MASSIE - Key Persons
Job Titles:
- Associate With
- Project Associate
Ali is a regular hiker, a new climber, and an avid reader. She enjoys time with family, friends, and her pup, Mable, particularly if it's time spent on a porch.
After graduating with a B.S. in Accounting from Georgia State University and earning her Master of Accounting from Kennesaw State University, Catie began her career at Grant Thornton. During her 14 years as a tax professional at GT, Catie primarily focused on Federal and state R&D tax credits and various tax accounting methods for clients across a multitude of industries. She served on both the National R&D Tax Credit leadership team and the tax innovation team, where she led efforts to utilize and identify technology to improve operations. Catie was awarded Grant Thornton's 2018 Working Mother of the Year, as well as recognition for her dedication to propel the local community forward by leading the way in volunteerism and outreach.
Originally from the suburbs outside Atlanta, GA, Catie now lives in Dallas, TX with her family. Catie is a lover of staying active and spending time with family. She is a proud momma and wife and enjoys watching her 3 kids play softball, basketball, and excel in martial arts. Catie serves as a leader in the ATA Martial Arts organization and is working toward earning a black belt in taekwondo.
As a Financial Analyst, Chris specializes in data gathering, analysis, and analytics to calculate Federal and State R&D Tax Credits. He obtained his accounting degree from the University of Missouri-St. Louis. Chris started his career at a small, local public accounting firm in the greater St. Louis area before moving on to the Tax department at a Fortune 200 company. While there, he found a niche in analyzing the companies $1B+ in annual R&D spend to calculate Federal and State R&D tax credits for the company. He then spent 3 years at PWC performing similar work for a Fortune 50 company before ultimately finding his way to MASSIE.
During his free time, you can catch Chris running away from St. Louis winters to somewhere warmer. In between vacations he enjoys spending time with his family and friends and watching almost any sporting event that's happening, but primarily focusing on the Cardinals and Blues.
Job Titles:
- Senior Director of Project Management
As Senior Director of Project Management, Elaine oversees engagements from the architectural phase of a project to the final report delivery. She holds a B.A. in Economics from Wilfrid Laurier University and is a member of the Chartered Professional Accountants of Canada. She has spent more than 25 years focused on Finance and Accounting in the high-tech industry. Her early career years were in progressive Finance Controllership roles while living in Canada. In early 2000, she relocated to the United States and joined a high-tech start-up company where she had her first introduction to the world of R&D finance. Since then, Elaine has held senior finance roles for large corporations including Siemens, Nokia Siemens Networks, and ARRIS Group.
Elaine has a case of wanderlust and enjoys traveling around the world, immersing herself in different cultures and food. She also enjoys spending time with her friends and family when she's not off on an adventure!
As a Financial Analyst, Elise specializes in data gathering, analysis, and analytics to calculate federal and state R&D tax credits. She obtained her accounting degree from Boise State University. Elise began her career working at a Fortune 50 company, where she was a part of a multidisciplinary team of consultants that assisted clients calculate and substantiate an R&D tax credit benefit.
Elizabeth Chic, Esq., has worked in the Research & Development tax credit industry for over 18 years. She holds a B.A. from University of California, San Diego, and a Juris Doctor from the University of California, Davis School of Law. After law school, she began working at Deloitte, specializing in R&D tax credits. During her 10-year tenure, she helped her clients capture and document the credit as well as provided tax controversy services related to the R&D tax credit. Subsequently, she spent 8 years as part of the leadership team at Tax Credit Co.'s R&D tax credit practice. Some of her contributions include developing the standard operating procedure, creating tools for effective and efficient project implementation, being the product owner for the company's time survey software tool, and hiring, training, and developing staff.
Elizabeth's clients have varied both in size and industry. She has worked on very large clients who top the Fortune 500 list as well as mid-market clients. Her client's industries include those in the software, manufacturing, entertainment, life science, retail, fintech, and performance apparel, etc. space. She uses her tax controversy expertise to strengthen her clients' R&D tax credit claims by providing them with audit-focused deliverables.
In her free time, Elizabeth enjoys hanging out with her husband and 3 children. She also enjoys reading, trying new restaurants, and traveling.
