The continued success of LCS can be in part attributed to the accomplishments of our employees. Our top-tier teams and employees continually receive recognition and accolades for their professional contributions, and LCS’ Chief Financial Officer (CFO), Chuck Stevens, is no exception. A finalist for this year’s C-Suite Awards presented by the Cincinnati Business Courier, Chuck has made great strides in his career at LCS, propelling our business to new heights each year.
In honor of his finalist status in this award, we wanted to highlight Chuck’s numerous contributions to LCS over the years.
“Chuck stepped in as CFO and had an immediate impact on improving the operations of LCS’ financial systems. Due to his years of experience as a leader in the private accounting sector, he quickly became a key decision- and difference-maker for the company. Chuck is a vital team member and has served as the primary negotiator for several large partnership agreements. These partnerships will play a significant role in our growth and profitability for years to come.”
Dave Hegemann, President & CEO of LCS
Career History
Chuck began his career as a Staff Accountant and Accounting Intern with McWilliams & Company in 1992. From there, he worked as a Tax Manager at Rippe & Kingston Co., PSC (1996-1999), a Partner at Cooney, Faulkner & Stevens, LLC (1999-2015), and then a Partner at MCM CPAs & Advisors (2016-2018).
Chuck’s early career involved working with business owners in tax planning and compliance, estate and gift tax, succession planning, and business consulting. Before joining our company full-time, he provided consulting services to LCS as its external CPA.
As LCS continued to grow and mature, there was an opportunity for Chuck to move in-house and work more closely with our day-to-day operations, enabling him to further support the growth and success of the company. He joined LCS as Chief Financial Officer in 2018 and has been a vital asset to the business ever since.
Crunching the Numbers
As CFO, Chuck brought his breadth of accounting experience directly to the LCS financial department and our flagship product, Rent Manager property management software. He contributed to the creation of standardized Accounts Receivable and Accounts Payable processes and began to utilize the accounting features of Rent Manager in-house, including the automation capabilities that customers adore. By automating our late notices, report generation, and invoices, the members of our accounting team have regained countless hours that were previously spent keeping track of customers. Before Chuck’s suggestions, LCS hadn’t used the full potential of our own software to optimize our internal processes and procedures.
Within Rent Manager, Chuck spearheaded efforts to streamline the display of reporting options, facilitate easier electronic payments, update the standard chart of accounts for new customers, and refine payment portals.
Continuing Our Growth
Chuck has been instrumental in nurturing and growing LCS’ and Rent Manager’s business partnerships, enabling us to offer new products and services to customers. This laid the foundation for additional business opportunities and revenue for both LCS and our partner companies.
One of the most notable collaborations Chuck helped facilitate was between LCS and LeaseTrack. The incorporation of LeaseTrack’s renters’ insurance resources into Rent Manager empowered our customers to provide essential renters insurance coverage all from within the software. This offering expanded LCS’ customer base from property management companies alone, to now include the residents themselves. This partnership brought unprecedented growth not only to LCS, but to LeaseTrack as well, tapping into a previously unexplored market of residential customers.
Chuck was also the driving force behind our customers’ adoption of electronic payment (ePay) resources to pay their LCS invoices. During the COVID-19 pandemic, mail delays and employees working remotely made shifting client payments from paper checks to electronic disbursements a critical enterprise. Incentivizing our customers to switch to ePay has expedited the payment process—saving time for both our customers and our employees—while also delivering flexibility for LCS’ remote and hybrid accounting staff. As of 2023, the number of paper checks processed by LCS each month has been cut in half thanks to Chuck and his team’s efforts.
Outside of the Office
Outside of his professional life, Chuck has been an active contributor in his community for years, serving on several committees and boards for local schools and children’s activities such as: Finance Committee Member and soccer and basketball coach for St. Ursula Villa School; Finance Committee Member for Indian Hill Winter Club, Board Member of the Child Development Services branch of the YMCA; and Board Member/Class Leader of the Accounting for Kids organization.
When he’s not at work, Chuck enjoys biking, boating, and attending his kids’ sporting events.
Congratulations, Chuck!
As a past recipient of the Venue MagazineCivic Leadership Award, the National Multiple Sclerosis Society Leadership Award, and the winner of a Forty Under 40 Award from the Cincinnati Business Courier, Chuck’s C-Suite Award Finalist status is another successful accolade in an already notable career—we can’t wait to see what else Chuck will do in the years to come.
