Meet the Chapter President: Gina Heupel, CPA
Although TSCPA Upper Cumberland Chapter President Gina Heupel, CPA, says she chose to become a CPA “to use my love of numbers and accounting principles to help others in business,” she says mentoring the next generation of CPAs has turned into one of her favorite aspects of her job. Currently the controller at ATC Automation in Cookeville, Heupel says, “I was taught early on to think outside of the box instead of processing data, and it’s been satisfying to pass that on to others and watch them flourish.”
Tell us a little about yourself, your family and where you grew up.
I grew up in a small town in Middle Tennessee, Loretto. Although I’ve lived in several bigger cities across the South since graduating high school, I’m very much still a country girl at heart. I married a hometown boy, and we just celebrated our 25th anniversary. We have two boys; our oldest is a senior at Milligan University, and our youngest is a junior at the University of Tennessee.
What do you do now, and why did you choose to become a CPA?
After spending over 20 years in public accounting, I recently made a change to the private sector and am the controller at ATC Automation in Cookeville. I chose to become a CPA to use my love of numbers and accounting principles to help others in business.
What’s the biggest challenge you’ve had to overcome, or what’s been your most significant success?
I have the same answer to both questions. My biggest career challenge has been balancing career and family. I was adamant when I married that I was going to be a stay-at-home mom but quickly discovered that was not for me. There were many crossroads along the way that sometimes led to putting my family first and other times prioritizing work. I have learned in both areas that it’s not about quantity of time but rather quality of time. I feel like I have succeeded in both roles. I’ve been able to learn and grow in my career, but my boys are definitely my most significant success (even though the credit is definitely not mine alone).
What’s the best piece of advice you ever received?
I don’t know if it’s the best piece of advice, but there is one thing that has stuck with me since early in my career. I messed up an estimated tax payment on an important client and was terrified. The partner in charge was a great mentor and knew it was important for my growth to learn to own and resolve my mistakes, so he wanted me to tell the client. I went into the client’s office trembling and told him of the error and that he owed a substantial amount of money. He looked at me, smiled and said, “You got a belly button?” I sat puzzled, thinking I could not have possibly heard him correctly. He repeated himself, and I hesitantly answered yes. He said, “If you got a belly button, you’re just human, and you are going to mess up. Learn from your mistakes, and don’t make the same one twice.” Even though I’m 25 years into this career, I’m still not perfect and get to apply this lesson more often than I’d like. I’m not going to say I don’t occasionally have a meltdown, but I try to bounce back from that stage quickly and focus on how to correct errors and prevent them going forward.
Anything else you’d like to share with our readers?
Being a part of TSCPA has provided me the opportunity to network with others and provided continuous learning in the accounting profession. I’ve built some great friendships along the way.
This article was originally published in the March/April 2024 Tennessee CPA Journal.