
Kristen Fitzpatrick
Managing Principal & Member of Executive Committee
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- Full Name
- Kristen L. Fitzpatrick, CPA
- Title
- Managing Principal & Member of the Executive Committee
- Firm
- Miller, Cooper & Co., Ltd.
- Firm Type
- Public accounting / advisory firm (CPA firm) — *not, on the public record, an angel-investment firm (see note below)*
- Investment Stage
- No public evidence of angel/seed investing activity (stub classification appears to be an aggregator error)
- Check Size
- Unknown / not applicable
- Target Company Profile
- Not applicable as an investor; professionally she serves privately held middle-market businesses
- Sector Focus
- Transportation, manufacturing, distribution, construction, real estate, and service businesses (her audit/advisory client base)
- Geographic Focus
- Chicago metro / Illinois
- Location
- Deerfield, Illinois (Greater Chicago area)
Background
Kristen Fitzpatrick is the Managing Principal of Miller, Cooper & Co., Ltd., one of the largest independent public accounting firms in the Chicago area. She joined the firm in 1995 and rose through its audit practice, leading the Accounting and Audit Department beginning in 2004 — a 100-plus-member team providing accounting and audit services across a range of industries — for more than a decade. She has served on the firm's Executive Committee since 2011.
On December 6, 2017, Fitzpatrick was named Managing Principal, succeeding Ross Pearlstein (who had held the role since 2001 and moved to Chairman of the Firm). In that capacity she guides the firm's growth and strategic direction, prioritizes new client services, and sets standards for recruiting, retention, professional development, and continuing education. She is also the Principal in Charge of the firm's recruiting efforts, covering both experienced and campus hires.
Fitzpatrick earned a Bachelor of Science degree from Illinois State University and is a licensed CPA. She is a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA) and the Illinois CPA Society, and is active in the Young Presidents' Organization (YPO), Chicago "Windy City" chapter, where she has held board roles at both the chapter and Mid-America U.S. regional levels, including prior service as Chapter Chair.
Her leadership has been widely recognized: she received the Early Career Achievement Award from Illinois State University, the Corporate Woman of Achievement Award from NAWBO Chicago, and was named a 2019 "Women to Watch — Experienced Leader" by the Illinois CPA Society. More recently she appeared on Forbes' Best-in-State CPAs list for Illinois (2025).
Investment Thesis & Focus
- No publicly stated angel or venture investment thesis exists for Kristen Fitzpatrick; she operates as a professional-services firm leader, not a documented startup investor.
- Her professional focus is on serving privately held, middle-market companies in transportation, manufacturing, distribution, construction, real estate, and service industries — the audit and advisory client base she built at Miller Cooper.
- As Managing Principal she emphasizes new client services, talent recruiting and retention, and professional development as strategic priorities for the firm.
- Founders seeking capital should treat any "angel investor / seed round" tag attached to her name as unverified and most likely a data-aggregation error.
Notable Investments
- No verifiable startup, angel, or venture investments were found in public sources. Rather than fabricate deals, none are listed here. Her documented professional record is with Miller, Cooper & Co., Ltd., which has repeatedly been named an "IPA Best of the Best" CPA firm by INSIDE Public Accounting (including its 2024 list).
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