Jiran Blessing
Bloomington,IL
Summary
Resourceful professional with progressive financial industry experience across planning/forecasting, auditing, financial controls, financial reporting, fixed income investment analysis, treasury management. Strong leader with excellent motivation and communication skills to help build high-performing teams.
Overview
18
18
years of professional experience
1
1
Certification
Work History
Sr. Financial Analyst
COUNTRY Financial
Bloomington, IL
02.2024 - Current
- Provides financial analysis of results through reports, narratives, an presentations for management including industry analysis.
- Develops and prepares forecasts of financial results reflecting the changes from trends and upcoming organizational and regulatory changes.
- Creates and maintains financial models and reports showing the implications of internal and external chagnes.
- Assist business partners in making financial decisions impacting the profitability of the companies through cost benefit analysis, lease versus buy decisions, and vendor analysis.
Senior Accounting Analyst
Caterpillar
Peoria, IL
06.2023 - 02.2024
- Financial accounting including preparation of journal entries, financial statements, variance analysis, and account reconciliations.
- Perform annual standard cost revision.
- Prepare complex spreadsheets for forecasting future income and expenses of large track type tractor production.
Finance Manager
Heartland Bank and Trust
Bloomington
10.2019 - 05.2023
- Led a liquidity risk management based on the recent Fed exam – policy enhancement and contingency funding plan procedure write-up
- Performed a cashflow analysis and completed stress testing
- Perform daily funds management by evaluating the bank’s cash needs
- Prepare a monthly and ad-hoc investment portfolio analysis and forecasting using Microsoft Excel advanced formulas, pivot tables, charts, etc.
- Also perform back testing of investment cashflow projection
- Work with a third party consulting company for asset liability management and help prepare a quarterly ALCO investment package and write ALCO meeting notes
- Perform various testing including tier 1 capital concentration and third party pricing validation
- Prepare the Investment Footnote for 10-Q and 10-K of the Company
- Prepare monthly reconciliation of Investment portfolio accounting and safekeeping
- Due to several employee’s turnover in the Accounting area, took over various responsibilities including investment accounting, ALCO data manipulation and reporting
- Streamlined the complex reconciliation workbooks for both Heartland Bank and Trust and State Bank of Lincoln (sister bank), trained team members and became a problem solver
- As a control owner of various process in the investment area, ensure the control is in place and serve as a main contact for various audit/exams.
Senior Finance Analyst
State Farm Bank
Bloomington
03.2019 - 10.2019
- Performed annual planning and periodic forecast processes for the Company products and cost centers
- Performed regular financial, Board, and regulatory reports for planning and forecasting processes
- Reviewed and approved monthly accounting queries and expense entries in PeopleSoft accounting query tool
- Performed ad-hoc analysis requested by leadership by working with internal and external business partners.
Senior Internal Auditor
LegacyTexas Bank
Plano, TX
04.2017 - 02.2019
- Performed operational audit of various areas based on COSO framework including Model Risk Management, Construction Loans Management and Collateral program by participating in meetings with stakeholders, reviewing policy and procedures, flow charting, identifying/documenting risk and controls, executing audit testing, documenting/communicating audit findings, preparing audit reports and validating the audit issues
- Performed annual SOX audit including the review of SOX narratives, interviews, walkthroughs, test of design and operating effectiveness, identification of control failure, presentation of any exceptions to appropriate stakeholders and recommendation of remediating action for the processes of consumer and commercial lending, foreclosed assets, warehouse purchase program, related party, etc
- Performed data analytics using various tools such as IDEA (equivalent to ACL) and Excel (pivot and various formulas) to research issues to support the ad hoc request from management and to select audit testing samples
- Worked with various business partners such as internal business partners, co-sourcing audit partner, external auditors, compliance and regulators to facilitate various audits
- Led the implementation of the SOX audit software project (Workiva – electronic workpapers) in Internal Audit department
Internal Auditor
State Farm Insurance Company
Bloomington
01.2014 - 04.2015
- Responsible for the operational audits of the Company’s various functions such as Planning and Analysis, Credit Union and Agency departments based on the risk assessment
- Performed walk-throughs with the auditees
- Performed test of design and test of operating effectiveness
- Prepared an executive summary of audit findings upon the completion of the audits
- Assisted the external audit company to perform the financial audit testing of State Farm Life and Health Insurance Companies
- Investigated the State Farm Agents’ premium fund accounts using various data tools such as Microsoft Excel, Access and SAS
- Provided investigation summary reports to executives in support of their decision making.
