Michael Kirk

Professional Biography: 

Michael Kirk is a Senior Financial Analyst at PNC Financial Services with a comprehensive background in finance, project management, and leadership. 

Michael's career began as a Finance & Accounting Intern at PNC in 2020, where he was part of the bank's first virtual internship class at the time of the COVID-19 pandemic. During his internship, he worked on capital and liquidity reporting, performed general ledger and risk-weighted asset reconciliations, and contributed to quarter-end reports, gaining early exposure to financial regulation under Basel III. He presented a capstone project to PNC's executive team, including the CFO, showcasing his analytical and presentation skills. 

Following his internship, Michael was accepted into PNC's Finance & Accounting Development Program, an elite rotational program with only a 6% acceptance rate. Over the course of a year, Michael completed four rotations, each offering him hands-on experience in financial systems, governance, broker-dealer accounting, capital markets, and project management. His contributions included supporting PNC's $11.6 billion acquisition of BBVA, where he leveraged his cross-functional skills as a part of various teams. In addition to his rotational duties, Michael served as the Career Development Chair, where he led training programs for the 25 analysts in his cohort, gaining recognition for his leadership and mentorship.

In 2022, Michael transitioned to a Financial Analyst role within the Finance Project Management Office (FPMO). Here, he was responsible for monthly reporting on over $1.6 billion in technology projects across PNC's 14 lines of business. His work included producing the Portfolio Management Dashboard (PMD) for senior management, which tracked the progress of these projects. Michael spearheaded the automation of the PMD, reducing data processing time by 2 weeks and enhancing overall data integrity. He also served as the Product Owner for PNC's $30 million Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) replacement project, coordinating with system owners and driving the completion of functional design documents. With hands-on experience working with MIS partners and data systems like Tableau, Mike worked with his team to automate and standardize the process for obtaining funding for the variety of technology initiatives and projects at the bank. 

Now, as a Senior Financial Analyst in PNC's Corporate Controller Group, Michael leads the annual budgeting process for finance initiatives, aggregating and planning a $40M+ annual budget. He presents monthly variance analyses on the finance project portfolio directly to the CFO and senior leadership, guiding key financial decisions. His role also includes managing development program analysts, for which he continues to receive commendations for his mentorship and management skills, and give back to the program that once helped him get to where he is.

Michael holds a Bachelor of Science in Finance and minor in Spanish from Penn State University, where he graduated cum laude. He is certified in the "Business of Banking" by the American Bankers Association and is a member of the Beta Gamma Sigma international business honors society. His career is marked by a continuous drive for process improvement, leadership in mentoring, and delivering impactful financial insights to senior executives.