CPA Trendlines Podcasts

Intent, tone and delivery matter just as much as the message itself. Accounting ARCWith Liz Mason, Byron Patrick, and Donny ShimamotoCenter for Accounting TransformationOne poorly handled conversation can undo months—or years—of trust. In this episode of Accounting ARC, Donny Shimamoto, CPA.CITP, CGMA, Byron Patrick, CPA.CITP, and Liz Mason, CPA, unpack why difficult feedback often fails, how leaders can communicate with greater intention, and what separates constructive coaching from conversations that send employees looking for another job.The conversation starts with a story familiar to anyone who has ever hovered over the “Send” button on a difficult message. MORE Accounting ARC: Is Your Boss Really the Problem? | Most Accountants Are Missing This AI Shift | AI Can Fix Your Workflow—or Break It in Seconds | Efficiency Is the Wrong Goal for AI | Accounting's Hidden Talent Risk: The Sandwich Generation | Built Fast. Sold Faster. Broken Later? The Truth About Accounting Tech | Recognize When You Need to Recharge Before You Burn Out | Valuing More Than the Balance Sheet | Accounting's “Untalked-About” Frontier | Why Happiness is Hard-Fought for High Achievers | The Fastest Way to Lose Talent Is “Dick Leadership” | Post-Holiday Fatigue Isn't a Failure; It's a Signal | OCR, Research Bots & Meeting Assistants: What Actually Helps Now | Return Season is the New Stress Test | Small Firms May Have the Biggest Advantage in 2026 | Downgraded: What the DOE Said About Accounting | Mason, founder and CEO of High Rock Accounting, recalls proposing a conference talk with a deliberately provocative title — a reminder that most professionals feel the tension between holding the line and keeping the peace. The point, she says, is not to sanitize reality. It is to learn how to hold people accountable without turning it into a personal attack.Originally published Feb. 5, 2026

It's not just growth.Full show notes here.The DisruptorsWith Liz FarrFor CPA TrendlinesScaling a business successfully usually doesn't happen automatically when top-line revenue grows, as Jason Blumer and Ian Vacin explain in their new book, “Scale with Purpose: The Service Entrepreneur's Guide to Intentional Growth.”MORE Streaming NetworkVacin, co-founder of Karbon, had seen a peculiar pattern across Karbon's Practice Excellence survey over the last eight years. Instead of smooth growth curves, firm data showed distinct scaling plateaus at specific headcounts. “Ninety-five percent of firms had this going up motion. Generally, we get to 12 to 16 employees, and then go backward, and they would tell us, ‘Yeah, it grew too fast. It didn't feel like the company that I wanted,' ” he explains.READ MORE > > > 

The profession's fastest-growing opportunities help business owners make decisions—not just balance the books.Accounting ConversationsWith Chayton FarleeCenter for Accounting TransformationFor many accounting students, the profession appears to offer two primary destinations: tax or audit.But what if that's only part of the story?In the latest episode of Accounting Conversations, host Chayton Farlee, an assurance associate at CliftonLarsonAllen (CLA), welcomes Kaden Cook, CPA, CMA, a virtual CFO with Anders, for a conversation that challenges many of the assumptions students have about accounting careers. MORE Podcasts Cook's own career follows a path that many students may not realize exists. He begins with bookkeeping, gains experience in accounts receivable and accounts payable, discovers outsourced accounting and eventually finds his way into advisory services, where he helps business owners make financial decisions rather than simply report financial results.That distinction becomes one of the central themes of the conversation.

It may create costly leadership gaps that affect engagement, retention, and firm performance.MOVE Like ThisWith Bonnie Buol RuszczykFor CPA Trendlines ResearchPromotions are meant to strengthen an organization. But when firms elevate top performers without preparing them to lead, those promotions can become some of the most expensive decisions they make. The result is often disengaged employees, overwhelmed managers, and avoidable turnover.  MORE MOVE Like This | MORE CPA Trendlines Streaming Network In this episode of MOVE Like This, Bonnie Buol Ruszczyk talks with Megan Robinson, founder and CEO of E Leader Experience, about why leadership isn't a natural next step for every high performer—and what firms can do to build leaders intentionally instead of hoping they'll figure it out.Originally published May 13, 2026

 The hardest workplace lesson isn't spotting a bad manager—it's recognizing when you're standing in your own way. Accounting ARCWith Liz Mason and Byron PatrickCenter for Accounting TransformationIn a candid, unfiltered episode of Accounting ARC, Liz Mason, CPA, CEO of High Rock Accounting, and Byron Patrick, CPA.CITP, senior product manager at Karbon and co-founder of TB Academy, confront one of the profession's most relatable—and uncomfortable—topics: bad bosses. But the conversation goes further than workplace horror stories. Mason and Patrick explore a more nuanced reality: sometimes the boss is the problem—and sometimes it's the employee.  MORE Accounting ARC: Most Accountants Are Missing This AI Shift | AI Can Fix Your Workflow—or Break It in Seconds | Efficiency Is the Wrong Goal for AI | Accounting's Hidden Talent Risk: The Sandwich Generation | Built Fast. Sold Faster. Broken Later? The Truth About Accounting Tech | Recognize When You Need to Recharge Before You Burn Out | Valuing More Than the Balance Sheet | Accounting's “Untalked-About” Frontier | Why Happiness is Hard-Fought for High Achievers | The Fastest Way to Lose Talent Is “Dick Leadership” | Post-Holiday Fatigue Isn't a Failure; It's a Signal | OCR, Research Bots & Meeting Assistants: What Actually Helps Now | Return Season is the New Stress Test | Small Firms May Have the Biggest Advantage in 2026 | Downgraded: What the DOE Said About Accounting | “We wanted to talk about this topic because it's really important to understand when you're the problem, when your boss is the problem, and what acceptable boundaries are,” Mason says early in the episode.Unpack real stories about bad bosses, miscommunication, and the career lessons that come with both. This episode challenges how accountants think about leadership, accountability, and growth. Originally published May 28, 2026.

Modernizing the Profession Without Losing Its Core. Full show notes hereThe Holistic Guide to Wealth ManagementWith Rory Henry, CFP®, BFA™It's no secret that the accounting profession is undergoing one of the most significant transitions in its history. Firms are more likely to sell to private equity than to other accounting firms. Technology is reshaping workflows. Worker shortages are forcing firms to rethink talent pipelines. But through it all, public trust remains the foundation on which everything rests.MORE Rory Henry | THE HANDBOOK Holistic Guide to Wealth Management | MORE CPA Trendlines Streaming NetworkThat tension — protecting what makes the profession trusted while adapting to what the market demands — defines the moment.Few leaders sit closer to that tension than Denise LeDuc Froemming, President and CEO of CalCPA, the nation's largest state CPA society.READ MORE > > > 

