Meet Nakia

Manager, Internal Audit; World Traveler

Chicago Corporate Headquarters

Member of USG Team Since 2005

I started at USG as an intern during my senior year in high school and worked every summer until I graduated from college and was offered a full-time position.  I remember during my first day as a high school intern a man walked over to my desk to introduce himself and say hello.  I didn’t know his role in the company, but he made me feel welcome and like I was an important part of the team even though I was just a high school student.  That man turned out to be Bill Foote, who is now chairman and chief executive officer of USG.

You are truly part of a family at USG, which is something that is very important to me.  I come from a close-knit family and want to be part of a company that cares about employees.  My experience is that USG leaders take a personal interest in employees at all levels of the organization and really work to make the right decisions on behalf of all of us.  

I began my USG career as an accountant for our L&W Supply subsidiary.  I was given a lot of responsibility right away including handling monthly close processes, preparing journal entries, completing account audits and many other activities.  My primary responsibility today as manager of internal audits is to make certain that USG complies with Sarbanes-Oxley legislation by ensuring that we have adequate internal controls over our financial information across the company.  It’s a busy, challenging and rewarding job where I work closely with our auditors out in the field to strengthen and maintain our financial reporting and auditing processes.

One of the words that best describes USG is “opportunity.”  The company is highly focused on developing and retaining talent.  I feel like my managers have a strong interest in my career development and success.  I know people at other companies who feel like they are lost in the shuffle and not receiving the recognition and training they need to advance their careers.  That’s not the case at USG.

The work environment at USG is very open and diverse with people from different backgrounds, cultures and perspectives.  USG recognizes that fresh ideas and perspectives strengthen the company, help us grow and enable us to serve customers better.  One of the reasons I enjoy working at USG is because of the emphasis the company places on workforce diversity.

I always try to make sure that I spend my time doing something that adds value to my life.  My parents taught me the value of determination and hard work to create opportunities.  I focus on maintaining a positive attitude and remaining open to life’s possibilities.  That’s one of the reasons I like to travel to the Caribbean, Belgium, New Zealand, Sweden and other places different from America.  It opens me up to a new value systems and different ways of looking at America and the world.  There are opportunities everywhere for success and happiness if you remain open and positive about life.