VIT is over!

Hallelujah!

I have finally wrapped up the biggest job of the year for me-Virginia International Terminals. VIT is a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Virginia Port Authority, and they operate four terminals in Virginia: Norfolk International Terminals, Portsmouth Marine Terminals, Newport News Marine Terminals, and Virginia Inland Port. Revenues for VIT approach a quarter of a billion, with net income at 68 million this year! I took this job over last year from a supervisor who left for Price Waterhouse Coopers. Of course, I worked with VIT a lot in my past life as an import agent with Expeditors International, but I never dealt with anyone in accounting. I have to say that while this is a big job, the accounting staff are some of the brightest and most organized people I've dealt with in my public accounting tenure. Almost all of them are CPAs-the ones who aren't either have graduate degrees or are like me, and currently studying to pass it. It's a model of what any corporation should be like-independent internal auditor (and a Firm alumnus), well-respected Board, and a CEO who can negotiate steamship lines into 10-year contracts.

This year, I did a lot better...we actually got draft financials to them the last day we were there. Following the financial statement issuance is a series of presentations involving management, the audit committee, and finally the full Board of Directors. I can actually finalize the audit workpapers tomorrow, which is unheard of in our firm. The public jobs we're a little better on, because we have to be. Anyway, I can breathe a huge sigh of relief as I head off to Charleston and Charlotte next week for a little R&R! Pictures will be taken and posted asap!