GARCIA & ORTIZ - Key Persons
Clayton Kreis has been the Managing Director of Garcia & Ortiz, P.A. since 2004 and started with the firm in 1988. Mr. Kreis has extensive experience consulting with privately held companies and related owners in operating their business. Specific involvement includes tax planning, compliance, financial reporting, structuring buy/sell agreements, accounting software implementation, fringe benefit programs, administration, financial budgeting, compensation planning, sales and purchases of businesses, and restructuring professional associations.
Mr. Kreis is involved with investment advisory consulting related to wealth preservation, developing investment policy statements, asset allocation, selection of money managers and investment vehicles, review of investment performance, and financial planning. His industry experience includes health care, hospitality, engineering, architectural, legal firms, real estate, and manufacturing.
He is also responsible for the review of corporate, partnership, fiduciary, and individual tax compliance filings.
Deborah Simmons' professional experience includes preparation and review of federal and state corporation, S corporation, partnership, fiduciary and individual tax returns, including multi-state and consolidated tax returns. Research on various technical tax issues. Deborah also assists in providing tax planning for businesses and individuals.
Ms. Simmons' experience includes the review and compilation of financial statements. Also, she provides accounting and consulting services to various clients.
She was a member of the audit team for several engagements on a contract with an international firm.
Job Titles:
- CVA
- Principal - Shareholder
Erin Connors joined the firm in 2000. Erin has a wide range of experience including forensic accounting, business valuation, litigation support, outsourced family office support, remote accounting, SBA consulting, as well as the preparation and review of financial statements, federal and state corporate, partnership, and individual tax returns.
A significant portion of her practice is devoted to family office support and remote accounting services focusing on reporting and compliance, asset management, cash management, household payroll, expense management, and individual and business tax planning.
Erin has provided support and analysis for law firms on civil and criminal cases involving marital dissolution, forensic and tax services, business valuation, lost profits, earnings analysis, and investigative accounting including forensic fraud. Erin has served as an expert witness at trial and has experience with depositions, mediations, settlement conferences, and hearings.
Job Titles:
- Principal - Shareholder / Managing Director of
- Principal - Shareholder / Managing Director of Financial Regulatory Practice
Eddie Del Rio is a Senior Shareholder with the accounting firm of Garcia & Ortiz, P.A. He graduated from the University of South Florida in 1979 with a BA in Business Administration and Major in Accounting. Eddie joined the firm in 1989 and worked his way through the firm increasing levels of responsibility evolving to Director, VP, and Shareholder. Mr. Del Rio manages our firm's financial regulatory practice and is responsible for developing it to be a leading provider of risk oversight services throughout the United States. He is committed to best serve his clients and earn their business with constant attention and service.
Mr. Del Rio's accomplishments include the successful execution of large national contracts. His performance history includes building complex operational solutions for the Small Business Administration, Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC), and Florida Department of Revenue. Most recently, he managed the firm's contract with Small Business Administration providing risk oversight and support services of 7(a) lenders nationally. Mr. Del Rio assembled and managed a team of financial professionals that performed lender risk reviews, analytical reviews, loan file reviews, and technical support services. The team developed work tools, and technical infrastructure for all financial and regulatory reporting, data mining, communication, and automated work-flow system to control all work processes, and a comprehensive quality control system including developing the SBA's secure virtual data room, file structure, and reporting for virtual reviews.
For the FDIC, Mr. Del Rio managed over 40 contracts in the areas of loan servicing oversight, compliance auditing, and operational support. He managed the firm's personnel augmenting the operations of the Dallas Field Financial Service Center. The work included receivership management, asset management, and disposition, litigation support, compliance auditing, default management, records management, REO coordination and disposition, receivership termination, servicer due to diligence, sales and marketing assistance, and records reconciliations.
Mr. Del Rio has extensive experience consulting for privately held companies. He consults with clients in the areas of accounting, tax, and audit services. His clients include some of the largest privately-held businesses in Florida. Mr. Del Rio takes an active role in planning and coordinating consultants with clients' management teams.
