Her Story
About Rosemary
I've been in my field since 2012, counting my internships, so about 16 years now. My current role is with Live Nation, where I'm part of a group that oversees all of North America concerts. We review the general ledger for the entire company, including different venues and restaurants owned by the company. We specialize in reviewing financial statements, specifically the balance sheet, doing a lot of safeguarding of the assets and red flagging to prevent any issues from happening in the future. This team acts as a liaison between internal audit and our external auditors. I got my start through a very influential professor at Mount St. Mary's University who pushed us to get internships with one of the big four accounting firms. I landed three consecutive summer internships with KPMG, which gave me exposure to big brands like World Oil and Herbalife. Then I applied to the Walt Disney Company and did an internship with their internal audit team. I was accepted into a 2-year program where every 6 months I rotated to different parts of the company - financial accounting, financial reporting, audit, and finance. That's how I found that I really enjoyed audit and the finance portion of accounting. Prior to my current role, I was at Sony Imageworks, a company that does visual effects for movies. They work for Netflix, Disney, Universal, doing CG and live-to-action animation. I was able to get credit for a couple of movies there, including K-Pop Demon Hunter, which was pretty awesome because my name can go down in history.
Her Interview
Ten minutes with Rosemary
01What’s the best career advice you’ve ever received?
The best career advice I've ever received came from Brian Kaye, who used to be a really big head of finance at Disney. When I was working 6am to midnight for close to a year at Disney, he would continuously tell me, 'Rosemary, good things happen to good people.' At first I would brush it off and it was a little annoying because he would constantly tell that to me. But I go back and always think about that now when I find myself in a big hardship. Good things happen to good people, and honestly, it really does reflect, and he engraved that in my brain.
02What advice would you give to young women entering your industry?
My biggest advice would be to set goals for yourself, short-term and long-term. I think one of the biggest mistakes that I've seen, and even in myself, is really not knowing what you want. Like, yes, you want a job, but realistically, what do you want? Set your goals so that you know where your targets are at. Look for positions that are already available and look at what those job descriptions entail, so that you can tailor yourself to meet those goals. If they're looking for someone that has exposure to a Big Four, maybe get an internship or find someone in the field that could give you insights. Having a wealth of great knowledge in Excel is very underestimated. I've seen so many people that apply to really demanding roles that say they know Excel, but they really don't, and it's frustrating and it really creates a dent in your personal brand.
03What values are most important to you in your work and personal life?
I've always had a calling for helping children and women. That's really important to me. I also value work-life balance and flexibility. Now that I find myself in a position where I have a lot more flexibility, the people I work with are mainly females, and they're not only females, they're mothers, so they understand. They check in and out to go pick up their kids. I love where I'm at, and now that I have a little bit more flexibility with my work schedule, I'm thinking of going back to school. I also find that the most valuable thing that anybody can give you is their time.
Keep Exploring
More Influential Women · California
Join Influential Women and start making an impact. Register now.