This week I speak with my friend, Joey Havens, Partner for Strategic Growth and previously Executive Partner at HORNE LLP. Joey runs an executive blog, Be Better, filled with advice about being a better leader, better person, be future-ready, and how to flourish in a changing world. Recently, he became a best selling author with his book, "Leading with Significance: How to Create a Magnetic, People-First Culture". People-first is the right tactic to take these days given issues with burnout and ...
Jun 26, 2023•44 min•Ep 196•Transcript available on Metacast We're talking about advisory today, something on everyone's mind; how do we incorporate more value added advisory services? What types of advisory services should we offer? What technology do we need? How do we price these services? How do we staff them? The profession has been laser focused on CAS for awhile and still, there are so many questions to answer. When it comes to CAS, top-performing firms showed a median growth rate of 16% just last year and are optimistic about continued growth. The...
Jun 12, 2023•41 min•Ep 195•Transcript available on Metacast This week we're talking about the pipeline: the talent crisis that's on everyone's radar in our profession. The most recent AICPA trends report found that accountants are leaving their jobs in unprecedented numbers and fewer students are opting to go into accounting. Now that we've recognized this problem, a number of solutions have been presented such as adjusting certain requirements and regulations for CPA candidates. One major point we need to address is making sure the accounting career pat...
May 22, 2023•37 min•Ep 194•Transcript available on Metacast I want to talk about engagement this week - according to a 2023 Gallup report, fewer than 1/3 of employees are engaged in their work. Study after study shows that employee engagement is directly linked to business performance. The secret sauce for engagement is part strength and part passion; things that we enjoy doing not just what we're good at. In this episode, I speak to Marcus Buckingham about identifying how we truly enjoy spending our time, aka "red threads", that you should weave into yo...
May 08, 2023•39 min•Ep 193•Transcript available on Metacast In this episode I speak with Christina Ho, a board member of the PCAOB, about the two most significant audit quality challenges we face today, in her opinion: technology and talent. "Talent is the cornerstone to audit quality. Without well trained talent, there is no audit quality." - Christina Ho Resources: Christina Ho LinkedIn Profile Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (PCAOB) - Christina Ho Board Member Profile Bloomberg article, "The Accountant Shortage Threatens Capitalism's Future"...
May 01, 2023•36 min•Ep 192•Transcript available on Metacast A good conversation with a good friend; this week I speak with Tom Hood, CPA, CGMA, CITP, founding CEO of BLI, Executive Vice President of Business Engagement & Growth for AICPA-CIMA. We talked about the trends that are impacting finance professionals, the opportunities that exist in this post pandemic world, and ideas emerging from the Future of Finance Leadership Advisory Group - a group of senior finance executives who's initial meetings resulted in a crowdsourced vision of what the futur...
Apr 24, 2023•33 min•Ep 191•Transcript available on Metacast " We’re really seeing this evolution of CAS that’s happening here, 12-15 years after we started talking about this as a separate service line that was gaining traction " - talking about what's new on the CAS front with Amy Bridges, Professional Development Manager at CPA.com, and Beth Allen, Partner and Head of Client Accounting Services at GreerWalker LLP. Client Accounting Services (CAS) is an area of the profession that is quickly growing and likely to continue to grow in the foreseeable futu...
Apr 17, 2023•37 min•Ep 190•Transcript available on Metacast Today we discuss what the younger generation is looking for in their work and career: a sense of purpose. I speak with Ingrid Edstrom and Mathew Heggem, founders of the Alchemy of Accounting Network (AAN), about how we should change - given the social and environmental issues that confront us today - how can our profession have the greatest, possible positive impact on the world around us. Join the conversation and help us find the answers. “Let’s see what learning & growth can come out from...
Apr 10, 2023•51 min•Ep 189•Transcript available on Metacast This week I revisit a conversation I had last year with Alex Baulf, Senior Director, Global Indirect Tax at Avalara, to discuss the E-Invoice Exchange Market Pilot - who's involved, what comes next, and what CPAs need to know. Tax authorities want more now, they want to look not at a sample of data, but they want to look at every single transaction and they don’t want to wait until 6 months, a year, 2 years after the fact…it’s too late then.” - Alex Baulf Resources: Alex Baulf LinkedIn Profile A...
