Brookfield-based public accounting firm Sitzberger, Hau & Co. S.C. has named Carl Marzolf, CPA, CVA, its president. He succeeds Frederick Sitzberger, 63, who has taken on the newly created role of chief executive officer.
Marzolf, 31, joined Sitzberger, Hau & Co. in 2007 as an intern. He became director of tax in 2011 and a shareholder in 2013. Marzolf holds a bachelor’s in accounting and finance, a master’s in taxation and a master’s in professional accounting.
“One of the things I have to do is I have to give some of these younger people position and authority so they can make their own decisions and fail their way to the top,” Sitzberger said. “There’s three kinds of people in the world: one that never learns by their mistakes, one that learns from their mistakes and doesn’t repeat it, and then you have the really intelligent people who learn by other people’s mistakes.”
Sitzberger said Marzolf is the third kind, and he’s malleable and hardworking. Marzolf’s promotion demonstrates to the company’s young employee base the benefits of hard work, Sitzberger said.
“He’s earned the right for this opportunity and as the firm grows, there’s more opportunities,” Sitzberger said. “There’s nothing worse than someone who doesn’t grow those around him or her. In essence, it is part of the succession plan, but it’s not a plan for me to drink piña coladas on the beach. I always want to have purpose.”
Sitzberger, Hau & Co. offers audit, financial accounting, tax, business valuations, payroll and consulting services. The company was formed in 2014 when Sitzberger Widmann & Co. S.C. merged with Hau & Associates.
Last year, Sitzberger, Hau & Co. acquired Brookfield accounting firm Gillis & Co. LLC, and now has about 57 employees. It recently consolidated its Milwaukee and Brookfield offices, and now has two locations—in Brookfield and in Lake Geneva, Marzolf said.
The accounting firm plans to grow 20 percent per year and continue targeting potential acquisitions, Sitzberger said. The goal is to grow from about $7 million in sales to $15 million in sales by 2019.
“We do have the capital, we do have the experience,” he said. “We could easily acquire a $3 million firm or a $5 million firm and that, in and of itself, creates growth.”
“Based upon our growth over the last couple of years, our plans are really … to continue on our growth path,” Marzolf said. “Over the last couple years, we’ve been very successful in acquiring and retaining CPA firms, so we’re looking at growing that way and then also through organic growth.”
