Today we’d like to introduce you to Wesley Middleton.
Wesley, can you briefly walk us through your story – how you started and how you got to where you are today.
It all really started in 2000 when I was at a firm and hired Stan Raines to fill a staff position. We worked together for 7 years, then both left (along with our teams) and joined another firm as their tax department. We met James Zapata at that firm and worked together for 4 years. Finally, we decided we wanted to launch our own firm based on our vision of an exceptional CPA firm and service experience, one where we got to work with our friends! We launched MRZ in 2013 in pursuit of that goal.
MRZ started with 18 people, 2.8 million in annual revenue, and grew to 100 people and 13 million in annual revenue. We started with 1 small office, and now have locations in Houston, Spring, and Austin. We started with two service departments (tax and audit) and now have 4-5, depending on how you slice and dice it. I attribute that growth to the culture that each employee at MRZ has helped create – one that values innovation, transparency, caring about our people, valuing families and life outside of work, and providing meaningful results that change people’s businesses and lives.
We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
No, it wasn’t easy. The level of growth that we’ve experienced comes in a bit of a pressure cooker. It puts demands on the leadership team, on the organization as a whole, on the marketing, sales, and administration departments. Everything and everyone. There’s a tremendous amount of pressure, but it results in something amazing when you reach “the other side.”
A few specific struggles:
-Adding layers of management, hiring the right people in the right positions at the right time (when to bring in dedicated business development, marketing, IT and HR roles, for example)
-Scaling and attracting top talent.
-Accessing capital to fund growth
-Adopting and adapting to new technologies to do our jobs better
So let’s switch gears a bit and go into the MiddletonRaines+Zapata or MRZ story. Tell us more about the business.
In a nutshell, MRZ delivers ideas, answers, and results that strengthen business and personal financial positions. In accounting terms, we provide tax, audit, and accounting & advisory services to privately-help small/mid-market businesses and individuals. We serve a number of industries, including healthcare, manufacturing, oil and gas, real estate, construction, and technology.
We’re obsessed with client loyalty and think our clients know that – at least a few do based on feedback from our NPS survey distributions! We even added service roles based on that – we have a team of dedicated Customer Relationship Managers. We are known for being highly responsive and engaged with our clients, for being proactive with ideas and solutions, and for a unique workplace culture. (Unlimited PTO, bring your dog to work day, flexible work options, etc. – one of our employees actually just spent a month in Europe!) Check out #mrzaroundtheworld and #mrzlife on twitter and FB for some examples of the fun we have.
As the managing partner of MRZ, I’m personally most proud of the fact that it feels like everyone in the firm “shares the dream” – they are bought in and on the bus, so to speak. And we’re going great places.
Has luck played a meaningful role in your life and business?
You know, I don’t believe in good or bad luck. I believe success comes from great planning, great execution, and a great team/people. All those people that help you along the way, combined with you doing your best to plan and execute that plan is when the fun happens.
Contact Info:
- Address: 11750 Katy Fwy, Suite 1100, Houston, TX 77079
- Website: http://www.mrzllp.com/
- Phone: 713.955.1123
- Email: hello@mrzllp.com
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MRZLLP/
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/mrzllp
- Other: https://www.linkedin.com/company-beta/2781808/
Image Credit:
Chesney Dial, MRZers
Getting in touch: VoyageHouston is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you know someone who deserves recognition please let us know here.
