Celebrating the career of Randy Ross, CPA

Randy Ross, CPA, retired from his role as executive director with the Oklahoma Accountancy Board (OAB) in December 2022.

His career has provided a broad background of public, private and governmental accounting, and his leadership at the OAB has extended across the profession.

Ross received his bachelor’s degree from the University of Central Oklahoma (UCO) while earning an All-American status in wrestling.

After graduating, he started his accounting career working with the Oklahoma

 Tax Commission (OTC) as a motor vehicle auditor. Within a year or so, Ross

 was promoted to a management position.

“I got an opportunity to work for Arthur Anderson as they did a long-range study of the Tax Commission with the effort to arrange for the Commission to

 get their first computer,” Ross said.

After this accomplishment, he had the opportunity to join the OTC’s first IT team.

“I didn’t last very long, but I went back to school to get another degree in

 computer science, and I was advised just to take those hours and apply them to a higher degree,” Ross said.

Taking this advice, he went on to earn his master’s degree from UCO, sit for

 the CPA Exam and become a CPA.

“My experiences at the tax commission were great,” Ross said. “I had the

 opportunity to do a lot of firsts in the state, including the first criminal prosecutions and utilizing scanners in our operations.”

“Something I am particularly proud of is rounding on income tax forms, which we carried over to other forms.”

After 20 years at the OTC, Ross served as a deputy director in charge of finances and operations with the State Health Plan.

“This was a wonderful experience, as I learned the healthcare industry inside and out,” Ross said. I dealt with actuaries and learned how we built rates and modified the plan to stay competitive.”

Five seems to be a lucky number for Ross. After five years in healthcare, he then spent five years in public accounting working for Units Parts Company as their controller where he learned about manufacturing, selling and product shipping. After his stint in public accounting, he returned to state service and served as the deputy director of the Oklahoma Department of Central Services for five years.

After cumulating a wide range of experience, Ross would then become the Executive Director of the OAB.

“As the [OAB] executive director, I learned more than I ever dreamed about our profession,” he said. “The AICPA and their relationship with the states and the delivery of the Exam is fascinating.”

Ross’s well-rounded resume is not the only evidence of his impressive career. He has also received numerous awards, establishing his elevation in the profession.

He has received the OSCPA’s highest honor by being inducted into the Oklahoma Accounting Hall of Fame (2015) and has also received the Society’s Outstanding Member in Business and Industry Award (2006).

Other accolades include National Administrator of the Year (1995); Mayor of the Year for Oklahoma Cities Over 5,000 (2011); UCO’s Distinguished Former Student (2012); and The Don Ryder Award as the outstanding municipal employee or elected official in Oklahoma (2014).

He was inducted into UCO’s inaugural class of luminaries (2016), as well as the Oklahoma City Chapter National Wrestling Hall of Fame (2017). Recently, Ross was inducted into the Oklahoma Cities and Towns Hall of Fame.

“It has been a wild ride with a lot of different types of accounting in my background,” Ross said. “I don’t think I would change any of it.”

“[Accounting] is such a great profession, and if you spend time looking at the various areas, it can be more than rewarding.”

Although Ross has formally retired from his role with the OAB, he currently serves as Mayor of the City of Choctaw. With more spare time on his hands, he plans to enjoy his hobbies more, which include weekends at the lake and traveling to SCUBA dive. 

Congratulations, Randy, on a career well spent! The OSCPA wishes you a happy and enjoyable retirement.