Planning & Analysis Analyst
State Farm Insurance Company
Concordville, PA
01.2012 - 01.2014
- Managed large quantities of financial data such as premium, loss and expenses and underwriting and claims data in the data warehouse
- Worked as a liaison between the Corporate accounting and the market Planning & Analysis team
- Developed, analyzed, and evaluated the running queries in the accounting and actuarial system tools such as PeopleSoft accounting query and manipulating the data via Microsoft Office products such as Excel and Access to support the preparation of financial statements, reports and analysis
- Prepared weekly analysis of underwriting results for the market leadership
- Prepared monthly analysis of budget vs
- Actual profit and loss/expense variance and wrote the corresponding reports for executives based on the research
- Performed the annual planning, expense forecasting and budgeting process
- Applied advanced specialized knowledge of loss reserves and expense allocations while completing trend analysis and presenting information to business partners and leadership.
Finance Analyst
State Farm Insurance Company
Bloomington, IL
06.2008 - 01.2012
- Prepared, reviewed and approved monthly journal entries
- Created new GL accounts in the chart of accounts and ensured the data mapping to the financial statements was correct
- Performed monthly and year end closing process of the financial statements
- Prepared audited financial statements including footnote disclosures
- Reviewed and approved reinsurance premium payments, loss receivables and ensured for accuracy and completeness of the related cash transactions
- Provided technical advice and training to supports and new employees regarding the processing of accounting transactions or reconciliation of accounting/financial reports
- Responsible for research/development of accounting recommendations for multiple, complex State Farm Fire and the Affiliates’ reinsurance reporting issues involving reinsurance premium, assessments and losses
- Prepared multiple issue papers and communicated effectively to meet leadership/auditor needs
- Involved in a reinsurance software project that the Company was adopting by explaining to the vendor how the current reinsurance accounting works and what kind of customization is needed
- As a main contact for an external reinsurance broker, Aon Re, communicated any issues and concerns to the broker on a regular basis
- Presented Reinsurance Reporting to various internal parties in a classroom setting via PowerPoint slides
- Researched Statutory Accounting Principles (SAP) vs
- Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP) and International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) and ensured those accounting guidelines were observed
- Provided financial information/complex ad-hoc reports for upper management’s decision-making.
Audit Associate
KPMG, LLP
Chicago, IL
08.2006 - 05.2008
- Audited Financial Statements of various industry clients, mostly US Fortune 500 companies in automobile, real estate, and financial industry including multi-national clients
- Responsible for interim and final audit of accounting balances and test over companies’ internal control based on SOX 404
- Responsible for the review of disclosures and Management Discussion and Analysis
- Prepared the trend/fluctuation analysis and reports
- Verified reconciliation of general ledger trial balances
- Performed inventory testing and client interviews for any significant issues and communicate to the appropriate parties
- Built networking with various clients.
Education
M.S. in Accounting -
Illinois State University
Normal, IL01.2006
B.A. in English Language & Literature -
SungKyunKwan University
Seoul, Korea01.2000
Skills
- Microsoft Office Suites
- Planning and analysis
- Investment Accounting/Analysis
- Variance Analysis
- Cost-benefit analysis
- Cash Flow Management/Stress Testing
- Financial Modeling
- Financial Reporting
- Auditing procedures
- Strategic Planning
- Cost-benefit analysis
- Workday Adaptive Planning tool
- Workiva Audit tool
- Jack Henry Silverlake
- SQL
- Empyrean ALM
- SAP ERP
- Oracle Planning tool
- Cognos
- Business Object
- QlikView
- Excellent written and verbal communication skill
- In-depth analytical skills
- Critical thinking skills
- Learning agility
- Detail-oriented
Certification
- Illinois Registered CPA
- AIAF
Languages
Korean
Native/ Bilingual
Timeline
Sr. Financial Analyst
COUNTRY Financial
02.2024 - Current
Senior Accounting Analyst
Caterpillar
06.2023 - 02.2024
Finance Manager
Heartland Bank and Trust
10.2019 - 05.2023
Senior Finance Analyst
State Farm Bank
03.2019 - 10.2019
Senior Internal Auditor
LegacyTexas Bank
04.2017 - 02.2019
Internal Auditor
State Farm Insurance Company
01.2014 - 04.2015
Planning & Analysis Analyst
State Farm Insurance Company
01.2012 - 01.2014
Finance Analyst
State Farm Insurance Company
06.2008 - 01.2012
Audit Associate
KPMG, LLP
08.2006 - 05.2008
M.S. in Accounting -
Illinois State University
B.A. in English Language & Literature -
SungKyunKwan University