Featuring our Audit Operations Manager, Chris Pry

In this series of blog posts, we're excited to introduce you to the key members of our management team at Poole Audit. Today, we have an interview with Chris Pry, our Audit Operations Manager, who plays a pivotal role in ensuring our audit processes run smoothly and efficiently.

Work-Related Questions:

1. How many times a day or week do you communicate with clients? Operators?

Chris: On average, I communicate with Clients about once or twice a month. That’s more for Ruth Strange (Internal Operations Manager) and Evan Poole (COO). I communicate with Operators constantly during an audit, approximately 3-5 times per week depending on the audit.

2. What is your current role and specific responsibilities as a part of the management team?

Chris: I am the Manager of Audit Operations. My specific responsibilities include overseeing company technology, audit procedures, audit fieldwork supervision, audit leads, workpaper management, exception writing, and support, among other things.

3. What do you believe sets Poole Audit apart from its competitors in the industry?

Chris: Although we’re not the largest firm, we have a very tight-knit group of individuals that work well together to achieve a common goal. We’re always available to our clients without nickel-and-diming for email responses and correspondence. We have generational experience in the oil and gas industry while also maintaining a younger staff that is eager to learn and has more current knowledge of the world around us.

4. How does Poole Audit ensure compliance with the latest accounting standards and regulations while conducting audits for clients?

Chris: PAC is active in the Petroleum Accountants Society of Houston (PASH) which is the Houston chapter of COPAS. I have been the Audit Chair for the last two years, and Ruth Strange (Manager of Internal Operations) is on the Board of Trustees.

5. Can you share an example of a particularly challenging audit engagement and how the team successfully navigated through it to deliver accurate results?

Chris: I do not have a specific example, but as auditors, we understand that we’re not going to be the favorite people of Operators, since it is often perceived that we’re pointing out things that they did wrong. Just as we take the work personally, Operators often do the same. My philosophy has always been that we’re all working together to make sure that the job was done correctly. No one is specifically at fault or to blame, and we avoid the “gotcha” mentality when it comes to audits.

Social Question:

6. Outside of work, how do you like to spend your free time? Do you have any hobbies or passions that you pursue?

Chris: I enjoy drone photography and cars. I also enjoy fishing, hiking, and tinkering with my FJ40 Land Cruiser. Before our son was born in 2021, my wife and I enjoyed a lot of travel both domestically and internationally. We’re excited to continue that tradition with him as he grows up.

Stay tuned for more blog posts featuring our management team and their perspectives on work and life.