Mar 27, 2023•33 min•Ep 188•Transcript available on Metacast “You work all your life to build up a practice, you want to make sure you’re addressing exposure needs" - Stan Sterna
Feb 24, 2023•39 min•Ep 187•Transcript available on Metacast “We need the different thoughts, the different mindsets the different perspectives - we need you" - Jessica McClain, CPA/CITP, CISA, PMP, CGFM
Feb 13, 2023•28 min•Ep 186•Transcript available on Metacast " ...Really came to know and understand and appreciate just how uniquely situated the Maryland Comptroller's office is to make a difference on economic matters, to build financially resilient communities, to make Maryland a great place to do business..." - Brooke Lierman, Comptroller of Maryland Resources: https://brookelierman.com/
Jan 30, 2023•27 min•Ep 185•Transcript available on Metacast In this episode we're talking about ethics in Artificial Intelligence (AI). Rumblings about the future of AI have been surfacing as well as questions about whether human biases are affecting the decisions AIs are making. Those questions are finding their way into our profession. A recent Accounting Today article reports a growing number of accounting service solutions are using AI for a wide range of applications. The accounting profession has spent $1.5 billion on this type of software in 2021 ...
Jan 02, 2023•35 min•Ep 184•Transcript available on Metacast This episode, we're talking about saving for retirement, specifically how we can help our employees save more money for retirement. The general story we keep hearing is, as Americans, we aren't saving enough. The economy is playing a role, with 54% of Americans either reducing the amount they are saving or stopping all savings due to inflation, based on a survey by Allianz. The survey also showed the following: 43% respondents report having to dip into retirement savings to meet rising costs 75%...
Dec 19, 2022•33 min•Ep 183•Transcript available on Metacast Culture - one of those slightly misunderstood topics. A lot of ideas about culture are different from person to person. My goal with speaking to Stacey Rodgers, Executive Director of People & Culture at Cohen & Co., is to get a little closer to a mutual understanding of how to define "culture" in an organization. In my personal view, culture within an organization is based on a shared set of values and professional identity; who we are, why we exist, and our purpose. Once you're clear on...
Nov 07, 2022•40 min•Ep 182•Transcript available on Metacast Today, we dive into ESG: Environmental, Social & Governance. Investors are increasingly applying these non-financial factors as they investigate which public companies they will invest in and regulators are increasingly requiring that companies include these types of factors in their financial statements. There are plenty opportunities for accounting and finance professionals in this new area. In this episode, I speak with Alyssa Rade, Chief Sustainability Officer at Sustain.Life, which offe...
Oct 31, 2022•36 min•Ep 181•Transcript available on Metacast Are you physically, mentally, physically well? That seems to be the key question these days. There's more of a focus on individual wellness in the workplace today, especially in the wake of the COVID pandemic. People who are happy and well are more productive than those who are unwell. It all boils down to the fact that we've only got one body, one mind, one life to live, so we better make it count. Wellness, or lack there of, is going to translate directly into quality of life. Employees today ...
Oct 11, 2022•1 hr 1 min•Ep 180•Transcript available on Metacast Talking all things metaverse with Glenn Friedman, CEO of Prager Metis, a global CPA firm that made headlines this year as one of the first accounting firms to set up shop in the metaverse. The metaverse is loosely defined as a new iteration of the internet - a virtual world running in parallel to the real, physical world. You can create a virtual avatar of yourself and interact with other avatars anywhere throughout the world to do almost anything; business, learning, networking, entertainment, ...
Sep 26, 2022•41 min•Ep 179•Transcript available on Metacast Anoop Mehta, long time CPA, MACPA member, and just the second Marylander to chair the AICPA, is one of the sharpest, smartest people I know. He is a proponent of greater diversity, equity, and inclusion in the accounting and finance world. As an Indian-American who immigrated to the United States with his parents at just 12 years old, Anoop followed a path to a more diverse, inclusive profession. Not only has he followed this path, but he is helping to pave it as we speak. Listen to hear his uni...
Sep 05, 2022•28 min•Ep 178•Transcript available on Metacast When I initially sat down with Michelle Golden River, Growth & Profitability Strategist and Founder of Fore, LLC, we planned to discuss advanced pricing and where the profession stands today. We began by talking about how CPA firms can switch from a time based billing model to pricing work in advance. However, the discussion evolved into a conversation about relationships. Advanced pricing comes down to value - what value are you delivering to clients and what is that worth? To know that, yo...
Aug 22, 2022•50 min•Ep 177•Transcript available on Metacast Time to dive into the “purpose” conversation. That’s the idea that we, as leaders, have an obligation, a responsibility, to help our employees find the purpose behind their jobs — the “why” behind their work. My guest on the podcast this week is Dr. Alan Patterson. He’s a Business Learning Institute thought leader who has guided hundreds of clients in professional and leadership development, including the Broad Institute, Federal Reserve Bank, Hewlett Packard, Johnson and Johnson, Kite Phar...
