Future-Proof

You would be hard-pressed to think of an area that has a greater impact on the working world than where we work. The pandemic has taken the cat out of the bag – so to speak – and there’s no putting it back. Working from home is here to stay. Now it’s up to us to keep it productive.Kassi Rushing is a communication and people strategist who works with organizations to bring their cultural visions to life. She's got experience and expertise in workplace culture, high-performing teams, diversity, equity and inclusion strategy, leadership and pipeline development, employee engagement, and communication strategy – all of which makes her the perfect person to talk about the future of work. Kassi gave a GREAT presentation at one of the MACPA’s recent town hall meetings.She talks about some of the landmines that employers need to watch out for, the opportunities that are there for those of us who figure out how to do this right, what employees can do to help make this transition easier, and a look at the future of work itself.To learn more, and for the complete show notes, visit blionline.org/blog.Resources:kassirushing.comLinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/kassirushing“Allowing More Work From Home? Avoid These Common Mistakes”Future-Proof is a production of Crate Media

It seems as if everyone wants to offer client accounting services, but not many know where to start.Hitendra Patil is the Head of Customer Success at AccountantsWorld. He is a fixture in Accounting Today’s list of The 100 Most Influential People in Accounting. And he’s one of the biggest fans – and, certainly, one of the most knowledgeable people on the subject – of client accounting services. He has a new book called “The Definitive Success Guide to Client Accounting Services.”He talks about the opportunities that CAS provides, the barriers getting in the way of their adoption, the new skills we’ll have to learn to be successful, and what’s in the future for CAS. Like everything else these days, it’s evolving fast. If you’ve been thinking about diving into the CAS pool, this is a great place to start.To learn more and for the complete show notes, visit blionline.org/blog.Resources:Read: “The Definitive Success Guide to Client Accounting Services”CAS Begins With a MindsetTop Five CAS Killers and How to Overcome ThemFuture-Proof is a production of Crate Media

David Nour is CEO of The Nour Group, where they're all about building strategic relationships to help leaders reimagine the future. He's an advisor to Fortune 500 execs, a professor at Emory University, and the author of 11 books. His latest is “Curve Benders: How Strategic Relationships Can Power Your Non-Linear Growth in the Future of Work.”What are curve benders? How do you define "strategic relationships?" What is non-linear growth? What is the future of work? And how does all this fit together?David joins us to talk about his notion of curve-benders and how they are more than just strategic relationships. They are a series of forces that change how we live, work, and even play.To learn more, and for the complete show notes, visit blionline.org/blog.Resources:nourgroup.comRead: “Curve Benders”What Relationships are the Core of Your Personal Market Value?Future-Proof is a production of Crate Media

Donny Shimamoto is the founder and managing director of IntrapriseTechKnowlogies, an advisory-focused CPA firm in Honolulu. He’s also an incredibly active volunteer and thought leader for the American Institute of CPAs, doing work in information management, IT, and assurance services.His latest project is leading the launch of the new Center for Accounting Transformation. Its mission statement reads: “The Center enables transformation by guiding members through the adoption and change required in order to step into the future of the accounting profession. We are not here to convince people to change, but rather to empower those who seek an alternative to the status quo.” We talk about how they are doing that, and why.To learn more, and for the complete show notes, visit blionline.org/blog.Resources:intraprise.usimprovetheworld.netevolutionofcpa.orgFuture-Proof is a production of Crate Media

Kelly Phillips Erb runs a very popular Twitter account under the handle, TaxGirl. She has written a regular Forbes column for years under the moniker, and now she’s doing the same for Bloomberg. She’s been interviewed by every big-name media company in the business about all things tax: CNN, Reuters, Time, NPR, ABC, CBS, MarketWatch, and more. She is also a managing attorney with ErbLaw, based in Glenmoore, Pennsylvania.We talk about the state of tax professionals more than a year into the pandemic, how the industry has changed due to it, and of course the ways it will continue to evolve moving forward.To learn more, and for the complete show notes, visit blionline.org/blog.Resources:taxgirl.comTwitter: @taxgirlInstagram: @therealtaxgirlFuture-Proof is a production of Crate Media

Andrew Codd is the host of Strength in the Numbers Show, a top-rated podcast aiming to help solve significant problems in the finance industry. He’s also an author, speaker, coach, trainer, and a senior member of After-Sales Finance Operations for Dell. Based in Ireland, Andrew brings an international perspective to the profession's issues and offers a fresh opinion on potential solutions.Andrew Codd listens to people in various roles throughout the industry, giving him valuable insight into making it future-proof. We talk about some of the ties that bind accounting and finance pros, the importance of that human element to the future of our work, and some of his favorite lessons he’s learned after more than 300 episodes.To learn more, and for the complete show notes, visit blionline.org/blog.Resources:sitnshow.comTwitter: @andrewSITN"The ABCs of Leadership in Crisis""Stay calm … and stay extraordinary"138. The path to excellence is 'extreme humanism' | with Tom PetersRead: “Excellence Now: Extreme Humanism”Future-Proof is a production of Crate Media

Jacquelyn Tracy is chair of the AICPA's Women's Initiatives Executive Committee. Jessica McClain is a member of the board of directors of the MACPA Foundation, which works to build a diverse talent pipeline to ensure the strength of the CPA profession for years to come.We talk about the excellent work being done by both of these organizations, the role of women in the profession, and why it's crucial that we expand it for future generations.To learn more, and for the complete show notes, visit blionline.org/blog.Resources:linkedin.com/in/jessica-e-mcclainlinkedin.com/in/jacquelyntracyAICPA Women's Initiatives Executive CommitteeThe MACPA Foundation"Adding Women to the C-Suite Changes How Companies Think"Future-Proof is a production of Crate Media

