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Humanise The Numbers - for ambitious accountants in practice
What does it take to grow an accounting business from its initial two founders to 40 people in five years? Great question.What does it take to grow an accounting business which generates average fees per client of £30,000? Another great question. What does it take to grow an accountancy business where its people absolutely love working and where the clients respect and love the work that the firm's doing for them? I had the great privilege of spending an hour on a podcast discussion with Alastair Barlow, co-founder of flinder. Alastair unpacked many things, but he talked specifically about the determination to systematise the business so that it's not reliant on Alastair and it's not reliant on his co-founder, Luke. And standards – the power and the importance of standards and expectations show up big time in this discussion. Last but not least, the determination to uphold those standards across the firm comes through really strongly. I hope you take time out to listen to this profoundly valuable conversation with Alastair and that you enjoy it as much as I did. Please join me on this Humanise The Numbers podcast or you can go to your favourite podcast platform. I look forward to seeing you there.When on the episode page, please scroll down to the bottom to see Alastair's contact information and to access the additional resources mentioned in the podcast.
We are rolling on with episode 2. In this episode we throw back to the time where John was incapacitated and locked in a Flinder chalet - left to his own devices he pondered life's big questions... and mainly what Jon Gaunt would do next post his exit from Dext. Joined by some friendly faces, Alex Bond Burnett, Pamela Phillips, Luke Streeter and Dave Sellick. Damon from Employment Hero gives us another 5 minute dose of the benefits of integrated HR, payroll and AI. We also cover in app news: Xero launch beautiful business fund – financial awards for small businesses - deadline in a month - Xero unveils new AI tools, $690,000 Beautiful Business Fund (smartcompany.com.au) , https://www.intuitiveaccountant.com/accounting-tech/vendor-news/xero-beautiful-business-fund-submissions-now-open/ Xero product announcements Sydney 2023 - Product wrap from Xerocon Sydney 2023 | Xero Blog Xero sneak peek at inventory upgrade from US roadshow - US Roadshow Accelerate: Xero brings the product announcements (and the noise) | Xero Blog QBO fixed asset module (US) - Whats New in QBO: Fixed Asset Management in QBO Advanced - insightfulaccountant.com (intuitiveaccountant.com) Apron raises $5.5m in funding round, available for charities and launches confirmation of payee Say hello to Apron: the powerful payment platform that's raised $5.5M in funding | AccountingWEB New feature: charities are now welcome on Apron | AccountingWEB It's a match! New feature: Confirmation of Payee | AccountingWEB Silverfin goes live AI assistant - Silverfin boots up AI assistant | AccountingWEB FreeAgent using AI - How FreeAgent uses AI | AccountingWEB Firmcheck (formerly connectworks) hire Kevin Lord – Head of Sales at Freeagent and Chaser Translucent accounting raises £5m seed round - Translucent Accounting Platform Raises £5M Seed-round - insightfulaccountant.com (intuitiveaccountant.com) Reflow added to Xero app store – field management for construction, highway management etc – now over 1,500 apps on the xero app store worldwide and over 20,000 that connect via the API (thanks to heather smith for that insight)- XeroAPI on X: "Welcome to the UK @Xero App Store, @reflow247! Re-flow's field management software for construction, highway management, civil engineering, rail and landscaping helps firms & industry heavyweights M.V. Kelly, Colas & BMI, reach the next level. Details: https://t.co/BlWLcvOdOd https://t.co/gijCpcp2Hl" / X (twitter.com) Empowered by cloud – Laura Taylor construction focussed accountancy firm trial 4 day working week, reverted after 4 weeks(2) Post | LinkedIn Incompetent accountant - Incompetent accountant showed no grasp of CGT | AccountingWEB IRS set to go paperless by 2025 - IRS Set to Go Paperless by 2025 - insightfulaccountant.com (intuitiveaccountant.com) ICAEW launch enquiry into gaps in HMRC digital journey - Gaps persist in HMRC's digital service journey | AccountingWEB Thanks to Leigh @ Nomad for his seriously sharp editing skills.