Every client relationship is now up for renewal—and every partner has to learn how to compete.  Full show notes hereGear Up for Growthwith Jean Caragherfor CPA Trendlines“The relationship gets you in the door, but it doesn't get you the work,” says Karen Freeman, chief product officer, DCM Insights, and co-author of Activator Advantage: What Today's Rainmakers Do Differently, in this episode of Gear Up for Growth, powered by CPA Trendlines and hosted by Jean Caragher, president of Capstone Marketing. "Once it's competitive, it's a lot harder to differentiate based on your past relationship."MORE Jean Caragher here | Get her best-selling handbook, The 90-Day Marketing Plan for CPA Firms, here | Gear Up for Growth is tailored specifically for public accounting firms with up to 100 team members looking to expand their practices intelligently and efficiently. | MORE Gear Up for Growth here | MORE CPA Trendlines Streaming Network hereFreeman and co-author Matt Dixon, founding partner of DCM Insights, reflect on what they have learned one year after the release of their bestselling book. They discuss how AI, changing buyer behavior and increasing competition are reshaping growth strategies for accounting and advisory firms. Firms that rely on traditional relationship-based growth models risk falling behind.READ MORE > > > 

These accounts offer unique contribution opportunities, strict investment guidelines, and a pathway to future retirement savings. Full show notes hereQuick Tax TipWith Art WernerCPE TodayArt Werner outlines the five key rules advisors and families should understand when considering these accounts.MORE Art Werner | MORE CPA Trendlines Streaming NetworkDesigned as long-term savings vehicles for children, these accounts offer unique contribution opportunities, strict investment guidelines, and a pathway to future retirement savings.MORE > > >

The profession is changing in ways that go far beyond automation.Accounting ARCWith Donny ShimamotoCenter for Accounting TransformationIn a profession often defined by structure, standards, and well-worn career paths, Donny Shimamoto, CPA.CITP, CGMA, opens a different kind of conversation in a recent Accounting ARC episode—one that challenges assumptions about what it means to build a career in accounting.His guest, Danielle Supkis Cheek, embodies that challenge.As senior vice president of AI, analytics and assurance at CaseWare, Supkis Cheek operates at the intersection of technology, methodology, and human judgment. But her path there was anything but linear—and that, Shimamoto suggests, is exactly the point. MORE Accounting ARC: AI Can Fix Your Workflow—or Break It in Seconds | Efficiency Is the Wrong Goal for AI | Accounting's Hidden Talent Risk: The Sandwich Generation | Built Fast. Sold Faster. Broken Later? The Truth About Accounting Tech | Recognize When You Need to Recharge Before You Burn Out | Valuing More Than the Balance Sheet | Accounting's “Untalked-About” Frontier | Why Happiness is Hard-Fought for High Achievers | The Fastest Way to Lose Talent Is “Dick Leadership” | Post-Holiday Fatigue Isn't a Failure; It's a Signal | OCR, Research Bots & Meeting Assistants: What Actually Helps Now | Return Season is the New Stress Test | Small Firms May Have the Biggest Advantage in 2026 | Downgraded: What the DOE Said About Accounting |  Supkis Cheek describes her role less as a technologist and more as a translator. “I like to think of myself as someone who translates across domains,” she says, explaining how she helps software companies understand how accountants actually work—and how technology can reshape those workflows.Originally published May 7, 2026

A roller derby skater, crypto auditor, and accounting leader shares why belief, sponsorship, and community shape the future of the profession.MOVE Like ThisWith Bonnie Buol RuszczykFor CPA Trendlines ResearchIn this episode of MOVE Like This, Chelsea Sowers, incoming President of the Accounting and Financial Women's Alliance (AFWA), audit manager specializing in cryptocurrency assurance with The Network Firm, and “Bitcoin Barbie” on the Atlanta Roller Derby team, joins Bonnie Buol Ruszczyk to discuss leadership, retention, mentorship, and the realities shaping women's careers in accounting today. MORE MOVE Like This | MORE CPA Trendlines Streaming Network | JOIN MOVE 2026 At the center of the conversation is a recurring challenge within the profession: attracting women into accounting is only part of the equation. Retaining and advancing them into leadership remains a persistent issue. Sowers argues that women often receive access to the profession without receiving a roadmap for advancement. Flexibility, mentorship, sponsorship, and community increasingly matter to younger professionals, particularly those entering the workforce after major disruptions like COVID. Firms may focus heavily on recruitment while overlooking what keeps talented people engaged years later.

PE makes CPA firms rethink strategy – even if they don't want to sell. Show notes hereThe DisruptorsWith Liz FarrFor CPA TrendlinesWith private equity becoming “a real player and a disruptor in the marketplace,” Ira Rosenbloom, CEO of Optimum Strategies, says, the dramatic influx of capital is intensifying competition for quality firms, especially those with strong client bases and growth potential.MORE DISRUPTORS: Candy Bellau: The $350 Pricing Mistake that Nearly Broke this Boutique Firm | The Disruptors | Poe: What P.E. Really Wants from Firms | The Disruptors  | Blake Oliver: Build a Biz that Runs Without You | Daiber: Use Succession as a Growth Strategy | Cannon: Busy Season is Self-Inflicted | Carroll: When One Person Can Break the Firm | Rampe: Build a Roadmap Even When the Road's Not There | Chang: Killing SALY, One Agent at a Time | MORE CPA Trendlines Streaming NetworkFirms that PE wouldn't touch are now being approached by brokers without accounting industry experience, hired by PE groups striving to “build an engine,” Rosenbloom says. But the unwanted attention has “helped some of the smaller firms quickly decide they don't want to go down that path.” So they “take themselves out of the running for a PE situation quicker because of a better understanding of what private equity wants,” he explains.READ MORE > > >  

The best firm build accountability cultures, develop climbers, and make tough calls.Full show notes hereGear Up for GrowthWith Jean Caragherfor CPA Trendlines Research“Some firms dream of being great but only are willing to make the commitment to be good,” Allan Koltin, CEO of Koltin Consulting Group, says in the new episode of Gear Up for Growth with host Jean Caragher. “Leadership is the delta that separates all.”MORE Jean Caragher here | Get her best-selling handbook, The 90-Day Marketing Plan for CPA Firms, here | MORE Gear Up for Growth here | MORE CPA Trendlines Streaming Network hereKoltin says the gap between elite firms and average firms keeps widening, and leadership is the defining factor. Widely recognized as one of the profession's top consultants, he argues that firms chasing high performance must stop avoiding hard decisions, embrace accountability, and rethink what leadership means.“You can have the same clients, same talent pool, same market opportunities, and one firm ends up in the upper quartile while another struggles,” Koltin says. “The difference is leadership.”READ MORE > > > 

After a near-fatal skiing accident, three accounting leaders confront the uncomfortable questions every firm owner should answer before a crisis strikes.Accounting ARCWith Liz Mason, Byron Patrick, and Donny ShimamotoCenter for Accounting TransformationBusiness continuity planning often lives in the realm of “someday.”Until it doesn't.In the latest episode of Accounting ARC, hosts Donny Shimamoto, CPA.CITP, CGMA; Byron Patrick, CPA.CITP; and Liz Mason, CPA, tackle a topic many professionals avoid: what happens when the unexpected actually happens.The conversation opens not with theory, but with a moment that makes the stakes unmistakably real. MORE Accounting ARC: Recognize When You Need to Recharge Before You Burn Out | Valuing More Than the Balance Sheet | Accounting's “Untalked-About” Frontier | Why Happiness is Hard-Fought for High Achievers | The Fastest Way to Lose Talent Is “Dick Leadership” | Post-Holiday Fatigue Isn't a Failure; It's a Signal | OCR, Research Bots & Meeting Assistants: What Actually Helps Now | Return Season is the New Stress Test | Small Firms May Have the Biggest Advantage in 2026 | Downgraded: What the DOE Said About Accounting | Savage: Using Your License as a Megaphone |  Baker: Interpreting Pricing Psychology | Don't Get Fired by Your Own Automation | What Amazon Doesn't Tell You | Royalties, Residuals, and Reality Checks | ARC-SLC  Mason, CEO of High Rock Accounting, recounts a recent skiing accident in which she fell roughly 200 yards and collided with a tree at high speed. She survived with a broken leg—but the incident forced a sobering question: What would have happened to her firm if she hadn't?Originally published March 26, 2026

