WSCPA Membership Summit 2024

Sarah Funk

Sarah Funk, CPA, CGMA, has more than 20 years of multi-national financial, operations, technology and telecommunication experience spanning accounting, budgeting and finance, compliance, audit, system implementations, transaction activities, money transfer services and public accounting. She is the Chief Financial Officer at Ben Franklin Transit. Sarah is an active member of various civic and community revitalization efforts. In her free time, Sarah enjoys spending time with her family and being outdoors.

Kimberly Scott

Kimberly Scott, CAE, brings over two decades of dedicated leadership to her role of President & CEO of the WSCPA, a position she has held since 2017. Her commitment to advancing the CPA profession is evident in her extensive advocacy work at both state and national levels.

Since joining the WSCPA in 2000, she has served in various senior leadership roles throughout the organization. From 2009 to 2022, she also served as Executive Director of the Washington CPA Foundation. In the role of WSCPA’s Vice President of Government and Member Relations, Kimberly spearheaded the organization’s advocacy efforts, successfully driving the drafting and passage of multiple bills through the Washington State legislature, including a bill that secured $3.3 million for the Washington CPA Foundation. The Foundation now provides over $500,000 in accounting scholarships annually.

Beyond her role at WSCPA, Kimberly is involved in shaping the future of the accounting profession. She currently serves on the AICPA National Pipeline Advisory Group and recently served on the AICPA Women’s Initiatives Executive Committee.

A Certified Association Executive (CAE) credential holder, Kimberly is passionate about continuous learning. She has graduated from programs with Heroic Speaking, Leadership Eastside, and earned her certificate for DEI in the Workplace from the University of South Florida.

She has volunteered her time and expertise on various boards, including recently serving on the Washington Society for Association Excellence (WSAE) DEI Task Force, the Homeward Pet Board of Directors, and the Human Services Commission for her city.

Marta Zaniweski

In her role as Vice President of State Regulatory and Legislative Affairs, Marta Zaniewski leads The American Institute of Certified Public Accountants’ (AICPA) state regulatory and legislative efforts. In her role, she builds strong and collaborative relationships with internal and external stakeholders on issues that impact the CPA profession. She serves as the AICPA’s primary voice on state advocacy efforts. Ms. Zaniewski works closely with state CPA societies, the National Association of State Boards of Accountancy (NASBA), the Alliance for Responsible Professional Licensing (ARPL), state legislative and executive branch officials, and global professional services firms. Ms. Zaniewski previously served as the Assistant Vice President for advocacy and external engagement at the National Council of Architectural Registration Boards (NCARB). During her time with NCARB, she built the organization’s advocacy program and advocated for reasonable regulation at the state level. Before joining NCARB, Ms. Zaniewski managed coalitions and partnerships at the American Institute of Architects. She also coordinated state political, grassroots and fundraising efforts for the National Association of Realtors. Prior to making the transition to non-profit work, Marta was a political appointee for the Bush-Cheney White House from 2004-2008. In her role, she worked for First Lady Laura Bush and U.S Department of Secretary Margaret Spellings. She originally hails from California and holds her BA from the University of California in Political Science.

Kimberly Scott

Kimberly Scott, CAE, brings over two decades of dedicated leadership to her role of President & CEO of the WSCPA, a position she has held since 2017. Her commitment to advancing the CPA profession is evident in her extensive advocacy work at both state and national levels.

Since joining the WSCPA in 2000, she has served in various senior leadership roles throughout the organization. From 2009 to 2022, she also served as Executive Director of the Washington CPA Foundation. In the role of WSCPA’s Vice President of Government and Member Relations, Kimberly spearheaded the organization’s advocacy efforts, successfully driving the drafting and passage of multiple bills through the Washington State legislature, including a bill that secured $3.3 million for the Washington CPA Foundation. The Foundation now provides over $500,000 in accounting scholarships annually.

Beyond her role at WSCPA, Kimberly is involved in shaping the future of the accounting profession. She currently serves on the AICPA National Pipeline Advisory Group and recently served on the AICPA Women’s Initiatives Executive Committee.

A Certified Association Executive (CAE) credential holder, Kimberly is passionate about continuous learning. She has graduated from programs with Heroic Speaking, Leadership Eastside, and earned her certificate for DEI in the Workplace from the University of South Florida.

She has volunteered her time and expertise on various boards, including recently serving on the Washington Society for Association Excellence (WSAE) DEI Task Force, the Homeward Pet Board of Directors, and the Human Services Commission for her city.

