Interview with Andrea Pipitone Beirne, Member of SFNet’s Diversity, Equity & Inclusiveness Committee

Andrea Pipitone Beirne is a partner at KPMG in the Deal Advisory and Strategy in Chicago.  She specializes in due diligence for lenders related to asset-based and asset-backed transactions.   Prior to joining KPMG, Andrea was at Arthur Andersen where she was in the Audit and Advisory groups.    Andrea works on international and domestic deals in a number of industries, such as manufacturing, distribution, retail, services, technology and healthcare.  Her experience, background and team that has been built over her 28-year career in consulting has made her a trusted business advisor to many financial institutions.  Andrea graduated from DePaul University with a Bachelor of Science in Accountancy. 

Andrea resides in Illinois with her husband, their 16-year-old son, 14-year-old daughter and their six-year-old Tibetan terrier, Gizmo.  Andrea is a member of the Education Foundation and Diversity Equity and Inclusiveness Committee for the Secured Finance Network.  Andrea is also a member of the AICPA and is a registered CPA.  Andrea is a board member for LCSF at the Ann and Robert H. Lurie Children’s Hospital and an Advisory Board member for Disability:IN Chicagoland.

Please provide a bit of background, including how you got into the industry and your current role.

I started my career at Arthur Andersen working on financial statement audits of financial institutions.  In 1998, I decided to move over to consulting and worked on Quality of Earnings for a variety of buy-side transactions and due-diligence engagements for asset-based and asset-backed transactions.  We began with a couple of clients and now have grown it to its own practice.   We started with only performing due diligence on domestic deals, but very soon began doing asset-based due diligence on some of the very first international deals that were done.  We learned alongside the lenders as we assisted with closing deals on what needed to be done differently when there was an international component.  I work alongside some of the most remarkable people at KPMG and our clients.  Throughout my 28-year career, I have seen so many deals of different sizes and complexities that make me a better partner for our clients.   The best part of what I do is foster an environment of inclusivity on the team.  Diversity of thought is the key to solving problems for clients.  I want to continue to expand our team so they can be part of the asset-based lending industry. 

Why did you join SFNet’s DEI Committee? 

The Diversity, Equality and Inclusiveness (DEI) Committee is responsible for educating its members on the importance of diversity in our industry. We want to be the force for the hiring and promotion of a diverse group of people into leaders for the asset-based lending industry.   I am part of this committee to strategize on how we include more diverse people in leadership of our community.  It also allows me to be a mentor to other women and mothers in the industry.  As a working mother, there are huge challenges just due to the nature of the work.  Due to the many peaks and valleys, when a deal is closing, it requires a lot of flexibility of the service providers that are supporting the deal.   I bring my authentic self to work and to my clients, which means they know my kids and their crazy schedules, and I don’t shy away from the fact that I have a life outside of work.  I have many long-lasting relationships with bankers that I am sure will last far past when we leave the industry.  I want to work with other leaders to leave an industry that is well on its way to being a diverse, inclusive community.   

What do you think the industry can do to increase diversity, equity and inclusiveness? 

I believe that building DEI into our industry is going to be fundamental to the industry’s growth.  We are all fighting for talent and if we can prove that our industry is inclusive, we will have opportunities to attract talent that we would not have otherwise had.  I think we need to educate members on how to recruit diverse talent, either from campus or from industry.  We need to educate college students on the opportunities in asset-based lending.  We need to support and promote those diverse candidates, so they become the next leaders of our industry.