Women's Conference

Nicole Ursch

After 12 incredible years at Midwest BankCentre, I'm embarking on a new chapter in my career journey. I'm thrilled to announce the launch of my consulting venture, Actionable Insights, LLC!

At Actionable Insights, LLC, I offer consulting services focused on Emotional Intelligence, employee development, and leadership development. My passion lies in helping individuals and organizations unlock their full potential, fostering growth, and driving positive change.

 

 

Terri Stipanovich

CEO and Founder, The Collective Thread

Jennifer Vacha

Jen is a Partner in the Tax Services practice of Brown Smith Wallace and has more than 18 years of experience, specializing in not-for-profit, individual and small business returns.

Jen is responsible for the firm's not-for-profit tax engagements and provides oversight for other individual and business tax engagements.

Jen enjoys working one-on-one with clients to minimize their tax obligations and help them understand their current tax position. She stays up to date on tax law changes through a variety of continuing education courses and seminars.  
She has publicly presented on the following topics:
    "NPO and Health Care Industry Leader Panel," Brown Smith Wallace NPO Speaker Series, December 2018
    "A Woman in Leadership," MOCPA Women's Leadership Conference TED Talk, October 2018
    "Getting Engaged in Advocacy," MOCPA NFP Conference, October 2018
    "Tax Reform: Impact and Fundraising Opportunities," Brown Smith Wallace NPO Speaker Series, February 2018
    "We Fix Ugly 990s," Brown Smith Wallace NPO Speaker Series, December 2015
    "990 Deep Dive, UBI and Other Pitfalls," MOCPA Not-for-Profit Conference, October 2015
    "2014 Tax Prep," St. Charles County Association of Realtors, January 2015
    "Overview of Form 990," Q4-2013 NPO Industry Roundtable, October 2013

Jen has also written for the MOCPA periodical, The Asset:
    "Nonprofit Parking Tax: Expired Meters and the UBI 'Fine,'" January 2019
    "Implementing Effective Enterprise Risk Management Processes", November 2012

Jen was selected as a member of the St. Louis Business Journal 40 Under 40 award in 2018, and she was a Missouri Society of Certified Public Accountants (MOCPA) 2015 Women to Watch recipient. Through her membership in the MOCPA she serves currently on the MOCPA Education Foundation Board of Directors and previously served on the Society's Board of Directors and the Finance & Audit Committee and is a former chair of the MOCPA NFP Committee. Jen is a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA) and successfully completed her AICPA's Not-for-Profit Certification I. Jen graduated magna cum laude and with honors with a Bachelor's degree in Business Administration from the University of Nebraska at Omaha.

In 2018, she participated in the Brown Smith Wallace Partnership Readiness Program (PRP), which prepares selected Principals to become the next generation of firm Partners

Jeanne Dee

Jeanne is a partner in Audit and Assurance where she specializes in audits of financial statements for not-for-profit organizations, government entities, employee benefit plans and closely-held businesses. She is also a member of the firm's CARES Act Research and Response Team and advises not-for-profits around the latest legislation on COVID-19 relief, including the Paycheck Protection Program. Jeanne enjoys working with business owners, executive directors and board members to help them better understand the financial reporting process. She is also skilled in researching accounting principles and new or changing audit standards, and is a frequent author and speaker on these topics.

Education & Certifications
    B.S., Accounting, University of Missouri, St. Louis, MO
    Certified Public Accountant (CPA), State of Missouri
    Chartered Global Management Accountant (CGMA)

Professional Organizations
    American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA)
        Auditing Standards Board Member (2019 – Present)
        Member of the Board of Examiners (2015 – 2019)
    Missouri Society of Certified Public Accountants (MOCPA)
    Missouri State Board of Accountancy
        Board Member and Secretary (2013 – 2018)

Community Leadership
    St. Louis Economic Development Partnership
        Board Member (2019 – Present)
    Humane Society of Missouri
        Board Member (2018 – Present)

Leilani Carver-Madalon

Ph.D., Director of Graduate and Undergraduate Communication, Maryville University

Nancy Droesch

Nancy Droesch co-founded WILLO LLC in 2016 to pursue her passion to help companies reap the benefits of fostering gender diversity. Ms. Droesch brings the same practical results-oriented skills to her clients that she used as a partner at Deloitte & Touche LLP. Ms. Droesch developed WILLO’s Facilitated Peer Coaching program for younger women to help them gain the skills needed to navigate the business world.

Ms. Droesch launched her career in the early eighties when women were first joining the public accounting profession in equal numbers as their male peers. She was the first woman partner in the St. Louis office of Deloitte. Ms. Droesch served as Partner in Charge of the Deloitte’s Women’s Initiative (WIN) in the St. Louis office in its inaugural years. WIN was established to promote the advancement and retention of women at Deloitte. As the WIN leader, she identified issues and developed responsive programs in connection with the national WIN Program.

Ms. Droesch retired from Deloitte & Touche LLP in 2014 after 33 years in progressively responsible roles culminating as an Audit Partner. Her client service roles included leading multi-disciplinary teams delivering audit, tax and consulting services and reporting directly to her client’s Board of Directors in a variety of industries. As Partner in Charge of the St. Louis Audit Department for seven years, she was responsible for recruitment, retention and deployment of highly talented professionals, growth initiatives and operational excellence. As a leader in Deloitte’s India audit collaboration, Ms. Droesch’s engagements were used as prototypes for how to integrate Indian resources into US health care audits. In 2013 and 2014, she was the India Champion for the Health Care Provider sector responsible for expanding the integration of Indian teams into the US teams.

Speaking Experience
> WILLO speaker on leadership topics
> Guest speaker on various topics related to the advancement and development of women at other companies while a partner at Deloitte
> Frequent instructor at Deloitte training sessions on technical and business skill topics
> Guest speaker at Deloitte India WIN
> Facilitator for workshops on strategic direction, and board governance for not-for-profits

Community Involvement
> Council on Accreditation, Treasurer and Board member
> Emmaus Homes, Inc., Treasurer and Board member
> Emmaus Resident Trust Foundation, former Treasurer and Board member
> Partnership for Downtown St. Louis (now known as Downtown STL, Inc.), former Treasurer and Board member
> Edgewood Children’s Center (now known as Great Circle), former Chair of the Board
> Confluence St. Louis (now known as FOCUS St. Louis), former Chair of the Board
> American Institute of Certified Public Accountants, member
> Missouri Society of Public Accountants, member
> St. Louis Forum, member
> St. Louis Business Journal Forty Under Forty award recipient, class of 1997

Education
> Washington University, Masters in Business Administration
> Miami University of Ohio, Bachelor of Science in Business Administration
> Certified Public Accountant