The 2023 Rising Stars of the Profession: Shannon Moskal

Shannon Moskal is a Financial Crime Consulting Principal at Crowe LLP and serves as the Firm's Regulatory Response Practice Leader. In this role, Shannon is responsible for guiding financial institutions through the complex journey of regulatory remediation and validation.

Shannon has over a decade of financial institution independent testing experience and specializes in managing Internal Audit and Compliance Testing Issue Validation programs for global organizations. She enjoys building programs to address new regulatory challenges, as well as charting and executing a path to green for institutions struggling to meet examiner expectations. Shannon is a certified member of both the Association of Certified Anti-Money Laundering Specialists (ACAMS) and the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners (ACFE).

Shannon is passionate about advancing women/caregivers in the workforce and giving back to the community. She serves as a committee member of the Crowe Caregivers Network (a business resource group catering to the needs of parents and other caregivers), chairs Crowe TogetHER (an event celebrating women in the Financial Services industry), and volunteers for the Chicago Associate Board of Ambassadors of the American Cancer Society. Shannon is blessed with a tremendously supportive family and enjoys traveling and spending time with her husband and four-year-old son. She plans to one day visit all seven continents and take a single cruise to over 200 countries around the world.

What would you say has been the biggest factor in your success so far?

The biggest factor in my success has been the many amazing mentors I have had throughout my career, along with my willingness to take advantage of the opportunities that those mentors afforded me. I would likely not even still be in the consulting field today if not for the advice of one of my mentors, who helped me get past some early career challenges and set myself up on a sustainable path for the future. Another wonderful mentor helped me identify new ways to reach strategic markets, and a third taught me to how best to monitor for market changes and listen to my clients' pain points. Although I was recently elected to the Crowe partnership, I know I still have a great deal to learn. I intend to continue to leverage the advice and support of my mentors throughout my career.

Partially as a result of my own extremely rewarding experiences, I am particularly dedicated to giving back to the next generation of up-and-coming consulting leaders. I currently coach 3 individuals and mentor 6 others, and I try to afford to these future leaders as much support as I've received from my mentors. In particular, I am constantly reminding and encouraging them to take advantage of all opportunities that may arise, as any opportunity has the potential to be the catalyst for outsized growth and career success.

What do you enjoy most about your career in the consulting industry?

Beyond the obvious satisfaction of serving clients and helping them to solve challenging problems, what I enjoy most is my ability to make an impact on future generations of consultants by serving as a role model and mentor – especially to women. My family is extremely important to me and sometimes it can be challenging to effectively serve clients and improve my professional skills while juggling life commitments. Thankfully, I have strong mentors and leaders at Crowe who have helped guide my work-life integration. As such, I like to pay it forward by coaching, mentoring, and advocating for junior team members.

In fact, I feel incredibly fortunate to work for a firm that recognizes that its people are responsible for supporting others at home in addition to serving clients. As a member of the executive committee for the Crowe Caregiver's Network, I get to help other Crowe team members with children, elderly family members, and other dependents achieve their own work-life balances. Working in consulting allows me to achieve a combined level of both professional and personal growth and satisfaction I didn't think possible.

What is your proudest achievement to date?

I have always been passionate about advancing the cause of women in consulting and in the financial services industry. As such, my proudest professional achievement to date has been my role in developing and launching the Crowe-sponsored Financial Services TogetHER program. The goals of the program are to provide opportunities for women leaders to network, collaborate and support each others endeavors, and to champion women who show leadership potential in the early stages of their careers by connecting them with guidance and mentorship.

We held the TogetHER program's inaugural post-COVID networking event August 2, 2022, in the Chicago suburbs. The keynote speaker was Kimberly Ellison-Taylor, Past Chairman of the American Institute of CPAs' Board of Directors, who spoke on the topic of "Next Level Mentorship." Women leaders in financial services from across the Chicagoland area were invited and were asked to bring with them either a female mentor who had had a significant impact on their careers, or someone whom they were currently mentoring. Based on feedback received from attendees, the event was both inspiring and motivating. Due to the positive word-of-mouth, an encore presentation was recorded for those who could not make it in person and was viewed by nearly 250 people across the country. I plan to continue to do whatever I can promote the cause of women in consulting, as well as that of other marginalized groups.

What's the best advice you've ever been given?

Early on in my career, I struggled with the vision of simultaneously being a successful consultant, wife and mother, and needed help to recognize my path forward. Although I love consulting, family is also extremely important to me. I did not want to give up my consulting career; however, I knew that being a working mother and spouse would be a significant undertaking. I began to doubt that I would be able to devote enough time to fully achieve my potential as a consultant, and that I would have to choose between a partnership track and a loving and well-run household. Fortunately, a mentor strongly encouraged me to "lean in", to use the phrase popularized by Sheryl Sandberg. He reminded me that I was getting ahead of myself, and if I didn't like the decisions I saw others make that I should forge my own path. Although I was slightly skeptical, I trusted my mentor and doubled down on my commitment to the firm and my career, putting my faith in the process. Now, as a young newly-elected partner with a nearly 4-year-old son, I am extremely grateful for that advice and do my best to "pay it forward" to other women. I strive to be a beacon and advocate for other women struggling to balance their career and family aspirations to demonstrate that with enough determination, anything is possible.

What does this recognition mean to you?

I am extremely gratified and humbled to be named one of the 2023 Rising Stars of Consulting. The other awardees are highly accomplished and deserving and it is a true honor to be included in this group. I hope that this award will inspire other young consultants at Crowe to work hard, take advantage of opportunities that present themselves, and strive for excellence. While age and experience tend to sharpen one's consulting skills, younger professionals often bring fresh perspectives that can be extremely valuable when delivering solutions to clients. I am fortunate to work with many truly excellent young colleagues and will continue to do whatever I can to both learn from them and help them achieve success in their careers.