Lauren Greer enjoyed the camaraderie and support of working at EY. But after eight years, she was ready to do something different.

“It got to the point that I wasn’t sure I wanted to be in a finance and accounting career anymore,” says Lauren. “I wasn’t sure if other finance roles would be rewarding for me. I even thought about leaving finance for something completely different.”

That’s when her EY career counselor suggested Salo Compass—a rotational program that allows finance professionals to try out several different roles.

Right away, Lauren was intrigued by Compass. “Before Compass, I considered a few jobs, but it’s hard to know if you’ll like being an internal auditor or controller based on a couple of hours in interviews,” she explained. “Compass solved a problem for me. I have a unique opportunity to try out a few roles and get a better idea of what I want to do in the future.”

Now, Lauren is in “control”

In Lauren’s current rotation, she’s getting the experience of being a controller at a spice manufacturer. “So far, it has been a great experience,” Lauren says. “The company knows that I’m learning the role, so people have been encouraging and helpful. They’re actually excited for me.”

While working with the spice company, the company has undergone some changes. As a result, Lauren has been exposed to a variety of special projects, in addition to day-to-day controller responsibilities.

“At EY, I was always reviewing the work someone else did,” she explains. “Now I’m getting to see what it’s like to be inside the company—creating reports, managing processes, and being a strategic member of the team.”

Making it work in Milwaukee

Lauren has the distinction of being the first Salo Compass consultant in the Milwaukee area, which was daunting at first.

She admits, “I didn’t know if I would get the same level of support as Compass consultants in other areas, but when they said Salo was ‘consultant-first,’ they meant it. I’m so impressed with the process.”

Compass support includes quick check-ins each week and monthly debriefs. In addition, Lauren has also been to Minneapolis for Salo’s Anniversary party and had opportunities to network with Compass program alumni.

“The Compass team is full of people who are former public accountants themselves, so they understand the questions I have around the process,” Lauren adds.

Time will tell what’s next for Lauren

Lauren is looking forward to her future Compass rotations—hopefully in areas such as internal audit, FP&A, or system implementation. And, after working with Salo, she might also be interested in working with Salo’s business development team. We’ll have to wait and see. The sky is the limit.

Did this story spark your curiosity?

Are you looking to step out of public accounting and want to learn more about the Compass program? You can learn more or connect with the Compass team today.

To find out more about consulting careers at Salo, register for an online information session or contact our talent team. We can’t wait to meet you!