Job Titles:
- Director of Marketing & Sales
Ilona is a dedicated marketer who constantly brings new ideas to the table. As the Director of Marketing & Sales, she is responsible for the planning, strategy, and execution of marketing and sales initiatives for MASSIE. Graduated from Baruch College, Zicklin School of Business with a BBA in Marketing Management.
Ilona has been introducing new technology and systems into the marketing space throughout her 15-year career. She has been the driving force in social media, event management, content and website development in Accounting and Not-for-profit industries. She brings her data analysis, lead generation, and UX everywhere she goes.
During her off time, she loves to travel, read the latest Grisham novel, try the newest restaurants, go to the park with her family, and ever since moving to Florida - attempt to make it to the beach.
Job Titles:
- Director of Qualitative Content
Jackie is passionate about providing great customer service and exacting attention to detail. As our Director of Qualitative Content, she artfully blends the two to capture meaningful project details from our Innovation Questionnaires and develop comprehensive narratives of client's qualifying technical activities. Jackie graduated with a B.A. in English from DePaul University and earned an M.B.A. from Lake Forest Graduate School of Business. Her career began in the healthcare industry at Baxter Healthcare where she worked in technical product support and corporate marketing roles. She then joined Discover Card where she spent eight years in marketing and new business development. After taking some time to be a full-time mom to her two daughters, Jackie joined MASSIE as a Project Analyst.
A yogi in her spare time, she is active in her daughters' schools and PTA activities during the weekday and enjoys weekends with friends exploring Hill Country wineries.
Jason Massie, CPA, Esq., is the Founder and President of MASSIE R&D Tax Credits. He is responsible for the quality, consistency, and integrity of our services.
Jason received a B.S. in Accounting from Christian Brothers University and a Juris Doctor from the Cecil C. Humphreys School of Law at the University of Memphis. He first learned of R&D Tax Credits at a Big 8 accounting firm in Washington, D.C. Over the next dozen years, Jason led Big 4 and law firm practices and founded MASSIE in 2004. His peers widely recognize him as an expert with frequent speaking and writing engagements.
In Jason's free time, he transforms from a Founder and President to an endurance enthusiast. He has competed in over 40 marathons and 14 Ironman Triathlons. Jason's favorite races include Honolulu, Boston, Chicago, NYC Marathons, Ironman Alaska, and Ironman Canada. "I've embraced the endurance lifestyle for over 30 years now. My exercise time is a great stress reliever and is when I think, pray, and solve problems." Jason and his wife Carol live on Lake Lanier, just north of Atlanta.
As a Financial Analyst, Jayme is well adept at compiling and analyzing data to substantiate project narratives. Jayme earned her degree from the University of Minnesota Duluth. She started her career at Wipfli where she spent over three years in public accounting. Jayme has experience preparing individual and entity tax returns, but has spent the majority of her career specializing in R&D tax credit calculations.
Originally from Minnesota, Jayme traded lakes for mountains and now resides in Denver, CO. However, she looks forward to trips back home to enjoy lake life at her family's cabin on Lake Vermillion. In her free time, Jayme enjoys her time outdoors- skiing, hiking, our lounging in the sun reading a good book!
Joan has worked in the field of tax credits for over 25 years. She specializes in sales and is a strong believer in the power of positive thinking in the workplace. She works with honesty and dedication to be successful in her position. Developing relationships is the foundation of everything Joan does professionally and personally.
In her role as Director of Tax Credits, Joanna brings a keen attention to detail and skilled financial analysis to each client engagement. Joanna spent 10 years at ADP, most recently as a Tax Manager where her strength in building strong client relationships was key to the successful management of federal and state credits for 30+ clients in varied industries. Joanna is known for her strong client review skills and ability to proactively communicate throughout each engagement.
Joanna moved to the US after graduating from the University of Gdansk in Poland. In her free time, she enjoys spending time outdoors, capturing photographs of beautiful Florida sunsets, reading, and doing arts and crafts.
Job Titles:
- Director of Tax Technology
As Director of Tax Technology, John specializes in R&D tax credits across several industries, including manufacturing, software, food and beverage, and life sciences. His experience includes assisting both public and private companies in maximizing the federal and state R&D credit calculations, qualified research activities, and cost analysis. After receiving a B.B.A. in Accounting at Georgia State University, he continued his education with a Masters of Taxation degree. He began his career at PwC and subsequently at EY specializing in R&D tax credits, fixed assets, and accounting methods studies for public and private companies in various industries.
