Part 1 of 2
In 2010, Start Here, Go Places. sponsored a live chat event for students to ask Jenneen Kaufman about her career as a CPA and Vice President/CFO of the Tennessee Titans. Jenneen started developing a background in business while still in high school as the manager of a gymnastics gym. After graduating with an accounting degree from the University of Tennessee Jenneen began her career at Arthur Anderson, an accounting firm in Nashville where she went through comprehensive training and getting her CPA license. She moved to the American Cancer Society from Arthur Anderson where she worked as a CFO and Human Resources manager. Through a recommendation from a former partner, Jenneen applied for a job with the Tennessee Titans when they moved to Nashville from Houston, Texas and is now in her 14th season with the team.

In this live chat, Jenneen fields questions from viewers on topics including:
Her work history
Her average work day and week (about 50-55 hours with the Titans, 60 in public accounting)
Travel requirements and opportunities within her career (Jenneen travels every few months with the Titans, and traveled about 60% of the time she was in public accounting)
Advice for the CPA exam
Her job responsibilities
The benefits of her career
How she balances her work and personal life
Misconceptions about the profession
Job availability
And much more!

For Jenneen, accounting is a rewarding and flexible career. The biggest challenges, she says, are managing the wide variety of things she has to do every day and staying well organized. Organization and communication are some of the most important skills for an accountant according to Jenneen because it's her responsibility to explain all the accounting numbers to managers within her organization and the financial implications of every decision they make. The close-knit environment of the Titans organization helps Jenneen keep a good balance between her work and personal life. All the employees are like family to her, and many of her co-workers are also her friends.
Jenneen gives more great insights into the importance of networking and beneficial advice for aspiring accountants in this video. If you think accounting may be the place for you, you will want to hear what Jenneen has to say!
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