GGFL is delighted to announce that Josh Engel is the firm’s new Managing Partner.
Josh, who joined the partner group in 2010, has been with the firm for more than 20 years.
He is the third Managing Partner in GGFL’s 73-year history and replaces Deborah Bourchier, who has stepped down from the role after 11 years.
Deborah replaced the firm’s late Founding Managing Partner, Gerry Levitz.
The Managing Partner’s job is to be the community face of the firm, says Josh, and to ensure the partner group works harmoniously and has a common vision for the firm.
“I want to keep a good thing going,” he says. “For the past 73 years, GGFL has developed a great reputation in the Ottawa community and it’s vital we maintain those deep and caring relationships with our clients and continue to build on the work of partners and staff members who have gone before.”
GGFL prides itself on being a top employer, says Josh.
“As partners, we want to provide a great work environment for everyone,” he says. “We have a great learning and caring culture at GGFL. We care about each other and we care about the firm. It’s important for me to enjoy being with the people I work with. As our Partner Jeff Miller says, most of us spend more time with people at work than we do with our families.”
Josh has spent all but ten months of his career at GGFL. He joined out of university in 1996 and for that brief period moved to Toronto.
“I wanted to come back, and the firm was interested in having me back,” he recalls. “That was a testament to how we respect employee’s decisions when they choose to leave. There are no hard feelings. I remember telling Debbie Bourchier and Jeff Miller that ‘I wish I could take this firm with me to Toronto.’ They said keep in touch and if things change you know where to find us. And things changed.”
While maintaining the firm’s position as a leader in tax planning, Josh says it’s important to anticipate the impact that artificial intelligence and other technology advancements will have on both the workplace and clients’ businesses.
Josh, a keen tennis and golf player, is the Treasurer of The Ottawa Tennis and Lawn Bowling Club and a member of The Rideau View Golf Club. He also enjoys cycling and downhill skiing.
“I like to be active,” he says.
As Managing Partner, Josh says he expects to spend more time in the community while continuing to work with his clients – with some added help from the firm’s senior management team.
“We care about being business advisors,” he says, “and knowing that clients can sleep easy at night comforted that someone is proactively concerned with the issues they are dealing with. We delight in the business success of our clients. That, and maintaining the great working environment are my definitions of success.”
Please read the stories:
Deborah Bourchier passed the baton to GGFL’s third Managing Partner, Josh Engel, making way for our fourth generation.
