USA Funds Staff Profile: Gaining Perspective From Varied Projects, Positions

Doug Schmidt likes to work on many different projects and with a broad range of people — so he is a perfect fit for his job as an auditor for USA Funds^®.

Schmidt’s responsibilities in USA Funds’ audit-services department require him to work with many business units at USA Funds, at its affiliate Northwest Education Loan Association^®, and at their guarantor-servicer, Sallie Mae. He helps ensure that the functions that support USA Funds and NELA adhere to established policies and federal regulations, and that staff members perform their tasks efficiently and effectively.

“I enjoy the variety that my job brings,” Schmidt says. “Beginning a new audit is like a fact-finding mission, learning as much about the business unit under audit as quickly as possible.”

After gathering the facts, USA Funds’ four-member audit team considers any risks related to the business unit’s activities and then evaluates the procedures and controls in place to help mitigate those risks. They also share with the business unit and USA Funds management any recommendations that the audit team has for improving business processes.

The audits help protect the interests of schools, lenders, education-loan borrowers and U.S. taxpayers.

Schmidt’s longtime career in accounting and auditing brought him to USA Funds in March 2006, after learning of the USA Funds position following auditing work that he’d performed for USA Funds through a consulting firm. A certified public accountant whose past jobs also include corporate accounting and financial reporting, Schmidt says he’s seen audits from a variety of angles.

“I’ve assisted with audits in almost every role I’ve had,” Schmidt says. “It helps me to understand what information is most useful in the audits I conduct now.”

Schmidt holds a bachelor’s degree in accounting from Eastern Illinois University in Charleston, Ill. When not at work, he keeps busy with family and church activities — including helping his two sons raise sheep, pigs and goats and show the animals at their county 4-H fair. He also assists with weekly Bible studies at a juvenile correction center.