CPA Trendlines Podcasts

CPAs can help guide four types of client transformation - and break through their own listlessness.The DisruptorsWith Liz FarrRon Baker has been pushing accountants to change how they think and how they operate their businesses for decades, starting more than 20 years ago by ditching the timesheet, and followed recently by adopting a subscription approach to services. Now that more than half of CAS firms have abandoned hourly billing, according to the latest CPA.com CAS benchmark survey, it’s time for accountants to move from providing services to guiding transformations.    CPA TRENDLINES CELEBRATES:The 100th Episode of The Disruptors MORE STREAMING: Brolin: The W.I.N. Leadership Formula | Gertrudes: How EOS & “Unreasonable Hospitality” Reshaped GrowthLab | Vilms: The Power of People in a Tech-Driven World | Dickerson: From Diagnosis to Disruption | Kapilovich: Treat People Like People | Martha Yasso: From Wall Street to Main Street | Jackie Meyer: Tax Plans in 90 Seconds? Believe It | Erica Goode: Build a $200K Firm in 15hrs/Week | Randy Crabtree: Live at the Intersection of Passion & Skill |McClelland and Telka: Women Ready to Rewrite the Rules of Accounting | Baker’s latest endeavor with co-founder Ed Kless, Threshold, aims to support accountants and other professionals in moving into the transformation economy. Threshold is a membership community where professionals can receive guidance, attend meetings and webinars, and learn from each other.  

Firms that prioritize outcomes over hours are better positioned to innovate, retain clients, and empower teams.By Rory Henry CFP®, BFA™For CPA TrendlinesOn the latest episode of The Holistic Guide to Wealth Management, Loren Fogelman, founder of Business Success Solutions, and Mike Maksymiw, CPA, Executive Director of Aprio Firm Alliance, share strategies for firm growth, profitability, and sustainability. Their discussion covers value-based pricing, client relationships, team culture, leadership authenticity, and the role of technology in shaping the accounting profession’s future. MORE Rory Henry and The Holistic Guide to Wealth Management BUY the Holistic Guide to Wealth Management Fogelman argues that firms often avoid raising rates out of fear of alienating long-time clients, but that reluctance undervalues their services. She stresses that a structured approach to rate increases allows firms to retain most clients while improving profitability.The first step, she explains, is identifying which clients are profitable and which ones drain resources. By focusing on “what’s behind the money,” firms can better understand client goals and position themselves as consultants rather than technicians.

Nonprofit employees face a new tax reality on fringe benefits.Quick Tax TipWith Art WernerCPE TodayFor years, employers could offer free or subsidized parking or public transit passes as a valuable fringe benefit without triggering extra tax for employees. Businesses could deduct the cost—up to an inflation-adjusted $325 per month in 2024—while employees enjoyed the perk tax-free. Click here for more Art Werner Catch more Art Werner, Wednesday, Sept. 3, for Tax Rumors, Episode 3, with CPA Steve Yoss, and hosted by CPA Trendlines’ Rick Telberg. That changed under the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA). Now, if a business deducts the cost of parking or transit benefits, employees must count it as taxable income. Employers can still shield employees from the tax by choosing not to deduct the expense.

Firms blame culture and training, yet AI, real estate, and talent pressures tell a different tale.Accounting InfluencersWith Rob BrownThe push to bring accountants back to the office is gaining momentum, echoing trends at corporate giants like JPMorgan, Amazon, and Meta. While firms frame return-to-office (RTO) policies as a way to boost collaboration, mentorship, and culture, industry observers question whether the real motivations include cost control, talent reshaping, and even quiet workforce reductions. MORE Accounting Influencers with Rob Brown In the latest episode of Accounting Influencers, host Rob Brown examines the drivers behind RTO in accounting, from Big Four mandates to real estate obligations, and explores whether being in the office truly advances careers or simply serves firm agendas.

Tough client calls, tax planning, and better leadership turned hard knocks into growth.It's Not Just the NumbersWith Penny Breslin and Damien GreatheadFor CPA TrendlinesWhen Lang launched Upside CFO, he didn’t set out with a grand blueprint. “If we’re being honest, we started off with simple bookkeeping,” he says. Over time, his firm evolved into a multi-faceted practice offering fractional CFO services, tax planning, and even financial planning partnerships. Along the way, he admits to trial and error. “Sometimes I do smart stuff. Sometimes I don’t,” Lang laughs. MORE Penny Breslin and Damien Greathead MORE Advisory & Consulting BUY "It's Not Just the Numbers" Yet from that messy middle came clarity: the future of advisory services lies in translating numbers into strategy, choosing the right clients, and building processes that can scale without sacrificing value.