Are your firm's stated values consistent with its behavior?Full show notes hereThe DisruptorsWith Liz FarrFor CPA TrendlinesHow does your firm define culture? Is your culture consistent with the values posted on the breakroom wall? Doug Slaybaugh, founder of CPA Coach, defines culture as “values in motion.” According to his definition, a firm's stated values must be evident in the ways a firm actually behaves.MORE DISRUPTORS: Candy Bellau: The $350 Pricing Mistake that Nearly Broke this Boutique Firm | The Disruptors | Poe: What P.E. Really Wants from Firms | The Disruptors  | Blake Oliver: Build a Biz that Runs Without You | Daiber: Use Succession as a Growth Strategy | Cannon: Busy Season is Self-Inflicted | MORE CPA Trendlines Streaming NetworkA firm that truly values philanthropy, for example, should give team members the ability to volunteer or sponsor nonprofit events. “There should be evidence,” Slaybaugh explains. “Otherwise, there's no evidence of that value. It's really not your culture.”READ MORE > > > 

Trump accounts for the benefit of children.Full show notes hereQuick Tax TipWith Art WernerCPE TodayTrump accounts offer a rare chance for a government-funded head start on a tax-advantaged education account.“The federal government will actually infuse these accounts with $1,000,” says Art Werner. “It's free money. Just face it, it's free money.”MORE Art Werner | MORE CPA Trendlines Streaming NetworkAny child under age 18 with a Social Security number is eligible for a Trump account. Children born between 2025 and 2028 also qualify for a government contribution.More > > > 

Bookkeepers often feel less empowered than tax professionals.Full show notes hereThe DisruptorsWith Liz FarrFor CPA TrendlinesNancy McClelland wants to do more than just run her firm, The Dancing Accountant. She has two big passion projects that are creating the conversations and collaborations this profession desperately needs. Her community, Ask a CPA, aims to bridge the gap between bookkeepers and tax professionals. She also co-hosts a podcast with Questian Telka, She Counts, which provides a safe space for women in accounting to discuss real issues.MORE STREAMING: Cannon: Busy Season is Self-Inflicted | Carroll: When One Person Can Break the Firm |  Rampe: Build a Roadmap Even When the Road's Not There | Chang: Killing SALY, One Agent at a Time | Vanover: 5-Star Firms Don't Bill by the Hour | Kless: Profit Is a Result. Flourishing Is the Purpose | MORE CPA Trendlines Streaming NetworkMcClelland started the Ask a CPA Community when she noticed “this big gap that wasn't about technical knowledge. It was about permission, about permission to collaborate.” While “bookkeepers are often the closest person to the financial truth of a business,” historically, “they've been positioned as subordinate to tax preparers, just sort of expected to hand off things and hope that they did it right,” McClelland explains. READ MORE > > > 

Connection, community, and trust create opportunities that credentials alone cannot.  Accounting ARCWith Liz Mason and Byron PatrickCenter for Accounting TransformationIn the accounting profession, technical excellence is expected. However, according to the latest episode of Accounting ARC, relationships — not just work product — often determine who grows, who leads, and who thrives. In a candid and deeply personal conversation, Liz Mason, CPA, and Byron Patrick, CPA.CITP, explore how relationship-building shapes careers, creates opportunity, and provides stability in an unpredictable profession.   MORE Accounting ARC: The Real Problem with AI in Accounting | AI Can Fix Your Workflow—or Break It in Seconds | Efficiency Is the Wrong Goal for AI | Accounting's Hidden Talent Risk: The Sandwich Generation | Built Fast. Sold Faster. Broken Later? The Truth About Accounting Tech | Recognize When You Need to Recharge Before You Burn Out | Valuing More Than the Balance Sheet | Accounting's “Untalked-About” Frontier | Why Happiness is Hard-Fought for High Achievers | The Fastest Way to Lose Talent Is “Dick Leadership” | Post-Holiday Fatigue Isn't a Failure; It's a Signal | OCR, Research Bots & Meeting Assistants: What Actually Helps Now | Return Season is the New Stress Test | Small Firms May Have the Biggest Advantage in 2026 | Downgraded: What the DOE Said About Accounting  Mason, CEO of High Rock Accounting, opens the discussion by reflecting on how little emphasis the profession places on teaching interpersonal skills. Patrick, senior product manager for Karbon and co-founder and part-time educator for TB Academy, agrees. “You don't learn it in college,” he says. “There's no course on building relationships.” That gap, they argue, becomes especially obvious early in a professional's career.*Originally published May 14, 2026 

"Inclusion often depends on whether people are willing to communicate, listen, and repair misunderstandings when they happen.”MOVE Like ThisWith Bonnie Buol RuszczykFor CPA Trendlines ResearchIn this episode of the MOVE Like This podcast, Bonnie Ruszczyk sits down with Guillaume Turmel, a PhD candidate at the University of Melbourne whose research focuses on how people experience genuine inclusion in the workplace. Drawing from his own experiences working internationally, helping launch an LGBTQ+ employee resource group, and observing the disconnect between strong DEI programs and employees still feeling “slightly off,” Guillaume explores why inclusion is far more personal and complex than most organizations assume. MORE MOVE Like This | MORE CPA Trendlines Streaming Network | JOIN MOVE 2026 One of the most compelling parts of the conversation centers around Guillaume's comparison of inclusion to “love languages.” He explains that organizations often focus heavily on the actions they believe create inclusion, such as policies, programs, or leadership behaviors, without spending enough time understanding how those efforts are actually experienced by employees.

Trump Accounts provide new opportunities for families, employees and closely held businesses.Full show notes hereQuick Tax TipWith Art WernerCPE TodayTax expert Art Werner is launching a series of tax tip videos focused on Trump accounts.MORE Art Werner | MORE CPA Trendlines Streaming NetworkIn the series, he provides a comprehensive overview of how these accounts work, how they compare to other investment options, the tax advantages they offer, potential issues practitioners should be aware of, and related fringe-benefit opportunities.MORE > > > 

Unpack how market gaps and transparency revise the recruiting game.Accounting ConversationsWith Chayton FarleeCenter for Accounting TransformationIn the latest episode of Accounting Conversations, host Chayton Farlee sits down with Dominic Piscopo, CPA, founder of The Big Four Transparency, to unpack compensation transparency and the accounting pipeline — two stubborn bottlenecks many firms still struggle to fix. The conversation centers on how accessible salary data and real-world experiences can illuminate a path toward fairer pay and clearer career ladders for accountants at all levels. MORE Podcasts Piscopo describes a career that reveals both the promise and the pain points of the industry. He started in a Big Four firm in tax and quickly encountered a supportive leadership dynamic and a stellar coach, experiences that underscore what's possible in a healthy culture. Yet even with that backdrop, he confronted a truth many early-career professionals feel but few talk about openly: compensation does not always align with effort or market realities, especially for younger staff trying to break in and prove their value.

