Jeffrey Baron
Tax Partner, Pride Alliance National Leader
Jessica Chu
Advisory Operations – Transformation & Growth Director
Kevin Cohenour
Administrative Associate
Jeffrey Baron
Tax Partner, Pride Alliance National Leader
As LGBTQ+ people, we have a unique contribution to make to the firm. Coming out takes great courage and staying out takes grit and resilience. As pride alliance leader, I will help ensure we strengthen our inclusive culture and allow all of us to be our authentic selves.
Jessica Chu
Advisory Operations – Transformation & Growth Director
Someone once told me early in my career that career paths aren’t ladders, they’re more like jungle gyms. That was absolutely the case for me. I started down my career path 20 years ago as a clinician and now have the opportunity to lead the business intelligence initiative for Advisory. What I learned along the way is that whatever career path you’re on, it should not only build on your strengths, but also align with areas that drive you to want to learn and grow. It needs to be something that gets you excited to go to work every day, even knowing there will be more challenges on some days than others.
Kevin Cohenour
Administrative Associate
One of the reasons I chose BDO as a new career path on my journey in life was the inclusion the firm offers its employees. As I was interviewing, Pride Month was in full swing and BDO had the Pride logo on the website. That let me know this was a place that I could feel included, free to be myself and safe amongst my peers. So BDO quickly went to the short list of companies I was ready to call home. Being able to be who I am, without hiding, and working at a company that supports me, was super important.
Marisol Cunningham
Office Administrator
Paulo Gonzalez
Assurance
Technology Director
Sherwin Ignacio
Assurance Manager
Riheem Jefferson
Assurance Senior
Binita Pradhan
Assurance Partner, West Region Third Party Attestation Practice Leader, and BDO Multicultural Alliance Co-Leader
Tiffany Prudhomme
National Assurance and Central Region Technical Partner, Multicultural Alliance Co-Leader
Michele Schmittel
Assurance Partner, Germany Desk Leader, France Desk Co-Leader and Benelux Desk Co-Leader
Marisol Cunningham
Office Administrator
Working in an industry that tends to have a lower percentage of Hispanics and other minorities, it is so important to represent and talk about my cultural background. I take great pride in my personal accomplishments and contributions to this firm, and I hope that by demonstrating how capable I am, I am helping encourage others to adopt a more inclusive view of minorities. Additionally, I hope that other minority BDOers can recognize the importance of being seen and heard, and can feel welcome to share more about their diverse backgrounds as well.
Paulo Gonzalez
National Assurance Senior Manager
In today’s highly diverse organizations, the ability to work with people who have diverse values and cultures is extremely important. I appreciate BDO’s D&I culture because it is precisely focused on the value that the diverse individual can bring to this organization. I appreciate how these values are being recognized, understood and respected.
Sherwin Ignacio
Assurance Manager
When I arrived in Pittsburgh from the Philippines, I didn’t have a U.S. driver’s license, a car, or even an apartment. BDO set me up with my co-worker, Andy. He showed me the city, helped me look at apartments – he even picked me up from the airport! It was nice having someone there to help me figure everything out.
Riheem Jefferson
Assurance Associate
I grew up in foster care and with the encouragement of my group home and mentors I met along the way, I was able to overcome the odds. While studying in college, I received a scholarship from an organization that provides access to post-secondary education to youth in foster care, an organization I continue to stay involved with to this day. Since joining BDO, my role has allowed me to continue my personal and professional growth in a truly supportive environment.
Binita Pradhan
Assurance Partner, West Region Third Party Attestation Practice Leader, and
BDO Multicultural Alliance Co-Leader
I’m very passionate about diversity, equity and inclusion, including building awareness across different ethnic groups and bringing more women into leadership roles. I look at this role as a labor of love and I plan to do all I can to continue to move the needle.
Tiffany Prudhomme
National Assurance and Central Region Technical Partner, Multicultural Alliance Co-Leader
As a Black professional in the accounting industry, and more specifically a Black partner within public accounting, this is a career and role that I hold with high esteem — not in position alone, but in the power to encourage, influence and, where possible, impact the outcomes of other professionals who are also passionate about being successful in the industry. It is never lost on me that the road I have traveled - which many times was void of a mirror reflection opportunity - may provide a unique perspective to other ambitious, young Black professionals on their own aspirational career journey.
Michele Schmittel
Assurance Partner, Germany Desk Leader, France Desk Co-Leader and Benelux Desk Co-Leader
One of the best things about my role is working together with people from all over the world. I love learning about the different cultures and how things are done throughout our world. It is very rewarding connecting people to help find solutions. I am very excited about being part of something bigger than my immediate world and driving growth internationally for BDO in strategic ways.