Today we’d like to introduce you to Michelle Frank.
Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
CPA work is in my blood. My father, Robert ‘Bob’ Fendrick, who owned and managed his own public accounting firm, Fendrick & Associates, for 25 years. I was reconciling bank accounts and stapling tax returns when I was still a kid, long before computers came to this industry.
We named the company after my grandfather Jerry Fendrick’s Thoroughbred horse, High Echelon. High Echelon won the 1970 Belmont Stakes, one-third of the Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing.
I officially went out on my own in 2022, and my business partner Eric Henderson joined the firm in 2024.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
The biggest challenge has been trying to bridge the legacy clients we’ve worked with from years while also trying to build out a modern accounting firm that is digital-first.
As is every tax practitioner’s experience, there have been large shifts in the tax code since the start of the pandemic. There’s also been major changes in the IRS in the last several years – particularly the mass layoffs this year have made it a very challenging task when we need to reach out and speak to an IRS agent on a client’s behalf.
Appreciate you sharing that. What should we know about High Echelon, PC?
We are an accounting, payroll, and tax firm that brings substantially more expertise to the table than most CPA firms – we do the following things very well:
1. We are highly responsive.
2. One of our two partners, Eric, has a background in IT and business management. This is reflected in everything we do – how clients interact with us, the ways we support their businesses.
3. We have found a niche in supporting very early-stage businesses – people who had a full-time job and made the jump to entrepreneurship, up to businesses in their first 5-7 years and are looking to expand.
Is there something surprising that you feel even people who know you might not know about?
Probably that the company name originates from a racehorse, that is connected to Michelle’s family.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.highecheloncpa.com
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/high-echelon-pc
