Learning & Development

Mathias Duszynski (he/him) has always had a passion for learning, and originally planned to teach after graduating from college.

“I love finding out how someone learns and the things that excite them,” Mathias said. “Figuring out how to impart that and draw enthusiasm out of others excites me. I know the impact that can make in a person’s life or career.”

He employs that passion in card and board games, two of his favorite hobbies.

 “I’m an inquisitive person—I like piecing everything together,” Mathias said. “It fascinates me to see how information is presented to the players, and how an abstract concept can be turned into a set of rules and procedures while also making it an enjoyable experience.”

Though he decided not to pursue a teaching career, Mathias expected his time at Moss Adams to be temporary. Then, he found a way to use this passion at the firm and discovered a love for user experience (UX) design that he might not have otherwise discovered.

The Process

Mathias accepted a temporary administrative role at Moss Adams after graduating from college in 2012, leveraging his experience in his university’s professional development center to deliver in his role. His temporary role quickly turned full-time, but Mathias left Moss Adams when he moved to Chicago in 2016 to be closer to family.

When his former colleagues made him aware of a new opportunity as executive assistant, he jumped on the chance to return to Moss Adams—exactly one year after he left for Chicago.  

“My relationships here had a positive impact on me, so I stayed in touch with several people at the firm,” Mathias said. “The culture here is awesome. There’s a camaraderie that develops and a mentality of opening doors for people.”

Four years later, Mathias became intrigued by a new process introduced to the firm, which used an automation tool. Forever curious, he decided to explore it and better understand how it could benefit his team. An operations leader suggested that Mathias’ curiosity could be an asset to the firm’s innovation rotation program.

Innovation rotations are short-term assignments dedicated to learning new technologies and problem-solving strategies, and Mathias joined his first rotation in 2022. Throughout the program, he and other participants balanced their regular job responsibilities with forming and testing new ideas to improve work at the firm.

New Content

His first innovation project included new opportunities to collaborate with colleagues who managed client relationships and tax returns, but Mathias was drawn to the technology-driven projects that emerged as his rotation progressed.  He began to wonder what was possible in his career.

“The innovation rotation totally uprooted my ideas for where I thought or wanted my career would go,” Mathias said.

Then, shortly after his rotation ended, a partner he frequently collaborated with invited him to participate in a series of work sessions discussing new billing tools for clients. During the sessions, Mathias and other colleagues explored existing challenges and solutions while setting project goals with a virtual whiteboard and post-it notes.

This first-hand experience of the camaraderie that opens doors to new opportunities set Mathias on a career-altering journey. The lightbulbs began to switch on—there was something about this process that felt familiar, and he wanted to know more.

“I mentioned the process to my brother-in-law,” Mathias said. “He’s a designer, and he told me what I was describing is UX design.”

Transferrable Learnings

He continued talking to his brother-in-law to learn more about UX design, eventually connecting the dots between it and his biggest interests—teaching and card games.

“Figuring out what goal the user is trying to accomplish with an understanding of where they’re starting, and then helping them get there in the easiest and most delightful way possible, is the key element of UX design,” Mathias said.

Inspired by the connection between his passion and this field of work, Mathias joined a UX design cohort outside the firm. He dedicated between 40 and 50 hours per week to the cohort on top of his full-time job, which included classes, projects, and real-world experiences with local businesses. Before long, he learned enough to apply his knowledge to his experiences at Moss Adams.

“I realized how UX design makes a difference,” Mathias explained. “I started to understand how one program feels painful to work in while another feels easier to use. I connected the dots to how that affects my interest in completing certain tasks—it’s because of the program’s user experience.”

When his cohort program ended, Mathias was eager to make meaningful contributions through UX design with the innovation rotation program. He discussed his goals with the team and his career advisor and joined a second rotation dedicated to UX design work.

“It was awesome,” Mathias rejoiced. “I couldn’t believe it. This is peak innovation rotation dreams.”

Leading Self

Through his new rotation assignment, Mathias assumes the role of UX designer and partners with the firm’s IT department, applying the principles and skills he’s learned to optimize platforms used by our people and clients.

He’s also leading projects of his own, including an exploration into how introducing artificial intelligence (AI) can improve the firm’s operational procedures—something close to his heart. He’s grateful for the career direction introduced by the firm’s innovation rotations.

“I don’t know of many places where opportunities like this are available and structured in such a formalized way,” Mathias said.

Outside of work, Mathias has a project of his own where several of his passions intersect: an AI research assistant app for Roman history. Mathias sees this personal passion project as a return to his roots, aided by the new skills and experiences he’s gathered along the way.

“I’m trying to find new ways to present history in an interactive and enjoyable way. It stems from my passion for learning and education, and UX is the backbone,” Mathias said.