OUR TEAM
Meet the faces behind Fusion CPA's success. We are proudly the best workplace for entrepreneurial CPAs in Atlanta. We embrace change, technology and learning.
Trevor McCandless, CPA, MTax
Chief Entrepreneurial Officer
- Years of Industry Experience: 15+
- School: University of Florida & Georgia State University
- Degree: B.A. in Accounting and Masters in Taxation
- Industry Specialties: Professional services (Law Firms, Dental offices, Advertising Agencies, etc.), Multi-Location Retail, Real Estate, Technology
- Something you do for fun: Every yard game, soccer, golf, snow skiing, fly fishing, pool basketball & ping pong!
- Why you love being an accountant: I eat, sleep and bleed entrepreneurialism. My work in accounting, tax and consulting allows me to dive into our entrepreneurial clients’ businesses and make truly meaningful impacts.
- Hometown: Jacksonville, FL
- Favorite Atlanta sports team: Atlanta United
- Any family or fur babies: Married to the sweet and patient Alexandra. We also have a little “Shih-Poo” puppy named Bernie!
Steven Sumners, CPA, MAcc
Senior Tax & Accounting Manager
- Years of Industry Experience: 10+
- School: Ohio State University, Mercer University
- Degree: Master of Accounting, Bachelor of Business Administration
- Industry Specialties: Professional Services (Law Firms, Advertising and Marketing Agencies), Multi-Location Retail, Real Estate
- Why you love being an accountant: Being in a position to help others understand and improve how their work and finances fit together. I also love that our team is in a position to be proactive advisers to our clients. I love being able to communicate with our clients frequently.
- Hometown: Leesburg, GA
- Favorite Atlanta sports team: Atlanta Braves
- If you could have any super power what would it be and why: Teleportation, to avoid the traffic
Katherine Harrington, CPA MAFM
Senior Tax & Accounting Manager
- Years of Industry Experience: 20+
- School: Centenary University
- Degree: BA in Accounting, Masters in Accounting & Financial Management
- Industry Specialties: Professional services, Dental, Real Estate & Technology.
- Something you do for fun: walking, reading, boating and watching my kids play soccer.
- Why you love being an accountant: I have always loved numbers and figuring things out. Now I enjoy applying that passion of numbers toward my clients successes. I work hands on with a proactive approach. I find it very satisfying to provide practical direction and advice to help my clients reach their financial goals.
- Hometown: Fort Lauderdale, FL
- Favorite team: Atlanta United
- Any family or fur babies: I am married with three children, 2 dogs and a cat.
Blake Gaul, CPA, MTax
Tax & Accounting Manager
- Years of Industry Experience: 8+
- School: Georgia State University
- Degree: Undergrad – Accounting & Masters – Masters of Tax Law
- Industry Specialties: Entertainment & Professional Services – Investments – High Wealth Individual, Gift, & Trusts.
- Why you love being an accountant: My favorite thing about my job is being able to provide my clients with a better answer than the worst-case scenario they came up within their head.
Hometown: I’m an Army brat but Atlanta is more home than anywhere else.
Something you do for fun: Traveling! I collect magnets of all of the places I have been to and they’re on display in my office.
If you could have any superpower what would it be and why: The ability to fast-forward and rewind time. The possibilities are literally endless!
Any family for fur babies: I’m a single dad to a very handsome (albeit a little cross-eyed) Toy Australian Shepherd named Sammy. He even comes to work with me sometimes!
Petra Assimiti, CPA, MBA
Tax & Accounting Manager
- Years of Industry Experience: 10+
- School: Northwood University & Georgia State University
- Degree: B.A. in International Business and Masters in Business Administration with Accounting concentration
- Industry Specialties: Real Estate, Technology, Medical offices.
- Something you do for fun: Traveling, skiing, hiking and photography.
- Why you love being an accountant: Being able to help other people with things that may seem overwhelming to them makes for a very satisfying job to me.
- Hometown: Prague, Czech Republic
- Any family or fur babies: Two daughters Annie and Victoria, Bisch-Poo called Puccini and 17 year old cat named Teddy.
Mei Zhu, CPA, MAcc
Tax & Accounting Manager
- Years of Industry Experience: 5+
- School: Mercer University
- Degree: Master of Accounting, Bachelor of Business Administration
- Industry Specialties: Law Firms, Medical Office, Advertising and Marketing Agencies
- Why you love being an accountant: being able to help clients understand the complex US Tax Law.
- Hometown: Liaoning, China
- Something you do for fun: Traveling, Cooking & Yoga
- If you could have any super power what would it be and why: Flying to avoid traffic
- Any family or fur babies: Baby Jeff
Bernie McCandless, ShihPoo
Chief Pup Officer
- Years of Industry Experience: 3+
- School: K-9 Coach
- Degree: I can sit & stay?
- Something you do for fun: go to work with Dad
- Hometown: ATL
- Favorite Atlanta Sports Team: The Flying Discs aka Atlanta Frisbee Team
- If you could have any super power what would it be and why: Flying, so I could escape my play pin and go up stairs (they still scare me)
Danielle Palmer, BBA
Integrator / Partner Integrations Specialist
- School: Georgia State University
- Degree: BBA in Managerial Science
- Something you do for fun: Reading, spending time with my family, and immersing myself in all things WWE & AEW.
- Why you love being a Partner Integrations Specialist: I love to create and implement efficient processes and procedures for an organization. I also love making meaningful connections with others to create opportunities for us all to grow together.
- Hometown: Kingston, Jamaica
- Favorite Atlanta sports team: Sports is not really my lane :), but I like to root for the Atlanta Falcons.
- Any family or fur babies: My immediate family consists of my mom, my dad, my little sister, and my boyfriend.