Alumni stories

Learn more about The School of Accounting and Finance's newest Advisory Council Chair, Lana Paton.

SAF Professor is being recognized for his contributions to accounting research.

Celebrating the career of Dr. Ranjini Jha and her accomplishments at the School of Accounting and Finance.

Three SAF professors will receive the Distinguished Professor Emeriti award in 2024.

One of the top women in finance in Canada, Jeannine LiChong is a dedicated mentor and community builder.

The School of Accounting and Finance (SAF) recently caught up with Grace Zhou (MAcc ‘18) to chat about her career post-graduation and to gain insight into the exciting opportunities that SAF co-op terms can provide to enrich students’ professional experiences. 

The School of Accounting and Finance (SAF) caught up with Laura Fong (MAcc '20) to chat about her career since graduation and her path to pursuing a career in tax. Fong, a Master of Accounting (MAcc) graduate, worked with Deloitte for all her co-op terms as a student. With the support and encouragement of her colleagues, she has happily stayed at Deloitte post-graduation. She continues to thrive in this positive environment as she grows her skills to become a great tax practitioner.

Susan Uthayakumar is the chief energy and sustainability officer at Prologis. She is responsible for evaluating and scaling both existing and emerging energy solutions across the Prologis platform and for ensuring that Prologis continues to be the leader in sustainability in the logistic real estate industry.

Matthew Roman is a partner at KPMG LPP, serving as a trusted business advisor to privately owned businesses in the Region of Waterloo. Within KPMG, Matthew is the National Tax Learning & Development Leader. He and his team contribute to the creation and delivery of internal resources to improve the technical and professional skills of KPMG tax professionals. He is a recipient of the CPA Canada Gold Medal for achieving the highest standing in Ontario on the Common Final Examination (CFE) of the CPA Profession.

Young alum Annu Puri (MAcc ’19), attributes his current success to Waterloo’s entrepreneurial spirit and the experiences and mentors he’s had throughout his academic career. Calling Waterloo Region home, Puri returned to the University to see how it has changed across campus, chat about his career path, and highlight his passion project, &Vision, with the School of Accounting and Finance (SAF).

Erica La’s (MAcc ’10, CPA) career journey started quite traditionally from an accounting perspective. As an Accounting and Financial Management (AFM) student, La completed her co-op work terms and began her career after graduation with PwC. After exploring and taking on diverse roles within audit, La left PwC as a senior associate, to work for Borealis Infrastructure, now known as OMERS Infrastructure. La’s next career move brought her to RealStar, a past audit client from

Sheilaah Guthrie, associate director of advancement at the School of Accounting and Finance had the chance to sit down with alum Lana Paton (BMath ’93) whose generous donation established the Lana Paton Women in Finance Scholarship in 2020. Lana is vice-chair and managing partner of the Greater Toronto Area and South Western Ontario Region at PwC Canada and a member of their Extended Leadership Team. The Lana Paton Women in Finance Scholarship was created to encourage and support aspiring undergraduate women to strive for leadership roles. Historically, leadership roles in the finance industry have been dominated by men. The School hopes the scholarship will act as encouragement to bridge the gender gap in leadership roles within finance, accounting, and business in general. Amazingly, Lana’s scholarship has already inspired other alumni to establish similar undergraduate scholarships that will further break down gender disparity and inclusivity barriers. 

Seasoned entrepreneur Ian Weng (MAcc ’13) began his career at KPMG in audit and advisory services after graduating from the Master of Accounting program. While at KPMG he gained a breadth of knowledge and obtained his CPA, CA designation. Like many University of Waterloo alums, however, he caught the entrepreneurship bug and wanted to create something⁠—so he ended up leaving KPMG to start his first tech startup called ChopChop.

SAF congratulates alum, Vanna Krantz, as she leads Grindr as their new CFO.

Grindr LLC named a former Walt Disney Co. executive as its next chief financial officer as the firm behind the dating app plans to go public through a combination with a special-purpose acquisition company later this year.

In 2021, the School of Accounting and Finance (SAF) presented the Young Alumni Award to Nilofer Ahmed, who completed her Master of Accounting degree in 2012. Ahmed’s career has merged a foundation in accounting and finance with an education in business and entrepreneurship, along with her passion for food in her current position as senior director of business and consumer strategy at Motif FoodWorks.

Each year, the School of Accounting and Finance (SAF) recognizes and acknowledges our distinguished alumni for the positive impact they have made on the profession, the School and the community. The 2021 School of Accounting and Finance Alumni Achievement Award recipient is Benjie Thomas, who studied in the BA/Chartered Accountancy program and graduated in 1998.

Ahead of Father’s Day on June 19, the School of Accounting and Finance (SAF) is telling the story of a family that shares a strong bond with UWaterloo. Ashi Mathur (MAcc ’93), now president of Marlin Spring began his career studying in the School of Accounting and Finance, and now, his sons Deven and Neel are enrolled in the AFM program and are expected to graduate in 2023 and 2025.

COVID-19 has disrupted financial statement auditing globally and impacted group dynamics in an industry vital to the health of the economy, according to a new study.

Ahead of Mother’s Day on May 8, the School of Accounting and Finance (SAF) is sharing the story of a mother and son who graduated from the same university and program, 28 years apart. When Winnie Leung graduated from the MAcc program in 1993, the top song on the radio was I Will Always Love You by Whitney Houston, and in 2021, when her son Aaron Leung graduated, the top song on Spotify was Drivers License by Olivia Rodrigo. Music, fashion, and technology changed during that time, but the value of a SAF degree remained constant.

Established in 2003, the SAF Fellowship Program has proven to be a game-changer for all parties involved. The program invites SAF alumni and students to participate in a rewarding four-year relationship to develop future leaders. Selected AFM and SFM students are provided with opportunities for professional development, relevant work experience, and the added benefit of financial support.

When Pratik Shah (MAcc ’09) came across the CFO role for the neo-biotech company Cyclica on a MaRS job board, it took him right back to his undergrad at the University of Waterloo. As a Biotech/CPA student, his long-term career goal was to work for high-growth startups making a social impact. Better yet, Shah wanted to leverage his scientific background, which aligned well with Cyclica’s bold mission to build the biotech pipeline of the future.

Waterloo alum, Carmen Chung (MAcc ’10, CPA – Hong Kong, Illinois, Ontario) leveraged the international exposure she’s gained from having worked in Toronto, New York and Hong Kong to build a career that has led to an exciting and unique career in investments, accounting, finance, and beyond. The School of Accounting and Finance (SAF) caught up with Chung to learn more about her career vision and how she’s navigated a dynamic global journey.

The Women in Accounting and Finance: Global Summit is an event that celebrates our female leaders and showcases their accomplishments in the field of accounting and finance. This year, though virtual, was a great opportunity to hear the unique and empowering stories of the panelists from around the globe.

Like International Women’s Day, the Women in Accounting and Finance Global Summit events serve to inspire current students and young alums in amplifying the importance of female leadership and perspectives in business. The 2021 Global Summit event for the Women in Accounting & Finance panel discussion brought together three School of Accounting and Finance (SAF) alums to share their career stories and answer questions from event attendees.