What a CEO at IRR Investments Wishes They Knew Before Entering the Finance and Accounting Industry
Jessica, CEO at IRR Investments, wishes someone had emphasized the industry's flexibility, advising that "it is totally okay to change careers and to pivot and move around," unlike the "forever" mindset often presented. This openness allowed a successful career trajectory leveraging accounting and finance skills into diverse areas like sales and marketing, showcasing the value of adaptability and rejecting self-imposed limitations.
Career Exploration, Career Development, Executive/Leadership, Overcoming Challenges, Achieving Goals
Advizer Information
Name
Job Title
Company
Undergrad
Grad Programs
Majors
Industries
Job Functions
Traits
Jessica Thumati
CEO
IRR Investments
University of Arizona
N/A
Business & Related, Finance, Accounting
Consulting & Related Professional Services
Finance
None Applicable
Video Highlights
1. It's okay to change careers and pivot within the finance and accounting field.
2. Keep an open mind and allow your career to take unexpected turns.
3. A background in accounting and finance provides valuable skills applicable to various fields like sales, marketing, and people management.
Transcript
Q9: Wish I'd known before about the industry.
What have you learned about this role that you wish someone would have told you before you entered the industry?
I would say for my career as a CPA in finance and accounting, that it is totally okay to change careers and to pivot and to move around. I think so much of the focus in college, coming from some of the older students and the professors, and particularly when I first started my career, was that once you're in this field, you're in it forever. That does not hold true at all.
I have shaped and shifted and moved around and done a lot of different things. So I wish I would have been told to keep an open mind and to just see where your career takes you. You just never know.
I am so grateful for my background in accounting and finance and having my CPA license. It has definitely led to a lot of really incredible opportunities. I look at things a little differently, because obviously I'm a numbers person, but I have some tremendous skills across a variety of different fields like sales and marketing, and people. That stuff all just connects.
So I think just staying open-minded and seeing what happens, and also knowing you never need to pigeonhole yourself at all. Part of what makes life interesting is that things change and they will shape and shift and ebb and flow, and that's totally okay.
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