Michelle Schapiro recounts her introduction to TEI more than twenty years ago. “From the time I started with The Cheesecake Factory, my former boss—and my current boss—were very involved with TEI and encouraged me to attend their seminars,” she says. “Since that time, I’ve been actively engaged with the local chapter as both president and as a member of the board. That experience and the relationships I’ve built with other tax executives have been so fulfilling. The networking opportunities are something you can’t really put a price on.”
She says it’s amazing to have a network to reach out to, ask for advice, share ideas with, and learn from about legislation, lobbying, advocacy, and best practices at other companies. “Even if you’re interacting with people outside of your industry, we’re all dealing with the same tax laws,” she says.
Fostering Connections
Schapiro was the Los Angeles Chapter president from 2021 to 2023. “As everybody knows, this was a unique and challenging period,” she says. “I worked very hard to bring the chapter out of the whole COVID shutdown and keep them solvent and in existence. This meant getting our members back together and persuading firms to reinvolve themselves in sponsorships and in activities. One of my initiatives during this time was to introduce a season pass as a more affordable alternative than paying separately for each event. That really helped to increase in-person attendance and interest in chapter activities.”
Today, she still enjoys attending chapter seminars, meeting new people, and encouraging others to learn more about and become involved with TEI. In particular, she invokes the chapter’s Tax Administrators’ Night. “In some ways, it’s a social occasion, with a very nice dinner, but we invite tax administrators from organizations such as the Internal Revenue Service, California Franchise Tax Board, County Assessors, etc. to speak. It’s an opportunity for members to sit down and talk to a lot of top executives that run these very large tax jurisdictions and establish contacts within these entities. It’s difficult to interact at this level unless you are a part of TEI and attending these sorts of events,” she says.
As tax director for The Cheesecake Factory, Schapiro says that she is continually inspired by the people she works with. “First and foremost, I have amazing coworkers in the tax department and throughout the company, many of whom have also been with the company for a long time. A lot of them have become very close friends,” she says.
She also feels fortunate to have had an incredible variety of work. “I’ve had an opportunity to work on everything that has the word ‘tax’ in it and to be involved with various operations, including helping the company go international, complete their first acquisition, and developing our food donation program. I’ve really grown with the company, and it’s been a lot of fun.”
During her tenure at The Cheesecake Factory, she has at some point been responsible for all aspects of income tax compliance and provision, sales and use tax, property tax, tip reporting, payroll tax, and unclaimed property. Prior to joining The Cheesecake Factory, she worked for a public accounting firm.
From Equestrian to Tax Executive
Interestingly, tax was not her initial career path. Schapiro explains, “My grandmother was a bookkeeper and sometimes brought me to work with her. In high school, I took an accounting class, which I really enjoyed. But when it came time for college, I chose the University of California, Davis, largely because they had a great equestrian team. I’ve always ridden horses and brought my horse with me to college.”
Schapiro notes that at the time, the university had no accounting school, so she majored in English because she loves to read. She also minored in comparative literature, agricultural economics, animal science, classics, and art history. She laughingly adds, “Because I couldn’t get a job in accounting as an English major, I went straight into a master’s of accounting program at the University of Southern California’s Marshall School of Business after graduation. Once I got into the program, I realized advanced accounting was really boring, but tax was like a big puzzle and captured my interest, so I switched to a master’s of taxation. I enjoyed the legal arguments and deciphering the gray areas of the tax code.”
Outside of work, she enjoys riding horses and spending quality time with her family. She still owns a horse, although she says that he’s retired now. Regardless, Schapiro has plenty to keep her busy. “Lately, my life seems to be taken over by my son’s sports schedule! Joking aside, it is all about taking the time to spend with my family—whether it’s going to Disneyland or SeaWorld or simply enjoying a family game night,” she says.
