Alumni spotlight: Mark Davidoff

This story was originally published in the Wayne State University Jewish News insert on Sept. 15, 2016.

Mark Davidoff’s career has long been defined by equal parts doing well and doing good. From his longstanding tenure with the Jewish Federation of Metropolitan Detroit to his current role as Michigan managing partner at Deloitte, Davidoff’s mission has always been to serve the community — and his personal and professional successes have earned him the 2016 Distinguished Alumni Award from Wayne State University’s Mike Ilitch School of Business.

A 1981 WSU accounting graduate, Davidoff’s career spans public accounting and nonprofit organizations in health care and social services. He has been with Deloitte since 2005.  In his current role as managing partner, Davidoff is responsible for the strategy, operations, talent and business development of the Deloitte’s Michigan practice, and he leads the company’s global CFO Forums initiative.

Davidoff champions corporate citizenship in his role at Deloitte, and he recently represented Deloitte as the firm was honored with a 2016 Civic 50 award from the Points of Light Foundation.

Deloitte’s annual Impact Day sends its partners and professionals out into communities around the country for service projects. It also offers partial paid time off for volunteerism via an innovative sabbatical program, supports veterans with career-based education programs to help them translate their skills and experiences into a business environment, and commits significant charitable dollars to initiatives that move the needle on social progress.

“We have a genuine citizenship perspective at Deloitte,” Davidoff said. “We’re about engaging with the communities we live and work in, and taking care of our people.”

Partners and team members from Deloitte’s Detroit office, with support from the Deloitte Foundation, recently pledged $250,000 to create an accounting resource center in the future home of the Mike Ilitch School of Business, slated to open its doors in the District Detroit in 2018.

For Davidoff, who attended the building’s groundbreaking on July 20, 2016, Mike and Marian Ilitch’s historic $40 million gift to the school is about much more than new construction.

“It’s about committing to higher education in Detroit for generations to come,” he said. “When you look at the pillar families of this community, the Ilitches are at the top of the list. They have led the way in the city, and I’m honored to be the first to receive the Distinguished Alumni Award under the Mike Ilitch School of Business name.”

He was presented with the award Aug. 25, 2016, at the Detroit Marriott at the Renaissance Center. The awards program also recognized outgoing Henry Ford Health System CEO Nancy Schlichting as Michigan Executive of the Year and more than 200 Ilitch School scholarship recipients.

Like the majority of Wayne State students, Mark Davidoff worked full time while earning his degree.

“At Wayne State, you’re surrounded by the level of seriousness that comes from having no time to waste,” he said. “You learn early on how to focus your attention. The culture of the university as a whole reflects the idea that you have to get out of the huddle and hike the ball. Wayne State taught me what it means to have your game face on.”

In addition to his bachelor’s degree from Wayne State, Davidoff earned a master’s from the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University. He serves on the board of directors for Business Leaders for Michigan, Downtown Detroit Partnership, Detroit Economic Club, Detroit Regional Chamber of Commerce, Detroit Institute of Arts, Detroit Symphony Orchestra, Michigan Chamber of Commerce and M1 Rail. He is the former chair of the Jewish Community Center of Metropolitan Detroit board of directors and served on The Jewish Fund board for 18 years.

His wife, Margie Dunn, is also a proud Wayne State University graduate. They split their time between residences in West Bloomfield and Brush Park in Detroit.

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