CPA'S JOB ADDS UP TO PAIR OF PRECEDENTS : FIRM'S NEW MANAGING PARTNER CRACKS GENDER, BEAN-COUNTER IMAGE.

Byline: Patty Shillington Knight-Ridder Newspapers

Shelley S. Stein wants you to know that she hasn't been chained to her adding machine or buried in income-tax returns for the past month or so. And she won't be wowing you with the latest tax tips.

Yes, she's a CPA. But no, not all certified public accountants pass the first few months of the year filling out IRS forms in a sleep-deprived frenzy that peaks April 15.

And surprise! Stein, a spirited person, is capable of dazzling people at parties with her dry wit.

``Accountants do have fun occasionally, right?'' Stein quipped as she admired the panorama from her 12th-floor conference room in Miami.

Stein has the darnedest time getting these points across to people - even family and friends. But as the first woman to be named managing partner of a national public accounting firm's Florida office, Stein is in the best position yet to shatter the myths about her profession.

``People ask me what I do,'' says Stein, whose promotion is effective Aug. 1, when she will be in charge of Grant Thornton's South Florida practice. ``Well, I start out the day tapping into my voice mail. From there, it's a free-for-all.''

That's exactly what she loves about public accounting: fresh challenges. Helping businesses - in Grant Thornton's case, generally middle-market entrepreneurs - operate efficiently and effectively as they grow is like fiddling with a puzzle that keeps changing shape.

``I like to fix things,'' says Stein, a 19-year Grant Thornton worker who has been assistant managing partner since she arrived in South Florida in early 1995.

Growing up in the Minneapolis area, the youngest daughter of two pharmacists, Stein wanted to be a math teacher until her oldest sister, a lawyer, suggested accounting. She didn't know what she was getting into.

``Math is black and white: two plus two is four. What's the joke? `In accounting, two plus two is whatever you want it to be.' Accounting is gray. There's lots of dealing with people, and it's fun,'' she says.

At 40, Stein also becomes the youngest managing partner at Grant Thornton, the largest of the second-tier national accounting and management consulting firms, behind the Big Six, with 50 U.S. offices and annual domestic revenues of $240 million.

``She's one of our youngest stars,'' says Grant Thornton's executive partner, Bob Nason, at the firm's national office in Chicago. ``She's blessed with a general business acumen. She's very well-rounded technically and very good at managing and handling client matters.''

Grant Thornton's South Florida practice, with offices in Fort Lauderdale and Miami, has rebounded under the leadership of managing partner Burton Emmer, who will continue with the firm as client service partner.

When Emmer took over in 1988, Grant Thornton, formerly known as Alexander Grant & Co., was still reeling from the 1985 fraud conviction of then-South Florida managing partner Jose Gomez. Gomez pleaded guilty to doctoring the financial statements of Fort Lauderdale-based ESM Government Securities, which collapsed, owing customers $300 million.

In the aftermath, Grant Thornton's South Florida staff dwindled from 70 to less than 40. Revenues dropped from $6 million in 1986 to $4.2 million in '87. In 1992, Grant Thornton acquired the South Florida accounting practice of Pannell Kerr Forster.

``We well re-established ourselves in the Miami community and with public companies, financial institutions and governments. What happened in 1985 was an aberration, and I think the professional and investment community has concurred with that,'' says Emmer, 59.

Stein takes over a staff of 75, with 1995 revenues of $9 million, up from $8 million in 1994.

Stein would rather discuss Grant Thornton's plans for South Florida - its focus on the hospitality industry and on building a state and local tax practice - than her remarkable rise in a male-run industry.

``I recognize it's important to note I'm the first woman,'' she says. ``I don't want to dwell on it. I'm qualified for the job.''

She is the seventh woman nationwide to head a national accounting firm's local office as managing partner, according to industry expert Arthur W. Bowman, who publishes Bowman's Accounting Report.

Managing partners generally are chosen for their tenure as well as their talent, Bowman says, and few women have the length of service necessary to be considered candidates for managing partner.

``I do believe the accounting profession has lagged behind in promoting women to positions of authority,'' he says, noting that 6.7 percent of Big Six partners are women, while 13 percent of partners in the 900 largest law firms are women.

Stein recalls having only one other female classmate in an accounting class at the University of Minnesota. Today, at least half of accounting majors are women - and they will look to Stein as a crucial role model, says Terri A. Scandura, a University of Miami professor of management.

Scandura says many factors contribute to the low percentage of women managers in accounting: ``It's not all discrimination; it's personal choice. They decide they don't want to work 60-hour weeks or they start their own small firms.''

Stein, who was named partner in 1987 while at Grant Thornton's Minneapolis office and later moved to the Philadelphia office, decided her ambition was managing partner.

That she is a woman was ``a nonissue,'' she and executive partner Nason say.

Stein, who lives in Weston, has put 21,000 miles on her car in a year, traveling to clients from Dade to Palm Beach and across to Naples. She likes to be at work before rush hour begins. She heads home after rush hour ends. Stein will keep working with clients in her new position, though her client load may diminish as she takes on more administrative duties.

Stein wants to be known as a boss who is ``firm but fair,'' encouraging staffers to make their own decisions, to do things their way. ``I have high expectations but I'll be there to help you if you need support.''

Office manager Pat Aybar says Stein ``has brought a lot of change and enthusiasm. She's dynamic, smart and communicates well. She tunes into your day. She trusts your judgment.''

Bill Eagle, president of Nailite International, a private company in North Miami that manufactures a line of building products, also considers Stein a ``remarkable person.'' Nailite hired Grant Thornton last year.

``She has really gotten into our business in much greater detail than I ever anticipated or expected,'' he says.

F. Thomas Godart, president of Godart Properties, has gotten to know Stein through their involvement with the Greater Miami Chamber of Commerce. ``She really understands corporate strategies and industry trends outside of accounting, and I think that's unique,'' he says. ``And she always does what she says she's going to do.''

Stein, who is single, says she has fallen hard for South Florida and considers it ``her final resting place.'' She's taking lessons to improve her Spanish and hopes to play more golf and tennis and resume scuba diving.

At work, she'll try to be ``innovative and creative,'' and nurture those qualities in her staff. ``I think accountants possess those characteristics, but don't let it out,'' Stein deadpans. ``It's a secret.''

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Photo: Shelley S. Stein has been named managing partner ofGrant Thornton, a national public accounting firm.

Knight-Ridder Tribune Photo Service