CSMFO Interview with Board Member Steve Heide

What are your 2019 goals as CSMFO Board Member?

First, plan the 2020 conference.  Second, 2020 conference planning.  Third, well, I think you get the idea.  My primary goal as president-elect this year is to work with our host and program committees, as well as our meeting planners to provide the best possible conference for our members when we convene in Anaheim at the Disneyland Hotel next January.  We’re anticipating this to be CSMFO’s largest conference ever, so we have our work cut out for us, but I’m confident we’ll deliver another great conference experience.

What 2019 CSMFO events are you really excited about?

I’m really excited that GFOA is coming to Los Angeles in May.  It’s going to be great to have the GFOA annual conference in-state this year.  CSMFO will have a booth in the exhibit hall so be sure to stop by and say hi, and I know that CSMFO President Joan Michaels-Aguilar is planning a fun welcome reception for our members at GFOA this year.  I think it’s fantastic that our CSMFO members will have access to all of the outstanding GFOA training and networking opportunities either a relatively short car or plane ride away from home.  I’m looking forward to seeing our CSMFO members there.

What were early obstacles in your career…and how did you overcome them?

For me, early on in my career, I knew that I wanted to be a partner at a CPA firm; at least coming out of school, that’s what I thought I wanted.  I had visions of the big corner office, bossing everyone around and showing up on the last day of the audit to check in with team and take the client to lunch.  While I did earn my CPA certificate in public accounting, I realized after a few years on the job that there were a wealth of opportunities beyond that singular career path.  Once I opened my mind to other possibilities, it was liberating and exciting to recognize that there were so many different career options available to me.

Looking back at your career thus far, who would you like to thank for being there for you? 

Definitely my wife and kids.  While professionally there have been a number of people who’ve helped me along the way, my family has always been so supportive.  Whether it be extra hours at the office, work meetings well into the evening, business travel, extra volunteer activities such as those with CSMFO, or any number of other above and beyond the normal workday obligations, my family has been encouraging and understanding.  Plus, they’ve never been concerned about job title and work duties, which is a humbling reality check.

What led you to your first government job? 

I would say my previous job.  After dabbling in public accounting early on in my career, I worked in the healthcare industry for a number of years prior to taking a finance director position with a non-profit social service agency.  Although I had worked with a number of local government clients during my days at the CPA firm, going to work at the non-profit was the entrée into the world of fund accounting and ultimately for me into local government.  When a finance position opened here at the fire district, I was able to leverage my prior experience to land the job, and 15 years later, the rest is history, so to speak.

What is your favorite food and why? 

That’s an easy one; Mexican food.  Why?  I suppose because I was raised on it, and being a native southern Californian, there are so many authentic options available locally.  My family and I also spend a fair amount of our off time in San Diego, and the same applies there.  As the saying goes, I think I could eat Mexican food every day of the week and twice on Sundays.

What super power would you like and why?

I’d like to be able to fly.  In many parts of the country, people tend to describe road travel in miles.  Here in many parts of California, we generally talk of drive time in terms of minutes and hours as opposed to miles.  While I can’t complain because my normal work commute is typically less than 30 minutes one way, it seems as though our area traffic is only getting worse.  The ability to fly would not only be a quality-of-life enhancing experience, I wouldn’t mind sporting a Superman-inspired cape while doing it.  I think my cape would be dollar bill green, since dealing with money seems to be a part of my DNA.

What soft skills and technical skills really impress you when you are interviewing candidates?

The combination of being a good communicator and the ability to learn quickly are an impressive combined skillset in my book.  If someone is a quick study and has the ability to effectively communicate, particularly in multi-generational settings, I think those combined competencies can take a person far in life, not only professionally, but personally as well.   Someone who gets along well with most anybody and may not have all the answers but can learn and adapt on the fly, that’s impressive to me.  I’m still working on mastering these skills myself, so I suppose that’s why I admire those who’ve already figured it out.

Did you find this article helpful?

We are sorry that this article was not helpful to you

Tell us how we can improve this article: