Tatum Buse

Tatum Buse graduated from the University of Northern Iowa in 1996 with a bachelor’s degree in accounting and then earned her master’s degree in business administration in 2001. After graduation, she accepted a position in the Accounting Leadership Program at Rockwell Collins, now Collins Aerospace, an American aviation and defense technology company and one of the largest suppliers of aerospace and defence products in the world. 

Since then, she has held several positions in the company’s finance and accounting departments, eventually becoming Chief Financial Officer in 2020, and the first woman to do so. 

She leads a global team responsible for financial planning and reporting, accounting and controls, cost management and execution of the company’s key strategic priorities. 

Buse became not only a leader in finance, but also for women. 

In 2007, she co-founded the Women’s Employee Resource Group at Collins Aerospace, which became the largest employee resource group in the company.

“I decided I needed to surround myself with people who were like me or had similar situations so we could start to advocate for ourselves and change the narrative a little bit,” she told the Corridor Business Journal. “When you form a group like this, we all of a sudden have a bigger voice than we would have had individually.”

From 2019 to 2021, Buse also served as executive sponsor for the Raytheon Technologies Corporation Finance Women’s Forum, championing efforts to develop and advance women in finance, technology and leadership positions through resources and community. 

She has also been an active board member for the Cedar Rapids Economic Alliance Policy Board, focusing on economic and community development in the region.  

Buse has been recognized for her work several times, including as one of the top 50 women leaders in Iowa. 

She dedicates her success to the strong women in her family, her mother and great-grandmother, who helped shape her. 

“They taught me the value of an educated opinion and the power to use my own voice,” she said in a 2014 profile. “My mother encouraged me to look at all sides of an issue and consider other viewpoints. I learned from her how to debate an issue, but still show respect for people. I grew to believe in myself because her confidence in me never wavered.”

Buse continues to give back to UNI, returning to speak at events and connecting with students in the Finance Club, MISA, Women in Business and the Accounting Club.