Rely on your professional network for answers you don't know.

The Disruptors
With Liz Farr

Nancy McClelland never intended to start a firm, but after leaving a toxic work environment, she took on a few part-time gigs. Because she’d never worked at a CPA firm, she built her firm “the way it made sense” without bumping up against the traditions of “This is how it should be done.”

The name of her firm – The Dancing Accountant – reflects her passion for dancing and membership in several dance troupes, including one where she wears miniskirts and go-go boots. Sharing that passion with her clients means putting herself “out there” and having faith that her clients respect her work as an accountant. “And you hope that they don't laugh too hard at your dancing or that they're not disappointed to find out that you're just doing silly, fun stuff.”

13 MORE TAKEAWAYS: More Nancy McClelland Disruptor Notes

MORE: Disruptors

MORE CPA TRENDLINES PODCASTS and VIDEOS: Alan Whitman: Stop Accepting the Status Quo | The Disruptors | Sean Duncan: Discover Your Own Genius | Ingrid Edstrom: True Wealth Is Not Financial | Chris Hervochon: Be the Leader You Want to Work For | Caleb Jenkins: Firm Growth Requires Owners to Shift Roles |Ira Rosenbloom: Don't Merge for the Money | Adam Lean: Get Out of the Accountant's Trap | Geraldine Carter: Charging More is Better for Your Clients | Vimal Bava: When Working Smarter, Not Harder, Is the Only Option |

SEE THEM ALL here.

Plus: The marketing myths that plague accounting firms.

Capstone Conversations.
With Jean Caragher
For CPA Trendlines

Being a managing partner is tough enough, but now accounting firm leaders must master two new superpowers. And CPE won't help.

Complete show notes here. | Get more Capstone Conversations every Monday. | Follow Jean Caragher on CPA Trendlines. | Get Caragher's international best-seller, The 90-Day Marketing Plan for CPA Firms. | Catch Jean Caragher with Gear Up for Growth every Friday. | And browse all the shows on the CPA Trendlines Podcast Channel

The world for CPA firm marketing professionals is getting more complicated, too. Today, the first thing a marketing executive must do in a CPA firm is not marketing. It's mastering the art of...

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Capstone Conversations
Informal and informative discussions with leading growth strategists from the nation's most dynamic CPA firms.

With Jean Caragher
For CPA Trendlines

Brenda Sleeper reflects on her path to the Association for Accounting Marketing Hall of Fame, where she joins an elite few as Bruce W. Marcus Lifetime Fellowship Members. Brenda is a Business Resource Network Relationship Director for the BDO Alliance, working with BDO alliance firms nationwide.

• Follow Jean Caragher on CPA Trendlines here.
• Get her best-selling handbook, The 90-Day Marketing Plan for CPA Firms, here
• Catch Jean Caragher's other show, Gear Up for Growth, here
• And the rest of the CPA Trendlines broadcast network

In this episode, Sleeper reveals:

• How she "kicked it into gear" when COVID hit
• How marketing rescued her
• The skills that make marketers successful
• Why the game has changed for recruiting marketers and business developers

Accounting Influencers
with Rob Brown

Is the accounting profession facing an identity crisis? Can it adapt to meet the demands of a rapidly changing business landscape? Rob Brown brings together a panel of industry experts to discuss the future of accounting. Jeff Phillips, Maureen Dillmore, Samantha Louis, and Sandra Wiley share their perspectives on the profession's challenges and opportunities.

More episode notes here
More Accounting Influencers with Rob Brown here

The panelists share their thoughts on various topics, including the talent shortage, the impact of technology, the changing business model, and the need to rebrand the accounting profession.

They discuss the importance of work-life balance, the role of private equity, and the need for firms to adapt to survive in a competitive landscape. The conversation also touches on the potential of AI, the importance of strategic technology adoption, and the need for better compensation models to attract and retain talent.

5 Key Takeaways:

1. The accounting profession needs to rebrand itself to attract new talent
2. Firms need to adapt their business models and embrace change to survive
3. Technology integration and strategic adoption are crucial for future success
4. Work-life balance and flexible work arrangements are becoming increasingly important
5. Private equity is reshaping the accounting firm landscape

Gear Up for Growth
With Jean Caragher
Capstone Marketing


Investing in learning and development is essential for retaining and attracting staff. Developing a curriculum that includes both technical and success skills can help firms address the current talent shortage and prepare their employees for higher-value roles.