Mark Peterson

Mark G. Peterson is the Executive Vice President - Advocacy at the Association of International CPAs (AICPA). In this position, he sets the direction for global advocacy for management and public accounting, CPA and CGMA issues. Peterson works closely with state CPA societies, national governments, US state governments, regulators, legislators and accounting bodies to influence and shape policy decisions impacting the profession. Peterson leads the Congressional & Political Affairs, and State Society Affairs, State Regulatory and Legislative Affairs and Tax Advocacy teams. Prior to joining the AICPA, Peterson served as Vice President with the Alpine Group, where he was responsible for individualized lobbying work on tax, trade, agricultural, environmental, energy and related issues. He served a diverse group of clients, including major international technology companies, energy companies, financial institutions, manufacturers and trade associations, as well as worked on several major policy coalitions on matters pending before the legislative and executive branches of government. Peterson has held several other positions in Washington that have included the role of Washington Representative for Toyota Motors North America, Director of Government and Regulatory Affairs for Andersen LLP in Washington and a Special Assistant to Speaker Newt Gingrich in the U.S. House of Representatives. He earned his bachelor of science degree in history from the University of North Dakota.

Jen Mueller

Jen Mueller pursued a career in sports broadcasting after repeated comments of “talks too much” from teachers and family members.

A 22-year sports broadcasting veteran, Jen currently serves as the Seattle Seahawks sideline radio reporter. She is also an Emmy-award winning producer and part of the Seattle Mariners and television broadcast team on ROOT Sports.

In addition to her work on the sidelines, Jen launched Talk Sporty to Me in 2009. She provides a unique twist on business communication based on her time in locker rooms and expertise in 1-on-1 conversations. Jen is the author of three books and an on-demand video series “Asking Better Questions.”

Jen graduated from Southern Methodist University in 2000 with degrees in Broadcasting Journalism and Public Policy.

Glenn Helms

Dr. Glenn L. Helms was the Arthur Young Fellow in IT Auditing at the University of Houston and has served as Director of Certification for the International Certified Information Systems Auditor program. He has served on numerous national and international academic and professional committees, including the American Institute of Certified Public Accountant’s Auditing Standards Board’s Computer Auditing Subcommittee and its Specialized Accreditation Board. He has numerous years experience in public accounting and serves as a consultant to various organizations. He has provided consulting services to Fortune 100 firms, Big Four CPA firms, financial institutions, government agencies and various other entities throughout North America, Europe, and the Pacific Rim. He has presented over 2,000 professional seminars and has published over 50 articles in a wide range of practitioner and academic journals. He has served on the editorial advisory boards of several national and international journals. His books address security, fraud, and internal controls (for small and public entities) in a variety of systems, including E-commerce and cloud computing. He has written numerous book, including those published by the AICPA some of which include – Purchasing, Inventory and Cash Disbursements: Common Frauds and Internal Controls; Revenue and Cash Receipts: Common Frauds and Internal Controls; Internal Controls and IT: Reliable Reporting and Fraud Prevention; E-Commerce Controls and Audits; Common Fraud: A Guide to Thwarting the Top Ten Schemes; and Internal Control Essentials for Financial Mangers, Accountants, and Auditors. Glenn has been awarded the outstanding Discussion Leader Award from the AICPA for numerous consecutive years. He has received similar awards from state societies and universities.

Marta Zaniweski

In her role as Vice President of State Regulatory and Legislative Affairs, Marta Zaniewski leads The American Institute of Certified Public Accountants’ (AICPA) state regulatory and legislative efforts. In her role, she builds strong and collaborative relationships with internal and external stakeholders on issues that impact the CPA profession. She serves as the AICPA’s primary voice on state advocacy efforts. Ms. Zaniewski works closely with state CPA societies, the National Association of State Boards of Accountancy (NASBA), the Alliance for Responsible Professional Licensing (ARPL), state legislative and executive branch officials, and global professional services firms. Ms. Zaniewski previously served as the Assistant Vice President for advocacy and external engagement at the National Council of Architectural Registration Boards (NCARB). During her time with NCARB, she built the organization’s advocacy program and advocated for reasonable regulation at the state level. Before joining NCARB, Ms. Zaniewski managed coalitions and partnerships at the American Institute of Architects. She also coordinated state political, grassroots and fundraising efforts for the National Association of Realtors. Prior to making the transition to non-profit work, Marta was a political appointee for the Bush-Cheney White House from 2004-2008. In her role, she worked for First Lady Laura Bush and U.S Department of Secretary Margaret Spellings. She originally hails from California and holds her BA from the University of California in Political Science.

