Thomas Bonadio, CPA

Personal Quote

“It’s all about developing great people; helping our clients be successful; creating growth and opportunity and having a firm that is excellent in every aspect. These are the keys to meeting and exceeding our firm goals.”

Background & Experience

A native of Rochester, Tom founded Bonadio & Co., LLP (Bonadio) in 1978 with one partner and his mother. Under his leadership it has grown to be the largest independent provider of accounting, business advisory and financial services in upstate New York. Tom has consistently been at the forefront of change in the public accounting arena, combining an uncanny flair to see opportunities where others only see problems, with a willingness to take risk and the ability to manage people and reach objectives. He led the charge to make Bonadio among the first public accounting firms in NYS to expand services beyond audit and accounting.

Tom also serves as advisory partner for a number of the Firm’s largest privately held-clients. In this capacity, he is directly involved with his clients’ strategic and business planning needs. Tom is adept at helping his clients with succession and estate planning. He has a particular expertise in mergers, acquisitions and divestitures, including development of innovative financing strategies.

Under Tom’s guidance, the Firm has also instituted and continues to carefully craft personal development initiatives that are at the forefront of professional services firms. These initiatives include a commitment to continuing professional education; a pay schedule that attracts top professionals; bonus and 401(k) programs; a flextime program and a casual dress policy. He was a key force behind the Firm’s “Promise” campaign, a combination of mission statement and corporate philosophy that bridges the space between employee and customer satisfaction. Tom was part of a team that developed our firm’s strategic plan - an aggressive plan to continue firm excellence and continued growth of Bonadio. Tom plays a key training and mentoring role in the Bonadio Leadership University, a two year long series of workshops, seminars and skills building events for employees interested in becoming future leaders.

Tom’s favorite aspects of his job are helping clients reach their financial goals and creating opportunity for employees. Ask him what the highlight of his career has been and he will tell you “every year has highlights”. You can see why today, and for the future, Tom's commitment to innovation will continue to fuel the company’s growth and its ability to serve its clients.

Education

• B.B.A. - Accounting, St. John Fisher College
• Licensing & Certifications
• CPA, New York

Service Expertise

• Mergers and acquisitions
• Succession and estate planning
  Professional and Community Service Involvement
• St. John Fisher College
  • Honorary Board Member, past Chairman
  • Alumni Activities Committee
• Conceptus, Inc., (Nasdaq)
  • Board Member
  • Head of Audit Committee
• DigiQuick, dba Clix, Board Member
• Eagle International, Board Member
• United Way, Team Captain
• Small Business CEO Roundtable
• New York State Society of Certified Public Accountants
• American Institute of Certified Public Accountants
• Torvec, Inc., Board Member
• Cerebral Assessment Systems, Inc., Board Member
• Trefalon Manufacturing, Board Member

Firm Teams & Committees

• Bonadio's Strategic Planning Committee
• Chairman of the Board and Management Committee

Credits and Achievements

• CPA ALLSTAR, CPA Magazine 
• Outstanding Alumni, St. John Fisher College
• Point of Light Foundation Award, presented by President George Bush
• CEO of the Year, Rochester Chapter of the Public Relations Society of America
• Outstanding Citizen’s Award, Boys and Girls Club
• Three-time Nominee, Small Business Person of the Year, Rochester Business Alliance
• Honorary Doctorate of Law, St. John Fisher College
• Member of the Rochester Business Hall of Fame

On the Personal Side

Tom and his wife Heather live in Rochester with Rocky and Annabelle, their two Westies. They have two children, Renee and Danielle, two son in-laws, Michael and Rob, and four beautiful grandchildren, Celeste, Spencer, Lucas and Thomas. Some things you might notice about Tom are:

his distinctive laugh…he’ll put you at ease immediately with his delightful sense of humor; a wonderful trait to possess when you are the founder, managing partner and CEO of an accounting firm with 325 plus employees

what he enjoys…spending time with his family and playing with his grandchildren, golfing, and watching the Yankees and Buffalo Bills games