ENID – In 1969, Deane Wymer opened Wymer Tax and Accounting working from his home in Fairview.
As the business grew, a small building was added next to the home and later a building on Main Street in Fairview was renovated for what had grown into Wymer & Associates Tax and Accounting.
In 2001, Kyle Brownlee, who had joined the firm in 1999, became a partner and the company started by Wymer evolved into Wymer Brownlee Tax and Financial Services.
An Enid office was added in January 2004 and in November of 2005 Wymer Brownlee purchased a building at 110 N. Independence in downtown Enid, which marked the start of a rapid growth period.
Since the opening of the Enid office in November 2005 with four employees, Wymer Brownlee has expanded to 22 employees in Enid and has added three additional offices in Oklahoma, said Aaron Brownlee, chief operating officer and brother of Kyle Brownlee, who is chief executive officer.
“It started in Fairview 39 years ago and has grown to five locations statewide and more than 50 people,” Aaron Brownlee said.
In addition to Enid and Fairview, Wymer Brownlee has offices in Tulsa, Bartlesville and Oklahoma City. Each of the offices has a local director. The Enid office serves as the headquarters. Founder Deane Wymer retired from active practice in 2008, but still meets with estate and trust clients.
Since the Enid office was purchased in late 2005, it has outgrown the space. With 22 staff members in the office, there is no room for additional hires, Aaron Brownlee said.
Wymer Brownlee operates in three core areas – tax and accounting services, wealth management and business consulting.
“There are eight wealth management areas we deal with,” Aaron Brownlee said.
The eight areas are investment management, family risk management, cash flow and debt management, retirement management, business planning, legacy planning, education planning and special situations planning.
“All three core areas work together,” Aaron Brownlee said. “If your tax return and your investments are not working together, you are missing efficiencies.”
Business consulting services include business entity selection, succession planning, cash flow and budget analysis, financial projections and workplace assessment, which includes hiring procedures, reducing turnover and absenteeism, increasing productivity and creating project teams.
“What we have done with business consulting is take what we have learned and package it for other companies,” Aaron Brownlee said.
What Wymer Brownlee has learned is to hire the right people and then treat them right.
“Our hiring process is very difficult,” Aaron Brownlee said. “The first test is if applicants are a culture fit. We hire and fire based on the values of this organization.”
The plan is to improve the overall staff with every hire.
“We try to hire up with every position,” Aaron Brownlee said.
A position does not necessarily have to open for a new hire.
“Deane Wymer says ‘never pass up a good person,’” he said. “There have been times a person has showed up on our doorstep and left with a job whether we had a job open or not.”
Wymer Brownlee recently finalized eight company values – exceed expectations, communicate honestly, do your best work, provide opportunity with purpose, do the right thing, be humble, know no limits and protect our culture.
“Our core values drive every decision we make,” Aaron Brownlee said. “Those values carry us through every obstacle we face. You have to make money, but you also have to be sure that your client experience is solid. Take care of your clients and the money will come. It is a different type of business model.”
Family time for employees is part of the corporate culture.
Because of a heavy workload during the first part of the year with tax preparation, Wymer Brownlee operates with a four-day workweek for much of the remainder of the year, providing more family time.
“From the day after tax season ends to when school starts again in the fall, the staff has Fridays off,” Aaron Brownlee said.
Corporate culture and quality of life are used in recruiting.
“Oklahoma is a great place no matter where you go,” he said. “We have jewels statewide that are fascinating.”
Community involvement is another part of the corporate culture.
“We want to be part of the communities where we have offices and not only grow the business but help grow the communities,” Aaron Brownlee said.
The combination of values, corporate culture and quality of life helps Wymer Brownlee attract new employees.
“As we have had positions created or positions open, the number of applications we receive has continued to go up,” said Molly Helm, marketing director. “It is such a lovely position to be in – to be looking for the first people and having so many quality candidates who want to come to work for Wymer Brownlee.”