Dr. Amy Zalman is the former CEO and president of the World Future Society. While she was there, she repositioned the World Future Society for renewed future global impact — helping a transformational organization transform itself. She’s also the founder of Oryx Communications and chair of information integration at the National War College, where she’s introduced new ways of understanding information to future senior leaders so they can better inform their perspectives on the ways the world is changing —  not just technologically, but also culturally and geopolitically. She’s currently the founder of Prescient, a foresight consultancy that helps leaders and companies anticipate new opportunities, markets and threats before the competition does. In Prescient’s words, “Our clients manage the future by creating it.”Amy Zalman talks about anticipation: Is it a skill, a mindset, or a bit of both? How does it differ from critical and strategic thinking? How can we tell if we’re moving fast enough? And how should we start reimagining this profession going forward? It’s a fascinating and essential conversation with one of the world’s true deep thinkers in this space. To learn more, and for the complete show notes, visit blionline.org/blog.Resources:amyzalman.comworldfuture.orgnwc.ndu.eduprescient2050.comJeff Bezos-backed accounting start-up hits $1.2 billion valuation after new funding roundPilot's $100m Funding Round: What it Means for the Accounting ProfessionFuture-Proof is a production of Crate Media

Tom Peters is the co-author of “In Search Of Excellence” and author of seventeen other best-selling books. He’s a legend in the business and consulting world, devoted to studying what makes leaders great and how to achieve business excellence.Tom’s latest book, “Excellence Now: Extreme Humanism,” may also be his last. In the afterword to the book, he says, “This book, in effect, IS my memoir. It is solely devoted to the things that I care deeply — VERY deeply! — about. The ideas are not complex; they require no mastery of calculus or chemistry or physics. But the practice thereof is honored in the breach more often than not. Collecting and sharing these ideas are my life’s work and, indeed, my life.”In this conversation, Tom talks about joy, compassion, caring, kindness, patience, and positivity — the kinds of skills that everyone else calls “soft skills.” Tom is adamant that they are truly hard skills, that they’re the ones we need to master because they pay off in the most significant way in the long run.To learn more, and for the complete show notes, visit blionline.org/blog.Resources:tompeters.comTwitter: twitter.com/tom_petersRead: “Excellence Now: Extreme Humanism”Future-Proof is a production of Crate Media

As we near the end of Women’s History Month, and with Black History Month still firmly in our memory, it’s essential to take a look at diversity and inclusion in the CPA profession — both how far we’ve come and how much further we have to go.Kimberly Ellison-Taylor is a former Maryland Association of CPAs chair, a former AICPA Chair, and the executive director of finance thought leadership for Oracle. She is also the incoming chair of the AICPA’s National Commission on Diversity and Inclusion, and the incoming president of Beta Alpha Psi, the international honor society for accounting and finance students and professionals. She has her pulse on the profession’s D&I initiatives. She talks about what the AICPA’s National Commission is focusing on these days, how generational issues factor into the diversity-and-inclusion conversation, and how we can start moving this conversation away from groups of individuals and toward more inclusiveness across the board.To learn more, and for the complete show notes, visit blionline.org/blog.Resources:AICPA National Commission on Diversity & InclusionMcKinsey Women in the Workplace 2020Watch: International Women's Day: Women strengthen the accounting profession, during and beyond COVID-19Future-Proof is a production of Crate Media

As the world evolves, the concept of leadership is evolving as well. And the leaders of today are finding they need new skills to succeed.Jennifer Elder is a thought leader, trainer, and business coach dedicated to the concept of business transformation. She offers programs through the Business Learning Institute about strategic leadership, and she’s going to share about it from a corporate finance perspective. She tells us how finance is taking on a more strategic role in most organizations, what characteristics set strategic leaders apart from the rest of the pack, how finance’s role will continue to evolve, and how the pandemic impacts all of it.To learn more, and for the complete show notes, visit blionline.org/blog.Resources:jenniferelder.comLinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/jenniferhelder“10 Principles of Strategic Leadership”Future-Proof is a production of Crate Media

If you’re feeling a serious lack of energy in your life right now, know that you’re not alone. People around the world are starting to face this as we move past year one of the pandemic. But there are strategies for moving past this energy drain, and Greg Conderacci is here to share some of them with us. Greg is a senior fellow with the Business Learning Institute, a consultant, and a faculty member at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. He has researched and written extensively about personal energy’s impact on careers and organizations.Greg talks about the different types of energies that are at play in an environment like this, the signs that we might be about to hit that wall, and the strategies for bringing a little balance back into our lives.To learn more, and for the complete show notes, visit blionline.org/blog.Resources:linkedin.com/in/gregconderacciRead: "Getting UP!"Professor Ahmad’s Six-Month Wall: Rehumanizing The Virtual WorkplaceFuture-Proof is a production of Crate Media

If there’s one word that describes the past year with a fair amount of accuracy, it would have to be “change.” It’s been a year of unprecedented change, in a lot of ways, and that change impacts each of us — often in ways that are very personal.Karl Ahlrichs is going to help us explore how change impacts us and what we can do to adapt. Karl is a bestselling author and an acclaimed national speaker who works across all industries and has a wealth of experience in human resources, operations, and senior-level problem-solving.He talks about the personal impact of change, the different types of change, the different ways in which we process it, the four stages we all go through when dealing with change, and the most important thing we should be focusing on as we work our way through any sort of change.To learn more, and for the complete show notes, visit blionline.org/blog.Resources:expertspeaks.comlinkedin.com/in/karlahlrichsAll Change is PersonalThe Personal Impact of Workplace Change: Letting Go & Crossing OverUnderstanding The Impacts Of ChangeFuture-Proof is a production of Crate Media