Originally from Vietnam, John moved to the U.S. with his family when he was eight years old and has been living in the suburbs of Atlanta for over twenty years. In his free time, John enjoys spending time with his wife and son, playing board games, volleyball, and tennis.
Job Titles:
- R & D Technical Writer With
As an R&D Technical Writer with MASSIE, Kelly creates compelling narratives about our clients' innovative work while providing exceptional customer service. After receiving a B.A. in English from Colorado State University - Pueblo, she continued her education with an M.A. in English Literature from the University of Colorado - Denver. Later, to support her career in tax accounting, she earned a B.S. in Accounting from Colorado State University - Global Campus. Kelly has over eight years of corporate tax accounting experience in the food manufacturing and technology industries.
In her spare time, Kelly enjoys exploring the Colorado outdoors, reading, volunteering, and spending time with her family.
As Executive Assistant, Kerry provides administrative support to the entire MASSIE team. Coming from an office specialist background, she continues to help balance the needs of all her co-workers - organizing schedules, unique events, trips, and agendas. She strives daily to contribute to the strategic vision of MASSIE. Graduating from East Carolina University with a B.A. in English and a B.A. in Communication, her career path started in Journalism - reporting and writing for several community newspapers of The News & Observer.
Kerry fell in love with the mantra that "movement is medicine" a few years ago. She is a loyal member of Peloton, taking a cycling or strength (usually both) class every day.
Currently living in Dallas with her husband and children, she is a born and bred North Carolina girl who enjoys watching college basketball - especially March Madness.
Job Titles:
- Director of People Operations
Kimberly is fundamentally intense about the MASSIE Team, with an emphasis on growing the culture, development, and employee engagement. Those functions of her of work are Kimberly's daily why. As our Director of People Operations, Kimberly manages programs, procedures, and guidelines to ensure that we're hiring the right people, working on team strategies, and intentionally cultivating our culture. Kimberly's passion is to help align our team with MASSIE's core values - "Do great work. Live great lives. Have great fun'. Kimberly graduated from the University of Mobile with a BA in Education, and a concentration in Business Administration. She began her career at Integrity Music & Media where she spent ten years on the executive team, before the company's relocation.
Kimberly loves being outside, especially walking and hiking. She enjoys game nights with friends, traveling, cooking, singing with her band mates, event planning, and raising chickens. She lives in Alabama, and loves spending time with her husband and two sons.
As Manger of Tax Credits, Lauren specializes in R&D tax credits across several industries, including mining and metals, manufacturing, food and beverage, and software. After receiving a B.S. in Accounting at Florida State University, she continued her education at Florida State to receive a Master of Accounting. Lauren began her career at EY, where she spent over four years in public accounting. While at EY, she worked in their Central region Tax practice specializing in various federal tax planning strategies, including accounting methods and R&D tax credits.
Originally from New Jersey, Lauren now resides in Miami, FL. In her free time, Lauren loves to spend time with family and friends, play board games, venture out to new restaurants, and bake desserts. If she is testing out a new dessert recipe, there is a strong possibility that chocolate is involved.
As a Project Associate, Linh provides support to both the MASSIE project teams as well as internal operations. She began her career in the Finance field as a tax analyst at ADP after graduating from Georgia State University with a Bachelors degree in Accounting. She subsequently transitioned into the wholesale payroll operations, supporting both large and small CPA firms.
Job Titles:
- Financial Analyst
- R & D Financial Analyst
Maggie is an experienced R&D Financial Analyst with expertise in data cleansing and data analysis for R&D tax credits, with a particular focus on software and medication industries. She holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Financial Management from China, and she furthered her education by pursuing a master's degree in accounting at the University of the Pacific in California.
Maggie's professional journey includes over three years of valuable experience at PwC. During her time at PwC, she worked in their Specialized Tax Service, specializing in various federal tax planning strategies. Her areas of expertise include: R&D tax credits, cost segregation and accounting methods.
