2019 Most Influential Women: Kristin Carter

SBJ photo by Jessica Rosa

In Her Words

Family: Married to a fellow CPA, Nathan, for 10 years, and we have two wonderful kiddos: a 6-year old son Beckett and a 4-year old daughter Quinn.
Words to live by: Some dear friends once told me their mantra: “If it’s not a hell yes, then it’s a no.” Quit saying yes to things you aren’t passionate about! 
Advice to other women: Give yourself lots of grace. It’s OK if you can’t juggle it all. 
Biggest career obstacle: Taking on my role as tax officer for a seven-office financial institution. Even though I was excited for the challenge, I was afraid of failure and felt unqualified. Fortunately, three years in it’s going well.

Kristin Carter lives by a simple motto: She says “yes” only to projects she can emphatically support.

“If I commit to a cause or an organization, I am committed 1,000%,” says Carter, tax officer at Central Trust Co. “This internal passion, along with my natural ability to harmonize with all different types of people, generally leads to me taking on a leadership role in my work or within a nonprofit board or organization. I absolutely love to create positive change and collaborate with those around me to move a project or an organization forward.”

As the first-ever tax officer at Central Trust, Carter leads the $6 billion company on all things tax-related across five markets in Missouri and Kansas. The role encompasses compliance, the effect of legislative changes, and training staff and clients on tax issues.

“It’s a big job that challenges and develops me daily,” Carter says.

A 2018 Springfield Business Journal 40 Under 40 honoree, Carter is a certified public accountant who earned her bachelor’s degree in accounting and master of accountancy from the University of Missouri.

Eager to serve as a resource to students, Carter is a corporate mentor for Missouri State University’s College of Business.

“I mentored a college student and helped her examine her educational and career goals,” she says. “We prepared her for internship interviews, worked through accepting and politely declining job offers and even changed her major to better align with her skills and interests.”

In her civic and volunteer work, Carter has led several boards and committees focused on making the biggest impact for the Springfield area, including the Springfield Area Chamber of Commerce’s The Network for young professionals. She was chairwoman of the group last year when its members rallied to help Ozarks Technical Community College pass its ballot issue to fund the Center for Advanced Manufacturing.

“The Network had never been involved civically at such a deep level, and we truly believe that through our efforts the young professionals in the Springfield community lowered the average voter age and increased voter turnout,” Carter says. “Because of these efforts, many other organizations have now reached out to The Network to see how they can engage young professionals.”

The past two years, Carter has led The Network on trips to Jefferson City to meet with legislators on issues relevant to southwest Missouri, including workforce development, infrastructure and education. She sits on the board for the Betty and Bobby Allison Ozarks Counseling Center and helped start its young professionals volunteer board. At 35, she is the youngest member of City Utilities’ Board of Public Utilities.

“I am an encourager by nature and take great pride in bringing others along. I absolutely love to help those around me become successful and find their true passion in business and in our community,” Carter says.