Personal finance isn’t always a fun topic to talk about. But the sooner you start to think about it, the less stress it’s going to cause down the line.Rachel Richards took this principle to heart when she paid her way through college by selling Cutco Knives, graduating with no debt. She took her love of helping people with their finances and her talent for sales and became a financial advisor, but her heart wasn’t really in it. She found the world of investment properties and worked that until she was 27, quitting her job and retiring while living off of the $15,000 a month in passive income that she earned from her 40 residential rental units.She’s the author of two books, “Money Honey” and “Passive Income, Aggressive Retirement.” She’s also written an online course entitled “Get Your Financial Shit Together.” She certainly has her finances together. She shares what lessons she learned along the way, what advice she might offer young professionals as they begin their savings journey — and even what older savers might be able to take from her journey and apply to our own.To learn more, and for the complete show notes, visit blionline.org/blog.Resources:moneyhoneyrachel.comRead: “Money Honey”Read: “Passive Income, Aggressive Retirement.”Course: “Get Your Financial $hit Together”Read: “The Future Is Faster Than You Think”“Ultimate Guide to Retirement”Future-Proof is a production of Crate Media

We have spent the past several years talking about the exponential advancement of technology and what it all means for our profession. Most of those conversations tend to gravitate toward the public practice side of the profession, but today we’re taking a closer look at how those advances in technology are impacting things like financial reporting, cybersecurity, auditing, assessments, and other compliance-related issues. Because tech trends are impacting those things just as heavily as any other area of the profession. There is quite a bit to consider when it comes to automation within finance and accounting departments, and AJ Yawn and Jeff Cook of ByteChek are going to help us keep it all straight.To learn more, and for the complete show notes, visit blionline.org/blog.Resources:bytechek.comlinkedin.com/in/ajyawnlinkedin.com/in/jeffcookcpaRolling out finance automation with the right prioritiesFuture-Proof is a production of Crate Media

There are some big changes taking place at the Business Learning Institute. Tom Hood, now the former president and CEO of the Maryland Association of CPAs and the Business Learning Institute, is the new executive vice president of business growth and engagement for the Association of International Certified Professional Accountants — the global arm of the American Institute of CPAs. Before Tom closes out his time with the MACPA, we capture some of his wisdom so that we can learn from it going forward. He talks about where the profession was 24 years ago, how far it’s come in the past quarter-century, and most importantly, where it’s going from here.To learn more, and for the complete show notes, visit blionline.org/blog.Resources:linkedin.com/in/tomhoodMaryland takes global stage as Tom Hood, BLI join AICPA teamFuture-Proof is a production of Crate Media

George Willie is a managing partner with Bert Smith & Company, a CPA and management consulting firm with offices in D.C., Baltimore, and the Virgin Islands. He has served as chair of the AICPA’s Private Companies Practice Section and the Montgomery County Employee Retirement System Board of Investment Trustees, and is also an immigrant originally from Jamaica. He has some great stories to tell, and some great insights into the CPA profession’s efforts around diversity and inclusion, the importance of mentorship, the work that groups like the Maryland Association of CPAs are doing to drive the profession forward in this area.To learn more, and for the complete show notes, visit blionline.org/blog.Resources:bertsmithco.comCompanies with more women in management have outperformed their more male-led peers, according to Goldman Sachs4 ways diversity & inclusion is good for businessFuture-Proof is a production of Crate Media

We’re approaching the third wave of Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) relief, and while we’ve seen these before, there’s good reason to be prepared for what’s new this time around.Erik Asgeirsson is the president and CEO of CPA.com. Joining him is Lisa Simpson, who leads the American Institute of CPAs’ Private Companies Practice Section in the development of practice management tools that address topics that are most important to firm owners.They talk about where we stand with this latest round of funding, what they’re hearing from firms and their clients, what CPAs should know at this point in the process, whether they’re expecting things to go a little more smoothly than they did in earlier PPP rounds, and how things are going with the new CPA Business Funding Portal, which is designed to help CPAs better manage their clients’ loan applications and forgiveness requests.To learn more, and for the complete show notes, visit blionline.org/blog.Resources:CPA.comlinkedin.com/in/erikasgeirssonlinkedin.com/in/lisasimpsoncpa"$5 Billion in P.P.P. Loans Were Approved Last Week""Paycheck Protection program reopens Tuesday for second round of small-business loans""CPA firms: It’s time to reset your approach to PPP"Future-Proof is a production of Crate Media

There are so many changes being made in the world of finance. Many of them could be seen coming, but due to the pandemic, those changes are being made much faster than anyone could have guessed.Wayne Slater is the director of product marketing for Prophix, which helps mid-market companies achieve their goals with innovative, cloud-based Corporate Performance Management software. He talks about the accelerations that are disrupting corporate finance, how businesses have had to shift in order to meet those challenges, and the types of new tools finance leaders need to put their businesses and their people in a position to succeed.To learn more, and for the complete show notes, visit blionline.org/blog.Resources:prophix.comLinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/wayne-slater-53234810 Trends for Finance to Navigate NowFuture-Proof is a production of Crate Media