Dovetailing finance and product engineering can transform accounting.Full show notes hereThe DisruptorsWith Liz FarrFor CPA TrendlinesWhen Jeff Seibert, CEO and founder of Digits, was at Twitter, he was astonished by the difference in data quality and timeliness between the product engineering and the finance sides of the business.On the product engineering side, testing tools, dashboards, and analytic tools provided real-time data on “exactly what your users are clicking on, what your servers are doing every second.” At the same time, “I was waiting two to three weeks for our accountant to give me a black and white P&L,” he recalls, even with “100 people in corporate finance.”MORE DISRUPTORS: Candy Bellau: The $350 Pricing Mistake that Nearly Broke this Boutique Firm | The Disruptors | Poe: What P.E. Really Wants from Firms | The Disruptors  | Blake Oliver: Build a Biz that Runs Without You | Daiber: Use Succession as a Growth Strategy | Cannon: Busy Season is Self-Inflicted | Carroll: When One Person Can Break the Firm | Rampe: Build a Roadmap Even When the Road's Not There | Chang: Killing SALY, One Agent at a Time |MORE CPA Trendlines Streaming NetworkThat experience led him to start Digits in 2018, an AI-native accounting platform, which is going head-to-head with QuickBooks and Xero.READ MORE > > >

From micromanagement to missed promotions, hosts get real about bad bosses—and when the problem is you.Accounting ARCWith Liz Mason and Byron PatrickCenter for Accounting TransformationIn a candid, unfiltered episode of Accounting ARC, Liz Mason, CPA, CEO of High Rock Accounting, and Byron Patrick, CPA.CITP, senior product manager at Karbon and co-founder of TB Academy, confront one of the profession's most relatable—and uncomfortable—topics: bad bosses. But the conversation goes further than workplace horror stories. Mason and Patrick explore a more nuanced reality: sometimes the boss is the problem—and sometimes it's the employee.  MORE Accounting ARC: Why Relationships Still Drive Career Success | The Real Problem with AI in Accounting | AI Can Fix Your Workflow—or Break It in Seconds | Efficiency Is the Wrong Goal for AI | Accounting's Hidden Talent Risk: The Sandwich Generation | Built Fast. Sold Faster. Broken Later? The Truth About Accounting Tech | Recognize When You Need to Recharge Before You Burn Out | Valuing More Than the Balance Sheet | Accounting's “Untalked-About” Frontier | Why Happiness is Hard-Fought for High Achievers | The Fastest Way to Lose Talent Is “Dick Leadership” | Post-Holiday Fatigue Isn't a Failure; It's a Signal | OCR, Research Bots & Meeting Assistants: What Actually Helps Now | Return Season is the New Stress Test | Small Firms May Have the Biggest Advantage in 2026 | Downgraded: What the DOE Said About Accounting | “We wanted to talk about this topic because it's really important to understand when you're the problem, when your boss is the problem, and what acceptable boundaries are,” Mason says early in the episode.Unpack real stories about bad bosses, miscommunication, and the career lessons that come with both. This episode challenges how accountants think about leadership, accountability, and growth. 

Adapt to changing workforce expectations without losing performance or accountability.MOVE Like ThisWith Bonnie Buol RuszczykFor CPA Trendlines ResearchIn this episode of MOVE Like This, host Bonnie Buol Ruszczyk talks with Kristi Epp, tax partner, and Amber Schrock, advisory partner and Las Vegas market leader at Frazier & Deeter, about one of the profession's most urgent challenges: retention. Their message is clear — firms that still believe compensation alone drives loyalty may already be falling behind.MORE MOVEThe conversation explores how accounting has changed dramatically over the last several years. Remote work, automation, talent shortages, mergers, acquisitions, and increasing regulatory complexity have reshaped both firm operations and employee expectations. Epp and Schrock explain that younger professionals are not rejecting hard work; they are rejecting environments that fail to provide meaning, transparency, mentorship, and sustainability.Rather than focusing solely on hours worked, Frazier & Deeter has worked to build a culture centered on effectiveness, growth, and long-term engagement. The firm's leaders recognize that retention is deeply connected to whether people feel seen, supported, and included in the future of the organization.Originally published 1/14/2026.

"Audit" and "transformation" shouldn't contradict each other.Full show notes hereThe DisruptorsWith Liz FarrFor CPA TrendlinesThe words “audit” and “transformation” don't often appear together. Some might say they contradict each other. But for Tyler Anderson, Director of A&A Innovation at Accountability Plus, audit transformation is something that has been needed for many years.MORE Tyler Anderson: Re-Inventing Accounting with Tyler AndersonMORE DISRUPTORS: Candy Bellau: The $350 Pricing Mistake that Nearly Broke this Boutique Firm | The Disruptors | Poe: What P.E. Really Wants from Firms | The Disruptors  | Blake Oliver: Build a Biz that Runs Without You | Daiber: Use Succession as a Growth Strategy | Cannon: Busy Season is Self-Inflicted | Carroll: When One Person Can Break the Firm | Rampe: Build a Roadmap Even When the Road's Not There | Chang: Killing SALY, One Agent at a Time |MORE CPA Trendlines Streaming NetworkAnderson, along with his colleagues Corey Schmidt and Alan Anderson from Accountability Plus, served as subject matter experts for the 2025 Audit Benchmark Survey conducted by CPA.com, which sought to understand the current state of audit transformation. The CPA.com team included Emily Remington (Director of Audit Product Management), Amy Bridges (Senior Manager of Practice Development), and survey methodologist Katherine Blackburn. The resulting report, The Audit Transformation Report, was released at Digital CPA in December 2025. Liz Farr, host of The Disruptors, served as the report writer. Audit transformation is often misunderstood as a destination or a future state reserved for large firms with deep pockets and advanced technology. But according to Anderson, transformation is far more practical and accessible. “I see it as the process, not really like it's an end state or anything, but it's really the evolution of audit,” he explains.READ MORE > > > 

When leaders neglect to delegate, chaos reigns.Sponsored by True Advisor: Buy now | Learn moreFull show notes here The DisruptersWith Liz FarrFor CPA TrendlinesChase Damiano, founder of Human at Scale, says that operations are the missing piece for many firms. “It's sort of this bridge or glue that allows a business and a team to function well together,” he tells Liz Farr in this episode of The Disrupters. MORE DISRUPTORS: Candy Bellau: The $350 Pricing Mistake that Nearly Broke this Boutique Firm | The Disruptors | Poe: What P.E. Really Wants from Firms | The Disruptors  | Blake Oliver: Build a Biz that Runs Without You | Daiber: Use Succession as a Growth Strategy | Cannon: Busy Season is Self-Inflicted | Carroll: When One Person Can Break the Firm | Rampe: Build a Roadmap Even When the Road's Not There | Chang: Killing SALY, One Agent at a TimeMORE CPA Trendlines Streaming Network“I see it as the intersection of people, process, technology and culture.” What that looks like in practice, he says, is a firm where the team is happy, clients are satisfied, work is delivered on time and at high quality, and the owner has the freedom to focus on strategy and growth and has the time to spend on non-work things like family.  READ MORE >>>

Networking, timing, and intentional career planning help candidates stand out in competitive hiring processes.Accounting ConversationsWith Chayton FarleeCenter for Accounting TransformationFor many accounting students, the profession can seem narrowly defined by tax returns, audit rooms, and busy season deadlines. But according to Mike Manalac, CPA, accounting can also become a pathway into some of the world's most innovative companies and industries.In a recent episode of Accounting Conversations, host Chayton Farlee speaks with Manalac about how young accounting professionals can strategically leverage public accounting experience to build careers at companies like Google, Tesla, Uber, and Salesforce.  MORE Podcasts Manalac, an accounting manager at Google, currently leads a distributed team working on Google Search and YouTube advertising contracts. His role involves collaborating with engineering, legal, sales, finance, and compliance teams across the organization.Farlee, an assurance associate at CliftonLarsonAllen, says conversations like these are important because many students are not exposed to the full range of accounting career opportunities.

