5 Minutes With...Robert Miller, managing partner, Stone & Co.

Name: Robert Miller

Title: Managing partner, Stone & Co.

Age: 57

Education: Bachelor’s degree in finance, Boston University, 1986; master’s degree in accounting, Suffolk University, 1994

Robert Miller owns Lexington-based Stone & Company LLC, believed to be the largest minority-owned accounting firm in Massachusetts. In May, he will begin a one-year term as chair of the Massachusetts Society of Certified Public Accountants board. Miller brings a unique perspective to the sector: Originally from Jamaica, he came to Boston to attend BU in the 1980s and has worked for accounting firms large, midsize and small. He spoke with the Business Journal’s Greg Ryan about the industry’s lack of diversity and his goals for the Mass Society of CPAs.

What made you want to own your own firm?

I had this whole desire to create what I thought a CPA firm should be in terms of the culture, the mix of people. I’m a big believer in the concept of strength through diversity. The other thing is, the CPA profession is viewed as high-pressure, intense, long hours, all that stuff. I always thought you could have a firm with a low-pressure environment, casual, supportive, family-oriented. For our firm, it’s a team approach in everything we do.

Have you faced discrimination in your career?

I wouldn't say I’ve faced discrimination, but I would say the inclusion part of DEI (diversity, equity and inclusion) was sometimes lacking. It’s one thing to bring people into the profession — and we need to do better in the accounting profession — but it's the retention, and making sure that the people who are from different backgrounds feel fully included and engaged. 

There were times earlier in my career, where we could have done a better job to include the people who came from a different background. At the larger firms, it would be the class of this year or that year, but the majority of each class coming in would be from strikingly similar backgrounds. People come into this profession because a relative’s a CPA, somebody close to them is a CPA.

What needs to happen to create more minority-owned accounting firms?

A big part of the answer there is with the firms themselves, and getting them to consider some of these colleges that they typically have not considered in the past. You’ll find in this profession that the (partners of) firms tend to go to the same schools. It’s Bentley and Babson and BC and the usual suspects. And they’re all excellent schools. However, there is a huge pool of talent at the community colleges. I would maintain that, contrary to popular belief, the students at the community colleges aren't there because they're somehow academically challenged, they're there because of the economics. There is just as good a talent pool in those environments, as there are in the typical schools where larger firms recruit. It’s about helping these firms and educating these firms about expanding where they recruit.

The other important step is taking DEI to the next level, and focusing on inclusion, in particular, the retention and retaining of some of these professionals. It’s one thing to hire (professionals of color) — anybody can do that — but it's another thing to support them, make sure they have a sponsor. A sponsor is different from a mentor, by the way. Mentors are important, but a sponsor is even more important. That’s somebody who's going to be part of the decision-making process, they're going to support these top performers of color, and be their advocate when it matters.

What do you hope to accomplish as the chair of the Mass Society of CPAs?

I’d love to take the society’s DEI initiative to the very next level, and drive some of what we're trying to do to support the firms in terms of helping them to be more successful in this area. 

Another thing that's important to me, is enhancing or expanding some of the resources that I think our members need. The society did an HR hotline this year where smaller firms who didn't have an HR department could call in and just have that resource. That thing was a huge success, and the feedback was great. I really do think there are some more opportunities here, whether that’s training management for firms or career coaching for individuals within firms.