Accounting Policy Plus

Esther Mills began her consulting firm, Accounting Policy Plus, in 2009.  Her previous experience includes acting as a Managing Director at Morgan Stanley, heading its Global Accounting Standards and Control Division.  In that role, Esther was responsible for formulating corporate views and strategy on emerging accounting issues.  She met frequently with senior policymakers at the SEC, FASB, Federal Reserve Bank, and other government agencies.  She advised business units on structuring transactions to optimize transaction terms.  She oversaw the preparation of 10K and 10Q filings with the SEC, and she led the conversion of major subsidiaries to International Financial Reporting Standards. In addition, she developed a comprehensive training program in which she distilled volumes of information on accounting topics into clear, concise sessions.

Prior to Morgan Stanley, Esther held similar roles at Merrill Lynch and Goldman Sachs.  Esther began her career as an auditor with KPMG LLC, serving clients in the software, real estate, manufacturing and retail industries.  While at KPMG she was selected for a two year rotation to their Milan, Italy office, and was promoted to Senior Manager.

Industry Leadership Roles

Esther served as the Chairperson of the Accounting Committee of the American Securitization Forum from 2005 to 2009.  During that time, she led many significant industry-wide initiatives regarding the accounting for securitization transactions and off-balance sheet arrangements.  In 2008, she assisted the US Treasury Department and the SEC in determining the accounting for loans that needed to be modified in response to the mortgage crisis.  Esther has also briefed Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke on accounting issues related to the commercial mortgage market. 

Esther has also served on the IASB Financial Instruments Working Group, the FASB Financial Statement Presentation Project, the AICPA Stockbrokerage and Investment Banking Expert Panel, and other regulatory working groups.

Education

Esther Mills graduated summa cum laude from the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School in 1985 with a degree in Finance and Accounting.  In 2002 she completed the Harvard Business School Women’s Leadership Program. 

Esther’s career was profiled in The CPA Journal in 2018 and in the Journal of Accountancy in 2001.