And why that's not always a bad thing.Full show notes hereGear Up for GrowthWith Jean Caragher“Success doesn't have to look like going up and to the right,” says Ian Vacin, co-founder and director of partnership relationships at Karbon, in this episode of Gear Up for Growth, hosted by Jean Caragher, president of Capstone Marketing. “You have to understand what you want as a firm owner, align your revenue with your resources, and build the scaffolding to support that complexity. Otherwise, profitability falls, and you may not recover.”Vacin, along with Jason Blumer, founder and CEO of Thriveal and Blumer & Associates CPAs, wrote the new book, Scale with Purpose: The Service Entrepreneur's Guide to Intentional Growth. Drawing from research involving hundreds of firms worldwide, Blumer and Vacin reveal that only about 5% of firms successfully navigate their first major growth phase without setbacks. The authors say that organizational design must precede capacity planning. Without thoughtful structure, firms hit predictable scaling plateaus, particularly between 8 and 20 employees.READ MORE > > > 

Connections create career opportunities, resilience, and leadership growth. Accounting ARCWith Liz Mason and Byron PatrickCenter for Accounting TransformationIn the accounting profession, technical excellence is expected. However, according to the latest episode of Accounting ARC, relationships — not just work product — often determine who grows, who leads, and who thrives. In a candid and deeply personal conversation, Liz Mason, CPA, and Byron Patrick, CPA.CITP, explore how relationship-building shapes careers, creates opportunity, and provides stability in an unpredictable profession.   MORE Accounting ARC: The Real Problem with AI in Accounting | AI Can Fix Your Workflow—or Break It in Seconds | Efficiency Is the Wrong Goal for AI | Accounting's Hidden Talent Risk: The Sandwich Generation | Built Fast. Sold Faster. Broken Later? The Truth About Accounting Tech | Recognize When You Need to Recharge Before You Burn Out | Valuing More Than the Balance Sheet | Accounting's “Untalked-About” Frontier | Why Happiness is Hard-Fought for High Achievers | The Fastest Way to Lose Talent Is “Dick Leadership” | Post-Holiday Fatigue Isn't a Failure; It's a Signal | OCR, Research Bots & Meeting Assistants: What Actually Helps Now | Return Season is the New Stress Test | Small Firms May Have the Biggest Advantage in 2026 | Downgraded: What the DOE Said About Accounting  Mason, CEO of High Rock Accounting, opens the discussion by reflecting on how little emphasis the profession places on teaching interpersonal skills. Patrick, senior product manager for Karbon and co-founder and part-time educator for TB Academy, agrees. “You don't learn it in college,” he says. “There's no course on building relationships.” That gap, they argue, becomes especially obvious early in a professional's career. 

“We're expecting engagement without creating an environment people actually want to engage in.”MOVE Like ThisWith Bonnie Buol RuszczykFor CPA Trendlines ResearchIn this episode of MOVE Like This, Megan Robinson, founder and CEO of E Leader Experience, joins Bonnie Buol Ruszczyk to talk about one of the most common and costly mistakes firms make: assuming strong performers will naturally become strong leaders. MORE MOVE Like This | MORE CPA Trendlines Streaming Network At the center of the conversation is a clear distinction. Technical excellence and leadership effectiveness are not the same skill set. Yet in many firms, top producers are promoted into management roles without the training or support needed to succeed. The result is frustration on both sides: leaders who feel unprepared and teams that don't feel supported.

Relationships, Not Technology, Will Define Success.Full show notes hereGear Up for GrowthWith Jean Caragher“More than anything else, I think CPAs have this incredible opportunity right now to redefine our relevance in the future,” Jennifer Cryder, CEO of the Pennsylvania Institute of CPAs, says in the new episode of Gear Up for Growth with host Jean Caragher. “What CPA meant for the last hundred years was relatively static. All of that has changed.”MORE Jean Caragher here | Get her best-selling handbook, The 90-Day Marketing Plan for CPA Firms, here | MORE Gear Up for Growth here | MORE CPA Trendlines Streaming Network hereCryder says that the profession is at a pivotal moment. While artificial intelligence and new market entrants are transforming service delivery, Cryder stressed that the profession's true competitive advantage lies in human connection.READ MORE >>>CPA Trendlines - Gear Up For Growth_wJean Caragher_Ep 65 - Jennifer Cryder

Technology is advancing faster than the profession's ability to rethink its workflows.Accounting ARCWith Donny ShimamotoCenter for Accounting TransformationIn a profession often defined by structure, standards, and well-worn career paths, Donny Shimamoto, CPA.CITP, CGMA, opens a different kind of conversation in a recent Accounting ARC episode—one that challenges assumptions about what it means to build a career in accounting.His guest, Danielle Supkis Cheek, embodies that challenge.As senior vice president of AI, analytics and assurance at CaseWare, Supkis Cheek operates at the intersection of technology, methodology, and human judgment. But her path there was anything but linear—and that, Shimamoto suggests, is exactly the point. MORE Accounting ARC: AI Can Fix Your Workflow—or Break It in Seconds | Efficiency Is the Wrong Goal for AI | Accounting's Hidden Talent Risk: The Sandwich Generation | Built Fast. Sold Faster. Broken Later? The Truth About Accounting Tech | Recognize When You Need to Recharge Before You Burn Out | Valuing More Than the Balance Sheet | Accounting's “Untalked-About” Frontier | Why Happiness is Hard-Fought for High Achievers | The Fastest Way to Lose Talent Is “Dick Leadership” | Post-Holiday Fatigue Isn't a Failure; It's a Signal | OCR, Research Bots & Meeting Assistants: What Actually Helps Now | Return Season is the New Stress Test | Small Firms May Have the Biggest Advantage in 2026 | Downgraded: What the DOE Said About Accounting |  Supkis Cheek describes her role less as a technologist and more as a translator. “I like to think of myself as someone who translates across domains,” she says, explaining how she helps software companies understand how accountants actually work—and how technology can reshape those workflows.

