Top 30 Accounting & Bookkeeping Firm Owners to Follow
Author: Financial Cents
In this article
The accounting industry is constantly changing.
How do you stay informed about new technologies, regulatory changes, and industry shifts that are happening constantly?
A fantastic way to stay in the loop is by following thought leaders and firm owners in the field. These experts regularly share their insights and advice through social media, blogs, podcasts, and speaking engagements, offering valuable information.
In this article, we introduce you to 30 influential accounting and bookkeeping firm owners who are significantly impacting the industry. By following them, you’ll get fresh ideas and innovative strategies that can help you stay ahead.
Ready to get inspired? In no particular order, let’s get into it!
Our Top 30 Accounting & Bookkeeping Firm Owners to Follow
1. Kellie Parks, CPB
Kellie Parks, CPB, is an ardent devotee of online accounting platforms and all the apps that create a robust cloud accounting ecosystem. Kellie is an innovator, adopting cloud financial technology for her own business in 2009. As soon as QBO came to Canada in 2012, Kellie adopted it and has not looked back. Kellie is the owner of Calmwaters Cloud Accounting, a Canada-based bookkeeping firm, and the LeaderBean of Financial Cents’ Ambassador Program.
Focus on building genuine relationships with your clients rather than simply treating them as revenue sources - or worse, pests to your systems. Invest time in getting to know them and understanding their goals and challenges.
I have experienced being a customer where I have been left feeling like a hindrance to the business and its processes rather than why they exist - mostly in restaurants. Be cognizant of this. We need processes and systems to run our firms and deliver great work for our clients, but ensure your clients know the whys of how you do things and don’t make them feel like they are in the way of your business"
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2. Dawn Brolin, CPA, CFE
Dawn Brolin is The Designated Motivator for Accounting Professionals and the CEO of Powerful Accounting, Inc. For over two decades, Dawn has been a well-known and respected educator and motivator for her clients, other accounting professionals, and technology solution providers.
She is known for innovative collaborations within the accounting industry, especially with her technology ecosystem partners, who are included in her Team Brolin Starting Lineup.
Dawn has appeared on many top-rated news programs and is consistently recognized with distinction awards in the accounting profession.
She has delivered hundreds of webinars and keynote speeches and works with many technology solution providers to help them better understand how to create and market their solutions.
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3. Roman Villard, CPA
Roman is the Founder of Full Send Finance – a data-centric accounting firm for growth companies. After working at four firms in various capacities, Roman started Full Send out of a desire to enhance client experiences through technology, better internal workflows, and a focus on excellent service.
Roman has been a CPA for 12 years and is a business enthusiast who loves building, tinkering, and surrounding himself with smart and creative people. Roman loves to listen to other passionate people talk about their vision.
It brings him great fulfillment to play a small part in others’ success, whether through direct services or making a connection that opens doors.
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4. Kelly Rohrs, CPA
With over a decade of experience in public accounting, Kelly specializes in providing tax, accounting, and advisory services to small—to medium-sized businesses in the professional services industries.
Kelly is highly respected within the accounting community and was named one of the Top 40 Under 40 CPAs by CPA Practice Advisor in 2024.
Follow her on: LinkedIn and listen to her podcast From Zero to Millions: Accounting Edition.
5. Ryan Lazanis, CPA
Ryan Lazanis, CPA, CA, founded Xen Accounting in 2013, a 100% cloud-based accounting firm. Following its acquisition in 2018, Ryan started Future Firm, which helps firm owners design and implement an online, scalable firm that supports their ideal lifestyle.
He also sends a weekly newsletter to 3,500+ firm leaders who want to receive exclusive content & tips to help them create an online, scalable firm of their own.
Follow him on: LinkedIn, X, and listen to his podcast.
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6. Brandon Hall, CPA
Brandon is a CPA, CEO of The Real Estate CPA company, and host of The Real Estate CPA Podcast. He combines his passion for developing creative strategies to reduce tax bills with his interest in building long-term wealth as a real estate investor.
Brandon and his team are dedicated to helping high-net-worth individuals and general partners in real estate syndicates by leveraging technology and developing automated solutions.
