Known for thinking outside the box, Marjorie Goldberg Piland Lott has thrived as an accountant. She first became interested in the field in high school, when her mother suggested she try her hand at bookkeeping. Ms. Lott had initially wanted to be an engineer, but girls weren’t allowed in engineering school at the time so this seemed like a good compromise. Even though there weren’t many females in finance either, Ms. Lott’s family wholly supported her. She proceeded to obtain a Bachelor of Business Administration in accounting from the University of Houston in 1977 and become a CPA and certified management accountant in the state of Texas.
Degrees in hand, Ms. Lott set out to make her mark on the field. She started out as the owner of Dick Piland Enterprises, after which she became a supervisor at Teneco Oil Co. and a controller at Carbonite Oil Co. Ms. Lott then advanced to become a controller and the director of finance at the Houston Association of Realtors and the director of operations at Baca Landata. In 1989, she decided to use her expertise in accounting for associations and natural resources to open her own business, Marjorie Lott, CPA. She remained there until her retirement in 2017. While she was in the industry, she participated in related organizations like the Texas Society of CPAs and the Houston West Chamber of Commerce. Additionally, she was a founding member of the Texas Association of CPAs and an audit liaison for United Way.
The highlight of Ms. Lott’s journey was when accounting giant Arthur Andersen was trying to get some financing laws changed and developed off balance sheet financing, which a lot of big companies wanted, and she was asked to be part of the team fighting against this. Even though they didn’t win, she was proud to have been brave enough to stand up to such a major corporation. Other highlights include receiving accolades like the Presidential Citation from the Houston Association of Realtors and the Five-Star Wealth Manager Award. She won the latter award twice.
Despite all of her professional accomplishments, the most important thing in Ms. Lott’s life is her children. Her son, Ashburn Richard Piland III, teaches science and writes curriculums for schools, and her daughter, Leslie Piland Sinclair, owns her own company painting murals and furniture. Ms. Lott’s daughter has also written four books. Her stepdaughter is a maintenance manager.
When Ms. Lott has spare time, she enjoys dancing and traveling. She started dance lessons at 5 years old, and she taught ballet for many years. Now, Ms. Lott dances and choreographs dances with walkers for people at her independent living facility. Her efforts in the performing arts earned her the Award of Merit from the American Federation of Music Clubs.