Scaling an eight-figure accounting, tax, law and advisory firm by breaking all the rules.Full show notes hereBig 4 TransparencyWith Dominic Piscopo, CPARobert Gauvreau, FCPA, founder and CEO of Gauvreau Accounting, Tax Law and Advisory, joins Dominic Piscopo on the Big Four Transparency show to explain how he's scaling an Ontario-based firm from a non-obvious location—Peterborough, not Toronto—into a $20 million operation built around fast decision-making, aggressive reinvestment in talent, and a deliberately non-traditional partnership structure.MORE Dominic Piscopo | MORE CPA Trendlines Streaming NetworkGauvreau says he made a strategic decision from day one to never take on equity partners, arguing that the traditional partnership model is “broken” because conservative consensus-driven decision-making too often blocks growth. Instead, he built a structure of high-compensated “partners” who share in wins without taking on debt, working-capital risk, or ownership downside—while enabling the firm to move quickly without governance gridlock. He framed the tradeoff clearly: partners get stability and upside participation, while the founder retains the long-term exit value.READ MORE >>>

Transformation in audit can help predict clients' futures.Full show notes hereThe DisruptersWith Liz FarrFor CPA TrendlinesAudit has a reputation for being slow to change, but leaders like Sarah Flischel, Director of Audit Transformation and Training at AAFCPAs, are making it happen.“We're fundamentally reimagining how audits are being conducted,” Flischel says. She's pushing not merely for change in the profession, but true transformation, drawing on wisdom from Tom Hood to distinguish change and transformation: “Change is doing things differently, and transformation is doing different things,” she explains.MORE DISRUPTORS: Candy Bellau: The $350 Pricing Mistake that Nearly Broke this Boutique Firm | The Disruptors | Poe: What P.E. Really Wants from Firms | The Disruptors  | Blake Oliver: Build a Biz that Runs Without You | Daiber: Use Succession as a Growth Strategy | Cannon: Busy Season is Self-Inflicted | Carroll: When One Person Can Break the Firm | Rampe: Build a Roadmap Even When the Road's Not There | Chang: Killing SALY, One Agent at a Time |MORE CPA Trendlines Streaming NetworkWhile change improves existing processes, transformation creates something fundamentally new. Traditional audits have been linear: gathering documents, testing samples, filling out checklists, and writing reports. Audit transformation means leveraging technology, using data analytics, and leveraging a risk-based approach to create an entirely new way of understanding clients' businesses.READ MORE >>>>

AI Readiness Gap Threatens CPA Firm Competitiveness.Full show notes hereGear Up for GrowthWith Jean CaragherSponsored by The True Adviser: Buy now | Learn more“This is a make-or-break year for AI in accounting,” says Ellen Choi, founder and CEO of Edgefield Group, in the new episode of Gear Up for Growth, hosted by Jean Caragher.“Firms that don't move now will start to see a widening gap between themselves and competitors who have already begun building these capabilities.”MORE Jean Caragher here | Get her best-selling handbook, The 90-Day Marketing Plan for CPA Firms, here MORE Gear Up for Growth | MORE CPA Trendlines Streaming Network hereChoi warns that timing is critical, and firms that delay action risk falling behind. With even basic AI tools capable of delivering immediate productivity gains, firms that act quickly can improve efficiency, enhance client experience, and create capacity for growth.READ MORE > > > GUFG_Ep 64

Deliberate experimentation can unlock value—without creating costly mistakes. Accounting ARCWith Liz Mason and Byron PatrickCenter for Accounting TransformationArtificial intelligence is moving fast—fast enough that even the people experimenting with it daily admit they're still figuring it out in real time. On the latest episode of Accounting ARC, Byron Patrick, CPA.CITP, and Liz Mason, CPA, take listeners inside that reality: a profession eager to unlock AI-driven efficiency, but still learning how to manage the risks that come with it.The conversation centers on a deceptively simple idea—just because AI can do something doesn't mean it should. And in accounting, the consequences of getting that wrong can be immediate.  MORE Accounting ARC: Efficiency Is the Wrong Goal for AI | Accounting's Hidden Talent Risk: The Sandwich Generation | Built Fast. Sold Faster. Broken Later? The Truth About Accounting Tech | Recognize When You Need to Recharge Before You Burn Out | Valuing More Than the Balance Sheet | Accounting's “Untalked-About” Frontier | Why Happiness is Hard-Fought for High Achievers | The Fastest Way to Lose Talent Is “Dick Leadership” | Post-Holiday Fatigue Isn't a Failure; It's a Signal | OCR, Research Bots & Meeting Assistants: What Actually Helps Now | Return Season is the New Stress Test | Small Firms May Have the Biggest Advantage in 2026 | Downgraded: What the DOE Said About Accounting |  The discussion begins with a practical example: integrating AI tools like Claude into everyday workflows, particularly in systems such as QuickBooks or Excel. What makes these tools powerful is also what makes them risky. 

“They are requiring us to be the leaders that we deserved and didn't get.”MOVE Like ThisWith Bonnie Buol RuszczykFor CPA Trendlines ResearchIn this episode of MOVE Like This, Trisha Daho joins Bonnie Buol Ruszczyk to talk about what's really happening inside accounting firms when it comes to talent, leadership, and growth. Drawing on her experience as a former Big Four partner turned fractional chief people officer, Daho offers a clear-eyed view of where firms are getting it right, and where they're falling short. MORE MOVE Like This | MORE Benchmarks: Register for MOVE 2026 | MORE CPA Trendlines Streaming Network At the core of the conversation is a simple but often overlooked point: the firms that are succeeding aren't just focused on growth, they're intentional about how they grow. That starts with having a defined talent strategy. Firms that prioritize development, align values with their people, and create consistent leadership experiences tend to see stronger retention, better performance, and more engaged teams. In contrast, firms that treat talent as secondary or assume people will simply “figure it out” often struggle to keep their best performers. 

The smart move is learning which signals matter and how to prepare.Accounting VoicesWith Rob BrownFull show notes here.If you work in an accounting firm today, you can feel the tension in the air. Something is shifting. You sense it before anyone tells you. Leaders start speaking in strange new phrases. Workloads rise without explanation. New people appear in meetings while familiar faces quietly disappear. Rumors travel faster than email. And you begin wondering what everyone else is wondering, is something happening here?MORE Accounting Voices with Rob Brown | Why Accounting Firms Feel So Unstable Right Now | Should I Leave Public Accounting? | Visibility Is the New Accounting Authority | How to Outsmart the Big Four on AI | MORE CPA Trendlines Streaming NetworkToday, accounting firms feel unstable. The private equity wave. The mergers. The leadership turnover. The technology pressure. The partner exits. The new business models. Today we look at the next step. How to read the signals inside your own firm before anything becomes official.  

At stake: Growth, relevance and survival.Full show notes here.Gear Up for GrowthWith Jean CaragherSponsored by The True Adviser: Buy now | Learn moreCPA firm leaders must act decisively on technology, talent strategy and long-term identity or risk falling behind in a rapidly evolving marketplace, Lexy Kessler, Chair of the AICPA and a partner at Aprio, tells Jean Caragher in a new episode of Gear Up for Growth.MORE Jean Caragher here | Get her best-selling handbook, The 90-Day Marketing Plan for CPA Firms, here MORE Gear Up for Growth | MORE CPA Trendlines Streaming Network hereIn a wide-ranging discussion, Kessler focuses on three urgent priorities for firm leaders.  

