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This is Chris Redgrave for Zions Bank Speaking on Business.
As a St. George native, Rick Adams of Adams Hafen has what he likes to refer to as "red dirt fever." This is a term he uses to describe how people get red dirt on their shoes and can't stand to leave their roots in Southern Utah. As a long-time resident and business owner, he still remembers when St. George had only 4,000 people, so he's seen exponential growth.
The company he co-owns, Adams Hafen, is a CPA firm, now a partnership with Hans Hafen and Jeff Esplin. Their specialty is still taxation and small-business accounting, but it goes hand-in-hand with other services. They have many clients who have been with the firm for years and this includes all industries from doctors to plumbers. Rick says they've served some of the big clients from around town, like Kay Traveler with Stone Cliff or Alan Coombs of Green Valley Resort.
With a presence on the web, Rick says Adams Hafen is now found in many states because they can serve clients remotely. They also have a program called LogMeIn, which allows the team to remote into computers anywhere. This has created a strong digital application for the firm's 14 employees, who can now work more efficiently than ever before.
As a young man, following the completion of his accounting undergrad, Rick got a job with a major accounting firm in California, where he worked for a few years. However, when he heard about a brand new Master of Taxation program at BYU, he left his job to become part of the first graduating class in 1977. He returned to his accounting job, but the red dirt beckoned, so that's when he came back to St. George and opened Adams Hafen in 1980.
Challenges are always on the horizon in accounting, whether it's new tax codes or governmental programs like the Affordable Care Act, but that's one thing Rick loves about the business. One of the mainstays of Adams Hafen is their commitment to their customer base and the relationship of trust they've established.
For Zions Bank, I'm Chris Redgrave, speaking on business.
Adams Hafen 1086 S. Main St. St. George, UT 84770 435-673-6156 www.ahccpas.com
