Durran Dunn

Durran Dunn, a native of Jamaica who attended Jamaica College (high school) in Kingston simply just wanted to earn good grades throughout school – As and some Bs and run fast. Durran declared his concentration on business courses in high school then later discovered his passion for Accounting through an outstanding teacher, Devon Lawrence. He was a natural at Accounting and later earned a distinction through the Caribbean Examinations Council (CXC) examination board in high school. By this time, Durran knew that he wanted to pursue Accounting and be a “businessman.”

After receiving national interests from many schools offering academic and athletic scholarships, Durran chose and later declared Accounting as his major at The University of Southern Mississippi ad never looked back.

As a student athlete at Southern Miss, Durran committed to his major taking at times courses that were up to 18 credits per semester - all while running track and field and making the football team to play defensive back during his senior year. In addition, he served as the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee President (SAAC), a committee that serves as the primary governance arm representing student-athlete interests in NCAA Division I affairs. He was a member of Beta Alpha Psi international honor society for accounting and finance, and the Kappa Iota Chapter of Kappa Alpha Psi Greek letter organization.

Durran’s hard work and diversity of involvement throughout the university community and other organizations earned him multiple awards including the title of Mr. Esquire Scholarship Pageant. As a senior, Durran was extended job opportunities to work in the Big Four and Citigroup. After recovering from the devastation of Hurricane Katrina, he graduated in December 2005 before starting his career with KPMG, LLP in January 2006 where he was a National Chairman award winner. During his first and second year at KPMG, Durran studied and passed the Certified Public Accountant (CPA) exam and achieved his certification status in 2008.

Since then, Durran’s has grown into recognized leader in his field with experiences in audit, as well as finance and accounting for both publicly traded and privately held companies. His work spans multiple industries including manufacturing, distribution and construction with roles in one of the Big Four Public Accounting Firms and Fortune 500 companies.

• 4:30 or 6:30am: Wake up

  In a time where business, risk, people and laws change frequently, my day-to-day can quickly change to timely deliver on the most competing priority. The journey of my life as always been busy, so I have always had to manage my time effectively. In fact, I am more effective and focused when I have several things to juggle.

  Since it’s important that I effectively balance the demands of my overall being of family, my career and track and field, I am typically up by 6:00 am two to three times a week and up by 4:30 am the remaining days to work out in the gym.

• 8am: Arrive at the office

  I am generally in the office by 8am and would spend the first 15 minutes of the day reviewing my calendar to get an overview of the day to ensure that I am best prepared for meetings and deliverables for the day and the remainder of the week – all while eating a light breakfast – typically some fruit and tea.

• 9am: Client meetings

  While there are times, I may have meetings at 8:00 / 8:30 am, most mornings my client meetings start at 9:00 am and generally last in several 30 minutes to an hour increments and runs throughout the day.

• 12:30pm: Lunch

  With the exceptions of designated lunch appointments and meetings, I make an effort to designate 20 minutes to have lunch away from my desk. Stepping away from my desk is important to me as I see it as an opportunity to recharge and re-energize my focus for the afternoon. Either way, I generally back at my desk by 1:00 pm. While most of my meetings are generally in the mornings, I do have meetings in the afternoon that could run through 6:00 pm.

• 7:00pm

  Depending on factors such as the importance and urgency of deliverables as the day of the week, I am either in a meeting, heading to the track for training, or to my daughter’s swimming lessons. As a result, I will have dinner anywhere between 7:00 pm to 9:00 pm during or after my children are put to bed.

• Weekends

  My family and career are my priority. So, despite my already demanding schedule to include track and field and being involved in community service, I am forever grateful. I am blessed and honored that I get to do it all although it’s a sacrifice. I think the definition of balance is unique for everyone – so it is up to each of us to define what that looks like and demonstrate the courage to live a full and their best life.

  Want to see what Durran is up to right now? Check out his Instagram @durranzrunner. Website coming soon!

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