Willadene Tolmachoff
Willadene Tolmachoff is a seasoned accounting and financial management professional with more than 40 years of experience spanning federal government, private industry, academia, and entrepreneurship. She currently owns and operates Tolmachoff Real Estate PPC, a business she has managed since 1980, while also teaching accounting as a part-time professor, a role she began in 1997. Her career reflects a lifelong commitment to accounting, beginning with an early passion for ledgers in high school that ultimately shaped her professional path.
Throughout her career, Willadene has held senior roles in both public and private sectors, including work with KPMG, the U.S. federal government, and the District of Columbia Government, where she served as a Senior Audit Manager until 2016. In that role, she contributed to major financial oversight efforts, including identifying significant grant-related savings for the city. Her expertise spans auditing, government financial management, fraud examination, and compliance, supported by extensive professional certifications and doctoral research in fraud studies.
Willadene earned her Doctorate in Business Administration with a focus on fraud studies in 2016, completing her dissertation at age 70 with research centered on the Sarbanes-Oxley Act and internal audit protections. She also holds multiple master’s degrees, including finance and executive administration, and is an active member of several professional organizations such as the Association of Government Accountants and the AICPA. Known for her integrity, discipline, and dedication to education, she continues to stay active professionally while mentoring students and managing her real estate ventures.
• Certified Fraud Examiner (CFE)
• Certified Government Financial Manager (CGFM)
• Real Estate License
• Argosy University Sarasota- D.B.A.
• Association of Government Accountants
• American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA)
• Women's Accounting Alliance
• Institute of Internal Auditors
• Church involvement
• Donations to Humane Society
• Donations to University of Tennessee Knoxville (for great-nieces' tuition)
What do you attribute your success to?
I attribute my success to hard work and being focused. When you start something, you finish. You don't stop. Once you start, you continue until you finish. You climb that mountain until you get to the top. I can say the same thing - doing the doctorate was the hardest mountain I've ever climbed, but I climbed it. Throughout my career, I've remained committed to continuous learning, earning my advanced degrees while working full-time, and I've never deviated from my field since I discovered my passion for accounting in high school.
What’s the best career advice you’ve ever received?
I am a seasoned accounting and financial management professional with over 40 years of experience across government, private industry, academia, and entrepreneurship, and I currently own and operate Tolmachoff Real Estate PPC while also teaching accounting part-time.
What advice would you give to young women entering your industry?
It's easier now for women than it was when I started - things have definitely improved for women. The point is finding a field that you're passionate about, and stick with it, and continue to learn and continue to grow in the field, and hopefully to move up in your career. You have to like what you're doing. I found out when I was in high school - they gave us this little set of accounting books, little ledgers, and I did them and I locked it [loved it]. I said, this is what I want to do, and that's what I did. I stuck with it. I have never deviated. Now, I don't know if everybody should stay in the same field as I did, because I have a lot of students that come into the MBA program from education, from healthcare, and some of them wanted to switch careers. It's hard, it's difficult. It depends on how - I think you have to like what you're doing. If you love what you do, you never work a day in your life, and that's the reason I'm being as passionate as I am about my career at this point in my life, because I enjoyed what I did.
What are the biggest challenges or opportunities in your field right now?
One of the ongoing challenges in accounting and financial management is maintaining transparency and accountability in an increasingly complex regulatory environment. However, this also presents an opportunity for professionals who are highly ethical and detail-oriented to stand out and make a meaningful impact in both public and private sectors.
What values are most important to you in your work and personal life?
The values most important to me in my work and personal life are integrity, independence, objectivity, and professionalism. These principles have guided me throughout my entire career and continue to be at the core of everything I do.