Grant
Thornton
Top six accounting
firm.
Headquarters:
175 W. Jackson Blvd, 20th floor
Chicago, IL 60604
Employees: 5,000+
CEO: Ed Nusbaum
Privately held
Website:
http://www.grantthornton.com
Career Site
Grant Thornton LLP is the U.S. member firm
of Grant Thornton International, one of the six largest global
accounting, tax and business advisory organizations.
Through member firms in 110 countries,
including 51 offices in the United States, Grant Thornton provides
audit, tax and advisory services to public and private clients
around the world. Main industries served include:
- Construction, real estate and hospitality
- Consumer & industrial products
- Financial services
- Global public sector
- Health care organizations
- Not-for-profit sectors
- Technology
Grant Thornton LLP reported revenues of $1.2 billion for fiscal 2008, a 9.5% increase from the previous year.
The firm was named a "2008 Working Mother 100 Best Company" by Working Mother magazine.
History
In 1924, 26-year-old Alexander Richardson
Grant founded Alexander Grant & Co. in Chicago. Grant had
been a senior accountant with Ernst & Ernst (now Ernst &
Young). He chose to leave the comfort of an established company
to pursue his plan for public accounting. Like our vision today,
Alexander Grant was committed to being a business leader in the
mid-size companies.
When Grant died in 1938, he was just 40
years old. Despite this unexpected loss, Alexander Grant &
Co. survived the change in leadership and continued to grow nationally
under the guidance of several dynamic and innovative chief executive
officers. The 1950s and early 1960s were a time of both explosive
growth and centralization for the firm. The national office in
Chicago was established and net revenue exceeded $5 million in
1961.
During the mid-1960s, the firm's leadership
decided it was the ideal time to expand internationally. With
Wallace E. Olson at the helm, in 1969, Alexander Grant &
Co. joined with firms from Australia, Canada, and the United
Kingdom to establish the firm of Alexander Grant Tansley Witt.
This organization operated successfully for 10 years.
In 1980, Grant joined with 49 other international
accounting firms to form Grant Thornton International. Alexander
Grant & Co. became the nation's ninth largest accounting
firm in 1985, behind that era's "Big Eight" firms,
following its merger with Denver-based Fox & Co.
In 1986, the firm changed its name to Grant
Thornton, reflecting the affiliation with the United Kingdom
firm Thornton Baker, which also changed its name to Grant Thornton.
Benefits
- Health, dental, and vision benefits
- 401(k) plan - After one year, Grant Thornton matches
25 percent up to 6 percent of an employee's semi-monthly deferrals.
Employees vest at 20 percent per year of service and are fully
vested in the employer match after five years of service.
- Retirement plan - The Employees' Retirement Plan is
100 percent paid by Grant Thornton and is designed to supplement
benefits received from the Employee Savings Plan and Social Security
benefits. For each year an employee is covered by the retirement
plan, Grant Thornton contributes 4 percent of his or her annual
salary (subject to government limits) into a retirement account.
Five full years of service with Grant Thornton must be completed
before an employee is vested and eligible for this retirement
benefit. Benefits are payable upon normal retirement age.
- Insurance options
- Paid Time Off - 7 holidays per year; 17 days off for
new associates -27 days off per year for senior managers
- Parental benefits
- Employee Assistance Program
- Educational assistance
- Reimbursement plans
Updated April 3, 2009
|