Allen DeLeon is a founding partner of DeLeon & Stang in Gaithersberg, MD, and is one of the most active volunteers in the Maryland Association of CPAs. He’s a member of the boards of directors for numerous community organizations and he has a solid pulse on what’s going on in the profession. Allen retired at the beginning of 2021, and as he steps away from his day-to-day duties, he talks about how things have changed during his career, and how he sees the future playing out for the profession. Sometimes, in order to become future-ready, we have to take a good, hard look at our past while we prepare for what’s to come.To learn more, and for the complete show notes, visit blionline.org/blog.Resources:deleonandstang.comlinkedin.com/in/allendeleon“The Year Ahead: 2021 in Numbers.”Future-Proof is a production of Crate Media

John O’Leary is a thought leader, a world-renowned speaker, and best-selling author of “On Fire” and “In Awe.” When he was a kid, he burned himself really badly—he suffered burns on 100 percent of his body. Doctors gave him a 1 percent chance of survival. And yet he survived. Not without some issues. He spent months in the hospital, he had numerous surgeries, his fingers were amputated—all of this around his 10th birthday. But he survived, and he persevered.This has been a wildly difficult year for almost anybody, but we can all move forward with a sense of gratitude and awe—but don’t forget the lessons that this time has taught us.To learn more, and for the complete show notes, visit blionline.org/blog.Resources:Learn more: johnolearyInspires.comRead: "In Awe"Future-Proof is a production of Crate Media

What’s happening at the state level that might have an impact on the accounting and finance world? There’s a lot that’s going on in state capitals across the country that bears watching. Here to talk about all of this is Tom Hood, the president and CEO of the Maryland Association of CPAs and the Business Learning Institute. The issues we’re talking about today are things that Tom is watching in Maryland, but these could be issues in any state in the nation. Nearly all states are either dealing with issues like these right now or are watching these issues very closely in the event that they might have to deal with them down the road.To learn more, and for the complete show notes, visit blionline.org/blog.Resources:macpa.org/cpadaymacpa.org/advocacyblionline.orgRead: “Threats to licensing remain a concern for CPAs amid pandemic,”42. Get Involved: Legislative Advocacy at the Local Level | with State Senator Brian FeldmanFuture-Proof is a production of Crate Media

Cheryl Duvall is the Consulting Practice Area leader for Gensler’s Southeast Region, the renowned global integrated architecture, design, planning and consulting firm with more than 5,000 professionals in 50 offices worldwide. Cheryl talks about the nature of work, what our workspaces will actually look like going forward, whether or not we will need offices in the future, how leadership is changing as a result, and the skills future-ready leaders will need to develop.To learn more, and for the complete show notes, visit blionline.org/blog.Resources:gensler.comLinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/cheryl-duvall-ab429928Coronavirus: How the world of work may change foreverWhy Working From Home is the Future of AccountingFuture-Proof is a production of Crate Media

What we do isn’t who we are; we are all something more than our job. So, what’s that thing that really defines us?Our guest John Garrett, for example, is a CPA, yes. AND he’s an author, a standup comedian, an Emmy Award nominee, and a thought-provoker — he’s a lot besides just a CPA, and he’s encouraging all of us to find our “and” too. He recently wrote a book on the topic — “What’s Your And? Unlock the Person With the Professional”  — to teach others how sharing your personal passions improves work performance, builds culture, and strengthens relationships with colleagues and clients.To learn more, and for the complete show notes, visit blionline.org/blog.Resources:Learn more at thejohngarrett.comRead: “What’s Your And? Unlock the Person With the Professional” Listen: “What’s Your And?” podcastFuture-Proof is a production of Crate Media

As with pretty much every other trend out there, this pandemic has acted as an accelerator for cyber threats. This was a big problem before COVID-19, but it’s an even bigger problem now. And that makes this week’s conversation particularly relevant, and it’ll likely only become more relevant over the coming months.To help us get ahead of this unsetting trend, we had a conversation with Scott Fleszar, chief operating and strategy officer for SafeSend. SafeSend’s mission is to accelerate the tax and accounting profession with innovative, emerging technologies that help practitioners work more efficiently and better serve their clients. One of their products, SafeSend Returns — which provides accounting firms an automated, centralized and standardized way to assemble and deliver tax returns digitally — recently won an Innovation Award from CPA Practice Advisor. SafeSend Returns To learn more, and for the complete show notes, visit blionline.org/blog.Resources:safesend.comSafeSend Returns: safesend.com/safesend-returns/ Facebook: www.facebook.com/safesendLinkedIn: linkedin.com/company/cpaperless-llcTwitter: @safesendreturnsFuture Learning Framework"Internal auditors grapple with cybersecurity and crisis management amid coronavirus"“Now in hackers’ crosshairs: Accounting and finance firms”Future-Proof is a production of Crate Media

Joe Biden is the president-elect of the United States of America, but the future of America’s tax policy is going to largely depend on the way a few remaining Senate races turn out. There are a lot of questions about how things will turn out, but Ed Karl is going to try to clarify a few things. Ed is vice president of taxation for the American Institute of CPAs, a member of the Maryland Association of CPAs, and he’s got a good sense of the tax situation in our country.Ed joined us not long after Biden was projected to win to talk about the impact of the election, the pandemic, and a number of other issues, and not just the prospect of new tax policy but on the upcoming tax season as well. And if you had to boil it all down to one word, he said that word might be “patience.”To learn more, and for the complete show notes, visit blionline.org/blog.Resources:aicpa.orgLinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/edward-s-karl-cpa-027a7442Twitter: @edwardkarltax"Prospects for Federal Tax Policy After the 2020 Election""Democrats express concerns about IRS readiness for next year's filing season"Future-Proof is a production of Crate Media

