All while being entrepreneurial and adapting to disruption
by Alyana Versolatto
Julia Klann (MAcc ’05) is one of the lucky few who knew exactly what they wanted to do after graduating from university. From her co-op experience at Big 4 accounting firms, she developed an affinity for working in tax early on – Canadian tax that is. It was when she was searching for her final co-op work term that she came across a role focused on U.S. tax – a realm she wasn’t as familiar with. She made the leap, and from that moment on fell in love with U.S. tax and never looked back.
Klann finds her current role as Partner, Eastern Canada Leader in U.S. Corporate Tax at Grant Thornton LLP both challenging and incredibly rewarding. As someone who gets bored easily, she enjoys how each day presents a new opportunity. Whether it be working with different industries, clients, or business objectives. Being a partner and strategically leading a practice also allows Klann to be an entrepreneur and make her own schedule. Planning a project that ends up saving a client tax money or implementing a measure that's more tax-efficient gives her the great satisfaction of helping someone.
The School of Accounting and Finance was able to catch up with Klann this fall for an interview, and to also have her as a panelist at our recent Women in Accounting and Finance: Global Summit on October 7. Here she shared more about her leadership experiences and career journey to fellow alums, as well as aspiring professionals.