A Decade in the Heartbeat of Small Business

I learned accounting in the trenches—closing books after working hours, tediously reconciling payroll and administering benefits through weekly, in-house pay runs (if you know, you know!), untangling software that didn’t talk to each other, and rebuilding back‑office processes that lacked forethought and forced endless manual work just to get basic insight. I watched owners make decisions on instinct because the data wasn’t clear, and I saw how stressful that uncertainty can feel. Those early years shaped my entire approach—they taught me that good accounting isn’t just clean books. It’s thoughtful processes, connected systems, and numbers that actually mean something.

A Strategic, Intentional Career Path

My career progression wasn’t random—I built it intentionally around one mission: helping small businesses grow strategically instead of firefighting. As I moved into controller and advisory roles, I redesigned month‑end close procedures, restored GAAP compliance to complex operations, centralized and integrated back office systems, and led teams from reactive reporting to proactive planning. I supported multi-entity businesses from $1M to $25M in revenue, across industries, fixing broken workflows, cleaning up financials, and using technology to allow teams to work smarter not harder.

Along the way, I pursued the credentials that aligned with the work I was already doing. Becoming a Certified Managerial Accountant (CMA) gave me the framework to connect financial data to operations and decision‑making. Pursuing the CVA (Certified Valuation Analyst) designation now gives me the analytical backbone to support owners not just through growth, but through long‑term planning, succession, and exit.

Why Red Lodge

Today, after years of serving clients across the U.S., I chose to plant roots in Red Lodge, Montana. I believe small communities deserve the same level of expertise that big‑city businesses have access to.