471: When a Megatrend Came Knocking | William Acheson, CFO, GWG Holdings

From a career development standpoint, one of the best things William Acheson did to reach the CFO office was stepping away from corporate finance and accounting for 15 years. After coming up on the public acconting track, the GWG Holdings finance chief immersed himself in investment banking, the residential mortgage industry, capital markets, risk management, credit management and more while taking on a variety of operational roles. He also accepted long-term international assignments for Merrill Lynch and GMAC-RESCAP. Acheson credits his accounting training and skills for helping him add value in his many operations positions. “As I got older and my career progressed, I found myself perfectly suited for the CFO job because I [had gained] that breadth of experience.” Now as the 30-year veteran mentors rising finance and accounting talent at GWG Holdings, a leader in the fast-growing secondary life insurance market, he advises those interested in the CFO track to “leave accounting, but always keep in touch with it.”