29 / 114
Rising Stars
|
FEATURE
A
fter earning his undergraduate degree
in accounting and finance from the
University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh in 2004,
Beau Ashton was still ready to learn. In
2009, he went on to earn his MBA at the
same university, yet that didn’t satisfy him.
He still wanted more so he set his sights on
passing the CPA exam. It would prove to
be his biggest challenge yet. The exam is
actually four exams taken over 18 months,
and earning it required hours of studying
every day. “I found it really became a
personal challenge,” he remembers. “I didn’t
want to look back in 10 years and wish I had
completed it, so I stuck with it—and passed!”
Three years ago, while working for a
multi-channel merchandising company, he
saw a video about distributor AIA Corporation
describing it as a great place to work. “I was so
impressed with the video and the employees’
attitudes that I knew I had to apply for the
position as controller,” says the 35-year-old
Wisconsin native, who had previously worked
for a defense contractor.
He says his coworkers are his favorite part
of the job. “Everyone at AIA is truly supportive
of each other and it is one big family.”
Even within families, leaders rise to the
top, and that was the case with Ashton, who
caught the attention of IT Director Paul Weller,
who nominated him as a Rising Star. “During
Beau’s quick three-year tenure with AIA, he has
accomplished many great things with his strong
and effective leadership over our accounting
team. With his personal support, we as a team
accomplished an accounting software package
upgrade in 2015 that was eight years overdue.
He also stepped up and delivered exceptional
service and accounting leadership when our
CFO left the company last year.
“I consider Beau a rising star in the
promotional products industry because he is
making a difference at AIA and in our industry
by challenging the way we look at and engage
with finance, sales and the entire business
supply chain,” Weller says. “He is a key part
of our leadership team, and he is constantly
pushing us to go further than we have before
on projects and goals.”
Weller adds that Ashton continues to build
new and strong business partnerships with all
of AIA’s distributor partners and its top industry
suppliers. “He is very involved in a number of
strategic projects that are internal and external
to our business and that are aimed to help
AIA grow sales and become a better solutions
provider,” he says, citing examples that include
streamlined web store payments, ecommerce
platform solutions, UPS freight billing and
auditing solutions, and an improved supplier
payment process with top suppliers.
Weller also calls Ashton an exceptional
listener as well as a leader. “With his previous
work experiences he is able to share and
apply sound advice and positive feedback
on a multitude of topics,” he says. “I really
appreciate that Beau takes a personal
ownership in his work and he has done a lot to
learn more about our industry, our distributors
and working with our top suppliers.”
For Ashton, the most important
lesson he’s learned in business is to ask
questions and keep asking them. “One of
the tools in Six Sigma Certification is the five
why’s, which focus on finding the root cause
of a problem. I have never found a solution to
a problem that could be solved with only the
first question.”
With all of his AIA responsibilities and a new
baby on the way as this issue went to press,
Ashton finds an easy way to relax and recharge.
“I enjoy playing with my three-year-old son,” he
says. “It’s amazing how easy it is to forget about
work when you are digging in the sandbox.”
HIS INSPIRATION
“I like to be proud of the work
I’m responsible for. If my name
is associated with a deliverable, I
want to feel a sense of pride that I
was a part of that.”
THE INDUSTRY IN FIVE YEARS
“I see the industry becoming more
integrated between suppliers,
distributors and customers. This
is going to happen through the
growth of ecommerce and how
customers purchase products,
as well as the continued systems
integrations between distributors
and suppliers.”
ON HIS TO-DO LIST NOW
Personally, he’s preparing for the
arrival of the couple’s second
child. Professionally, he’s about to
start the 2017 budget process.
Beau
Ashton
DIRECTOR OF FINANCE
AIA Corporation
2016
|
SEPTEMBER 2016
|
27