After achieving her long-held ambition of becoming an audit partner, Jennifer Erasmus made the unexpected decision to leave the profession and chart a new course. Now, as CFO of Trellidor, she reflects on the career pivot that reshaped her ambitions, the realities of balancing leadership with motherhood and the legacy she hopes to build through people, process improvement and purposeful leadership.
Many trainee accountants aspire to make audit partners, but when Jennifer Erasmus, the newly appointed chief financial officer of Trellidor, reached this pinnacle in her career, she simply walked away from it all.
Jennifer joined Trellidor in 2025 after a short stint running her own independent audit practice. She was appointed as audit partner at Forvis Mazars in 2022, a top 10 international professional services firm she joined after completing her articles at Grant Thornton.
“Making audit partners at Mazars was and still is the highlight of my career. That was my proudest moment because it was always the end goal to make an audit partner. What made it more rewarding was that the road to making an audit partner is a long and challenging one from a technical and people management perspective,” she says.
The euphoria of having the title audit partner written on her door nameplate was short-lived when she fell pregnant and started questioning whether she would be able to raise a child with the demanding hours required by audit work.
“Audit is constant deadlines and the long hours and the pressure can be exhausting. I didn’t really picture myself working those hours while raising a child,” says Jennifer.
At this stage, entrepreneurship and working flexible hours looked very appealing – Jennifer started a small audit practice alongside an existing accounting and tax practice and ran with it for a year and a half.
Though it was rewarding in so far as it spared her from the gruelling audit work of larger companies and groups, she concedes that venturing on her own was not easy as it came with its own set of challenges, some of which she could not have anticipated.
“When I ran my practice, I realised that some of the things that I was frustrated with in the corporate environment were the things I missed the most. As an entrepreneur, I was responsible for every part of the business. I had no sounding board, no risk department to assess risk – I missed that support. Entrepreneurship taught me a lot about appreciating the things that happen in the background. As a sole proprietor, you are the PA, the accountant, the client liaison and the HR manager. I learnt the finer details of running a practice as opposed to sticking to one role,” she says.
Once again, Jennifer found herself in a reflective mood contemplating her career path. It was at this moment that the opportunity arose to join Trellidor. She was fortunate that she already had a relationship with some members of the executive team as she had previously worked on the company’s audit account.
“When this opportunity arose, I was still on the fence. I wasn’t sure whether audit was still something I wanted to do. I felt that I wanted to do something more and to expand my skills. At the risk of sounding cheesy, everything happens for a reason. The timing of this opportunity was great as it came when I was considering the direction of my career path. I accepted this role and this is where I am,” says Jennifer.
Turning a new page
Coming out of audit, Jennifer admits that her new role will require a mindset shift, but she regards herself as fortunate because she has had a six-month window period to step into this role, which officially commences on 1 July.
“This role will require a paradigm shift from oversight and governance roles in audit to operations and getting to know the details. It has been a transition, but I am excited about this next chapter in my life and I am also glad to have the senior management team in my corner who have been gracious enough to seamlessly hand over to me. They have really helped to make the transition a bit smoother,” she says.
She notes that she is joining Trellidor at a pivotal time when the company has outlined a lot of plans and strategic goals that it wants to achieve. “I am delighted and I am looking forward to the future at Trellidor,” says Jennifer.
Jennifer is looking forward to making a name for herself and leaving a legacy at the company. “The legacy I wish to leave behind is making an impact, which is not necessarily changing everything, but it will be about streamlining and improving the processes, enhancing efficiencies, imparting new skills, progressing my team along with me and building on their skills. That will be the legacy that I am proud of - to know that I have made an impact in a positive way across the team,” she says.
For now, as the new sheriff in town, Jennifer’s team must learn and adapt to her leadership style, which she defines as versatile and adaptive. “Audit taught me that you cannot adopt a single leadership style when you deal with people. A one size fits all approach is seldom applicable. What works for one person and gets the best out of them will not necessarily work for another person,” says Jennifer.
She adds: “Everyone now is aware of the importance of mental health and therefore leadership styles have evolved and adapted to the changing environment, especially with the younger generation. People have become more sensitised about how you treat other people and that has had a profound impact on leadership and things that leaders should be cognisant of.”
Prioritising transformational leadership
Commenting on gender transformation in the higher echelons of the audit and financial services industry, Jennifer says there is still a lot of bias against female leadership.
“Most boards are still made up of male executives. However I have been fortunate enough to work alongside a number of exceptional female leaders who have served as mentors and role models which reinforced that leadership is more about capability than gender and different leadership styles can be equally effective.”
As a new mother, Jennifer knows the importance of striking that work-life balance. “Having a child was an eye-opening experience for me regarding the sacrifices that need to be made as the mother. I realised the importance of having a support structure in the background to help out on a personal level. I am lucky enough to have a very supportive husband who helps where needed.”
Jennifer points out that the pressures of work at this level can take a toll on the professional, particularly during busy periods such as preparing for financial results. To manage this, she says that she puts a plan in place and ensures that each member of her team understands their roles and responsibilities and conducts regular check-ins to assess progress.
“Outside of work most days I am up at 4:30am to go to the gym or for a run, which helps me manage stress. If you are overwhelmed by pressure, it impacts your team and you will never get the best out of them. Remaining calm, planning, checking in and adapting the plan where necessary goes a long way in ensuring that the team is aligned and able to meet our goals and deadlines,” Jennifer says.
