James Wall.

• Author: Heffes, Ellen M.
• Position: Of Core-Mark Holding Company Inc.

Jim Wall describes a time early in his career that caused him to "turn from the dark side of marketing to the true light of accounting." After receiving his MBA degree, a professor suggested he'd fare better if he took some accounting classes. So, he accepted a job offer to join the IRS, and learned much. Turns out, he likes accounting--and particularly the CFO role!

Goes by: Jim

Title: Senior Vice President & CFO

Company: Core-Mark Holding Co. Inc., a wholesale distributor to convenience stores

Born: Santa Barbara, Calif., November, 1947

Spouse: Married to Judith (an information systems consultant) since August 1976

Education Summary: BS International Marketing, California State University (CAL State), Los Angeles, 1969; MBA, University of California at Los Angeles (UCAL), 1970; CPA, Calif., 1976; Doctoral (all but dissertation), Pace University, 1977-1984; PMD (Program for Management Development), Harvard Graduate School of Business, 1987

Career Summary: Internal Revenue Agent, Los Angeles District and Office of International Operations, Washington, D.C., 1971-76; VP, Treasurer, Ultramar PLC, New York, 1976-83; CFO, Unimar Co. (joint venture of Ultramar and Allied Signal; concurrent assignment) 1984-91; VP, Treasurer, ICN Pharmaceuticals, Costa Mesa, Calif., 1994-95; Controller & Treasurer, AirTouch Communications, San Francisco, 1995-99; CFO, Metricom, San Jose, 1999-2001; CFO Memec, San Diego, 2002-03; CFO, Core-Mark, South San Francisco, 2004-current

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FEI Involvement: 1992, Connecticut/Westchester Chapter; 1994, Orange County Chapter; 1995, San Francisco Chapter and President 2000-02; 2003, Area Director-at-Large, Western Region; 2004-06 Area Vice President, Western Region

Leisure: Bicycling and reading history--particularly military history.

Time Management: Reading background and professional materials in Huntington Park on weekends.

Stress Management: Bicycling, don't sweat the small stuff and having a great staff.

Recently-Read Book: Active Liberty, by U.S. Supreme Court Justice Stephen Breyer. I read it because I went bicycling with him and his family; and Clash of the Carriers, by Stephen Coonts, a gift from a friend, and part of my interest and respect for those who have participated in the military during adverse times.

If I could, I'd spend one hour with: A very difficult choice, since my interest would be in great historical figures, but I think I would feel like a sprout in the presence of a giant...