Developing “power skills” like trust and coaching are critical.Gear Up for GrowthWith Jean CaragherFor CPA TrendlinesEmployee experience is no longer optional; it’s a strategic imperative, says Kassi Rushing, CEO and owner of Kassi Rushing Consulting. Appearing on Gear Up for Growth—hosted by Jean Caragher, president of Capstone Marketing, and powered by CPA Trendlines—Rushing shares practical insights for firms aiming to attract and retain top talent. More Gear Up for Growth here. | More Jean Caragher here | Get her best-selling handbook, The 90-Day Marketing Plan for CPA Firms, here | More CPA Trendlines videos and podcasts here The episode highlights two critical shifts firms must embrace:  Employee experience drives business performance, and Leadership must evolve with generational expectations. 

Employee ownership gave the firm a growth path on its own terms.MOVE Like ThisWith Bonnie Buol RuszczykFor CPA TrendlinesIn this episode of MOVE Like This, Jeremy Vokt, managing partner at Bland & Associates, discusses the firm’s journey to becoming Nebraska’s first ESOP-owned CPA firm. Vokt shares how Bland evolved from a small 17-person firm in 2006 to a thriving 130-person business today, thanks in part to its unique blend of traditional CPA services and specialized government consulting work focused on Medicare and Medicaid compliance.  MORE MOVE Vokt walks through the fundamentals of an Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP), explaining that it’s similar to a 401(k) but without employee contributions. Instead, employees are allocated shares annually based on their compensation, which grow in value over time through third-party valuations. This approach creates an ownership culture from day one for every employee – from the front desk to the managing partner – without the typical 15- to 20-year wait to buy into ownership. 

State boards, private equity, and outdated laws are forcing CPAs to downplay the very credential that defines them.Accounting ARCWith Liz Mason, Byron Patrick, and Donny ShimamotoCenter for Accounting TransformationFor many CPAs, the three letters after their name are more than a credential—they’re a badge of honor. Yet, a new wave of regulatory challenges and firm structures is calling into question when, where, and even if CPAs are allowed to use the designation they worked so hard to earn. MORE Accounting ARC: Audit Bags to TikTok Tags, Gen Z Talks Success | Students Challenge Accounting's Traditional Career Path | True Grit: Recognizing Struggles That Shape Our Successes | More Admins, Fewer Students, No Plan | What Career Advice Gets Wrong for Gen Z - And How to Fix It |Your Identity is Not a Liability | What Happens in Vegas… Gets Reported on a Tax Return | Burnout, Be Gone: Accounting Needs a Boundary Breakthrough | The Ultimate Business Hack You’re Probably Ignoring | Resilience, Real Talk, and the Road to Mental Wellness | Blockchain Could Still Reshape Accounting | What Gen Z Wants from Business | Firm Differentiation Depends Upon Client Service In the latest episode of Accounting ARC, hosts Liz Mason, CPA; Byron Patrick, CPA.CITP, CGMA; and Donny Shimamoto, CPA.CITP, CGMA, dig into one of the most contentious issues facing the profession: restrictions on displaying the CPA license in alternative practice structures and across state lines.

Unreported income from prior years may trigger a Circular 230 compliance issue that forces you to end the relationship.Quick Tax TipWith Art WernerCPE TodayIn the latest Quick Tax Tip from CPA Trendlines, tax guru Art Werner dives into a sticky — but all too familiar — scenario facing tax professionals: discovering a client’s unreported income years after the fact. Click here for more Art Werner Catch more Art Werner, Wednesday, Sept. 3, for Tax Rumors, Episode 3, with CPA Steve Yoss, and hosted by CPA Trendlines’ Rick Telberg. It begins innocently enough. A client brings in a Form 1099-K — perhaps for the first time — showing payments received through online sales platforms. The conversation reveals that this “new” activity isn’t new at all. The client has been running an internet-based side business for years, but never disclosed it to their preparer.“Now you have a Circular 230 problem,” Werner warns.

Equity pathways, training, and culture—not payouts—will determine which firms thrive in the P.E. era.Big 4 TransparencyBy Dominic Piscopo, CPAFor CPA TrendlinesIn an era when private equity’s arrival in public accounting has been met with suspicion, Nishaad Ruparel is reshaping the narrative. As president of Ascend, a $400+ million PE-backed platform that has quietly acquired or partnered with 17 accounting firms in just two years, Ruparel joins the Big 4 Transparency show to unpack what’s driving this wave and why it may be an interesting path forward for talent, succession, and innovation. Unlike the caricature of firms selling to PE “grabbing the bag,” Ruparel says the firm leaders choosing to join Ascend are doing it not for a quick payday, but for future growth and legacy.  MORE Dominic Piscopo MORE Private Equity MORE Pay & Compensation “These firms are looking at their clients and saying, ‘I’ve served this market for 50 years - how do I keep doing that in a way that’s synonymous with excellence?’” Ruparel explains. “Then they look at their people, at their deep bench, and ask how they can secure their future. And they realize: the cost of independence is rising fast.”