Faster, Leaner, Closer to the Client, and Two Hours to an Engagement Letter. Full show notes here. Sponsored by The True Adviser: Buy now | Learn more Big 4 TransparencyWith Dominic Piscopo, CPAFormer Deloitte colleague Stewart Spiers tells Dominic Piscopo about leaving the Big 4 partner path to help build a tax planning practice at TAAG – why SMB clients pulled him back, what changes in speed and autonomy, and how partner economics differ between large and small firms.MORE Dominic Piscopo | MORE CPA Trendlines Streaming NetworkSpiers spent roughly 15 years at Deloitte, starting as a co-op and rising through Private Company Services, before making a move many Big 4 professionals debate but rarely execute: stepping off the partner track to double down on the SMB clients he's always gravitated toward. In this new episode of the Big 4 Transparency show, Spiers tells host Dominic Piscopo that his decision wasn't driven by a bad experience at Deloitte, but by a career crossroads and a clearer answer to one question: What kind of work does he want to be doing in the future? 

Value, quality, and effectiveness—not cost savings—should define success.Accounting ARCWith Liz Mason, Donny Shimamoto, and Byron PatrickCenter for Accounting TransformationDoes meaningful AI adoption require scale, budget, and the dedicated innovation teams embedded in large accounting groups? In this episode of Accounting ARC, Donny Shimamoto, CPA.CITP, CGMA; Byron Patrick, CPA.CITP; and Liz Mason, CPA, take on a familiar—but increasingly flawed—narrative in the accounting profession: that large accounting teams will define AI successThe reality, they argue, looks very different on the ground. MORE Accounting ARC: Accounting's Hidden Talent Risk: The Sandwich Generation | Built Fast. Sold Faster. Broken Later? The Truth About Accounting Tech | Recognize When You Need to Recharge Before You Burn Out | Valuing More Than the Balance Sheet | Accounting's “Untalked-About” Frontier | Why Happiness is Hard-Fought for High Achievers | The Fastest Way to Lose Talent Is “Dick Leadership” | Post-Holiday Fatigue Isn't a Failure; It's a Signal | OCR, Research Bots & Meeting Assistants: What Actually Helps Now | Return Season is the New Stress Test | Small Firms May Have the Biggest Advantage in 2026 | Downgraded: What the DOE Said About Accounting |  What starts as a reaction to a “big firm” innovation discussion quickly turns into a broader reframing of how small and mid-sized organizations should think about artificial intelligence—not as a race for efficiency, but as an opportunity to increase value, improve quality, and deepen client relationships.

"We're growing in a way that is strategic, and that we're preparing our people to meet the demands of that growth.”MOVE Like ThisWith Bonnie Buol RuszczykFor CPA Trendlines ResearchIn this episode of MOVE Like This, Bonnie Ruszczyk sits down with Sarah Petrone, chief human resources officer at Clark Nuber, for a conversation about responsible growth, leadership pipelines, belonging, and what it truly means to build a firm where people want to stay for the long haul. MORE MOVE Like This | MORE Benchmarks: Register for MOVE 2026 | MORE CPA Trendlines Streaming Network With more than 20 years in human resources across eight industries, Petrone joined Clark Nuber after leading HR in a startup environment, intentionally seeking a stable yet innovative professional services firm. What she found was an organization that understands a fundamental truth of accounting: in professional services, people are the product. That reality shapes everything from growth strategy to succession planning.

From Experiences to Transformations: The Future of Value Creation. Full show notes here With Rory HenryThe Holistic Guide to Wealth ManagementWhen advisors talk about differentiating themselves from the pack, the conversation often centers on providing better service models, improved technology, or more personalized experiences. But according to Fortune 500 management advisor Joe Pine, those levers are no longer enough. The real opportunity lies one level deeper: helping clients change.MORE Rory Henry | MORE The Holistic Guide to Wealth Management | MORE CPA Trendlines Streaming NetworkCofounder of Strategic Horizons LLP, Pine is the co-author of The Experience Economy and author of the newly released The Transformation Economy. He argues that the U.S. economy has continued its long arc first from commodities, then to goods, services and experiences, and now to transformations. In this next transformation phase, the customer is no longer buying a product, activity or even a memorable event. They are investing in who they want to become.

How savvy CPAs are unlocking powerful insights buried in their practice management systems. Plus: Download the slide deck. See all the show notes hereGear Up for GrowthWith Jean CaragherFor CPA Trendlines“What surprised me most isn't what the data says,” says Michelle Golden River, CEO of Fore LLC, in a new episode of Gear Up for Growth, powered by CPA Trendlines. “It's that almost every CPA already has it, and it rarely makes it into leadership conversations.” MORE Jean Caragher here | Get her best-selling handbook, The 90-Day Marketing Plan for CPA Firms, here | MORE Gear Up for Growth | MORE CPA Trendlines Streaming Network hereRiver tells host Jean Caragher, president of Capstone Marketing, that firms are overlooking powerful insights buried in their own practice management data. River challenges CPA firm leaders to rethink long-held assumptions about growth and sustainability. “There is no reason we should be taking a high volume of low spenders when it's killing us. It's ruining our sustainability chances,” she says.River leaves three big takeaways for CPA firms. 

The 2026 MOVE Project aims to turn caregiving challenges into actionable insights for firms.Accounting ARCWith Liz Mason, Donny Shimamoto, and Byron PatrickCenter for Accounting TransformationAs accounting firms continue to grapple with talent shortages, retention challenges, and evolving workforce expectations, a growing segment of professionals is quietly carrying an additional burden — one that rarely shows up on a balance sheet. MORE Accounting ARC: Built Fast. Sold Faster. Broken Later? The Truth About Accounting Tech |  Recognize When You Need to Recharge Before You Burn Out | Valuing More Than the Balance Sheet | Accounting's “Untalked-About” Frontier | Why Happiness is Hard-Fought for High Achievers | The Fastest Way to Lose Talent Is “Dick Leadership” | Post-Holiday Fatigue Isn't a Failure; It's a Signal | OCR, Research Bots & Meeting Assistants: What Actually Helps Now | Return Season is the New Stress Test | Small Firms May Have the Biggest Advantage in 2026 | Downgraded: What the DOE Said About Accounting | Savage: Using Your License as a Megaphone |  Baker: Interpreting Pricing Psychology | Don't Get Fired by Your Own Automation | What Amazon Doesn't Tell You | Royalties, Residuals, and Reality Checks | ARC-SLC They are caregivers.In the latest episode of Accounting ARC, Donny Shimamoto, Byron Patrick, and Liz Mason turn their attention to the 2026 Accounting MOVE Project — and the professionals it aims to better understand and support. This year's emphasis: the “sandwich generation” and others balancing careers with caregiving responsibilities. The topic reflects a broader shift in how the profession defines talent, productivity, and success — and raises questions about whether traditional firm structures are keeping pace with reality.

