The Solo Firm Isn’t New. Its Ability to Scale Is.
The "firm of one" used to be a ceiling. It was the choice you made when you valued lifestyle over scale. You could have a great life, but you couldn't get rich. That ceiling just turned into a floor. Thanks to AI agents, the smallest firms will soon achieve the highest margins.
NASBA Told Me to Stop Criticizing Them. So I’m Writing This Blog Post.
I spoke at the AICPA Learning and Development Symposium in March. I told a room full of professionals that CPE development is backward. I called multiple-choice questions "a box that has to be checked." NASBA didn’t like that one bit.
Earn Free CPE: Progression or Extinction: AI’s Accounting Reckoning
AI is reshaping entry-level accounting jobs and the billable hour. Sikich's Richard Lynch joins me on what the firm of 2030 looks like. Earn free CPE for listening.
Could AI Clone QuickBooks? One Developer Already Did
If a self-taught developer can clone the core functionality of QuickBooks in a weekend, what does that say about the defensibility of accounting software?
Earn Free CPE: The Billable Hour Is Blocking AI Adoption — And the Data Proves It
Two-thirds of accounting firms still bill by the hour — and it's killing AI adoption. Hear what the data reveals, and earn free CPE for listening.
The Death of the Pyramid & The Rise of the “Super Accountant”
Is the traditional accounting firm pyramid dead? Discover how AI is transforming firms into "diamond" structures and the rise of the Super Accountant. Learn why your firm must adapt its billing and culture to survive the AI reckoning.
Earn Free CPE: AI, Fake SOC 2 Reports, and What's at Stake for the Profession
David and I dug into this and a lot more on episode 480 of The Accounting Podcast. And now you can earn free CPE credit just for listening.
Your firm isn't a factory. Stop running it like one.
In the early 1900s, accounting firms took cost accounting theory — built to manage factories and railroads — and applied it to themselves. Over a century later, we're still running on it, and AI is about to expose exactly how broken it is.
Why Cost Accounting is the Wrong Way to Value Artificial Intelligence
AI can prepare a tax return. But is tax prep the bottleneck in your firm? If AI speeds up tax prep while the partner review queue moves at the same pace, your throughput remains the same. That’s the problem with applying cost accounting to the ROI of artificial intelligence.
SOC 2 as a Service or a Scam
A compliance startup allegedly sold hundreds of companies fake SOC 2 reports. If the allegations hold up, it's one of the most brazen examples of assurance fraud I've seen in years—and it raises serious questions about how we've built the trust infrastructure around these certifications.