Consultant Club Spotlight: Keri Bryan, CPA

Today, we’re celebrating another one of our 2024 Consultants Club winners, Keri Bryan!

Keri is one of our founding consultants, and she’s truly a rock star, bringing an impressive array of technical skills she’s honed over 20+ years in the industry.

Watch our recent podcast recording or read on to learn more about Keri and help welcome her to the Consultants Club.

Background

Keri Bryan earned her MBA at Western Kentucky University. Since then, she has worked as an internal auditor, a controller, and a consultant.

“I am lucky that I love what I do … Now that I’m 20+ years into my career, I’m an expert at what I do. And in consulting, that translates into me being able to pop in at a client and just be instantly helpful. And that is that is super gratifying.

Keri was one of the first consultants to join the fledgling CCN in 2018, and she’s been with us ever since.

What keeps her around?

“Everybody has been amazing. It’s a true feeling of teamwork,” she says. “You put your clients first, but you also are really concerned about the consultants, and you work with them at a teamwork level.”

Keri is also a fan of the variety of challenges and adventures that come with the consultant lifestyle. During one assignment, she took two laps around Austin’s Circuit of the Americas in a go-kart. Another time, she met Matthew McConaughey.

“You never know what adventures are out there for you in consulting. I love the variety of getting to go different places.”

Finding Work-Life Balance at CCN

Keri shares that flexibility and competitive pay rates have unlocked an ideal consultant lifestyle.

“My kids are now grown, but when they were still home, I wanted to only work four days a week, and I never really had the chance to make that work before,” she says. “You did it. And then when they were in high school, that schedule allowed me to be more involved with their activities … It really changed my life. Having that time with the kids when they were still here was just so valuable.”

Of course, there are still times when duty calls, and Keri has found herself in short-term situations that require those extra hours.

“Whenever something needs to be done, I am definitely all in,” she says. “But in consulting with that ebb and flow, you’re able to say, okay, now this crunch is over, so I’m going to work three days next week or four days next week and get back to whatever’s going on at the house or with the kids.”

Competitive Pay at CCN

Keri’s not just getting her time back; because of CCN’s unique model, she’s also getting more of the bill rate: “Because I got more of the bill rate through CCN, I was still making more money than when I was working five days a week at another firm.”

She says that consultants appreciate the transparency of seeing their bill rate and how more of it is going straight into their bank account. That translates to a true sense of engagement and value.

“I go into every client, and I am excited to be there,” she says. “I feel like I’m valued.”

“You get a different level of consultants when you pay them better … I’m excited to do a good job because, ultimately, I’m making so much more money than I had before.”

Celebrating in Style

As one of CCN’s first consultants, it’s no surprise that Keri Bryan was the first to make Consultants Club status the first time the team went to Vegas.

Now, in 2024, she’s headed back for more after logging another 5000 billable hours.

As an accountant, Keri says gambling is not in her nature, but she’s looking forward to the wide variety of things to do in Vegas. This year, she’s especially excited about fountain-view rooms at the Bellagio, museums, and tickets to Cirque du Soleil.

“I’m really looking forward to it,” she says. “Vegas is so fun.”

Connect and help congratulate Keri on LinkedIn!