Twyla Verhelst is one of the top 50 women in accounting. She is head of the Accountant Channel and leader of the New Accounting Professionals Program at Freshbooks. She’s also a CPA and has deep personal experience in advisory accounting, so she knows how to leverage technology and create high-value client experiences.We’ve discussed the need to create the “Future-Ready CPA,” and Twyla has a different term for these CPAs of the future. Twyla believes CPAs and accountants have to stop thinking of themselves as business historians and instead start thinking of themselves as progressive, pushing the industry and leading us forward. Listen to learn how you can become a progressive CPA.To learn more, and for the complete show notes, visit blionline.org/blog.Resources:LinkedIn: ca.linkedin.com/in/twylav"From essential to indispensable: The 5 stages of navigating COVID-19”“Growth Drivers For Accounting Firms In The Post-Pandemic Era”Future-Proof is a production of Crate Media

The world of financing touches everything—including sports. Jeff Goering is the CFO of the Baltimore Ravens NFL team.He talks about how life as a CFO for an NFL team differs from your typical job in finance—and the ways in which it doesn’t. He also discusses the impact COVID-19 is having on teams, how corporate finance has changed in recent years, and how the role of the CFO has changed right along with it.To learn more, and for the complete show notes, visit blionline.org/blog.Resources:baltimoreravens.commacpa.org/macpa-member-special-offersmacpa.org/future-learning-frameworkFuture-Proof is a production of Crate Media

Diversity and inclusion is important. If we want to future-proof our careers, our organizations, our profession, it has to include diversity, equality, and inclusion.Anoop Mehta is president of Science Systems and Applications in Lanham, Maryland. It’s a leading provider of scientific research and development, engineering, and information analytics services in the Earth and space science disciplines. He is also a former chair of the Maryland Association of CPAs’ Board of Directors, and a current member of the Board of Directors for the American Institute of Certified Professional Accountants, and a council member of the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants. He’s also an immigrant, an Indian-American, and he has a unique take on this country and this profession, and what the future holds.To learn more, and for the complete show notes, visit blionline.org/blog.Resources:linkedin.com/in/anoop-mehta-2741ab1bRead: “How Businesses Can Recruit and Develop More Young People of Color”Future-Proof is a production of Crate Media

Byron Patrick is a chameleon of sorts, changing his specialty with the times and staying ahead of the curve. He’s a good friend of our host, Bill Sheridan, who met him in 2006 as the Director of IT for KatzAbosch in Maryland. He had just created a virtual office for the firm in an online virtual world called Second Life. Virtual space is a great place to teach and learn, and other platforms have come along since then and proved it right. Byron was thinking about this concept long before anyone else in the profession.He went on to co-found an organization that focused on remote work technologies and solutions in 2008, also well before remote work became a popular idea. He joined the Board of Directors for the Maryland Association of CPAs and eventually chaired that board during the 2013-14 fiscal year, becoming one of the youngest MACPA chairs ever in the process.In 2019, he joined the team at Botkeeper, which provides automated bookkeeping and accounting solutions for firms, as their director of pre-sales and solutions. In this conversation, he talks about automation, A.I., and what they allow firms to do that they can’t or haven’t thought about before.To learn more, and for the complete show notes, visit blionline.org/blog.Resources:botkeeper.comlinkedin.com/in/byronpatrickFuture-Proof is a production of Crate Media

Alexander Hagerup is the founder of Vic.AI, a strategic partner of the MACPA and the Business Learning Institute. Alex is a serial tech entrepreneur based in New York with a strong passion for artificial intelligence.Alex joins us to talk about A.I., and how far we’ve come, and where we are now in terms of the automation possibilities that A.I. gives us. And maybe most importantly, why CPAs should be paying attention to this, and what this technology will do for us that will improve our lives, and the lives of our clients and customers.To learn more, and for the complete show notes, visit blionline.org/blog.Resources:vic.ailinkedin.com/in/alexanderhagerupFuture-Proof is a production of Crate Media

Ed Kless is senior director of partner development and strategy at Sage, a senior fellow at the VeraSage Institute, and the co-host of the Soul of Enterprise podcast.Ed believes that so much of the leadership advice available out there, in hundreds of books on every topic imaginable, completely misses the boat on what great leadership is about. And that, to Ed, is “Healing Leadership.” Ed shares with us what that term means, how most people are getting it wrong, and how you can learn it and practice it in your business and life.To learn more, and for the complete show notes, visit blionline.org/blog.Resources:Listen: Soul of EnterpriseLinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/edklessTwitter: twitter.com/edklessRead: "Healing Leadership"Future-Proof is a production of Crate Media

Financial performance isn’t the only metric of value we should care about, so why is it all that we report on? We’re living in a different time. We’re working for different organizations that are impacted by different issues, and we need financial reports and tell different stories and communicate different values than those of the past. Integrative reports intend to fix this problem by including factors in addition to financial performance: reliance on the environment, social reputation, human capital skills, and more.Charles Tilley is CEO of the International Integrated Reporting Council, and previously chaired the IIRC’s technical task force, which is the group responsible for developing the Integrated Reporting framework. He joins us to get everyone up to speed with Integrated Reporting, what the benefits are for organizations and stakeholders alike, and what the future of this type of reporting might look like.To learn more, and for the complete show notes, visit blionline.org/blog.Resources:integratedreporting.orgBusinesses must take the lead in renewing global cooperationIntegrated reportingFuture-Proof is a production of Crate Media

