President, Benchmark Search · Benchmark Search
Troy Ashby
Troy Ashby is President at Benchmark Search and host of Beyond the Ledger, where he talks with the leaders, innovators, and professionals shaping accounting and finance.
Relationships and intentionality, not titles, define lasting career success.
Ashby argues that career advancement in professional services is fundamentally driven by relationship-building, intentional skill development, and cross-functional mastery—not by chasing titles or waiting for perfect circumstances. He contends that the professionals who break through career stagnation and reach executive leadership are those who invest deliberately in networks, seek feedback relentlessly, and build "spiral growth" by mastering core competencies while taking strategic stretch assignments.
39%
of workers' core skills must evolve by 2030 to stay relevant
“Fair does not mean identical: individualized leadership builds trust and lifts team performance.”
Why Treating Everyone the Same Is Hurting Your Team
Core drivers of career advancement and leadership readiness across Ashby's case studies
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< 4 years
average tenure before American workers change jobs, driving talent shortages
Relationships have become more than a soft skill—they are a career advantage in hybrid work.
How Relationships Build a Career, Deepen Service and Define Purpose
Newly promoted leaders expect immediate impact with little space to adjust to steep learning curves.
How to Succeed After Getting Promoted
“Stop chasing titles—great work, mentorship, and curiosity build more rewarding careers.”
Latest article
Business Services · Jul 8
How to Get Promoted in Accounting — Even After Getting Laid Off
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Connect with Troy Ashby
Business Services
The "Sizzle Factor": What Actually Makes a Candidate Stand Out
Benchmark Search President Troy Ashby on the "sizzle factor": what separates a strong resume from a candidate a hiring team actually remembers.
How Relationships Build a Career, Deepen Service and Define Purpose
In a workplace still shaped by hybrid schedules, remote communication and shifting expectations around professional growth, relationships have become more than a soft skill — they are a career advantage. Gallup’s latest workplace reporting shows that global employee engagement ha
How Relationships Build a Career, Deepen Service and Define Purpose
Retired Whitley Penn Chief Growth Officer Felix Lozano on how relationships, proximity, and the courage to say yes built a nearly 40-year accounting career.
What to Do When Your Career Feels Stuck: Invest in Yourself, Stay Intentional, and Build the Right Network
Work doesn’t feel the way it used to. Between new tech, changing expectations, and the constant pressure to keep up, a lot of people—even those who look successful on paper—are quietly wondering what’s next. In fact, recent workforce studies suggest a large share of employees feel disengaged or uncertain about their next move, despite…
What to Do When Your Career Feels Stuck: Invest in Yourself, Stay Intentional, and Build the Right Network
Andrea Carter shares practical ways to break out of career stagnation and build momentum with intention.
How to Succeed After Getting Promoted: Seeking Feedback, Acting with Intention, and Leading with Perspective
Stepping into a leadership role today isn’t just a step up—it’s a shift into constant visibility, where expectations arrive immediately and the margin for error narrows. As organizations flatten structures and demand faster decisions, newly promoted leaders are expected to deliver impact from the outset, often without the space to fully adjust. According to…
How to Succeed After Getting Promoted: Seeking Feedback, Acting with Intention, and Leading with Perspective
What newly promoted leaders should do first: seek feedback, lean on mentorship, and decide with intention through a steep learning curve.
From Starting Over In A New Country To Reaching The C-Suite: A CFO’s Career Comeback
Global mobility is reshaping the modern workforce, with millions of professionals relocating each year in pursuit of opportunity, stability, or growth. Yet behind the headlines of talent migration lies a quieter, more difficult truth: restarting a career from scratch—even after years of success—is far more common than people expect. In fact, many skilled immigrants…
From Starting Over In A New Country To Reaching The C-Suite: A CFO’s Career Comeback
A CFO on how resilience, adaptability, and long-term thinking turned starting over in a new country into a path to the C-suite.
Stop Chasing Titles, Build a Career That Matters: A CAO’s Advice on Long-Term Success
Career advice in finance and accounting often centers around promotions, titles, and compensation. But in an era where professionals frequently change jobs every few years—the average American worker now stays in a role for less than four years—industries are facing growing talent shortages and reevaluating what long-term career success looks like. The question many…
Stop Chasing Titles, Build a Career That Matters: A CAO’s Advice on Long-Term Success
Vaquero Midstream EVP and CAO Sandra Fendley on why great work, mentorship, and curiosity build a more rewarding career than chasing titles.
From Public Accounting to CFO: The Leadership Wake-Up Call
Melinda Lawrence on the leap from audit partner to CFO, and why the seat is about leading growth and people, not just the numbers.
Spiral Growth: The Career Strategy That Builds Real Leaders
Leadership pipelines are under pressure. Companies are moving faster, roles are becoming more cross-functional, and high-potential talent is expected to deliver beyond narrow job descriptions earlier in their careers. At the same time, the World Economic Forum estimates that 39% of workers’ core skills will need to evolve by 2030 to keep pace with…
Spiral Growth: The Career Strategy That Builds Real Leaders
How "spiral growth" pairs mastery of your core role with cross-functional stretch work to build promotion-ready leaders.
Why Treating Everyone the Same Is Hurting Your Team
Why "fair" does not mean identical: individualized leadership builds trust and lifts team performance.
Supporting Parents Is a Business Strategy: A CFO’s Perspective on Retention, Trust, and Long-Term Growth
CFO Jessica Greiner on why supporting working parents through trust-based flexibility is a retention and growth strategy, not a perk.
Why Passion Beats the Perfect Business Idea by Ben Maitland
MarketScale Founder Ben Maitland on why passion, execution, and authenticity matter more than waiting for the perfect business idea.
Why Great Leaders Hire People Unlike Themselves
Why the strongest leaders hire people unlike themselves, and how complementary strengths lift team outcomes.
Christie Linebarger’s Journey to Leadership: Grit, Growth & Leading with Heart
Christie Linebarger traces her path from recruiter to leader, and why grit, trust, and elevating others define durable leadership.
From Deloitte to Startup CEO: Johnnie Akin on Risk, Faith & Reinvention
Former Deloitte senior manager Johnnie Akin on leaving a Big Four track for a startup, and how faith and failure shaped his leadership.
How Shanice Scott Reinvented Her Accounting Career — And Found Her ‘Why’
Shanice Scott on pivoting from SEC reporting to GL leadership, and how resilience and relationships guided the reinvention.
Building Careers, Balancing Life: A CFO’s Journey from Public Accounting to Pipeline Construction
Driver Pipeline CFO Joe LaPolla on moving from public accounting to industry finance leadership, and how intentional transitions and team culture carried the shift.
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