Alex Thacher
Partner, Armanino Advisory LLC
- San Francisco
- 415-226-6548
You can’t move forward if you don’t get going.
You can’t move forward if you don’t get going.
Bio
As the National Practice Leader of Armanino’s State & Local Tax (SALT) practice, Alex brings over 20 years of technical experience in multi-state income/franchise tax, sales/use tax, local taxes, and credits and incentives. Alex has served clients across sectors including technology, retail, media and entertainment, utilities, pharmaceuticals, manufacturing, telecommunications, government contractors, e-commerce, software, construction, engineering and financial services.
Alex’s technical expertise includes unitary and consolidated filings, mergers and acquisitions consulting and due diligence, the development, evaluation and implementation of restructuring plans, apportionment reviews and planning, ASC 740 and ASC 740-10 reviews, audit representation, transaction analysis, residency audits, nonresident withholding, Wayfair nexus studies and voluntary disclosure negotiations.
Geographically, Alex has practiced in the Northeast, the Mid-Atlantic, California, and the Pacific Northwest. Prior to joining Armanino, Alex served as Ernst & Young’s State & Local Tax Services Leader in Seattle, WA.
In addition to providing SALT services, Alex has lectured on a variety of state tax matters for organizations such as the Los Angeles County Bar Association Taxation Section, Tax Executives Institute (TEI), California Tax Bar, Strafford Publications, and the Council on State Taxation (COST). Alex has instructed the Unitary Business Principle and Apportionment sections of COST's SALT Basics School, and he has a Podcast on Los Angeles City Business Taxes available on Apple iTunes.
A licensed attorney in California, Connecticut, New York, and the District of Columbia, Alex is a former instructor for the Council on State Taxation (COST). He holds a bachelor’s degree in psychology from Boston College and a Juris Doctorate from the University of Connecticut, School of Law. Alex is a California Tax Education Council (CTEC) Registered Tax Preparer and a Registered Lobbyist with the City of Los Angeles.
Experience
My state and local tax professor Rick Pomp’s passion and excitement for SALT is infectious. He has an uncanny ability to take complex tax topics and make them exciting and relevant in a way that resonates with young, curious minds. He ignited my interest in mastering the complexities of state and local tax, and that interest has evolved into what is now my career. My passion for SALT has not waned, and I hope to provide similar experiences for those I work with and the clients I serve.
Armanino encourages an innovative and entrepreneurial mindset that allows me to make an impact on the lives of those around me. Constant personal growth while simultaneously adding value for my clients and teammates is core to what makes me fulfilled from a career perspective, and Armanino lets me do what I love in a firm that has long term goals that align with my own.
The evolving economy and ecommerce globalization continues to change the ways in which we interact and do business. Due to changes including Wayfair nexus, tax reform and state conformity, state and local governments are struggling to keep pace. As they catch up to the way business is modernizing, the materiality and overall significance of state and local tax will continue to rise.
The toughest – but most rewarding – decision I’ve made was joining my family’s law firm after having spent over 17 years within the Big 4. Through this experience, I gained a different perspective on my clients' businesses, as well as their personal needs, goals and desires. It enhanced my ability to relate to not only to the business challenges they face every day, but the personal ones as well. It gave me deeper sensitivity to my clients as individuals and how I can contribute to help them achieve positive outcomes. My experience there was unexpectedly fantastic, and I grew in ways that make me better at what I do today.
Collaborative. I want to be empowered and to empower those on my team. I strive to support and encourage, and give them a safe environment to learn and grow, so they can provide as much value to clients as possible. I am constantly preparing my team to be able to do what I do.
My mother and grandmother. I got a chance to sit in the audience at my mother's law school graduation. Seeing her go back to law school, obtain her law degree and ultimately achieve the career goals she had set for herself was an indelible positive example for me. My grandmother is 102 years old and she still volunteers at the Tiburon thrift shop two weeks out of every month. I am consistently inspired by her boundless positive energy and zest for life.
