HARRIS CPA & ASSOCIATES - Key Persons
Our founder, Gary Harris, a Trent University graduate received his CA, Chartered Accountant, designation with a local Peterborough firm, McColl Turner. He progressed to associate partner and realized he had to see more of the business world in order to have the experience to do a better job for clients. He left the accounting firm and joined an insurance brokerage, Matthews & Associates Insurance. Within a few months he was a shareholder of the company. He acquired valuable experience leading, among other things, complete systems upgrades, buying and selling six branch offices, leading a Canada wide computer user group and spear heading the transition of the company to join a national organization, Canada Brokerlink
As part of this national organization he was Senior Vice President of Operations and looked after Finance, HR and IT for the 50 offices and 500 staff. This experience included taking a key role in the sale of the new larger organization to an international insurance company, Allianz Insurance. This then gave Gary the experience and knowledge required to report financially to a multi-national corporation and all the learning that entails.
Tired or working between Calgary, headquarters for CBL, and Peterborough, and the strain that brings to a young family, Mr. Harris left the corporate world and moved into consulting. For several years he worked with an accounting firm out of Toronto, Cookson Walker.