Experience
President & CEO - Carey & Raicevic CPAs, Inc. 2005-Present
Providing tax, accounting/bookkeeping and business consulting services to individuals and businesses. Typical services include:
- Income Tax Return Preparation (Individual, Business, Corporate, Partnerships, Trusts, Non-Profit)
- Payroll Service & Payroll Taxes
- Property Tax (Real & Personal Property)
- Sales Tax
- Audit Defense
- Accounting & Bookkeeping Services
- Client base is approximately 1,850 individuals and businesses.
Director of Finance & Accounting/Controller – Provide Commerce/ProFlowers.com 2003-2005
- Internet company selling flowers and specialty items. $150 million in sales.
- Responsible for accounting and financial reporting
- Responsible for equity related transactions (options, warrants & common and preferred stock)
- Responsible for tax matters (Income, Sales, Property)
- Manage four members of the accounting staff
- Prepare and file all SEC documents (10K, 10Q, etc…)
- Successfully handled and managed the Initial and Secondary Public Offerings
- Ensured internal controls and policies were Sarbanes Oxley compliant in first year adopted.
- Adopted, implemented & educated employees on our Employee Stock Purchase Plan, Deferred Compensation Plan and Supplemental Executive Retirement Plans.
Vice President Tax - Rite Aid Corporation 2000-2003
- 3rd largest pharmacy chain in the US. $16 billion in sales, 3,400 stores & 160 Companies.
- Overall responsibility for all tax matters, including compliance, planning, examinations/litigation, sales & use, personal property, excise, payroll planning, financial and internal tax reporting for the combined companies (160+).
- Joined Rite Aid in 2000 with new management and contributed significantly in the $1.6 billion financial restatement and repair of the third largest drug store chain in the U.S.
- Rebuilt the tax department with 13 strong, highly motivated managers and staff.
- Through the rebuild and amendment process, secured $250 million with another $100MM in potential refunds to come when the IRS finalized its examination and Joint Committee submission.
- The Thrifty PayLess acquisition in 1996 included a $175MM IRS tax assessment which I was successfully able to settle for no cash outlay in our eventual closing agreement.
- Significant involvement in financial reporting to the SEC (10K, 10Q) and debt financings (S-1 & S-4).
- Responsible for staff recruitment, retention, training and positive development.
- Continuously review the various tax functions with an eye on efficiency, productivity and relevance.
- The liaison for all other departments, senior management and the board of directors.
- Managed and worked closely with outside Counsel to secure victory in Rite Aid Corporation vs. United States of America. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit case involved overturning the legislative §1502-20 regulations concerning duplicated losses. The U.S. eventually withdrew its request for certiorari from the U.S. Supreme Court.
- Successfully managed four IRS large case exam cycles.
Director of Tax – The Kroger Co., Ralphs Grocery Company & Food 4 Less 1993-2000
- Overall responsibility for all federal and multistate income, franchise, excise, sales & use and miscellaneous taxes of the combined companies (100+). The largest Grocer in the US.
- Tax reporting for the SEC and internal use.
- Recruit, train and develop staff to handle all tax functions.
- Advise other departments on tax matters impacting their operations or activities.
- Counsel and assist senior officers and directors regarding corporate and personal tax related matters.
- Supervised three geographically separate tax departments and coordinated support from various corporate departments across the country.
- Worked closely with the treasury & financial reporting departments on SEC reporting, mergers & acquisitions, debt exchanges, financing, sales leasebacks, state licensing and bonding requirements.
- Responsible for Ralphs’ Risk Administration, which employed 70 individuals in our self-administered and self-insured company. The combined Workers Compensation and General Liability balance was in excess of $162 million.
- Intimately involved with these grocery company mergers: The Boys Markets, Cala Foods, Alpha Beta Company, Food 4 Less, Ralphs Grocery Co., Hughes Markets, Fred Meyer, The Kroger Co. and the Albertsons/American Stores divestiture. After finalizing the Kroger acquisition of Fred Meyer, I was selected and transferred by Kroger to run the combined tax operations from their headquarters in Cincinnati.
Tax Manager - PricewaterhouseCoopers 1986-1993
- One of the largest Public Accounting firms in the world.
- Responsible for 145 unique clients & their income tax matters.
- Supervise, train & evaluate 4-6 consultants and 5-6 associates.
- Experienced in Corporate, Individual, Partnership and Trust taxation.
- Provided financial, consulting & tax preparation services.
- Industries served: High net worth individuals, Closely held businesses, Real Estate, Energy, Consulting, Retail, Professional Sports, HighTech, BioTech, Health/Medical & Manufacturing.
Captain, Armor Branch, US Army Reserve & National Guard 1981-1991
- Executive Officer, Headquarters Company
- Heavy Mortar Platoon Leader
- Tank Platoon Leader
Graduate Teaching Assistant, SDSU 1985-1986
- Taught introductory accounting to undergraduate business students.
- Prepared lessons, exams & evaluations for 120 students per semester.
Education, License, Organizations & Awards
- Masters of Science in Taxation, San Diego State University 1986
- Bachelors of Science in Accounting, San Diego State University 1984
- Certified Public Accountant (CA-58189) 1991
- American Institute of CPAs (Member)
- California Society of CPAs (Member)
- Tax Executive Institute (Member)
- Eagle Scout, Boy Scouts of America 1980