Episode 90 is up and ready. We travel to the Guzzler, Flinders Tour on the Sunny Coast, out to Scenic Rim Rd 3 and chat about lots more and of course the Note for the Goat.If you'd like to support the show, please click the link below. Support the showThanks for your Support!!
Flinder Boyd (@FlinderBoyd) is a freelance journalist whose piece "20 Minutes in Rucker Park" turns ten this year. He's also a filmmaker and a former professional basketball player. Show notes/newsletter: brendanomeara.com Social: @CNFPod Support: Patreon.com/cnfpod
Episode 9 with Tony Knight. Educated at Sydney Grammar School, trained at the Drama Centre in London and earned a Bachelor of Arts (Honours) from Sydney University. He was a long time teacher at Australia's National Institute of Dramatic Art (NIDA) where he was also the Head Of Acting for from 1992 to 2011 where he trained some of Australia's favorite actors including Cate Blanchett, Sam Worthington, Jacqueline MacKenzie and Miranda Otto to name a few. He has traveled the world both personally and as a teacher, taking his wisdom to many lectures and conferences. Now based in Adelaide, which is fortunate for us, he continues to educate actors both through regular training opportunities with many local agencies including Angela Heesom casting, Type Talent Drama, The Actor's Studio and many others. He continues his love of stage as a co-producer and Director of Starc Productions and on top of all of this he is currently completing a PHD at Flinder's University on Richard Burbage: Shakespeare's Actor and the art of “Personation”. In this wonderfully insightful episode, we talk about stage acting and screen acting, do you need both how you can switch between both or come back later, regardless of your where you are in your career.We discuss the benefits of theatre acting, how it can teach you as an actor to know 'styles' and how that can improve you as an actor in all forms. This leads us to discussing how to 'play the moment' in scenes, to make it real and why it's necessary to give yourself permission to 'play'. And we have a strong discussion on how honoring the history of your country and land, especially your local area effects your art and the stories you tell as an actor.If you're keen on training with Tony, he is a lecturer at several Adelaide Schools and also does some online workshops. Just check him out on Google or LinkedIn for updates. Castability Castability is a new game changing app that is a must have for every actor. Support the showPlease consider supporting the show by becoming a paid subscriber (you can cancel at any time) by clicking here.Please follow on Facebook, Instagram, YouTube and Tik Tok.And please Rate the show on IMDB.I really appreciate all of my listeners and would love if you could support the show via following my social links above, as well as rating and reviewing on your podcast app if it allows.Please feel free to contact me at thelatebloomeractor@gmail.com with any suggestions for future shows, or just to say hello.
Dan Briggs is the loveliest guy, a gentle giant with two great passions; his family (including a brand new and super cute puppy he got for Father's Day) and his job as Executive chef at Chin Chin. Dan has been part of the Chin Chin family for his whole career, which says a lot about the kind of environment the Lucas Group creates, and also about Dan's loyalty. I went in to Chin Chin on Flinder's Lane on a Wednesday afternoon and it was pumping. I think it is always pumping. We talked about the phenomenon of this sort of popularity, as well as advice for young people thinking about becoming a chef, and Dan gave me a behind the scenes tour of Chin Chin, which I of course absolutely loved. I don't know if you know this, but the kitchens at Chin Chin are tiny. They put out so much food every service and it is a party in the restaurant and an absolutely perfectly choreographed and organised magic place out the back. I loved every minute of my chat to Dan and I know you will love listening to it.
