After graduating from St. Norbert College, Nick Guerrieri spent more than five years in public accounting as an auditor for small- to medium-sized organizations before a recruiter contacted him about joining KI. “I felt this was the best way to hone my technical skills and gain exposure to a broad range of businesses and industries,” he says.
Now, after being with KI for more than 25 years, Guerrieri has used his experience to see the company through multiple challenges. In 2018, KI had become 100% employee owned and “after two years of strong performance, we were on track to refinance our debt early,” Guerrieri says.
But then the COVID-19 pandemic struck, and as the company neared its closing date Guerrieri says the continued volatility “made me question whether we would be putting too much stress on the company.” The decision to wait drew additional confidence with KI’s lender group, and Guerrieri says KI ultimately completed the transaction one year later “on even more favorable terms.”
For the next generation of financial leaders, “my advice is to seek knowledge, not information or outcomes,” Guerrieri shares. “I think that is a differentiator.”
