Our Core Values

We Trust in God

We believe that wisdom is a gift from God and the Bible outlines the best guidelines for living.

We Exist to Serve Others

We work to meet (or exceed!) the expectations of our clients.

We Treat Others as We Wish to be Treated

Every person is valuable. We treat everyone with dignity and respect.

We Look to the Future

We are always looking for ways to improve our firm, our team, and our service to clients.

We Balance Our Lives

We pursue a healthy balance between our work and family lives.

We Have Fun!

Enjoying what we do enables us to provide outstanding service.

Our Vision

We strive to be the leading financial advisory firm in our region.

Our Mission

To improve peoples’ lives by serving as their most-trusted financial advisor.

Our History

1983 — Ed Whitcomb is planning to retire from his sole CPA practice. But when he does, who will take care of his clients? He cared about these people, and they relied on him, trusting his advice. Ed wanted them to continue to receive the same quality of service he had provided.

Ed approached Jim Hess, proposing that he and the younger CPA start a firm together. Because Jim appreciated Ed’s values, and respected the way he cared for clients, he agreed. Ed and Jim founded Whitcomb & Hess, Inc. on three principles:

  • Put our clients’ needs first
  • Hire the best people we can find
  • Always plan for the future

Whitcomb & Hess CPAs provided accounting, tax, and advisory services to individuals and businesses. They guided many local business owners through management and financial issues, helping them run those businesses more effectively.

1995 — In the first 13 years as a firm, W&H learned that their clients wanted comprehensive financial advice; tired of being told one thing by their CPA and something else by their stockbroker, banker, etc. So they expanded the firm to add Investment Advisory Services. As a joint team of wealth management specialists — CPAs and Financial Advisors — they were able to collaborate, taking clients’ whole financial picture into consideration, and providing them with integrated solutions to simplify their lives.

Today — Now, four decades later, we are still committed to the same values that founded the firm. We’re honored to build real relationships with our clients founded on trust, we’ve created a highly-skilled team that can advise you on any financial issue, and we strive to stay on the leading edge of technology that enables us to serve you better. 

In another 40 years, we hope to be just as deeply rooted in Ashland, Ohio, still serving with passion and integrity, and upholding the legacy of our co-founders, CEO Jim Hess and the late Ed Whitcomb.