Alastair Barlow is CEO and co-founder at Flinder. He has experience working with fast-growth businesses, transforming finance functions, writing for AccountingWeb, and being a part of global accounting and technology panels. In this episode, Alastair and Stuart discuss data analytics, the current position of Flinder and what's in store for the future. They also share some interesting thoughts about rugby, ski trips, and the importance of relationships with your clients and colleagues.Together they discuss: Six Nations rugby tournament (1:00) COVID-19 impacting travel plans (1:50) Accounting leaders going skiing (3:40) Creative juices in an informal environment (4:30) Flinder's client and staff ski trips (5:20) Relationship between Alastair and his co-founder Luke (7:00) Where Flinder is today (8:40) Plans for the future (10:00) Investing in data analytics (12:30) Realm of verticals (14:30) Laboring and finding staff (17:00) What it's really like to work at Flinder (18:50) Working with challenging but interesting businesses (20:50) Strategy for 2022 (22:50) Complex data reach sectors (25:20) Complexities of expanding verticals (26:20) Developing an internal team of experts (28:20) Prediction for rugby in February (29:40)
In this episode of the Ambition to Impact podcast, I'm joined by Alastair Barlow, Flinder founding partner Flinder helps businesses evolve by delivering a finance function that is in sync with their overall strategy, and they do it charged with passion, people, and high adrenalin performance. "I just don't believe you need to wear a suit to be your best self" In this episode, Alastair talks about the importance of passion in their business, as founders but also creating a legacy of loving what you do through each team member. We discuss how passion, team building and the ROI of happiness impacts this has on his team, clients and stakeholders, and how that passion transforms the performance in each team member, and even impacts the value given to clients in how they align data with strategy. Important Quotes “If you love something so much, it doesn't feel like work, and you will create something so much better” “ You need not wear a suit to be your best self. You need to be comfortable in your own skin, you need to be comfortable coming to work” “ It's about figuring out which part of your career or profession or what you do to help other people and make a living makes you happy and you're passionate about” “The way the team bonds and how they work together and the culture and all that and it's so impressive to see and that's taken on its own life, if you like that's no longer Luke, and I, we might have started the snowball, but it's the team that keeps it where it's going” “The passion and energy are what magnetised, attracted which add one huge amount of credibility for Flinder” “Dealing with challenges and those moments when lacking motivation… It's about empathy. It's about listening.” “ Our team is the most important asset that we have and the most important thing. We want to be a people organisation, and people first, and we really try and listen” "ROI on investing in a team like that is a happy workforce. That reduces churn." “The value-added part is the part on top where you break down the story, what it's actually telling you and challenge the business to, to think differently or take different actions or, you know, bringing that insight” “ If you think of it as your business, you add more value, you add more challenge” Links Flinder Effect: https://flinder.co/ Alastair Barlow https://uk.linkedin.com/in/abarlowfcca Strengths Finder 2.0 https://www.gallup.com/cliftonstrengths/en/254033/strengthsfinder.aspx DISC Personality Reports : https://www.speakingambition.com/disc
Episode 44 is here and just in time to get us through the next few days. In this episode, Kyle talks us through Sunshine Coast Marathon prep, plus we look at the results from the Guzzler, Flinder's Tour, QLD XC Champs and parkrun. As well, a fair bit has been happening on the Goat Loop recently so if you love stats, this is a good Goat Loop episode for you.
Populations are booming in regional centres at the moment, with many city-slickers keen for a tree or sea change amid the pandemic. While it is welcome in some areas, it puts others under strain with a lack of housing and infrastructure to cope. Andrew Parkin has been doing work in this field as a Professor in Business, Government and Law at Flinder's University. He joins Jennie Lenman in this podcast for a chat about it.