There are some important changes coming to the internet in the form of top-level domains. These are the parts of a website that come after the dot in a domain name. There are seven original top-level domains, which were created in the early days of the Internet — .com, .org, .net, .int, .edu, .gov, and .mil. Today, the number of top-level domains available has exploded, and now, .cpa has finally arrived, and it is one you will want to pay attention to. Like everything else with the profession, there are elements of verification and trust embedded in .cpa that don’t exist in other domains.Erik Asgeirsson is president and CEO of CPA.com, and he shares why the world needs another top-level domain, and why you need to seriously consider securing yours now, because there’s never been a better time than now. If you’re a CPA or work for a CPA firm, the changes happening will affect your brand, your SEO, your marketing, and, most importantly, the trust and integrity you’ve built with your clients and customers.To learn more, and for the complete show notes, visit blionline.org/blog.Resources:CPA.comTwitter: @ErikAsgeirssonLinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/erikasgeirssonRead "The Cybersecurity 202: Internet domain names are ripe for scam during coronavirus crisis"Future-Proof is a production of Crate Media

With the upcoming elections fast approaching, we are going to make a level-headed comparison of the two candidates through the lens of their tax policies. How does each candidate differ when it comes to their ideas about individual and corporate taxes?Joining us to discuss the topic is Tony Nitti. Tony is a tax partner with RubinBrown in Aspen, Colorado. He also teaches the graduate tax programs at both the University of Denver and Golden Gate University. He writes about tax issues frequently for The Tax Adviser, Taxes Magazine, the JofA, and Accounting Today. He’s also a featured tax writer for Forbes.Tony Nitti talks about the many ways in which President Trump and Joe Biden differ when it comes to tax policy, from individual and corporate tax rates, capital gains, deductions, tax credits, and more.To learn more, and for the complete show notes, visit blionline.org/blog.Resources:Follow Tony on Twitter | LinkedInRead Tony’s articles on Forbes.60. Navigating the Twists & Turns of Your Career | with Tony NittiHow your taxes could be impacted by the coronavirusFuture-Proof is a production of Crate Media

Ron Baker has been a vocal evangelist in favor of the concept of value pricing—the idea of charging based on the value you provide, rather than on the amount of time you spend providing it. He has spent more than 20 years trying to convince people in the accounting profession to throw away the timesheet, but now he’s come to the conclusion that there’s something else that may work instead—something he calls the subscription model, “Value Pricing 2.0.” It’s a completely different business model, and one that we all need to be paying very close attention to.To learn more, and for the complete show notes, visit blionline.org/blog.Resources:Learn more at VeraSage.comConnect with Ron: LinkedInHousing SubscriptionOne Is the Most Affordable Number: Porsche Subscription Service Strips It DownJeep Launching Subscription Service in 2019Life, by subscriptionLocal entrepreneur launches face mask subscription service105. Subscriptions: 'The Forever Transaction' | with Robbie Kellman BaxterFuture-Proof is a production of Crate Media

The skills involved in mastering improv are the same critical skills for becoming a great leader. Peter Margaritis is a CPA, a thought leader with the Business Learning Institute, and a comedian doing stand up in his free time. He knows all about improv, and more importantly, how it connects to CPAs and finance professionals. Good leadership requires connecting with and listening to others, being in the moment, being flexible, and following our intuition, and Peter is going to tell us how all of that comes together through the magic of improv.To learn more, and for the complete show notes, visit blionline.org/blog.Resources:petermargaritis.comPodcast: petermargaritis.com/category/cym-podcastsRead: "Improv Is No Joke"Future-Proof is a production of Crate Media

With so many people working from home, companies are being forced to re-examine how they measure productivity and input. Is time spent in front of the computer really the greatest factor for measuring employee contribution? Jody Thompson co-created the Results-Only Work Environment system, or ROWE, in 2003. Since then, it’s gained global traction and has influenced the cultures of countless organizations around the world, and we’re seeing a resurgence of it now as more and more companies adopt remote working.Remote teams that have adopted ROWE have been responding very positively for one key reason: Autonomy. It’s one of the three things that all employees want. We get to hear straight from the creator of ROWE what she thinks about what’s going on in the world today and how ROWE has paved the way for the massive changes we’re experiencing.To learn more, and for the complete show notes, visit blionline.org/blog.Resources:goROWE.comLinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/jody-thompson-48a5827Twitter: twitter.com/jodyroweRead: “Why Works Sucks And How To Fix It”Read: “Why Managing Sucks And How To Fix It”"This Company's New 2-Sentence Remote Work Policy Is the Best I've Ever Heard"Daniel Pink Autonomy, Mastery & PurposeFuture-Proof is a production of Crate Media

11 years ago, when Sebastian Terry was 24 years old, he lost a friend. The sudden death shook Sebastian to his core, to the point where he re-evaluated his own life and asked himself, “Am I happy?” His answer was, “No.”Sebastian started looking for more happiness in his life. He wrote down a list of 100 things that he thought might make him happy — 100 things that he wanted to accomplish and that he thought might bring him a sense of joy — and as he started crossing things off his list, other people were inspired by his example. They started their own lists, which turned into Sebastian writing a book, speaking at events, and starting a movement.We’re all so wrapped up in everything going on in the world that not many of us have stopped to ask ourselves these questions lately: Am I happy? Am I living a purposeful life? What’s on my list? How can I help others? The closer we can get to answering those questions, the brighter the future is going to be for all of us.To learn more, and for the complete show notes, visit blionline.org/blog.Resources:100things.comTEDx Talk: “100 Things - What’s on Your List?”Instagram: instagram.com/seb100thingsFuture-Proof is a production of Crate Media

