James S. Turley

BA, Economics and Managerial Studies, 1977; MS in Accounting, 1978

Ask Jim Turley when he developed his intense focus on ethics and integrity, and he will say that it started his first day at Rice.

“You realize you are operating under an honor system,” he says. “I can still recite what I wrote on every exam and paper. You sign that statement, and it means something.”

To Turley, the importance of character can never be overstated. That is why values are such a huge part of the organization he leads. Turley is chair and chief executive officer of Ernst & Young. A Rice professor originally suggested he interview at that accounting firm, and Turley built his career there. From the Houston office, he moved up the ranks by way of St. Louis, Cleveland, Minneapolis, and ultimately, New York. His original assignment in New York was to lead the tristate area, which also includes New Jersey and Connecticut. Then, in 2001, Turley was asked to lead the firm. He assumed the additional title of CEO in 2003.

“I work with a great team in a great organization. We have 105,000 people in 130 countries, with $14 billion in revenue,” says Turley, who travels the majority of the time. “I have an office and flat in London, but it seems like I’m hardly ever there or in New York.”

No matter what city he wakes up in, Turley spends his time with the Ernst & Young teams who serve the clients, with the clients themselves, and with investors and investor representatives. “I want to make sure we are focusing on the right things on a daily basis,” he says, “and that we have the right processes internally and the right focus on the market.”

The bottom line for Turley is having the best people deliver the best products to the marketplace and, in the process, create a growing, sustaining organization. “Ernst & Young,” he notes, “has a culture that celebrates people who respect one another, who have high integrity, and who place teamwork high in their priorities.”

Turley’s commitments at the Ernst & Young Houston office and his service on the Jesse H. Jones Graduate School of Management Council of Overseers frequently bring him back to Houston. “Unlike most places, when I get to Houston, I rent a car,” Turley says. “I like to visit the campus. I have great memories, especially of how involved and available the faculty was, both inside and outside of class.”

Turley realized early on that he was not just taught accounting rules at Rice but how to think about those rules, to understand why they exist, and to apply them in different circumstances. With all the changes taking place in his profession and the great changes he has seen in business over the past few years, he is reminded often of why those early lessons were so important.