Sarah Funk

Sarah Funk, CPA, CGMA, has more than 20 years of multi-national financial, operations, technology and telecommunication experience spanning accounting, budgeting and finance, compliance, audit, system implementations, transaction activities, money transfer services and public accounting. She is the Chief Financial Officer at Ben Franklin Transit. Sarah is an active member of various civic and community revitalization efforts. In her free time, Sarah enjoys spending time with her family and being outdoors.

Kimberly Scott

Kimberly Scott, CAE, brings over two decades of dedicated leadership to her role of President & CEO of the WSCPA, a position she has held since 2017. Her commitment to advancing the CPA profession is evident in her extensive advocacy work at both state and national levels.

Since joining the WSCPA in 2000, she has served in various senior leadership roles throughout the organization. From 2009 to 2022, she also served as Executive Director of the Washington CPA Foundation. In the role of WSCPA’s Vice President of Government and Member Relations, Kimberly spearheaded the organization’s advocacy efforts, successfully driving the drafting and passage of multiple bills through the Washington State legislature, including a bill that secured $3.3 million for the Washington CPA Foundation. The Foundation now provides over $500,000 in accounting scholarships annually.

Beyond her role at WSCPA, Kimberly is involved in shaping the future of the accounting profession. She currently serves on the AICPA National Pipeline Advisory Group and recently served on the AICPA Women’s Initiatives Executive Committee.

A Certified Association Executive (CAE) credential holder, Kimberly is passionate about continuous learning. She has graduated from programs with Heroic Speaking, Leadership Eastside, and earned her certificate for DEI in the Workplace from the University of South Florida.

She has volunteered her time and expertise on various boards, including recently serving on the Washington Society for Association Excellence (WSAE) DEI Task Force, the Homeward Pet Board of Directors, and the Human Services Commission for her city.

Abhishek Sinha

Abhishek has over fourteen years of risks and controls experience, with seven years in the Big Tech within Meta and Google. Currently, he leads the internal audit team at Meta for Generative AI and Metaverse products. He partners with cross-functional teams (Engineering, Product Managers, and Finance) to identify and assess operational, regulatory, privacy, and financial risks. Abhishek collaborates with the Institute of Internal Auditors (IIA), providing thought leadership in the realm of AI. His academic credentials include an MBA from the University of Chicago Booth School of Business, and a bachelor’s in computer science engineering.

Rachel Wagner-Kaiser

Rachel is a data scientist director at KPMG with 12+ years of experience in data, analytics, and artificial intelligence, with a focus natural language processing and large language models. She leads data science teams in building AI systems, collaborating closely with subject matter professionals to ensure the solution addresses the business’ pain points. Rachel is also part of the Lighthouse’s internal research and development team, focusing on turning cutting edge research into solving problems with practical AI solutions.

Jared Theis

Jared Theis, CPA, is an Accounting Advisory Director in the Seattle office of KPMG LLP, working remotely out of Spokane. He provides accounting change, technical accounting, SEC reporting, financial statement and internal control audit services to a variety of large, mid-size, and small public and non-public companies, primarily in the forest products, manufacturing, technology, and real estate industries. Jared maintains an in-depth understanding of requirements and standards of the PCAOB, FASB, SEC, and Private Company Council. He frequently speaks at various professional events and local college campuses on various topics, including data and analytics as a member of KPMG’s D&A network. He currently serves as a member of the Accounting Advisory Boards for Washington State University and Eastern Washington University.

Monette Anderson

Monette Anderson, a Certified Association Executive (CAE) since 2021, brings a wealth of program management experience in the non-profit sector to her roles at the WSCPA and the WA CPA Foundation. With over 20 years of expertise gained from esteemed organizations like PBS and the Make-A-Wish Foundation, Monette currently serves as the Vice President of Member Services and Education for the WSCPA and Executive Director of the WA CPA Foundation. Monette oversees annual scholarship awards exceeding $500,000 and manages a grant program aimed at fostering diversity and equity within the accounting pipeline. Monette’s dedicated efforts in promoting diversity and spearheading association innovation are further underscored by her role as President Elect for the Washington Society of Association Excellence (WSAE).

Monette’s professional endeavors are driven by her unwavering commitment to building stronger, more inclusive communities within the accounting and association industries.Proficient in communication, Monette has offered practical insights to WSCPA members through her public speaking engagements and written articles, aiming to provide continuous educational value and community support.