With everything that’s going on in the world today, it could do us all some good to spend more time on positivity. Gretchen Pisano is co-founder and CEO of pLink Leadership, a group that combines strategy, leadership development, and coaching with a focus on the “link” between the practice of positive psychology and better business results. She’s a professional certified coach, she has a master’s in applied positive psychology, and she’s a student of the teachings of Barbara Fredrickson and Brené Brown.We’ve all dealt with struggles recently. This conversation offers insights that anyone could benefit from — to help us all not only feel a little better but to actually thrive.To learn more, and for the complete show notes, visit blionline.org/blog.Resources:pLinkleadership.compositivityratio.comlinkedin.com/in/gretchenpisanodaretolead.brenebrown.comBarbara Fredrickson: The Positivity RatioFuture-Proof is a production of Crate Media

Tracey Golden is the new chair of the American Institute of CPAs and the Association of International Certified Professional Accountants. She’s also a CGMA and an audit partner with Deloitte. In her acceptance speech, after her election, she used the COVID-19 crisis as a backdrop for her thoughts on the role CPAs play as trusted advisors who will help lead us on a financial path forward and through this crisis. Here’s what she said:“We are truly living disruption – not incremental change but a radical break from the familiar. Our profession has a crucial role to play in helping navigate this disruption. We are here to help businesses and individuals get through these tough times, learn from them, and grow.”She outlines three ways that accounting and finance professionals can position themselves as leaders who will help clients and employers through the crisis. First, finding strength in our connection with one another. Second, seize the opportunity to make much-needed changes. And third, evolve in order to thrive.Tracey takes a deeper dive into what she means by that, as well as her insight into what’s coming around the corner for us all. These are tough and challenging times, but at least CPAs have a leader who is up to the task.To learn more, and for the complete show notes, visit blionline.org/blog.Resources:Learn more: aicpa.orgLearn more: aicpa-cima.comLinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/traceygolden1Future-Proof is a production of Crate Media

Robbie Kellman Baxter has written the book—quite literally—on the Membership Economy and subscription-based business models. This is the way the world is going. In fact, it’s already gone. And it’s only a matter of time before it makes its way into the CPA profession and starts impacting accounting and finance. In some ways, it already is.Robbie recently released a book called “The Forever Transaction: How to Build a Subscription Model So Compelling, Your Customers Will Never Want to Leave.” And doesn’t that sound appealing? She talks about what a successful subscription model might look like for our profession, how generational differences might come into play here, and how leaders can decide whether they’re ready to make this type of move — and if they are, what the logical first steps might be.To learn more, and for the complete show notes, visit blionline.org/blog.Resources:Learn more: robbiekellmanbaxter.comRead: “The Membership Economy: Find Your Superusers, Master the Forever Transaction, and Build Recurring Revenue”Read: “The Forever Transaction: How to Build a Subscription Model So Compelling, Your Customers Will Never Want to Leave”Read: “Subscribed”"CPA-as-a-Service: Re-imagining Your Clients as Subscribers"Future-Proof is a production of Crate Media

The work of associations is right in the name: It’s about connections, it’s about relationships, and it’s about networks. These are the things that associations are designed to provide, and this is the time — a time of true crisis — in which those things are more important than ever. To explore all that an association can do, we sit down with Tom Hood, President and CEO of the Maryland Association of CPAs and the Business Learning Institute. He discusses how the work of associations shifted significantly in the face of the pandemic, how members have benefited, and how that work will help members map out a post-pandemic strategy that ensures their relevance going forward.To learn more, and for the complete show notes, visit blionline.org/blog.Resources:Learn more at macpa.orgLinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/tomhoodFuture-Proof is a production of Crate Media

Mark Koziel has been one of the most prominent voices at the American Institute of CPAs for nearly 15 years. He is executive vice president of firm services for the AICPA and a fixture on Accounting Today’s annual list of the most influential people in the profession. He’s been at the forefront of the profession’s response to the COVID-19 crisis—advocating on behalf of CPAs everywhere when it comes to Paycheck Protection Program loans, the designation as essential workers, and what our clients need from us going forward. We ask him for his perspective on the state of the profession and what the firm of tomorrow may look like.To learn more, and for the complete show notes, visit blionline.org/blog.Resources:https://www.allinialglobal.comhttps://www.aicpa.org/about/leadership/mark-koziel-bio.htmlhttps://www.linkedin.com/in/mjkoziel/CPA Firms Down, But Not Out, From Covid-19, Survey FindsFuture-Proof is a production of Crate Media

Inclusion remains a huge problem in our profession. As of 2016, just one percent of CPAs employed by public accounting firms were Black. And 0.3 percent of partners at those firms were black. Meanwhile, roughly 13 percent of our country’s population is Black. And the numbers for other people of color weren’t much better. We want our profession to look like the public it serves, but it isn’t close — and it isn’t making much progress, either.Our guests this week, Avonette Blanding and Kimberly Ellison-Taylor, offer some poignant insights that might help us take the first step. Avonette is chief financial officer at Maritime Applied Physics in Baltimore, which designs and builds advanced technology systems and vessels for the Defense Department. She is also the incoming chair of the Maryland Association of CPAs. And Kimberly is executive director of finance thought leadership at Oracle. She is a past chair of both the MACPA and the American Institute of CPAs, and just the second chairperson of the Association of International Certified Professional Accountants. She’s also a fixture on Accounting Today’s list of the most influential people in accounting. They are both Black women and true leaders in our profession, and they have insights, life experiences, and mindsets that the vast majority of people in our profession do not — but that we desperately need.To learn more, and for the complete show notes, visit blionline.org/blog.Resources:Avonette’s LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/avonetteblandingcpaAvonette’s Twitter: twitter.com/avonetteb_cpaOracle: oracle.com/corporate/executives/kimberly-ellison-taylorKimberly’s LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/kimberly-n-ellison-taylor-b1a13a2“Together, We Can Make A Difference: A 12-Step Plan To Address Racism And Unconscious Bias.”Future-Proof is a production of Crate Media