• Complete show notes here
• More CPA Trendlines podcasts here
• More Jean Caragher here
• More Gear Up for Growth
• More Capstone Conversations

"We're going to see automation making a big impact on our staff in the near term,” says Tom Hood, CPA, CGMA, CITP, executive vice president of business engagement and growth, AICPA, appearing on Gear Up for Growth, a new show hosted by Jean Caragher, president, Capstone Marketing, and powered by CPA Trendlines.

“Identify the critical competencies you need for each practice area in your firm,” says Hood. “Then, as tax gets automated, for example, your tax people are going to have to move up the value chain into planning. That's a natural progression. Another example is the fastest-growing practice area, client advisory services, or CAS, and that's going to be more automated. So, the emphasis is on those higher-level consulting skills like collaboration, curiosity, strategic and critical thinking.”

“You want to make sure that your CPAs are doing the level of work that's the highest and best use of their capabilities,” adds Hood.

Other highlights include:

• The first step for a CPA firm to create a learning culture.
• How to use your people in the right roles.
• The role learning can play in finding and keeping staff.
• Why storytelling is an increasingly important skill for accountants.
• Who is the best person within a firm to lead a learning initiative?

Despite the rise of virtual events, live conferences remain essential for career growth and relationship-building in the accounting industry.

Accounting ARC
With Liz Mason, Byron Patrick and Donny Shimamoto
Center for Accounting Transformation

Join Donny Shimamoto, Liz Mason, and Byron Patrick as they dive into the importance of attending in-person events versus virtual conferences. In this lively discussion, they explore how in-person connections, casual coffee line chats, and random encounters can spark lifelong professional relationships that simply can't be replicated online.

EPISODE NOTES Here

From handshakes to hugs, the trio shares their personal experiences and insights on how networking at live events can transform your career. 🤝#ARC #inpersonevents #networking #transformaccounting.

The firms that shift from billable hours to value outcomes will win.

The Disruptors
With Liz Farr

Alan Whitman wants to break the mold of public accounting. He wants to put an end to the billable hour and the siloed practices that characterize the way many firms have operated for decades. As Whitman says, “we’re here to serve clients, we’re here to deliver great value. But do we really need to do it the way we’ve been doing it since before my father was in the workforce?”

While “most firms believe that billable hours are the holy grail,” Whitman points out that “the client isn’t necessarily buying billable hours.” Instead, clients are buying the outcomes and “the intellectual capital you’re delivering to them.” He believes that “the firm that is able to shift from production, from billable hours, to outcomes, is going to win.”

• 10 MORE TAKEAWAYS: More Alan Whitman Disruptor Notes
• MORE: Disruptors
• MORE CPA TRENDLINES PODCASTS and VIDEOS: Sean Duncan: Discover Your Own Genius | Ingrid Edstrom: True Wealth Is Not Financial | Chris Hervochon: Be the Leader You Want to Work For | Caleb Jenkins: Firm Growth Requires Owners to Shift Roles |Ira Rosenbloom: Don't Merge for the Money | Adam Lean: Get Out of the Accountant's Trap | Geraldine Carter: Charging More is Better for Your Clients | Vimal Bava: When Working Smarter, Not Harder, Is the Only Option |
• SEE THEM ALL here.

Capstone Conversations
With Jean Caragher

What fun it is speaking with Bethany Silvis, marketing supervisor for Kerkering, Barberio & Co., who was named the Association for Accounting Marketing Rookie of the Year.

• Follow Jean Caragher on CPA Trendlines here. | Get her best-selling handbook, The 90-Day Marketing Plan for CPA Firms, here | Catch Jean Caragher every Friuday with Gear Up for Growth here |

Bethany joined her firm in 2018 as the marketing coordinator.

Since then, Bethany:

• Has taken KB’s social media activity to a whole different level.
• Built a bevy of digital webinars and presentations.
• Mastered Camtasia to edit videos for the website, social media, and specific campaigns, including a series they called "A Day in the Life of a CPA," which was used as a recruiting tool.
• And has taken a seat on the University of South Florida Muma College of Business Customer Experience Advisory Board as a program advisor and completed the customer experience course at USF.

In this episode, Silvis explains:

• How important it is to be flexible
• How her focus on client experience came about
• Her two pieces of advice for accounting marketers