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7. Heather Smith
Heather is an FCA, FCCA, FICB, commerce graduate, registered BAS agent, and accredited trainer; she sits on the advisory board of several businesses and has run a 100% cloud Platinum business for over a decade. She has worked with micro and small business owners to assist them in implementing automated management solutions that allowed them to develop accurate management reports and generate timely financial reports that they could use and understand.
She produces a popular accounting podcast called Accounting Apps Podcast and facilitates an online Xero MasterMind Facebook group focusing on cloud business platforms.
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How to personalize clients’ experiences in automated processes.
8. Randy Crabtree
Randy Crabtree, co-founder and partner of Tri-Merit Specialty Tax Professionals, is a widely followed author, lecturer, and podcast host for the accounting profession.
In May 2022, he was appointed to the Intuit Tax Council for a three-year term. Before starting Tri-Merit, he was managing partner of a CPA firm in the greater Chicago area.
Weak cultures rely on rules, while strong cultures rely on relationships. In our profession, rules are everywhere, and it’s easy to fall into the trap of relying on them. But relationships are everything. The people you work with are the most important. If we can build relationships and get to know our people, then instill things into the business that foster those relationships, that’s a process to strengthen culture"
Randy Crabtree.Randy has more than 30 years of public accounting and tax consulting experience in various industries and has worked closely with top executives to help them optimize their tax planning strategies.
Follow him on: LinkedIn
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9. Nikole Mackenzie
Nikole Mackenzie has a diverse range of work experience in the accounting and finance field. She is the CEO of Momentum Accounting, Inc., a firm that provides bookkeeping, financial reporting, payroll, and cash management services to various businesses. She also co-hosted the podcast Accounting High, where they discussed running a modern accounting firm.
Follow her on: LinkedIn
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This firm owner’s process for onboarding new clients and improving their experiences.
10. Nayo Carter-Gray
Nayo has garnered over 25 years of tax and accounting experience in the public and private sectors. She is a certified “techie” who wants to help save her planet, so she decided that a virtual paperless accounting practice and recycling would be the most efficient way.
With this practice, she gets to explore cloud-based solutions that make running a small business possible from anywhere you can connect to the internet.
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11. Logan Graf, CPA
Logan is a CPA firm owner based out of the Austin, TX, area. Focused on building a firm that makes our client’s lives easier while providing a great lifestyle to our staff. When Logan isn’t spending time on #TaxTwitter, he makes tax-related YouTube content mountain bikes and thinks about working on his 1965 Mustang project.
Follow him on: LinkedIn, X, and YouTube.
12. Dave Kersting, CEO Capovario
Dave Kersting is a founder, CEO, bookkeeper, and visionary. He owns a bookkeeping and financial consulting firm based in Denver, Colorado, but serves clients nationwide.
If a lead is promising, it may become a joint project with other firms (co-firming). If not, it remains with the original firm but can involve occasional collaboration. The "super firm" not only provides these leads and work opportunities but also offers extensive training to all participating firms, enhancing their skills and capabilities"
Dave KerstingHe helps businesses with every aspect of their operations by working with several trusted partners in a unique relationship called “co-firming.”
Follow him on: LinkedIn
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How this firm owner partnered with other firm owners for shared success.
13. Nicole Davis, CPA
Nicole (Butler) Davis is the founder and CEO at Butler-Davis Tax & Accounting, LLC.
She brings almost two decades of experience in accounting, tax, financial management, and advisory services to clients of all sizes in the real estate, construction, retail, financial, and legal services industries.
Nicole specializes in tax strategy and planning, small business, pharmacy, and construction accounting.
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14. Zane Stevens, CA
Zane Stevens is the Director of Protea Financial. He is registered as a Chartered Accountant (South Africa) with the South African Institute of Chartered Accountants. He received an Honors Degree in Accounting from Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University, where he also completed his undergraduate degree in Accounting.
Working with a wide range of clients, from owner-managed entities to large listed multinational companies, Zane obtained extensive experience in various sectors, including automotive, public sector, food, drink, consumer products, retail, healthcare, and agriculture.
