Plante & Moran Elects Bill Hermann Managing Partner for Second 4-Year Term


Southfield, Michigan---July 21, 2004--- Partners of Plante & Moran, PLLC re-elected William (Bill) Hermann, CPA, as Managing Partner of the Midwest-based public accounting and management consulting firm, now the nation’s tenth largest, following a first term that saw focused growth both geographically and from a capabilities perspective.

Mr. Hermann, 53, was initially elected Managing Partner in September, 2000, after serving five years as a Group Managing Partner. He joined Plante & Moran as a proofreader in 1971 while completing his degree at the University of Detroit. As Managing Partner, Hermann has overall responsibility for the firm’s day to day operations.

In May of this year, Plante & Moran completed a merger with Chicagoland firm, Gleeson, Sklar, Sawyers and Cumpata, adding 100 plus staff members from three offices in Illinois to the Plante & Moran roster.

This June, the firm welcomed two client-service expansions: additional manufacturing operations consulting capabilities through the addition of Plante & Moran AFME a Nashville, Tennessee company and the opening of a Shanghai office to further expand the international capabilities of Plante & Moran Global Services.

“Plante & Moran has a passion for middle market companies,” says Hermann. “We know the intricacies of this market segment and have assembled a highly focused group of industry and service experts to make a contribution to our client’s success. While the middle market has faced unprecedented challenges in recent years, Plante & Moran remains deeply committed to serving the increasingly complex needs of these organizations.”

Other highlights of the Plante & Moran’s growth over the last four years include:

• In January 2002, the firm acquired Ohio-based Swartz Group to create Plante & Moran Swartz Group, enhancing the firm’s health care capabilities to continuing care facilities.
• Plante Moran Trust, a trust bank formed to meet clients’ estate planning needs, was formed in January, 2002.
• Plante Moran Insurance Agency, a new practice unit within the Family Wealth Advisors group offering was formed in 2003.
• Plante & Moran Financial Advisors grew its management portfolio to $2.7 billion and now ranks as the 6th largest independent financial advisory firm based on assets under management, according to Bloomberg Wealth Management Magazine.

Hermann is only the fifth Managing Partner in Plante & Moran’s 80-year history. The firm was founded in 1924 by Elorion Plante. Frank S. Moran joined Elorian Plante in 1946, formed the partnership in 1950, and served as Managing Partner from 1955 until 1981. Edward Parks served as Managing Partner from 1981 to 1993 and William L. Matthews served from 1993 to 2001.

Hermann is active in professional and charitable activities including chair of the Gabriel Richard Historical Society, the Economic Club of Detroit, and is a board member of the Community Foundation of Southeast Michigan. He and his wife, Sue, are residents of Ann Arbor, Michigan and have four children.

Plante & Moran is the only firm among the top 10 in the nation to have achieved its ranking through focused growth in the Midwest. While serving major companies throughout the nation, the firm’s primary strength has been in working with middle-market companies.