Partner, Baker Tilly
Lauren Hayes attended UT Dallas for her bachelor’s in accounting degree and for what was then known as the master’s in accounting and information management degree, graduating in December 2007 and 2008, respectively.
In February 2008, she joined Montgomery Coscia Greilich LLP , a mid-market accounting firm in Plano, Texas, on the audit staff. Early in her career, she found a passion for investment company audits and employee benefit plan audits. She began to specialize in these two areas as a staff auditor and continued to rise through the ranks with a sustained focus on these engagements.
In June 2019, MCG merged with Baker Tilly Virchow Krause LLP (Baker Tilly), expanding their footprint as a local firm to an international firm with deep- bench expertise across multiple industries and service lines. Hayes is currently a partner with Baker Tilly.
Many of the favorite parts of her job do not involve auditing. She leads the recruiting efforts for Baker Tilly at UT Dallas and is on campus many times a year for recruiting and speaking engagements. Additionally, she is an active mentor to many team members and enjoys coaching, teaching and leading trainings initiatives.
Hayes met her husband while at UT Dallas. They have two children, a daughter and a son, and live in Prosper, Texas.
What is your best learning experience at UT Dallas?
You should always invest in people. Over the years, countless people have invested in me. Senior Lecturer Tiffany Bortz was always there for me through Intermediate Accounting II and beyond. To this day, she is still one of my biggest cheerleaders, both personally and professionally. No matter what I needed in school or what I need now, she is there for me. I was hired into public accounting at MCG in 2008. Virtually no one went into public accounting in 2008 due to the downturn in the economy, and very few people were getting hired into public accounting. In fact, most accounting firms were laying people off. MCG invested in me and kept me employed. That investment has paid dividends in work, growth and loyalty year after year. The graduates we have hired from UT Dallas are amazing and rewarding individuals. As we invest in them, I enjoy watching them grow and develop. Never hesitate to invest in someone!
Since graduation, what surprised you about your UT Dallas education?
Finance was a required course at UT Dallas, and I was awful at it! In fact, it was one of my lowest, if not my lowest, grade. It made no sense to me! I always said I would never get a job where I needed to use any finance. However, I fell in love with investment company audits, and these clients must prepare annual fair-market-value analyses. They are 100% finance calculations! To this day, I still do not like finance, and it amazes me that I chose a career path where I need to know finance. However, because I work in an industry with a topic I do not understand, I am forced to continue to learn each and every day. I must draw on the basics I learned at UT Dallas and combine them with the hands-on knowledge I have gained over the years and continue to gain day by day. Sometimes the things you like the least end up being the things you love the most!
What is your favorite UT Dallas memory?
Like many of my classmates, I went to school full time and worked full time. When it came to studying for Tiffany Bortz’s Intermediate Accounting II class, the only time that four of us could find together to study was Friday nights, so that is what we did! Every Friday night for the full semester, we would cook dinner and then pile on the floor with a wipe board and work problems. We would do this for hours. The closer it came to exam time, the more people started joining the Friday night study sessions. There was always somebody who could answer any question you might have. While Friday night was never our ideal night to study, it was always us just hanging out as friends — and helping each other pass the hardest class we took at UT Dallas!
What UT Dallas experience inspired you the most?
I worked full time and went to school full time. Thus, many of my UT Dallas memories are post-graduation, and many of them come from recruiting new UT Dallas students to the firm. As a female in a leadership position in a male-dominated investment company industry, I am often asked questions about my role during recruiting or interviews. While I do not look at myself as anything other than an average person, it has become apparent to me that others do. Students, young females in particular, look to the path I have taken and the legacy I am creating as inspiration for what they want to become. To be someone else’s inspiration is inspiring in and of itself. Be the force you want to see!
What advice do you have for college students looking to succeed professionally?
Never give up! Be relentless! I fight every day for my right to be on the payroll. Never forget that you are in the driver’s seat of your career, your passions, your goals and your dreams. Take the wheel! But…never forget to have fun! Life is too short not to enjoy what you are doing!
