No comparison.
From bungee jumping off a 180-foot crane over Lake Ontario to planning elaborate parties for friends and family, Darci Congrove approaches life with the same fearless enthusiasm she brings to her 32-year career in accounting. As Managing Director at GBQ since 2010, her favorite part of the job is connecting with people — whether clients, colleagues, or community members.
When she’s not serving on multiple community boards or winning accolades such as the YWCA Women of Achievement award, Darci might be found gardening, attending concerts, or treasuring family heirlooms from her great-grandmothers who lived to 98 and 101. Living by the wisdom that “it’s a huge waste of time to compare yourself to others,” she focuses instead on making herself as good as she can be while working toward GBQ’s goal of becoming a Top 50 firm in the U.S. before she retires.
- Professional Bio
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Darci Congrove joined GBQ in 1998 and became a Partner in the firm in 2003. In 2010, Darci was elected Managing Director. In this role, Darci guides the strategy and operations of the firm.
Prior to joining GBQ, Darci worked in the tax practices of two regional firms, where she worked with large real estate companies and closely-held businesses, providing a wide range of tax planning and compliance services, as well as general business consulting.
In her current role, she spends the majority of her time working on the business of the firm and making connections in the community.
Darci is actively involved in central Ohio and serves on the boards of the Columbus-Franklin County Finance Authority, the Columbus Chamber of Commerce, the Columbus College of Art and Design, and the Ohio State University Finance Advisory Board. She also volunteers with the New Directions Career Center and the German Village Society.
Darci graduated from the Leadership Columbus Program in June 2003 and was named by Columbus Business First as one of Columbus’ Forty under Forty young professionals in 2002.
Darci was chosen as one of the 12 outstanding leaders by the Women for Economic and Leadership Development (WELD) in 2010. She received the 2010 United Way of Central Ohio’s Robert S. Crane Jr. Young Leadership Award and has been recognized several times by Smart Business Magazine, Columbus Business First and Columbus CEO with leadership awards.
In 2015, Darci was awarded the Frank Fetch Award from the German Village Society, the Society’s highest honor. In 2019, Darci was recognized as a YWCA Columbus Woman of Achievement in honor of her professional and community service accomplishments.
Darci frequently speaks in the community and at conferences on the topics of talent and workforce, diversity and inclusion and business management and leadership issues.
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- Education
- Miami University, Oxford, Ohio — M.Acc, Taxation and B.S., Business, Accounting
- Professional Associations
- American Institute of Certified Public Accountants
- The Ohio Society of Certified Public Accountants
- Past Speaking Engagements
- January 2016 — Winning is Everything Conference
- Community Activities
- Civista Bancshare (Board Member)
- Columbus Chamber of Commerce (Board Member)
- Columbus College of Art & Design (Volunteer Board Member)
- Columbus-Franklin County Finance Authority (Board Chair)
- Committee4Children (Treasurer)
- German Village Society (Treasurer)
- United Way of Central Ohio
- Women’s Fund of Central Ohio (Past Board Chair)
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