Cheria Coram.

• Position: Starbucks Coffee Co. global income tax accounting senior manager - Interview

Cheria Coram started out college pursuing a double major in chemistry and biology but quickly became disenchanted with becoming a doctor or lab researcher and switched to business school. After two accounting classes, she found her fit and declared accounting her major. She applied for internships facing the "tax or audit" question before she had completed her first full course in either subject. Coram chose tax, because the research in tax law sparked her interest: "I completed a tax internship with PwC and had the opportunity to rotate with a few different groups, gaining different perspectives on planning, consulting, and compliance for a variety of clients. My internship solidified my pursuit of a tax career."

Her passion for researching and arguing tax law peaked in graduate school and the first years of her public accounting career and then took a turn. "I switched my focus to tax accounting and financial reporting as my specialty area of expertise," she says, "so my technical research over the past ten-plus years has been in U.S. GAAP [generally accepted accounting principles]. There are similarities [between] accounting technical research [and] tax technical research, such as drawing upon basic principles and weighing of facts and circumstances, and there's certainly plenty of 'it depends' answers to questions of accounting application."

Coram, now senior manager of global income tax accounting at Starbucks Coffee Company, is fully enmeshed in the complexities of income tax accounting and financial reporting. "The connection to financial statements and information that may be used to influence business decisions sparked a passion that continues to be captivating," Coram remarks.

Tax Reform Legislation

Not surprisingly, Coram is excited about dealing with the complexity of U.S. tax reform, which has "flipped things around and forced most of us to learn something new."

She explains further, "While Topic 740 of U.S. GAAP did not change as a result of U.S. tax reform, there were several aspects of accounting for the effects of tax reform that practitioners had to work through, and it has been this aspect of U.S. tax reform that for me has been quite exhilarating."

The TEI Connection

Enter Coram's affiliation with TEI. Currently serving as a vice chair of TEI's financial reporting committee, she says that it has been a rewarding experience to join committee calls to hear and share with peers at other companies about what is happening...