Forty Under 40: Rachael McGrew

Traditionally, the names of CPA firms consist of a string of partners’ last names. But when legacy firms Beall Barclay and Thomas & Thomas merged in 2018, Rachael McGrew suggested partners “think out of the box” and choose something else.

“What’s going to happen down the line if we decide to merge with another firm? At what point do we stop adding names to our names?” she asked. The agency guiding the merger and others on the team supported the idea, but months passed before all 16 partners approved the name: Landmark CPAs.

Being an integral part of the launch and rebranding is McGrew’s most significant accomplishment in her three years at Landmark. This is because of the broad scope of marketing involved and because of the trust partners showed in her by including her early in the process.

McGrew graduated magna cum laude from University of Central Arkansas in 2004 with a Bachelor of Business Administration in marketing and obtained a graphic design certification from University of Arkansas at Fort Smith in 2008. She began her career as an analyst with ABF Freight System, then was editor of its internal publication. She joined Beall Barclay in 2017.

McGrew enjoys the creativity and variety in her job, including marketing strategy, planning and research, social media, community outreach and event planning, and project management.

“The best part about my role is I’ve been able to define it based on what we should be doing within our industry,” she said.

A member of the Leadership Fort Smith Class of 2019, McGrew is an active Fort Smith Chamber Ambassador. She enjoys her interactions with business owners in her hometown of Fort Smith and in Rogers, where Landmark also has an office.

McGrew plans to get an Accreditation in Public Relations and make partner.