Our Management Team

In dealing with our network of recruiters, our employer clients appreciate that we actually come from an accounting and consulting background also. Our team has decades of experience in recruiting and staffing as well as tenures at major national brand names such as Price Waterhouse Coopers, Robert Half International and more.

Thomas Goar – CFP, RIA, Managing Partner

Thomas Goar is the founder and managing partner of Matrix Finance and Accounting and Viri Technology.  He has 15 years of recruiting experience in the fields of finance and accounting.  Prior to founding Matrix, Tom spent six years as the top regional producer for a publicly traded, international recruiting firm.  He started his professional career with Price Waterhouse Coopers (Tampa and Atlanta offices) where he worked in accounting and consulting. He also worked for the prestigious consulting firm Index based out of their Cambridge office.  Tom’s consulting experience was focused on Fortune 500 clients in the public utility industry. Additionally, Tom has experience as a registered investment advisor, financial planner and money manager.

Tom attended both the University of Florida and Florida State University and graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree in Accounting.  He and his wife Emma have three children.  He is an avid Florida Gator fan and enjoys boating with his family.

Elbe Tsuchimoto – Partner & Senior Recruiting Manager

Elbe Tsuchimoto, partner, joined the field of recruiting in 2003 and hasn’t looked back since!  He started his career with a large international recruiting firm where he won multiple awards for production and client service.  He was honored as a top producer for three consecutive years and achieved Chairman’s Club status.  He has placed hundreds of accounting and finance professionals in both contract and direct hire roles and does so by providing outstanding service to both his clients and candidates.  He works tirelessly to match the right talent with the right opportunity and can be counted on to consistently deliver results.  Elbe graduated from Washington State University with a degree in Organizational Psychology.  Elbe and his wife, Jill, are natives of Hawaii and have two beautiful girls, Kenzie and Paittyn.

Erik Johnson – Partner & Senior Recruiting Manager

Erik Johnson, partner, brings 15+ years of experience in the management and recruitment of finance &accounting professionals in the Pacific Northwest. He collaborates with clients to recruit talent that aligns with their core business values. His vast experience helps client shape their search with detailed market information.  Erik strongly believes in developing lasting relationships with his candidates and is committed to providing opportunities that align with their long-term career goals.  Erik hails from the Midwest and graduated with a bachelor’s degree from Minnesota State University.  He enjoys being active in the great outdoors and cheering for his beloved Packers.

Emma Goar – MBA, Senior Account Manager

Emma Goar, MBA, is Matrix’s senior account manager, with nearly 15 years of recruiting experience in the fields of finance, accounting and technology. Emma started her career with a publicly traded, international recruiting firm where she won awards for production and customer service. She was also the recruiting manager for a well-respected, Seattle-based management consulting firm. In that role, Emma built and managed the recruiting department. Emma has an MBA in finance from California Lutheran University and a Bachelor of Arts from the University of California, Irvine. She is a former Miss Seattle and Miss Washington Teen USA. She and her husband have three children, Hunter, Savannah and Sophia (identical twins).

Scott Mertens – Senior Recruiting Manager

Scott Mertens joined Matrix Finance & Accounting as a Sr. Recruiting Manager in May of 2020. He is an active CPA and spent the first four years of his career in accounting here in the Seattle area. Scott started his career at Deloitte in the Seattle audit practice. After two busy seasons, he transitioned to GL accounting where he spent time at software companies Apptio and Avalara. In both cases, he assisted with the pre-IPO ramp up as both successfully transitioned from private to publicly traded companies. After realizing accounting was not a long-term passion, Scott transitioned into accounting/finance recruiting at a large international recruiting firm where he spent about three years in the permanent placement group based in the Seattle office. Scott performed full-cycle recruiting as he assisted candidates/clients with over fifty successful candidate placements and was promoted to Division Director after two years. Scott graduated from Washington State University with an MAcc and BA in Accounting. He is a native of the Seattle area and is a big Coug/Seahawks fan.

David Stenger – Senior Recruiting Manager

David Stenger is Matrix’s Senior Recruiting Manager who joined the team in 2023. He started his career in the field of recruiting after graduating from college in 2016 and has never looked back. Effectively being a resource to the candidates and clients he works with is what he loves most about the job. David is a local to the Pacific Northwest who grew up in Tacoma, WA and attended Pacific Lutheran University where he studied Business and played Football. In his free time he enjoys fishing and crabbing with his brother and going to local breweries with his wife.