firm matters, my focus has been to listen to their issue and to concentrate on how to make [things] better,” he adds. “This approach forces you to listen and understand others’ viewpoints.”

“I believe all alumni can have a special career by helping others,” says Farlinger. “But a dose of passion and energy also helps!”

Farlinger sees that same passion and energy alive in his alma mater today, and thus it’s not mere nostalgia that keeps his Waterloo connection strong.

“I think Jim Barnett and his crew at the School of Accounting and Finance are doing a fantastic job,” says the new CEO.

“They care about what alumni and firms have to say,” he adds, “and they are constantly looking to make the program better. I’m proud to say I’m a grad of UW.”

Keith and his wife Cathy, whom he met in high school in Cornwall, have three sons -- Drew, Toban (in the fourth year of a UW Kinesiology and Recreation program) and Evan.

-- Editor