Sarah Elliott, CPA, PCC – 2020-2021 Most Powerful Women in Accounting

What advice would you give others following in your similar path about the opportunities for women in the accounting profession?

Accounting provides limitless opportunities to learn and grow, particularly in non-technical areas. 

Don’t feel like you have to have it all figured out from the start. This will only limit you. Take some risks. Get curious. Explore different paths. Gather clues along the way as to what lights you up (and what doesn’t). Evolve your path as you evolve. And, enjoy the journey! 

What steps would you offer to employers to be more effective in retaining and advancing women?

Don’t make assumptions about what women want or need from you – ask them! Each of us are unique human beings with different talents, needs and aspirations. Listen, learn and gather ideas. Be willing to take risks and try new ways of doing things based on what you learn.

Create a coaching culture at your organization where everyone is free to explore who they are, what they really want and how they can best align with the organization’s vision and goals. Provide your people with developmental opportunities (e.g., coaching, mentoring and sponsorship) to help them uncover and live into their potential.

Why did you choose to work in – and stay in – an accounting related field?

I switched my major from chemical engineering to accounting in college because I was attracted to the sense of order and logic. I like the way things in accounting fit together, like a puzzle, to explain how a business works. Once I joined the profession, I realized how much opportunity it gave me to lean into non-technical skills, like leading, collaborating, teaching, growing new business, problem solving, managing a business and so much more.

After I retired from a 14 year career in public accounting in 2014, I started a second career in leadership development. I decided to serve accountants because I love us!! I see so much potential in this profession. Accountants have a lot of power and influence to make positive change and help a lot of people in the business world. But, oftentimes, we never quite realize it. What could be possible when we become more conscious, evolved leaders? 

4. What book(s), blog(s), or podcast(s) do you recommend that have guided you on your journey?

My favorite books that I’ve read in 2020 are:

• Raising our Hands: How White Women Can Stop Avoiding Hard Conversations, Start Accepting Responsibility, and Find Our Place on the New Frontlines by Jenna Arnold
• Shakti Leadership: Embracing Feminine and Masculine Power in Business by Nilima Bhat and Raj Sisodia

A few of my favorite podcasts are:

• Amy Vetter’s Breaking Beliefs podcast
• Madeline Pratt’s Finding Fearless podcast
• Mark Goldman’s Where Accountants Go podcast

McKinsey & Company issued their 2020 Women in the Workplace study that basically says that the current pandemic is starting to impact the strides women, especially women of color, have made in the profession. What advice would you give to employers to support women during this time so that the future of our workforce isn’t negatively impacted?

Don’t assume you know what women need. What each woman needs may be different. Ask us. Listen.

Don’t use the pandemic as an excuse to cut corners and costs. Your people are everything. Take care of us, and we’ll take care of the business for you. Invest financially in our future (and, thus, in the future of your organization) by doing everything you can to provide the support we need during this challenging time.   

What advice would you share with young women CPAs striving to achieve similar success in this profession?

Don’t underestimate your power and the options available to you. Dream big. Ask for what you want. If you’re not sure how to get it, go for it anyway!

Lean into the unknown, with a growth mindset. Let go of having to “get it right.” Let go of feeling like you have to be perfect. Give yourself permission to experiment and fail. This is how we learn and innovate. I don’t think there’s ever a clear, straight path forward (and if there is, it sounds kind of boring!). We must make up the path as we go, one step at a time, and learn from our mistakes along the way.

Describe one person who has been an important mentor and sponsor to you and how that person helped shape the direction or focus of your professional life.

Early this year, my friend (and social justice activist), Leandra, invited me into conversation and reflection on racial justice and what diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) truly means. She loaned me her book, White Fragility by Robin Diangelo. Reading this book was confronting and enlightening. It removed my blinders and changed the way I see the world.

A few months later, we partnered together to lead an anti-racism education and discussion group. This work – acknowledging the collective trauma of hundreds of years of oppression of people of color and discerning what is ours to do – is hard, heavy and overwhelming. It’s also some of the most meaningful work I have ever done. I have learned so much from Leandra, and I’m grateful for her openly sharing her experiences with me as a woman of color and her patience with me as I stumble through my own learning.

The anti-racism work we’re doing together helps me see how we can integrate DEI into Intend2Lead and use our influence to contribute to forward progress. I believe that coaching cultures naturally create more inclusive leaders, and I want the future of the accounting profession to include all of us.

Please share a personal rule or principle that you follow.

We are inextricably linked to one another. We like to think we’re independent – that we can do so much on our own. This is an illusion. We live in interdependence. Every single thing that each of us does impacts everyone and everything around us (whether we realize it or not). To create the positive changes we want to see – in our organizations, the profession and our communities – we must think beyond ourselves as individuals. We must consider the impact we have on others. We need one another now, more than ever, so let’s consciously evolve together.    

Read more about the 2020-2021 Most Powerful Women in Accounting Winners.