Tim Ryan

About Tim

• I grew up in Boston, where my parents taught my siblings and me three principles: work hard, be honest, and be respectful—there wasn’t really any emphasis on going to school or getting good grades.
• The first in my family to complete college, I graduated from Babson College in Boston simply because it was the most affordable route.
• I worked full time through college and had aspirations to be an entrepreneur—I had no interest in accounting until a professor sold me on the dynamic, people-centered aspects of the field.
• I took an accounting internship doing payables and receivables for a company that sold filing systems, but hated it.
• That same professor pushed me towards the Big Eight (now the Big Four) for public accounting because they were more people-focused, so I went to work for PwC after college.
• At PwC, I worked hard and put a lot of pressure on myself to reach milestones—like being promoted to senior, and then to manager—earlier than the average employee.
• Having spent my career working my way up with PwC, I currently lead 55,000 people as U.S. chair and senior partner.
• My goal is to help PwC employees be the most sought-after people in the world because their skills are whole—they understand accounting and technology, and have eyes on the social issues around us.