Sherise D. Ritter

Sherise Ritter, or Sherry to her colleagues and clients, is all about keeping lines of communication open. As a Managing Director and Co-Chair of the firm’s Nonprofit and Human Services Group, as well as the Advisory Services Group, communication is the key to success in Sherry’s eyes. Serving as a trusted advisor, she meets with all of her clients at least once a year to advise them on topics such as tax planning and preparation, identifying risk areas and formulating solutions, strategy to meet growth goals, and multi-state and unrelated business income taxation and filing exposures. Additionally, she helps her clients with strategic planning, process efficiency and improvement studies, and mergers and acquisitions. She also specializes in the areas of cash flow management, accounting systems design, and board governance training.

Sherry has extensive experience as an outsourced CFO, where she takes the lead on complex financial projects for her clients, helping them think critically through financial issues, what they do best, where they need to improve, and how they can meet their goals. She prepares budgets and financial projections allowing them to benchmark themselves against others and their own plans. Sherry’s goal is to take on the financial responsibilities, allowing the owners or CEOs to focus on what’s important – growing their organization. She believes in the phrase, “If you don’t ask, you won’t get,” which is why she goes the extra mile when communicating, establishing a relationship with her clients, and gathering an understanding of their life both personally and professionally. She also believes in the phrase “failing to plan is planning to fail”. Sherry trusts that a simple phone call or email to check in can keep her clients on track or help uncover any items that need to be addressed.

In addition to advising her clients one-on-one, Sherry is dedicated to anticipating changes and identifying industry trends for her clients. When the COVID-19 pandemic hit, Sherry stepped up to lead the firm’s COVID Consulting Services Group, assisting with the application and forgiveness of PPP loans and other relief funding, risk assessment and management, cost allocation plan development, and pandemic response budget review and implementation. She studied the legislation and regulations around the various pandemic relief programs and initiatives, including the Paycheck Protection Program, Families First Coronavirus Response Act, American Rescue Plan Act, Employee Retention Tax Credit and more in order to serve as an expert to her clients and help them through the pandemic.

She frequently participates in various speaking engagements at conferences and events hosted by organizations such as the New Jersey Business and Industry Association, the New Jersey Association of Mental Health and Addiction Agencies, Center for Nonprofits of New Jersey, New Jersey Institute of Continuing Legal Education, and New Jersey Association of Community Providers, to name a few. Sherry enjoys educating the community and presents on many topics, including best practices in board governance, risk assessment and management plans, benchmarking, and healthcare billing practices. Additionally, she reaches a national audience by regularly contributing to the firm’s newsletter, Nonprofit Outlook. Sherry’s broad base of experience and expertise allows her to assist her clients in achieving their goals.

Sherry was hired as an office manager at a public accounting firm out of college. She quickly began working on client matters where she traveled nationally, advising clients on corporate tax and multi-state taxation. She became a partner of that firm in 1994 and, in 2004, after succeeding the founder of the firm upon his retirement, grew the company with her business partner Marguerite Mount, and then merged with The Mercadien Group, where she began leading the nonprofit and human services practice.