Chris Jickess, diocesan director of accounting and financial reporting, knew she wanted a change in her life, and God heard her prayers—even though she hadn’t started looking for a new job yet.
Jickess was born and raised here in Youngstown and proudly proclaims that she never left. She studied accounting at Youngstown State University (YSU) and developed her bookkeeping chops while working at the YSU credit union. The combination of practical, on-the-job skills and regulatory and legal theories from her degree made her an easy hire at a local accounting firm, where she was responsible for audits.
Coincidentally, it was as an outsider that Jickess had her first interaction with the Diocese of Youngstown’s finance department—her firm audited both the diocese and Catholic Charities. But it wasn’t until several years later that Jickess started to feel a pull in a different direction. One of her old work colleagues knew about an opening at the diocese and reached out to Jickess.
“It was the best call I ever got,” said Jickess, who has been a Certified Public Accountant since 1993. “I felt that it was at the proper time, it was a good time in my life, my kids were already in school … I wanted a change very much and it was the best call. Coming here was the best thing I could’ve done. It could have been a calling—they say God reaches out in mysterious ways.”
Auditing had begun to wear on Jickess. Coming to the diocese as the associate finance director gave her the opportunity to use her skills in a more constructive way. She said being able to “serve God” is the best part of her work now.
“Public accounting is very hard—you’re always judging people, you’re always taught to question every little thing as a part of auditing,” she said. “Whereas here, I’m able to participate in figuring out the best way that we can use the resources that we have. I enjoy being a part of the Church, more than I had been before.”
As director of accounting and financial reporting, Jickess is responsible for setting internal controls, budgeting, forecasting and leading the annual audit.
“I just make sure that we monitor and have sound fiscal management practices and internal controls, so that we use the Church’s money in the best way that we can,” Jickess said. “When I came in here, I revamped a lot of the internal controls—a lot of the forms we used—to make sure we had checks and balances, because I’m big on that … making sure that we’re recording things properly, that we’re spending money in line with the budget.”
Beyond Mass, Jickess has a lot of contact with all the parishes in our diocese. Bishop Bonnar has made it a goal to create a greater connection between the central diocesan offices and the parishes, and Jickess says, “We have been able to forge a relationship with them, where the [parish] bookkeepers see us as a resource.”
In that vein, Jickess has been working on the implementation of a new accounting system, Sage Intacct, which she says will be a vast improvement in terms of capability, ease of use and diocesan-wide communications for all the parishes. The system is currently being tested in one parish, and Jickess hopes to bring it to more very soon.
“I have worked with many wonderful priests here, and I enjoy that. Some of them have helped me on a personal level, so it is a great place to work!” Jickess said about her job. “I feel supported spiritually, and I feel like I’m making a difference … it is also nice to be a ‘talent and treasure,’ rather than a number in the corporate world.”