Do you need to build a personal brand as an accounting firm owner? In this podcast Alastair spoke about how he has grown his firm and client base through using his personal brand and focusing on his firm's profile. Listen to this podcast to learn how you can do the same for your firm. When it comes to a running a successful accounting firm there are only 4 things that move the needle forward i.e pricing, positioning, process and people. In this episode we have focused on getting your positioning right. To know more about the other three pillars hear my other podcasts here. Once you get these 4 pillars sorted, you will have a successful accounting firm. Time-stamped show notes [2:18] Introduction to Alastair and a bit more about his accounting and marketing journey[8:52] How Alastair offers finance function in his firm and how other firms can position themselves to offer this service.[15:59] Core applications that are used in Alastair's firm and how they determine what application would work best for each client[22:11] Does Alastair do the finance work himself or does he delegate it to his staffand how he trains his staff[27:04] How the name Flinder came up, how has building a brand has helped the firm.[30:21] Alastair's advice to accountants on building their personal brand. The benefits of having their own brand[35:30] How Alastair attracts the right talent for his firm[42:34] Future plans for Flinder Rate, Review, & Subscribe on Apple Podcasts "This is a really informative podcast. If you are looking to run your practice more efficiently AND improve profits and/or free time, then this is your first port of call..."
Ny dag, ny karatene pod! Strålende bukket med folk som treffes over skype. Lytt, le og lyv!
Ny dag, ny karatene pod! Strålende bukket med folk som treffes over skype. Lytt, le og lyv!
Recorded live from the HQ of triple Accounting Excellence award winners flinder, this week’s No Accounting for Taste podcast discusses the importance of having a growth mindset when growing a firm and the usual news from the world of accounting. To celebrate the 50th edition of No Accounting for Taste, the AccountingWEB podteam – Richard Hattersley and Tom Herbert – left the comforts of their Bristol podbooth and travelled to flinder HQ, which sits in the shadow of London’s Shard. Flinder’s head honcho Alastair Barlow welcomed the team into his office and of course showed off his three Accounting Excellence awards. Ah yes, the awards. Many have questioned what it takes to win just one accounting award. So in this podcast, Barlow reveals the secret sauce behind his firm’s hat trick at last month’s awards bash. Also stopping by the office was Eriona Bakrakurtaj, the managing director of Majors Accounts. Both Alastair and Eriona are proponents of having a growth mindset and attribute this in part to their firm’s success. Aside from the Carol Dweck name dropping, the pod quartet also discusses the week’s accounting news which covers everything from wellbeing and anxiety to the troubles at debt-riddled Pizza Express before finishing with some IR35 chat.
“That’s two good traits of a leader – to listen to what other people are saying and to ask questions and to challenge them.” – Alastair Barlow This week I am catching up with Alastair Barlow, Chief Dreamer at Flinder. Alastair shares his insights on taking big four strategic thinking when starting a practice, and how he and business partner Luke made the move from PWC to making on their own... Alastair shares the DNA running through Flinder, building a team fast and tells us about his rebellious side... What You Will Learn: - How Alistair Barlow took what he learnt at PwC into his own business, Flinder - How Flinder was conceptualized - How to nurture and build a team around your values - The qualities of a good leader - Questions a good leader should ask Thought for this episode – Questions to ask when it comes to leadership If you have a process in place, start to ask why. “Why do we do that? Is it necessary?” Start to ask, “What next? How can we make this better?” What questions could you be asking? If you’re running your own business, if you’re freelancing, if you’re working for yourself, start asking questions. See how you can push boundaries. Resources mentioned in episode Rebel Talent by Francesca Gino Connect with Alastair Barlow Alastair Barlow’s LinkedIn Alastair Barlow’s Twitter Alastair Barlow’s Instagram Follow Flinder Flinder website Flinder on Twitter Flinder on Facebook Flinder on Instagram Quotes “We left very good, promising careers at PwC, and it wasn’t on a whim. It was on a very structured plan / blueprint / vision. We knew what we were doing in terms of executing it and where we wanted to get to.” – Alastair Barlow “One of the gaps we say was, when we were working with one of these very entrepreneurial business, but the values didn’t align internally