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Meet Judy Lian

Judy Lian, a former Audit & Assurance Senior Manager at Deloitte China, current CFO (Chief Financial Officer) and COO (Chief Operating Officer) of Tongtong Yilian.

In July 2002, after graduating from Nankai University, Judy stood out among many applicants and became the only fresh graduate hired by Deloitte's Beijing office.

Judy frankly admitted that Deloitte was an ideal starting point for her career: "I had endless fantasies about being an auditor—wearing suits and moving through high-rise buildings..."However, when she truly went to the audit 'frontline,' she realized the difference between reality and personal imagination. Only by traveling across the country could she delve into the core areas of clients' businesses and do a good job in auditing.

After undergoing systematic training at Deloitte, Judy applied what she learned. Through efficient methods and personal effort, she compiled complete and accurate project summaries, which impressed the PMO (Project Management Office) and MIC (Manager in Charge). Her outstanding performance earned her the highest score in the group during the annual performance evaluation.

The firm's feedback on talent made the young her deeply realize that as long as value is created, recognition will follow, which is true professional satisfaction.

In 2004, Judy temporarily left the team due to family reasons, but she never forgot her initial dream—to become a professional. In 2006, Judy returned to Deloitte and joined the Audit Group Two, where she honed her comprehensive skills over 12 years in a faster market pace and more diverse client projects. She said, "Deloitte's scientific work methods, performance incentive system, and people-first firm culture called me back."

In Audit Group Two, Judy's projects involve various industries, and she frankly admits that it is thanks to Deloitte's comprehensive professional training that she can achieve "purity in the present."

"Auditors, after systematic financial and audit training, then apply this knowledge in projects, which helps them integrate theory with practice and form a professional mindset. For example, for a gas company, auditors can explain the process of laying gas pipelines; for the paper industry, they can differentiate between the wood pulp content of cultural paper and corrugated cardboard; for the battery industry, they can explain the principle of a battery formation process; and for the aviation industry, they can discuss frequent flyer programs, aircraft leasing, and even fuel supply."

In 2008, to further enhance her professional level, Judy was seconded to Hong Kong to delve into audit theory and related international accounting standards. She reflects that the mature capital market operation system in Hong Kong and the efficient and professional audit practical experience of Deloitte's colleagues in Hong Kong have broadened her horizons. This secondment laid a solid foundation for Judy's subsequent work on Hong Kong IPOs and H-share annual audit projects.

Judy has served many clients' H-share IPO projects at Deloitte, assisting various companies in successfully listing. When she was appointed as the AIC (Auditor In-charge) for an IPO project in the battery manufacturing industry under urgent circumstances, facing the issue of how to audit accrued expenses, Judy engaged in deep discussions with the client. Through brainstorming, the client's finance department used years of historical data to build a warranty cost prediction model, simplifying the complex warranty cost calculation, and the audit method issue was resolved. The model inspired by the client is still in use today.

When Judy was promoted to Senior Audit Manager in 2015, she encountered the most challenging audit project of her career.

A comprehensive large-scale group company established in 2014, providing systematic development solutions and services for energy power, infrastructure, and other industries, planned to list in Hong Kong by the end of 2015. The group had set up more than 200 overseas branches in over 90 countries and regions, with business spanning more than 140 countries and regions worldwide. The project was time-sensitive, with a large volume of business and numerous subsidiaries. The Deloitte team successfully assisted the client in listing in Hong Kong within the specified timeframe. Judy joked, “After experiencing this unforgettable journey of listing, I am fearless about anything in the future.”

Summarizing her H-share IPO experience, Judy sincerely stated, “Such projects carry higher risks, and it is essential to maintain a professional skepticism attitude. This is not to make auditors overly cautious but to use common sense and experience, think diligently, analyze more, and make professional judgments based on the characteristics of different industries.”

In 2020, Judy left Deloitte and joined a client company where she had previously worked as the Executive Director of the Group Finance Department, assisting the company with financial operations from the perspective of capital markets.

The pandemic often interrupted Judy's return to Beijing. Considering both family and career development, she joined the technology innovation company Tongtong Yilian as CFO and COO in August 2021. Judy frankly stated that her choice of Tongtong Yilian was due to its business strategy of meeting market demand with pure software solutions in the smart parking industry, as well as her personal desire to transition into a corporate financial decision-maker role.

During the process of career transition, Judy also doubted whether leaving a mature company like Deloitte would mean losing the support of the original system. However, Judy later found that the business thinking model cultivated at Deloitte enabled her to understand corporate value from a financial perspective, integrating financial work into various business lines of the company to find new growth points in efficiency and effectiveness. As CFO, she identified risks in business operations and fully supported the CEO's strategic goals.

Ultimately, under Judy's leadership, Tongtong Yilian has completed its Series A financing.

Epilogue

In her spare time from work, Judy enjoys the pleasure that family life brings her. As a female leader, she has brought the sense of equality and inclusiveness she experienced at Deloitte to her current company. She sincerely said, “Women possess traits such as attentiveness, gentleness, and sensitivity, which allow them to better identify internal issues within a company and bring a relatively harmonious approach to handling matters.”

As a working mother, while constantly switching between her roles in work and life, she reminds herself not to overly criticize the past or demand too much of the present, but to leave some space and time for the future.

For the younger generation at Deloitte China, Judy leaves four pieces of advice for career development:

  • If you are determined to become a finance or audit professional, complete your CPA exam as soon as possible, and stay focused during the preparation process;
  • Maintain a lifelong learning attitude when facing different challenges;
  • Embrace an owner's mindset in your job and give it your all;
  • As a woman, integrate work with life, love yourself, and you will love both your work and life even more.