Currently residing in Foster City, CA, Maggie originally comes from China. Apart from her professional pursuits, she finds joy in engaging in outdoor activities. Maggie is an avid enthusiast of skiing, kayaking, swimming, and exploring new places. Her passion for travel fuels her excitement to discover and experience new destinations.
MASSIE is a leading provider of best practices for the R&D Tax Credit. We offer innovative and proven solutions to companies across the United States. Our Quarterly R&D Tax Credit Best Practice Roundtable brings together over 200 tax directors from top companies to form a community focused on sharing knowledge and best practices related to the R&D Tax Credit.
As a Director of R&D Tax Credits, Matt oversees engagements from the preliminary architectural phase of a project to the final report delivery. He has over 12 years of research credit experience with companies ranging in size from $2 million to $20 billion, and his meticulous planning, communication, organizational, and critical thinking skills enable him to build trusting relationships. From manufacturing and software to apparel design and aerospace, Matt has never met a project too complex.
In his free time, Matt enjoys anything outdoors, but especially hiking, skiing, kayaking, and golfing.
Meet Ali, a dedicated R&D Technical Writer at MASSIE. She brings a passion for storytelling and a wealth of experience writing for diverse clients and industries to her role. She is committed to crafting engaging narratives about her clients' cutting-edge work and takes pride in fully immersing herself in a client's field to truly understand and enliven their story. Ali holds a B.A. in English from the University of Georgia and an M.A. in English from Bowling Green State University.
Meredith joins the MASSIE team with experience in both the R&D tax credit sector and the creative writing scene. Having a background in content creation at the university level and performance-style poetry, Meredith seeks to bring the subtle-yet significant-skills of emotional awareness into a world of spreadsheets. Using keen listening and relationship-building skills, Meredith guides the narratives of R&D reports, helping to effectively articulate and archive clients' innovative work. Meredith holds a BA in English/Writing from Jacksonville State University.
As Director of Tax Credits, Paige uses her 15 plus years of research tax credit experience to collaboratively develop a research credit process that is customized for each company. Paige's hands-on approach to managing each engagement allows clients visibility from the architecture phase through the delivery of the final report. After graduating from East Carolina University with her Masters of Accountancy, Paige joined EY. During her years of client service at EY, Paige helped clients with US federal income tax planning engagements, particularly around the research credit, tax accounting methods, capitalization, inventory, and transaction costs.
Paige loves the outdoors, whether at the beach, snow skiing, or watching her three boys play soccer and lacrosse.
Responsible for the company's vision, growth objectives, and client experience initiatives, Peter brings impressive experience to MASSIE. His career in the tax credit industry began in 2001. In 2007, he became President of WALLACE. Implementation of his own improvement initiatives and ideas grew the company at a rapid rate over several years until it was noticed and acquired by ADP in 2011. Peter's expertise and detailed understanding of the tax credit industry is acknowledged by his service as a former member of specialty taxation committees for both the Georgia Chamber of Commerce and the Georgia Economic Development Association. He is also a frequent speaker on tax credit policy and best practices nationwide.
Born, raised, and educated in Dublin, Ireland, Peter has been a Georgia resident since 1993. Despite his Irish upbringing, he can cook an incredible southern BBQ. Peter also enjoys playing his guitar and singing. When he's not BBQ'ing or performing, you can find him on the golf course!
In her role as an R&D Technical Writer, Rin explores key client information before drafting clear narratives of the projects they've completed. After receiving a B.S. in Accounting from Wittenberg University, she continued her education at The Ohio State University to receive a Master of Accounting. Rin began her career at EY, where she spent over 3 years in public accounting. While at EY, she worked in their Quantitative Services Tax practice, specializing in various federal tax planning strategies, including accounting methods and R&D tax credits.
Originally from Chicago, Rin now lives in Nashville, TN. Rin enjoys a plethora of hobbies including crafting of any sort, practicing piano and organ, CrossFit, and anything that brings her outdoors. You can typically find Rin exploring local coffee shops and playing board games.