Follow him on: LinkedIn
15. Mike Sylvester, CPA
Mike is a managing partner at SBS CPA Group, one of the most successful CPA firms in the Midwest. He has spent over 20 years in other areas of expertise.
Sylvester believes this background and experience give him an edge in working with clients because he can relate from a wide range of standpoints. He believes in partnering and enjoys this networking advantage with over two hundred businesses.
16. Andrea MacDonald, CPA
Andrea MacDonald, CPA, is the founder and owner of Pro Tax & Accounting. Andrea knows the importance of being a Certified Public Accountant and why it is important for your business to work with a CPA.
She has the education, experience, and, most importantly, the CPA license needed to get the job done.
17. Jason Staats, CPA
Jason Staats, CPA, has run a $5M accounting firm, built a successful SAAS company, sold a startup, and grown a thriving creatorpreneur business. In 2020, Jason began producing video content from his garage.
Now, he runs a YouTube channel for accounting firm owners and has produced commercials for companies like LinkedIn and Zapier.
He also runs Realize, an online community for accounting firm owners. When he isn’t tweeting, producing, or writing, he’s spending time with his wife and three young kids.
Follow him on: LinkedIn, X, and listen to his podcast.
18. Hector Garcia, CPA
Hector is a CPA practicing as an Accountant and QuickBooks Trainer/Consultant in Davie, Florida, at his firm Quick Bookkeeping & Accounting LLC. Before working in public accounting, Hector worked in the accounting & financial departments of several Fortune 500 companies, including Best Buy, Circuit City, Bank of America, and Wells Fargo.
His passion is in training, which comes from his successful career in which he applied his philosophy of continuous learning and sharing experiences with co-workers.
He teaches QuickBooks and Excel in his Doral, Florida, training center almost every weekend.
19. Kate Josephine Johnson
Kate Josephine Johnson, owner of Heritage Business Services, LLC, a virtual bookkeeping firm serving small businesses across the United States. Kate is also the Chief Hustler at Bookkeeping Side Hustle, where she helps other accounting professionals build virtual accounting careers they love.
She holds an MBA from the Yale School of Management and a BA in Economics from Baylor University. She was recognized as one of the Top 50 Women in Accounting, a QuickBooks Online Advanced ProAdvisor (the highest certification offered by QuickBooks), and a Certified FreshBooks Accounting Partner.
20. Veronica Wasek, CPA
Veronica is the founder of VM Wasek CPA, LLC, and the 5 Minutes bookkeeping community. She is nationally known as an expert in small business, accounting, and QuickBooks.
She was hand-picked by Intuit Corporation as one of only 16 accounting professionals to serve on Intuit’s Accountant and Advisor Customer Council 2016-2017.
Veronica was named a “Top 100 ProAdvisor” by Insightful Accountant in 2016, 2017, and 2018. She was also named one of the “Top 10 ProAdvisors” by Insightful Accountant in 2018, and she received high recognition from over 100K ProAdvisors worldwide.
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21. Jason M Blumer, CEO Blumer CPAs
Jason founded Thriveal to help entrepreneurial CPA firm owners connect, learn, and grow. Since 2010, Thriveal has helped many small firms grow by providing a community, coaching services, webinars, firm consulting, monthly growth groups, and live events.
Jason is also the CEO of Blumer & Associates, CPAs. The firm was one of the first to move from a traditional office to a virtual environment 2012, serving as an advisory firm for the design, marketing, and creative agency services niches.
Follow him on: LinkedIn
22. Geni Whitehouse, CPA
Geni co-founded Solve Services, a remote bookkeeping business for the wine industry. She divides her time between working as a winery consultant at Brotemarkle, Davis & Co in the Napa Valley, working with MentorPlus.com to move the profession forward, writing, speaking, and tweeting at EvenANerd.com.
Her mission is to make boring subjects enjoyable, and she is seldom at a loss for topics. She is a regular keynote presenter at CPA and Technology conferences nationwide. She has been named one of the Top 100 Influencers by Accounting Today, 25 Thought Leaders in Accounting, and one of the 25 Most Powerful Women in Accounting by CPA Practice Advisor.