Aug 15, 2022•48 min•Ep 176•Transcript available on Metacast Whether you like the phrase or not, “The Great Resignation” is real. People are leaving work in droves. That’s presenting challenges for employers. How do we find the right people? How do we keep them? How do we understand what they want? Gabrielle Bosche is a bestselling author, two-time TEDx speaker, and is frequently called upon to speak and consult on millennial motivation and engagements for Fortune 500 Companies, presidential campaigns, and government agencies. She’s also going to be the k...
Apr 25, 2022•33 min•Ep 175•Transcript available on Metacast In this episode, we look at recent tax changes through a regulatory and compliance lens with Sona Akmakjian. Sona is Avalara’s Senior Director of Global Accounting Strategic Partnerships. She’s also a CPA with 29 years of transactional tax services and automation experience. Sona talks about the impact the pandemic has had on business and taxes, including things like e-commerce, the supply chain, the workforce, and its overall impact on tax compliance. We also talk about Wayfair, where we ...
Apr 18, 2022•24 min•Ep 174•Transcript available on Metacast Mike Manspeaker is an Assurance Services Partner with Smith, Elliott, Kearns & Company in Maryland and has over 40 years of experience working with private companies and employee benefit plans. He is also very active in the peer review process, performing them as the CPA on Staff for Coastal Peer Review, an organization that administers reviews for North Carolina and Maryland firms. Mike is also a member of the AICPA Accounting and Review Services Committee. And, he serves on the Auditing St...
Apr 11, 2022•43 min•Ep 173•Transcript available on Metacast What you’re about to hear is an incredible true story about resilience, perseverance, and strength while creating and growing a business from scratch – all while dealing with some of the most devastating news a person could face. Kelly Mann is a CPA and the co-founder and CEO of AuditMiner, a tool that is used by CPAs to save time and increase quality in their 401(k) audits. There’s no better way to close out Women’s History Month than by hearing more about this amazing journey — taken by ...
Mar 28, 2022•59 min•Ep 172•Transcript available on Metacast The pipeline into the CPA profession is always an important topic for the future of our industry. How do we make the profession more appealing to young people deciding where to place their future? Jerry Maginnis recently released a new book titled "Advice for a Successful Career in the Accounting Profession: How to Make Your Assets Greatly Exceed Your Liabilities." He is a former managing partner at KPMG's Philadelphia office who is now an executive in residence who supports the Accounting Progr...
Mar 21, 2022•33 min•Ep 171•Transcript available on Metacast Pascal Finette is co-founder and "chief heretic" with be radical, which researches, develops, and teaches tools and frameworks designed to transform their clients into practical futurists and successful disruptors. He recently gave a talk as the keynote speaker at the Digital CPA Conference, where he spoke about the correlation between disruption and "state changes" – moving from one state to another, like solid to liquid to gas He talks about what happens to our skills, our processes, and our e...
Mar 15, 2022•38 min•Ep 170•Transcript available on Metacast It pays to be curious. The role that curiosity plays in wellness and well-being, emotional intelligence, and the benefits it offers to leaders are vastly underrated. Todd Kashdan literally wrote the book on curiosity. He is a professor of psychology at George Mason University and he founded George Mason’s Well-Being Lab. Winner of the 2013 Distinguished Early Career Researcher Award by the American Psychological Association, his work has been featured in media outlets throughout the world. He’s ...
Mar 09, 2022•40 min•Ep 169•Transcript available on Metacast As we’re wrapping up Black History Month and recognizing the contributions of Black Americans, we are closing down the month with a bit of a look ahead. We’re still taking stock of achievements from our past, but this time we’re doing it with an eye toward the future as well. Joining that conversation, today, is Dalton Tong. He’s a CPA and a CGMA with a career that’s steeped in health care and health management, in addition to accounting and finance. He's been a senior lecturer at the Carey Busi...
Feb 28, 2022•34 min•Ep 168•Transcript available on Metacast Cybersecurity is more important than ever before. This is not just something that business leaders have to worry about. Everyone, from the top to the bottom of your organization, is responsible for cybersecurity. Clar Rosso is the CEO of (ISC)^2, or ISC squared, as it’s written. They bill themselves as the world’s leading cybersecurity professional organization. They have more than 160,000 certified members throughout the world, and they’re committed to helping their members learn, grow, and thr...
Feb 14, 2022•34 min•Ep 167•Transcript available on Metacast 
