2023 Most Influential Women: Carrie Brown

Accounting has been woven throughout Carrie Brown’s educational pursuits and her professional career.

An accountant for 15 years spread across two firms, she’s now a partner for certified public accounting firm Elliott, Robinson & Co. LLP, where she’s worked since 2012. Both her tenure and title in the industry, she says, are remarkable for a businesswoman.

“Being a partner in a historically male-dominated industry is very meaningful,” Brown says. “While women now make up over 50% of accounting graduates, according to the 2021 (American Institute of CPAs) Trends Report, women represented only 39% of partners in CPA firms.”

Brown is one of three female partners at Elliott, Robinson & Co.

“We are unique among accounting firms because 81% of our organization is female,” Brown says. “Being a female partner brings with it an additional set of pressures and responsibilities to ensure that we are taking the best care of our employees.”

Brown began her career in 2008 with FORVIS LLP, after she had earned a bachelor’s degree in accounting and an MBA, with an emphasis in accounting, from Drury University.

She’s always understood the weighty responsibility of handling financial documents for clients, but she says the pressure was greater during the 2020 pandemic.

“There were countless challenges, with rapidly changing rules,” she recalls. “When the Paycheck Protection Program was introduced to our nation, we had a very short window to learn about the program, educate our clients and serve as a resource to them as they navigated their own business challenges – while also applying for this crucial funding to keep their doors open.”

The results were gratifying, though, as Brown says she spent long hours those weeks advising over 100 business owners through the application process to receive needed funding and continue operations.

One area of inspiration for her is a motto borrowed from author and speaker Simon Sinek: “Leadership is not about being in charge; it’s about taking care of those in your charge.”

Brown says that motto has been a motivating factor in mentorship opportunities created at Elliott, Robinson & Co.

“My most rewarding career moments have come when I have had the privilege of being a mentor to others in my firm,” she says. “I have had the opportunity to serve as a mentor for between three and six of our team members each year. Being able to meet with those team members on a monthly basis and be a resource to them as they grow their careers has been so fulfilling.”

She says her most gratifying civic work is with the Betty and Bobby Ozarks Counseling Center.

“Having been raised by a mother who dedicated her career to education and mental health, I was always taught about the importance of this often-forgotten area of health care,” Brown says, noting her efforts with the nonprofit’s addition of a young professionals’ board in 2012. “Along with another young professional, we reached out to our fellow contacts and created a group that was dedicated to the organization and their mission. We created a fundraiser from scratch to help attract a new demographic, and in five years, that fundraiser grew 500%.”