and externally as to who we were working with.” – Alastair Barlow “We did have some of our peers say to both of us that we were crazy and didn’t know what we were doing. But we had absolute certainty of what we were going to achieve.” – Alastair Barlow “It’s difficult, isn’t it, when finding a partner. It’s almost like another marriage.” – Host “I always challenge. I always try and put forward, always question, and never really settle.” – Alastair Barlow “I think one of the hardest things about growing a business is people.” – Alastair Barlow “We have four values in our business – entrepreneurial, authenticity, tenacity and excellence.” – Alastair Barlow “We set our objectives by the values of the business as well.” – Alastair Barlow “Leadership is about raising the people around you up. It’s not about you. It’s about the responsibility you have to other people.” – Alex “leadership sounds like questioning.” – Alastair Barlow “Leadership is always about pushing the boundaries and taking that next step.” – Alex
Clinton Fernandes: East Timor & Witness K. The background to the prosecution of Canberra lawyer Bernard Collaery and his client, a former officer of the Australian Secret Intelligence Service (ASIS) known only as Witness K. The charges relate to revelations that the Australian government spied on the government of East Timor during oil and gas treaty negotiations in 2004. Clinton’s new book, Island Off The Coast Of Asia, covers Australia’s foreign relations and discusses the espionage operation against East Timor. Clinton Fernandes is an Australian academic and former Australian Army officer. He teaches at the Australian Defence Force Academy campus of the University of New South Wales. His research interest is the 'national interest' in Australia's external relations II #Hands off Venezuela rally held outside Flinder's St Station Melbourne Sunday 3.II Bill Michell, Professor of Economic at Newcastle University on the banking commission.
In this episode we’re joined by Alastair Barlow from Flinder in the UK. Alastair has a wealth of experience from working for one of the Big 4 and just over 2 years ago he and his partner Luke decided to leave the Big 4 world behind to set up their own accountancy practice up with a view of being much more than just ‘accountants’ to their clients. Now in this episode Alastair had some awesome insights to share around building a culture that people are happy to work in, and also around using rich management information and data to offer insights to businesses that will truly help them to grow.It’s awesome and you’re going to love it.
Former Great Britain guard and 10-year pro Flinder Boyd joins us for Episode 33 of the Hoopsfix Podcast to focus on how he's found the transition to retirement and his time with the Great Britain programme. Boyd, now a writer for the likes of Bleacher Report, spoke openly and candidly about his basketball career and […]
Flinder Boyd is a former professional basketball player who now writes longform journalism. For 10 years, he played as a point guard in the lower and upper levels of many professional European basketball leagues. Now he’s writing, often about basketball. His story “20 Minutes at Rucker Park” profiles a young man’s cross-country journey on a Greyhound bus to New York City’s streetball Mecca. That story was published on SB Nation Longform. It was subsequently a Longform selection and named by Longreads a Top 5 Longread of the Week. It was also a Nieman Storyboard recommended reading selection and earned Boyd Longread’s Favorite New Writer Discovery in 2013. Finally, Sports on Earth called the story a Top 20 sports story in 2013. To top things off, the story was anthologized in Best American Sports Writing 2014. He’s written two other stories for SB Nation Longform; a profile of NBA player Chris Copeland and a first-hand account of the corruption and chaos of playing professional basketball in Slovakia. Since joining the podcast, Boyd has started writing for many other outlets, including Rolling Stone, Newsweek and Fox Sports, where he wrote about Rafael Palmeiro in April 2016. Boyd has also written for The Classical, Sports On Earth and BBC online among others. You can follow him on Twitter @FlinderBoyd.
“Coyote Bros” by Flinder Boyd is about three hard-partying young men from Corpus Christi, Texas who made a small fortune smuggling illegal immigrants into the United States. Flinder and I talk about how he found this story and put it together for Rolling Stone. Flinder Boyd is a former professional basketball player who played 10 years in Europe. His writing has appeared in The Classical, Sports on Earth, Fox Sports, Newsweek, and BBC online. His story "20 Minutes at Rucker Park" appeared in "The Best American Sports Writing 2014." Up next week: "My Son's Mystery Medical Condition and Our Family's Brave New World" by Taylor Harris.