In addition, she was a member of the TEDxNapaValley organizing committee and was the first speaker at their inaugural event.
Follow her on: LinkedIn
23. Jason Andrew
Jason Andrew is a chartered accountant and founder of the Arbor Group, a holding company in the financial services business, which offers accounting and tax services, funds management, and corporate advisory.
His personal mission and passion are to improve the financial literacy of entrepreneurs and executives and change the current worldview of the accounting profession.
Follow him on: LinkedIn
24. Alyssa J Dillon
Alyssa is the CEO and Financial Consultant of AD Finance Manager. She is a proud mom of two, and though she had always wanted to finish her Bachelor’s degree, she is proud to also own the unofficial title of “college dropout.”
She has held many positions in leadership during her career in corporate America, including a position as a CFO for a major corporation.
As a dreamer, she envisioned for years that she would own her firm. When “the perfect storm” occurred during her last corporate position, she followed my instincts and quit.
Follow her on: Facebook
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How Alyssa grew her firm to $324k in one year while balancing motherhood.
25. Reza Hooda, FCA CTA
Reza is the founder of the Profitable Accountants Community, which is dedicated to helping accountancy firms become more profitable and giving their owners the time, money, and freedom they crave.
He is also a qualified Chartered Accountant and Chartered Tax Adviser at Walji & Co., where he adds value to the existing client base and grows the practice further through his in-depth understanding of the importance of appropriate planning to maximize wealth creation from an individual and corporate perspective.
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26. Jackie Meyer, CPA, CCA
Jackie is the founder of Meyer Tax Consulting, LLC. She is a 40 under 40 honoree with CPA Practice Advisor 2018-2022. She is a pioneering serial entrepreneur speaker, focusing on practical solutions that enhance tax & financial literacy, from recruitment and retention to leveraging AI in accounting firms.
As the former founder of an award-winning CPA firm (2010-2022), she now leads TaxPlanIQ, a SaaS Tax Advisory Platform (AICPA 2023 Accelerator Cohort).
Follow her on: LinkedIn
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27. Nick Sinclair
As the CEO of TOA Global and coach to entrepreneurial accounting firm owners, Nick has leveraged 20+ years of experience in the financial services and accounting industry to help firms solve the talent crisis and grow their businesses.
He is also an accounting offshoring specialist, a coach to high-performing accounting firms, speaker, and podcaster.
Follow him on: LinkedIn
28. Katie Thomas, CPA
Katie Thomas, CPA, is the founder and owner of Leaders Online LLC. She is a digital marketing strategist, content creation expert, and national speaker.
Additionally, she helps her clients implement the right marketing strategies to reach their target audience in a way that captivates their attention, cultivates genuine relationships, and grows their business.
29. Terrell A. Turner, CPA
Terrell A. Turner, CPA, is CEO of the New York Times-recognized accounting firm TLTurner Group. He is a 40-under-40 Black CPA and a two-time Top 20 globally recognized finance influencer.
His firm is focused on providing bookkeeping and CFO services for law firms. Terrell hosts multiple podcasts and is a sought-after public speaker in the accounting and legal industry.
Follow him on: LinkedIn, X, and listen to his podcast.
30. Nancy McClelland CPA, MAFM
Nancy passionately believes that small business success, especially in the accounting industry, hinges on personal relationships, innovative solutions, and dependable technology.
With her fully remote yet community-focused firm, The Dancing Accountant, CPA Nancy McClelland has spent over 22 years committed to offering affordable, personalized, and high-quality accounting and advisory services to independent business owners, along with education and consulting for the professionals who assist them.
Follow her on: LinkedIn
Conclusion
Keeping up with these thought leaders is like having a front-row seat to the best business class out there. They are experts in their field who are navigating the ups and downs of the accounting industry and sharing their journey along the way. They don’t claim to know it all.
By following them, you can pick up some great tips, discover new strategies, and get inspired to try new things in your accounting or bookkeeping firm.
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What a great list! Thank you for compiling this.