Mr. Del Rio served as treasurer for More Health, Inc.; a non-profit organization providing health and safety classes to public schools in Hillsborough and Pinellas county. He has also served on several non-profit boards including the Make-A-Wish Foundation, Big Brothers and Big Sisters, Deaf Service Center, and West Coast Chapter of Florida Institute of CPAs.
Job Titles:
- Secretary
- Principal - Shareholder / Director of Tax Services
Jay currently serves as the Secretary and CPE liaison for the Suncoast Chapter of the FICPA.
James Waters started with the firm in 1991 and a year later became a shareholder of Garcia & Ortiz. Mr. Waters has extensive experience consulting with privately held companies in all aspects of the life of the business including formation, current operations, reorganization, and liquidation planning. Jim is the Director of Tax Services with the primary responsibility for the final review of personal, corporate, and partnership tax returns, supervision, and training of accounting staff in the preparation of all corporate and partnership tax returns, including consolidated and multi-state tax returns.
He has extensive expertise in assisting individuals living in the U.S. and abroad with tax filings under the IRS Streamlined Compliance Program and planning and compliance requirements in connection with Controlled Foreign Corporations, Foreign Grantor and Non-Grantor Trusts, and U.S. tax compliance requirements for U.S. taxpayers living abroad.
Jim Waters is heavily involved in tax planning and compliance for a wide range of industries including domestic and international taxes and business operations. Extensive experience in the hospitality industry, manufacturing, construction, real estate development, wholesale and retail distributors, professional practices, and non-profit organizations. Special expertise in state and local taxation including sales tax and ad valorem taxes.
Mr. Waters provides recommendations to select and implement various retirement plans including 401(k), defined contribution, target plans, etc. Planning and assistance in implementing other taxable and non-taxable fringe benefit packages for management and staff. He assists in compliance with federal wage and hour rules.
Jim has special expertise in all aspects of federal and state taxation of For Profit, Tax Exempt, and Not For Profit Clubs. Compliance services include the preparation of federal and state income tax returns and state tangible and intangible tax returns. Special expertise in assisting clubs in implementing proper controls to properly apply Florida Sales Tax rules, choosing specific accounting software packages for billing, fixed asset management, and financial reporting purposes, including point of sale systems.
Mr. Waters has past experience as a Contract Auditor with the Florida Department of Revenue for Corporate Income Tax and Florida Sales tax for the period 1995 - 2001. Duties included oversight of contract performance requirements and review of completed case audit files.
Jeremy Hill (Jay) joined the Garcia & Ortiz firm in 2011. Mr. Hill has been in public accounting since 2007. He graduated from Georgia Southern University with an M.B.A. and B.A. in June 2007. Prior to that time, he worked for over four years in the financial services industry.
Jay has a wide range of experience providing accounting, auditing, financial reporting, and consulting services to private and public companies in numerous industries, including manufacturing, construction, retail, insurance, real estate, not-for-profit, and 401(k) plans. Mr. Hill also assists with the preparation of federal and state corporate, partnership, and individual income tax returns.
Margaret is a native Floridian who graduated from University of South Florida with a Masters of Accountancy degree. She began her career with Ernst & Young, working in their Tampa office for five years. She has since worked at several local public accounting firms over the years before joining Garcia & Ortiz in 2018.
Margaret Christiano serves as the firm's Audit Director, with responsibility for managing the day-to-day activities of the firm's audit practice, and serves as the firm's Quality Control Manager for peer review.
Margaret is a career auditor who has worked with a broad range of industries, including manufacturing, distribution, construction, employee benefit plans, real estate development, healthcare providers, nonprofit organizations and governmental entities. She has also assisted clients with general accounting and business consulting matters, as well as provided evaluation of internal controls services.
