Natasha Granholm began her career at PwC (PricewaterhouseCoopers, LLP) as an intern and is now a partner and though she’s clearly a success in her field, she laughs when admitting that her interest in accounting was by happenstance. She was really only looking for an “easy” honors class in high school that would allow her to boost her GPA, but her teacher saw something in her and decided to enroll her in accounting competitions. “There is such a thing as an accounting competition, I promise,” Granholm laughed.
Once in college, she didn’t have an “absolute desire” to enter accounting, but knew it was worth exploring given her propensity for the field.
“The real appeal to me was that it wasn’t just about computing numbers. Accounting is theoretical; it’s not just about being good at math,” the partner said.
Early in her career, Granholm did a little of everything, from serving clients in the tax-exempt sector to M&A, an area she was particularly drawn to because of the dynamic and fast-paced nature of the work. She even did a “tour of duty” with PwC’s national M&A group in Washington, D.C. where she says she grew both personally and professionally.
“It opened up my point of view and gave me a more global perspective,” Granholm said.
Redirecting
Not too long after Granholm returned to Chicago from D.C., the economy began to decline and when the US economy fell into a recession in late 2008, the deal markets came to a halt. At this time, she was pregnant and decided to take some time off from work to focus on her family. When she returned in 2010, the economy hadn’t fully bounced back and Granholm wasn’t sure which direction to take her career in, though she did know she wanted to continue at PwC.