Tirrell Paxton is a high powered professional who is thriving in his dream job – Deputy Inspector General of Cook County for the Office of the Independent Inspector General. Mr. Paxton has enjoyed a successful 12-year career in Law and Accounting and is happy to be in a position that is a great mix of both professions. He started his career as a Staff Auditor at Ernst & Young in Chicago. After spending time at Ernst & Young, he attended law school and accepted a law clerk opportunity for a bankruptcy judge in Chicago upon graduation. He later joined a law firm, practicing bankruptcy and commercial litigation for two years. He also gained additional professional experience at Ernst & Young in financial investigations.

Mr. Paxton holds a Bachelor of Science in Accountancy from Jackson State University and Juris Doctor from the University of Michigan. He is a Certified Public Accountant (CPA) and Certified Fraud Examiner (CFE). Additionally, he has published a book titled, How to Conquer Wall Street: An Introduction to Investing and Financial Planning. I am absolutely thrilled to share the wealth of knowledge that he provided during our recent conversation!

Q: Tell me about your current role as Deputy Inspector General of Cook County.

I head up the Audit and Compliance division for the Office of the Independent Inspector General. I also do investigations. Typically, my day involves supervising investigators and planning surveys, audits, and compliance projects. So, I meet with different people within Cook County, including department heads, and coordinate the projects among different departments within Cook County. I conduct interviews, review documentation, and write reports.

Q: I’m a firm believer that you must have passion for whatever career you choose. What do you love about your career? And, what are some of the challenges that professionals should consider before deciding to pursue a career in your field?

I feel like I’ve been very fortunate to have gotten substantial experience in two worlds – the accounting/business world and law. In this current role, I’ve been able to pull together both sides and do things where my deeper understanding of accounting and law proved to be highly valuable. And, very few people have accounting law backgrounds.

In thinking about challenges, I would say that everything that glitters isn’t gold. A lot of people think about investigations as being similar to what you see on CSI or Criminal Minds. And, of course, there’s some truth to that. However, it’s not always going to be that clear cut. It’s going to be tough to find the information that you need to make a sound conclusion.

Q: You’ve had a pretty impressive career! What do you think are the key ingredients for career success and upward mobility?

Think long term and have a plan. Right now, a lot of people who are struggling due to the recent economic downturn never really had a plan. They never prepared for this day. They got caught completely flat footed. Your whole career is not going to be seamless – one job to the next, one promotion to the next. You have to think long term and anticipate that every day is not going to be great and you’re going to have a bumpy ride and there’s going to be some ups and downs. But, if you have a plan, you’re able to deal with setbacks a lot easier. And, you also see it before it comes. A lot of people were completely caught off guard with massive layoffs. But, if you were planning your career, thinking about different moves, and talking to people, you could’ve seen that a lot of this was building up because the employment market got tighter and tighter.

So, you want to have a long term plan and consistently stay abreast of the changes that are happening in your field, the job market, and our country. When I started my career in Accounting, I wasn’t saying that one day I’m going to end up being Deputy Inspector General of Cook County. You can’t plan for that. I just kept my eyes and ears open. I had a long term plan. I wanted to get these different skill sets. But, I stayed abreast of different changes in various fields. So, maybe five years ago, I fine tuned it for investigations of this sort.

Q: What advice do you have for those hit hard by today’s economy?

Competition is tough. Don’t have a party during unemployment. Fill that time up with activities that will differentiate you from the competition. Take classes, get a certification, volunteer, do pro-bono work. All of these things will be looked upon favorably when you get opportunities to apply and interview for jobs.

Q: As a hiring manager, what do you look for in applicants?

Relevant experience, of course. We look to hire people with a lot of experience so that you can come in and hit the ground running. When reviewing resumes, I look for examples of taking initiative. That can come in the form of different projects or different organizations that you’ve assumed responsibility in. I also look at personality. Of course, you can’t see that on the resume. Once you meet at the interview, you’re able to assess personality – Are you good working with people? Will you take initiative? Are you thoughtful? Are you reflective? These are the things that I’m assessing.

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