The 2021 Best Small Firms to Work For: Platform Specialists

Client Industries Served: Fortune 1000, Telecom, Medical Devices, Media & Entertainment, Banking, Retail, Pharmaceutical, Healthcare, Consumer Products, and Manufacturing

Consulting Service Lines: Financial Consulting

CMAG: How would you say you've managed to stay among the industry's Best Small Firms to Work for amid these unprecedented times?

At Platform Specialists, we always try to live our values by balancing what we call "the 3 P's" – people, partnering, and philanthropy. First and foremost, our business runs on the strength of our team, and we put a heavy emphasis on employee growth, benefits, and doing small things that making Platform Specialists an enjoyable place to work. Because we foster a positive people culture, it allows us to invest more meaningfully in our long-term partnerships– our lifelong clients and partners include fast-growing startups and the largest Fortune 500 companies in the world. Our last "P", philanthropy, is about making sure we share our success and give back to our local communities and the causes we connect with.

CMAG: Were there any specific programs or initiatives (internal or external) that contributed to you being a Best Small Firm to Work for?

We launched a number of new initiatives this year focused around our 3 Ps. Just a few are – increased employee profit-sharing targets, a fun wellness initiative with ongoing exercise challenges, and some great industry-specific financial system accelerators to bring our clients better ROI on new projects.

CMAG: What is unique about your firm? What sets it apart?

Our partners and clients have said we stand out for a few key reasons. First, our consulting focus area (implementing financial planning, consolidations, and reporting systems) generally requires both technical and functional expertise. We train and build our team to excel in both, which leads to a better end product for our customers. In addition to having that cross-functional expertise, we also live by a "no ego" mentality. Everyone is hard-working, transparent, eager to learn from one another, and overall, just enjoyable to work alongside.

CMAG: What's the top priority over the next 6 to 12 months?

From a go-to-market perspective, we are continuing to focus on "accelerators" for our clients that will help them to better manage their financial performance and get a much better operational ROI. Outside of our new offerings, we are always challenging ourselves to improve our employee benefits packages in any way we can.

CMAG: When you look at the remainder of this year and 2022, what excites you? What opportunities do you see in your markets?

Our industry is in growth mode, which has made this an exciting year for everyone. Clients we serve are looking to do more – connected planning, reduce corporate close times, predictive analytics, more advanced account reconciliations, etc. – and the tools we leverage are bringing new features and functions to market to meet those needs. We're excited to dive into new challenges!

CMAG: What impact do you think being a Best Small Firm to Work for has on the firm? Employees? Clients?

Everyone at Platform Specialists will tell you building the company is a team effort and being named a Best Small Firm to Work for is an honor for all involved. The honor comes from the recognition that all the extra effort put in to build a successful, fun, and balanced work environment is noticed.