Sara Beth joined MASSIE in 2016, and after six years as a Director of Tax Credits, managing R&D Tax Credit engagements, Sara Beth moved into the role of Director of Operations. Sara Beth hopes to leverage her sixteen years of experience in R&D Tax Credits and project management to improve and manage many of MASSIE's internal processes and support our growing MASSIE team so that they can continue to provide the quality that MASSIE clients have come to expect. After receiving a B.B.A. at Emory's Goizueta Business School, she continued her education with a Masters of Accountancy from the University of Florida. Her career began at Grant Thornton, where she spent ten years in public accounting.
Sara Beth loves playing tennis, Pilates, vegetable gardening, hiking the Blue Ridge Mountains with her family, and spending time at the Distillery of Modern Art.
Sarah Coble comes to MASSIE as an R&D Technical Writer with a passion for words and creating vivid narratives. She holds a B.A. in Creative Writing from Western Washington University and spent over 5 years with Tax Credit Co/Experian Employer Services as an R&D professional. While at TCC, Sarah worked extensively on both the quantitative and qualitative functions of R&D tax credits, specializing in technical reports and analyzing calculations.
Currently residing in Los Angeles, Sarah has lived throughout the US including Seattle and the Midwest. Away from the desk, Sarah enjoys writing novels, trying new coffee concoctions, and playing with her Pomeranians.
Stephen comes to MASSIE as Director of Controversy after spending nearly six years with TCC/Experian's Employer Services as Director of IRS Practice and Procedures. Prior to this, he retired from a 32-year-long career with the Internal Revenue Service. He has a wealth of experience and expertise in tax controversy and navigating state and federal audits. He also provides counsel in risk assessment and quality review. Stephen holds a BSBA from Southeast Missouri State University and is a licensed CPA.
During his career with the IRS, he held numerous positions including the following: Territory Manager in Small, Mid-Sized, and Large Business; several positions in the national office; and Director of Field Operations for International Industries and Engineering for Large Business. He gained significant experience in research credits while serving as Executive Lead for research credits for three and a half years. In addition, he had executive responsibility for field enforcement for some of the largest companies in the US. Stephen has a well-rounded and unique background, having served in a wide range of fields at the IRS as well as working with clients for the past six years.
Stephen enjoys spending time with his wife, family, and friends, doing volunteer work in his church and community, hiking, and traveling around the US taking in the sights.
Job Titles:
- Director of Tax Incentives
In her role as Director of Tax Incentives, Tanja is responsible for all aspects of MASSIE's state incentive engagements and applies her expertise in the area of R&D tax credits. She received a B.B.A. from Georgia State University where she graduated Cum Laude. Tanja spent more than 8 years at ADP, most recently as Tax Manager, where she worked with clients from a wide range of industries. She oversaw the credit calculation process and focused on credit maximization for large, strategic clients specifically in the Southeast. Tanja has a wide knowledge of complex tax situations that can impact credits (M&A) and is considered a Subject Matter Expert for credits in Georgia, South Carolina, and Tennessee. With experience on more than 500 SE credit projects, Tanja has successfully secured over $130 million in credits for her clients.
Tanja moved to the US from Bosnia when she was 12 years old and loves living in Georgia. She remains very close to her extended family, which includes 25 first cousins, even though most live overseas. In her spare time, she enjoys walking her dog and supporting her daughter in cheerleading and piano.
Job Titles:
- Business Development Manager
As a Business Development Manager, Taylor specializes in client relations and expanding our operations across all industries that have an R&D Credit demand. She has experience in public accounting services from taxation, auditing, and specializing in R&D credit analysis. Within this role, she thrives at exercising her passion for people mixed with identifying qualified innovative designs with our subject matter experts. Taylor graduated from Southern Illinois University Carbondale (Go Salukis) with a BS in Accounting and now lives in Scottsdale, AZ.
Work-life balance allows Taylor to spend time with her close group of friends, while watching the St. Louis Cardinals and Blues, play in volleyball leagues, golf, and much more. She enjoys music and regularly practices playing the keyboard, and her Fender Sonoran Acoustic guitar. There isn't a hobby or person that doesn't interest her
As a Project Associate, Vanessa assists the project teams from launch to the final report. She expanded her experience as an accountant in the Real Estate and Medical industries. Vanessa graduated from Seattle University with a major in Business Administration.
When Vanessa is off the clock, she spends time with friends and family, cuddling with her hedgehog, and voice acting. She has also been seen online reviewing beer and restaurants.