We had the good fortune of connecting with Fern Johnson and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Fern, is your business focused on helping the community? If so, how?
Career Sisters ™ is here to help forge the careers and businesses of women of color. We are a place where sisters can connect and emerge empowered.

Our Community
Career Sisters was established in 2018 out of the need to establish resources for Women of Color in their careers and entrepreneurial endeavors. Career Sisters offers a safe space for Women of Color to:

Learn and Grow
Collaborate and share their experiences and how they navigated the nuances of corporate organizations Connect and E.M.E.R.G.E. By empowering women – our concept is simple, “Creating spaces where every day accomplished women were invited to collaborate, share their experiences and how they navigated the nuances of corporate organizations as well as establishing their own businesses.”

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
As an accomplished author, executive and business owner. She has over 20 years of accounting and financial management experience for both profit and non-profit organizations. Fern is a servant leader who is passionately committed to helping businesses grow and achieve top results. In addition she is just as passionate about giving back to communities especially those where she can help to empower women and girls. She has served in the capacity of an Executive Finance person for the past 10 years for companies ranging from $5 Million to over a billion in revenue.

She led companies through many “first times” to name a few; financial audits, transition from cash to accrual, implementation of departmental budgets, establishments of month-end close processes, M&A processes, system integrations and migrations and consolidations.

In addition, she has worked with non-profits both externally and internally helping with restructuring, board development, internal controls, and significant annual expense reduction and improved cash flow

Fern has served on many boards serving in the capacity of Treasurer to Co-Chair and on the Board of Directors for well-known non-profit organizations where she helped to formalize processes and move the company toward profitable goals. Fern has an MBA in Accounting from Keller Graduate School of Management and a B.A. in Business Management from Eckerd College. She is a 2013 graduate of Dale Carnegie Institute where she received the 2013 Highest Achievement Award.

Fern is the mother of three handsome boys and one beautiful girl. She and her husband have been a part of the Atlanta community for the past ten years. When she isn’t being a wife, mom or career sister she enjoys reading literature on personal growth, going to the spa to replenish or brainstorming about how she can help to improve the lives of women of color.

“I feel as though we have to carve out this niche for black women to tell their stories, I want to be that concierge solution that gives women the opportunity to be laser-focused and to provide them with all the resources needed to succeed. My motto is: ‘Know her story, love her brand.’”

As a Black woman I am inspired to make the world a more representative place for those who want upward mobility or to become successful entrepreneurs and leave a legacy behind.”

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
Chateau elan winery for a spa day, lunch and girl talk Piedmont Park for a jog and site seeing
A few different restaurants,
*Breakfast at Barneys
*Lunch at Alons
*Dinner at Two Urban Licks
*Wine at Barcelona Wine Bar
Shopping at Phipps Plaza and The Shops at Buckhead

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
Elizabeth Coffey, dear friend, Rainach Austin, my mother and Paulette Lewis, mentor
Jeff Johnson (husband) and my kids

Website: www.careersisters.com

Instagram: careersisters

Linkedin: careersisters

Facebook: careersisters

Image Credits
Kola Adetola

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