What should we be doing with our money, with our investments, when things are as unpredictable as they’ve been lately? There’s a lot of advice out there — some of it good, some of it bad — and we wanted to speak to someone who knows what he’s talking about to sort it out.Lyle Benson is president of L.K. Benson & Company in Baltimore and a MACPA member who has been at the forefront of advancing planning services for individuals within the profession. He’s served with the AICPA’s Personal Financial Planning Division Executive Committee, the National Accreditation Committee, the Baltimore Association for Financial Planning, and he is also chair of the Media Task Force of the AICPA's PFP Section. He joins us to talk about everything we need to be considering right now: Cash on hand, investments, estate planning, and financial planning — especially as it relates to uncertain and chaotic times like this.To learn more, and for the complete show notes, visit blionline.org/blog.Resources:www.lkbenson.comLinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/lyle-benson-b019b25Read: "These Aren’t Normal Times. You Still Need a Financial Plan for the Pandemic"Read: "Money Lessons From the Pandemic—and the Power of Financial Planning"Future-Proof is a production of Crate Media

Daniel Burrus is all about one word: Anticipation. How can we anticipate future trends, how can we spot them early, and learn to take advantage of the opportunities those trends provide us? He has written about this skill in his bestselling book “The Anticipatory Organization.” He has built a learning system that’s designed to help us learn how to become more anticipatory. In spite of all of the anticipatory planning and guidance, we are currently struggling through a period of time that few of us could have anticipated — a global pandemic. So what do we do about it? Dan says there are anticipatory lessons we all can learn from this crisis. He says too many people are merely reacting to what’s going on, and not enough people are anticipating what’s to come and how they can take advantage of that on the other side.What should we be doing now to make sure we come out of this crisis stronger and more capable than we were at the start? Dan has several suggestions, and now is the time to be listening to them.To learn more, and for the complete show notes, visit blionline.org/blog.Resources:Learn more: www.burrus.comRead “The Anticipatory Organization”Read “Flash Foresight”Future Learning Framework: www.macpa.org/future-learning-frameworkListen: "54. The excellence dividend | with Tom Peters"Listen: "57. Scaling our lives by seeing things differently | with Brian Solis"Listen: "58. The key to thriving in an exponential world? Think exponentially."Listen: "36. Your future depends on what you do today"Future-Proof is a production of Crate Media

Before the coronavirus, we talked about disruption as something we had time to prepare for — advances in technology, future laws and regulations, and what will happen when all of the Boomers are gone and the Millennials take over for good. These are things we knew were going to happen, but it seemed we had time to prepare for them.David Bray was one of those people talking about disruption. In January, the AICPA brought David in front of its Executive Roundtable in New York City to talk about disruption and digital transformation and technological advances. He joins us to talk about how we work and do business, and how all of that is changing because of this crisis — and the roles accounting and finance professionals will play in all of that. He also discusses how this crisis has significantly accelerated the disruptions we’ll feel as a result of new technologies like AI, the Internet of Things, and 5G.To learn more, and for the complete show notes, visit blionline.org/blog.Resources:"We can more rapidly respond to future waves of COVID-19 and pandemics: Here is how""Video recap: The role of tech, data, and leadership in pandemic geopolitics and recovery post-COVID""AI Trends Executive Interview: Dr. David Bray, Director, Atlantic Council""We can strengthen the global food system. Here is how."Future-Proof is a production of Crate Media

We are all facing trying times right now — whether you’re working from home, out of a job, or still working in public in the midst of a pandemic. This is a time when humans need to connect more than ever. We’re going to talk about all of that — how to make sure your teams are holding up, that they’re well, that they’re productive, and that they have all the resources they need in this very difficult environment. Facilitating that conversation is Richard Silberstein, the managing partner of SIG (Silberstein Insurance Group). They are experts in human resources and HR technology solutions, corporate wellness, compliance, employee communications — everything you need to keep the wheels greased at your business.To learn more, and for the complete show notes, visit blionline.org/blog.Resources:Silberstein Insurance Group: https://www.silbs.com/https://blionline.org/blog“How the coronavirus crisis has elevated the role of HR chiefs in the C-suite."Future-Proof is a production of Crate Media

Emmanuel Gobillot is one of the world’s leading experts on leadership. He’s the best-selling author of a number of great books, including “Leadershift,” “The Connected Leader,” “Follow the Leader,” and “Unleash Your Leader.” He has also recently co-authored a book specfically for this moment in time: “Crisis Leadership: Principles and tactics for success when your world turns upside down.” There aren’t many leaders out there who can help their teams grow and thrive and feel more capable in the middle of a crisis — and we have a lot to learn from those who can.To learn more, and for the complete show notes, visit blionline.org/blog.Resources:emmanuelgobillot.com51. Building Tomorrow's Leaders Today | with Emmanuel Gobillot & Katherine Thomasjohnolearyinspires.comFuture-Proof is a production of Crate Media