Maria Baldor (Kiki) graduated from Florida International University in 1989 with a Bachelor of Accounting and in 1996 with a Master of Business Administration.
She began her career with KPMG, working in their Miami and Tampa offices. Kiki is a career auditor who has worked in a broad range of industries, including financial services, distribution, real estate development and performed ERISA employee benefit plan audits. While at KPMG, she was predominantly in charge of financial statement audits for both private and public companies. She also assisted clients with general accounting and business consulting matters, as well as provided evaluation of internal controls services.
She has extensive experience auditing large and mid-size companies with a specialization in the financial services industry. While in the financial services industry, Kiki was involved in regulatory compliance engagements including HUD audits and credit file reviews. While in the distribution industry, Kiki was involved in operational audits to determine the efficiency and effectiveness of processes and systems in place.
Marianne Touger joined the Garcia & Ortiz team in 1998 and is a well-accomplished accountant who works closely with her clients on a day-to-day basis to achieve their financial desires and goals. Her hands-on approach with clients translates into positive results and superior customer service. She works closely with outside third parties including banks and attorneys in order to provide the best service possible.
Her primary responsibilities include comprehensive financial and tax planning for businesses and individuals; preparation of federal and state corporate, partnership, individual, trust, and estate income tax returns. She has extensive experience auditing large and mid-size companies and implementing financial statements and general ledger computer systems, specializing in QuickBooks support and implementation.
Marianne also has special expertise in litigation support and analysis for law firms on complex civil and criminal cases involving marital dissolution, fraud, and breach of contract.
Job Titles:
- Audit Quality
- Audit Quality Assurance Reviewer
Robert Huber currently serves as an audit quality assurance reviewer for Garcia & Ortiz. Mr. Huber is a graduate of the University of South Florida and has been practicing accounting since 1970. He was a former audit partner with Grant Thornton, LLP (twenty-seven years with the firm). Mr. Huber has participated as a member of an audit standards review team making technical standard reviews of other public accounting firms and other offices of Grant Thornton, LLP, and served on Grant Thornton's State and Local Governmental Auditing Committee. He has served on the Florida Institute of Certified Public Accountants' Committee on State and Local Government and has been the Chairman of the Non-Profit Accounting Committee. Bob has been an adjunct professor in governmental auditing and accounting at the University of South Florida.
Mr. Huber works extensively in the manufacturing/distribution business, primarily related to medium and large-sized corporations, including engineering, architectural, and construction organizations. The work includes consultation in all phases of operations (financing, overhead rates, personnel, management, tax matters, profit and pension plans, budgeting, purchasing, advertising, profit improvement, and cost reduction, insurance, etc.) He has a thorough understanding of generally accepted accounting principles and generally accepted auditing standards.
Ms. Kreis has extensive experience with the implementation of financial statements and general ledger computer systems, specializing in Intuit System support and implementation. She is computer literate in a variety of accounting and business software applications.
Job Titles:
- ABV, CVA
- Principal - Shareholder / Director of Litigation
Suzanne Reiber is a graduate of the University of Central Florida and has wide-ranging experience in public and private accounting since 1987. She has been practicing specifically in litigation support since 1993 and manages the Litigation Support Department for the Firm. Ms. Reiber's vast experience in litigation support includes forensic accounting and business valuation. She has worked on more than 1000 Family Law cases and testifies regularly as an expert witness in Florida Courts.
Specializing in Litigation Support services, Ms. Reiber has published numerous articles, primarily related to Family Law and lectured for the FICPA, USF, local bar associations, and the National Business Institute. Consulting services include marital dissolution forensic and tax services, bankruptcy accounting, lost profits, and earnings analysis, valuation services, breach of contract analysis, and investigative accounting.
Ms. Reiber has law firm industry experience previously serving as accountant and administrator for law firms and currently providing accounting, tax, trust accounting issues, and other consulting services to law firms. She has served on Florida Bar Grievance Committee. Ms. Reiber also provides personal and business tax services.