James Blake Chief Operating Officer

Jim is the Chief Operating Officer (COO) of Mazars in the US and has been a member of the firm’s Executive Board for 12 years. He has over 30 years of experience providing attest, tax and advisory services (including M&A), primarily to privately-owned businesses (POB) and private equity firms in the manufacturing and distribution (M&D) sector.

As COO, Jim focuses on the operations components of the firm’s strategic plans. He oversees the Service Line Leaders, Office Managing Partners and several of the leaders of operational support functions, with a particular emphasis on people and performance. Prior to his role as COO, Jim held various leadership positions within the firm, including M&D Practice Leader and New Jersey Office Managing Partner. 

At the Mazars Global level, Jim has been a member of the POB Board for over 10 years and contributes extensively within the Mazars Global COO community and across various operations committees. Mazars is a member of the Praxity Alliance, and Jim serves as the Praxity North American Chairman working with the leadership of various member firms.

Jim is an active member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA) and the New Jersey Society of Certified Public Accountants (NJCPA). He has served in leadership roles for both organizations, including as an AICPA Counsel member, and as a Trustee of the NJCPA PAC. He is currently serving as an Executive Committee member of the AICPA PCPS.

Jim speaks regularly at executive-level seminars, at industry events and before various professional associations, including the AICPA Major Firms Group and global Mazars conferences.  

Jim’s leadership skills and contributions to the profession and the business community were recognized by his being named to NJBiz’s 2021 Power in Accounting Top 50. He also received NJCPA’s 2022 Impact Award.

Jim has a Bachelor of Science in accounting from the University of Delaware and is a graduate of the Mazars Executive MBA Program, which has received the CLIP Accreditation from the European Foundation for Management Development.