Effective leaders create connection, recognizing that human-centered leadership is critical.MOVE Like ThisWith Bonnie Buol RuszczykFor CPA Trendlines ResearchIn this episode of MOVE Like This, Bonnie Ruszczyk is joined by Lisa Fitzgerald, Chief Human Resources Officer at Eide Bailly, for a conversation about talent, leadership, and what it takes to build workplaces where people actually want to stay. With nearly two decades at the firm and a career spanning manufacturing, technology, and professional services, Fitzgerald brings a practical, people-centered lens to some of the profession's biggest challenges. MORE MOVE Like This | MORE CPA Trendlines Streaming Network One issue keeping Fitzgerald up at night is the accelerating impact of AI on the accounting workforce. While Eide Bailly is approaching AI adoption thoughtfully and seeing real productivity gains, Fitzgerald is just as focused on the downstream effects, particularly how the conversation around AI may influence students deciding whether accounting feels like a “safe” career choice. With firms still recovering from talent shortages, she sees a real risk that fear and uncertainty could deter future professionals before they even enter the pipeline.

Freedom comes from systems.Full show notes hereThe DisruptersWith Liz FarrFor CPA TrendlinesSharrin Fuller isn't your typical accountant. For one, she's not a CPA. She doesn't have an accounting degree. She didn't even go to college. But despite lacking what most consider the usual credentials and following “the most unconventional and broken path possible,” she managed to build and sell two successful accounting firms. Fuller recounts this story in her new book, Unfollow the Rules: The Messy Truth About Burnout, Bad Decisions, and Building Until It Works. MORE DISRUPTORS: Candy Bellau: The $350 Pricing Mistake that Nearly Broke this Boutique Firm | Poe: What P.E. Really Wants from Firms | The Disruptors  | Daiber: Use Succession as a Growth Strategy | Cannon: Busy Season is Self-Inflicted | | Rampe: Build a Roadmap Even When the Road's Not There | Chang: Killing SALY, One Agent at a Time |MORE CPA Trendlines Streaming NetworkFuller wrote the book to help entrepreneurs see behind the social media images of success. “All you see are their wins and their glorified wins, but you don't know what it took to get them there,” she explains. Her book was originally intended to be a how-to guide, but halfway through the process, she changed her mind. “I don't want to write this book telling people this is how you should do it,” she explains. “I needed to be vulnerable so people could understand how I got to the point that I got to.” 

What It Means for Next Phase of Artificial Intelligence in Accounting.Full show notes hereBy Seth FinebergFor CPA Trendlines Research“Managing partner-in-residence” is not a standard role in accounting, and that was the first point of friction when Kenji Kuramoto was asked to explain his new job at Basis, the accounting AI agent company. What does that actually mean?The answer goes beyond one hire. It points to a shift now underway in accounting: artificial intelligence is moving out of experimentation and into operations, and firms are not yet prepared for what that requires.MORE Kenji Kuramoto: Behind Sorren's Roll-Up: $170 Million, 1,000 Employees, 85 Partners | Kenji Kuramoto: Rules? What Rules? | Getting Real: Accounting Tech Decisions You Need to Make TodayBasis, at getbasis.ai, says that Kuramoto, founder of cloud pioneer Acuity, joined full-time to help firms transition to AI-enabled operations, working directly with customers and shaping the product. The company made clear this was not a symbolic role. “Kenji isn't here to advise from the margins,” CEO Matthew Harpe says. “He's a full-time member of this team… creating the product with us.” Kuramoto is embedded with the company, not observing from the outside.READ MORE > > >  

Internships, leadership roles, and networking accelerate success for accounting students...Plus 20 Key Takeaways!Student-Led ConversationsWith Chayton FarleeCenter for Accounting TransformationWhat if the difference between a “typical” accounting student and a standout future professional isn't GPA, but initiative?That's the underlying theme of this episode of Student-Led Conversations, where host Chayton Farlee sits down with fellow accounting student Noah Brabble for a candid, high-energy discussion on leadership, internships, and what it actually takes to build a career before graduation. MORE SLC: Will AI Make Students Better Learners — or Just Faster Workers? | Why the Next Generation May Be Accounting's Greatest Competitive Advantage | Students Redefine Career Readiness | Savage: Using Your License as a Megaphone |  Baker: Interpreting Pricing Psychology | Royalties, Residuals, and Reality Checks | ARC-SLC  This isn't a conversation about theory. It's a real-time look at what today's students are doing—and what others should be doing—to get ahead.Whether it's pursuing internships, stepping into leadership roles, or building a professional presence online, the students who take action early are the ones who create momentum.As Brabble puts it, success later is often a reflection of what you invest now.Because the future of the profession isn't waiting. And neither are the students shaping it.

Illinois CPA Society CEO lays out the three big challenges.Full show notes hereGear Up for GrowthWith Jean CaragherFor CPA Trendlines“What got you to this point is not going to be what gets your firm to its next major milestone,” says Geoffrey Brown, president and CEO of the Illinois CPA Society.MORE Jean Caragher here | Get her best-selling handbook, The 90-Day Marketing Plan for CPA Firms, here | MORE Gear Up for Growth | MORE CPA Trendlines Streaming Network here“Be flexible. Be nimble,” he tells Jean Caragher in this episode of Gear Up for Growth. “Surround yourself with the right people and take advantage of opportunities that help you lead into the future.” Brown outlines the forces reshaping public accounting and the leadership mindset required for the future.Top Takeaways How Private Equity Is Forcing Firms to Rethink Everything The New Skills Needed for the Advisory Future Why Demographics Are the Profession's Biggest Challenge

MVP culture, investor pressure, and marketing—not product quality—often decide winners.Accounting ARCWith Liz Mason and Byron PatrickCenter for Accounting TransformationThe accounting technology market looks crowded from the outside. New tools launch every month. Conference expo halls overflow with promise. And artificial intelligence is accelerating everything. But beneath that surface, the economics of building accounting technology tell a more complicated story—one shaped as much by venture capital and sales pressure as by innovation itself.  MORE Accounting ARC: Recognize When You Need to Recharge Before You Burn Out | Valuing More Than the Balance Sheet | Accounting's “Untalked-About” Frontier | Why Happiness is Hard-Fought for High Achievers | The Fastest Way to Lose Talent Is “Dick Leadership” | Post-Holiday Fatigue Isn't a Failure; It's a Signal | OCR, Research Bots & Meeting Assistants: What Actually Helps Now | Return Season is the New Stress Test | Small Firms May Have the Biggest Advantage in 2026 | Downgraded: What the DOE Said About Accounting | Savage: Using Your License as a Megaphone |  Baker: Interpreting Pricing Psychology | Don't Get Fired by Your Own Automation | What Amazon Doesn't Tell You | Royalties, Residuals, and Reality Checks | ARC-SLC  In the latest episode of Accounting ARC, Byron Patrick, CPA.CITP, and Liz Mason, CPA, step back to examine how the industry got here—and where it is likely headed next. 

Why chasing a number won't solve clients' financial anxiety—and what advisors should focus on instead.Full show notes hereWith Rory Henry CFP®, BFA™For CPA TrendlinesThe Holistic Guide to Wealth ManagementWhen advisors think about financial planning, numbers, projections, and optimization strategies are what typically come to mind. But in a recent podcast conversation with me, Carl Richards challenged that assumption, arguing that the real work of planning begins with having a meaningful dialogue about money.  MORE Rory Henry | MORE The Holistic Guide to Wealth Management | MORE CPA Trendlines Streaming NetworkAs Richards described his latest book, Your Money: Reimagining Wealth in 101 Simple Sketches, the goal is not to provide answers, but to spark better questions. “The book is just a means to an end,” Richards said. “What I care about is that it starts [better] conversations about money.”