Chris Alabi
Partner
PwC
San Jose, CA USA
“Understand that no one person knows everything. Be open to learning from others every day and also passing along your knowledge in developing others.”
Milestones
My road in life has taken me all over.
I was born in Nigeria and moved to the United Kingdom as a teenager. My family encouraged me to be a doctor or an engineer. But as a kid, I wanted to be an airline pilot.
As an interim compromise, I studied an aeronautical engineering degree with the hopes of progressing to flying school right after.
During my engineering degree years, I took a 1 year gap working as an intern at an airline in the UK which also exposed me to the fascinating world of finance and accounting.
Decided to pursue a masters degree in Air Transport Management at Cranfield University to further develop my business acumen.
After graduating, I joined PwC in 2005 as an associate in the United Kingdom. First in the Cambridge office and moved to the Uxbridge (West London) office in 2008.
In 2010, I took the opportunity for an international tour and transferred to the San Jose, CA office and worked in both the audit and accounting advisory practices.
I completed an 18 month Professional Practice Fellowship at the CAQ in Washington DC providing input on audit quality matters and formulating positions on standard setting activities.
I have now worked at PwC for almost 15 years and I am a partner in our assurance practice.
Keep following my journey
Education
High School
St. Joseph Secondary School
St. Joseph Secondary School
Graduate
Air Transport Management
Cranfield University
Air Transport Management
Cranfield University
Certification/License
Fellow Chartered Accountant (FCA)
Institute of Chartered Accountant in England and Wales
Fellow Chartered Accountant (FCA)
Institute of Chartered Accountant in England and Wales
Certification/License
Certified Public Accountant (CPA)
California Board of Accountancy
Certified Public Accountant (CPA)
California Board of Accountancy
Career
Partner
I provide assurance services to Life Science companies
Career Roadmap
My work combines:
My work combines:
Technology
Entrepreneurship
Problem Solving
Day to Day
As an audit partner, my day is not always predictable and I have to be flexible and adjust accordingly. Its actually one of the attributes I enjoy the most about my job. I typically start out by meeting with my teams to understand the status of or to review work done on a current engagement or to plan a new client engagement. As a trusted business advisor, I also spend a considerable amount of time meeting with my clients to discuss current business and audit related matters.
Recommended Education
My career is related to what I studied. I'd recommend the path I took:
Graduate
Air Transport Management
Air Transport Management
Certification/License
Fellow Chartered Accountant (FCA)
Fellow Chartered Accountant (FCA)
Certification/License
Certified Public Accountant (CPA)
Certified Public Accountant (CPA)
Hurdles
The Noise I Shed
From Society in General:
"You shouldn't be an auditor or an accountant. All you do is taxes, its not an exciting profession and you'll get bored. "
