Chris Janis

Summary of experience

Chris has over 26 years of experience in professional services and in private industry. With a focus on Internal Audit Services, Chris has led many engagements related to the overall improvement of his clients' risk management functions and the related internal controls. He has managed many fully outsourced and co-sourced internal audit engagements, and has deployed audit teams with diverse operational and internal audit expertise on a global scale. His efforts include scaling the Internal Audit function to the clients’ needs, bringing a diverse pool of PwC talent to manage client risks, and balancing the related cost of risk management. Prior to joining PwC, Chris was a Partner at a regional accounting and consulting firm where he led the Governance, Risk Management, and Compliance Practice. Previously he was a CFO in private industry in both the telecom and technology sectors where he helped his companies through many strategic initiatives including M&A, complex financing, and restructuring efforts. Additionally, Chris served in progressive fiscal management roles with global Fortune 500 companies. Chris brings with him executive management experience in both publicly held and privately owned entities. Earlier in his career, Chris was an auditor at PwC (legacy Coopers & Lybrand) in the Emerging Business Practice group, and was a litigation consultant at Deloitte.

Chris received his MBA from Saint Joseph's University and his undergraduate degree in Accounting and Finance from La Salle University. He lives in Haddonfield, NJ with his wife of 25 years, Bernadette, and their six children.

Fun facts:

What is your favorite way to spend free time?
I love spending time with my family. With six kids who are involved in multiple sports and in the performing arts, I think the term “free time” is relative. My wife and I run quite a bit as a nice escape from our hectic lives, and to stay in shape. Frankly, since she is a lot faster than me, I think I do more chasing than actual running with her! Finally, we love to spend family time together at the beach, as we have a family home at the shore where it is common to have 15 or more kids and cousins hanging out.

What is one of your goals yet to be achieved?
Personally, I want to run a sub-four hour marathon. I ran two marathons back in 2005, but did not break the four hour mark. I must hurry though, as the age clock continues to fight me. Professionally, I want to embrace my new role as a PwC Partner and work to develop and sponsor new Partner candidates over the next several years. The admission process opened my eyes to the importance of developing our champions to drive the legacy of the firm. It must be a real thrill to sponsor a successful new Partner.

If you could have dinner with anyone-who would it be and why?
Steve Jobs from Apple. I think his real legacy is his unwavering desire to innovate against all odds. Think about it, he was fired from Apple after driving innovation in the Tech industry beyond his own expectations. Then, upon his return, he drove innovation that changed the way the world operates. I would want to get into his head to understand how he never “settled”—rather, he had a mindset of continuous improvement. Just think how terrible it would be if we were all stuck with the first version of the iPhone!

What’s on your current reading list?
Boys in the Boat
Paris 1919: Six Months That Changed the World