Jones Journal -- Alumni Magazine of the Jones Graduate School of Management, Rice University

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Deanna Sheaffer, Editor
Director of Alumni Affairs
Jones School of Management - MS 531 Rice University
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Houston TX 77251-1892
e-mail:JGSalum@rice.edu

Jim Turley (MAcco ‘77), Chairman-elect of Ernst & Young –
His Community Has Become the Entire Globe
– By Tamara Blaha, Class of 2002

Jim Turley

James Turley, chairman elect of Ernst & Young, a Rice undergrad and a 1977 Jones School alumnus, is a model executive, a true success, not merely because he has reached the highest office in his company, but because he puts others before himself.

His most rewarding experiences, he says, both professionally and personally during his career at E&Y, have been watching those he mentored become partners and celebrating his employees’ successes.

With undergraduate and graduate degrees in accounting, Turley started out as an auditor with E&Y and worked his way up to chairman elect. He is a man who has learned to think beyond himself and his immediate surroundings. Turley has spent his entire career of 23 years at E&Y, during a time when people, on average, change companies about eight times throughout their careers. Turley stayed at E&Y because he has had opportunities to expand his experiences, which led to continuous challenges. He has also moved several times. Among his goals as the future chairman of E&Y, fostering growth opportunities for his employees both inside and outside the firm is a priority. He feels that people are more innovative, motivated, and happy when they feel management has their best interests in mind.

When the announcement was made about Turley’s future at E&Y, co-workers and friends told him that his greatest strengths as a leader were his listening skills and his ability to bring out the best in others. Turley also feels his strengths lie not in administration but with people, both clients and employees. Turley wants to see E&Y become a team of 80,000 where employees feel they are a part of something that is valued at the highest levels of the company. He has developed a program called “People First.” He thinks this is the best way to reach the company’s goal of $20 billion in revenues by 2005. Turley and another E&Y leader are traveling to every office within their global community to sit down and talk with 30 to 40 mangers at every level in the organization. There is no agenda. There is no time schedule. Their only goal is to become connected with their people and show them management’s commitment to every employee. As a result, Turley has earned the respect of his employees, colleagues, and counterparts at the other global accounting firms.

Turley did not leave the Jones School with the ultimate goal of becoming a chairman. He did want to become a recognized business leader in his community. Through his hard work and personal successes, Turley’s community has become the entire globe.

Turley says the most important lessons he learned at the Jones School were how to think, how to work with others, and how to focus on the issue at hand. His education did not end with his graduation from Rice but has continued throughout his life and career. He has been an active volunteer in many social and charitable organizations. Building relationships outside work has helped him build the skills necessary to be a successful leader at E&Y. His leadership positions on community boards and volunteering as an organizational director, he says, helped discipline his fear and trepidation for that moment when he would be faced with a board of directors meeting of his own at E&Y.

Turley’s advice for success in the business world revolves around two key points: Be yourself – don’t try to be someone you are not, because eventually someone will see through you— and commit yourself to being a contributing member. Working hard and being dependable in a team environment is essential. To rise to leadership positions it is crucial to be motivated, somewhat impatient, and a standout. Turley describes this type of person as a “maverick.”

Turley has found true balance in his life. By seeking success for others, he has reached success for himself. He mentioned fellow Jones School alumni Tim Griffy (MAcco ’80) and Peter Schwab (MAcco ’80) as being tremendous leaders within Ernst & Young. Griffy is the leader of E&Y’s Southwest practice located in Dallas and Schwab is head of the National Corporate Finance Division and is leading a major restructuring effort for the firm. Turley speaks highly of his experiences at the Jones School and feels they were a strong foundation in the development of his career. Turley is most impressive—a progressive and charismatic corporate leader.