Welcome back to yet another episode of.. The Fun CPA!

This week, Yuri is joined by Jonathan Kern. Professor Kern is an instructor at the University of Oklahoma and is single handedly bringing enjoyment and passion to the next generation of accountants.

With the pipeline issue being so prevalent in the industry, it’s important to understand where students are coming from and what we – as professionals – can do to not only entice more to join, but also make sure that those that do are happy with their career choice.

This episode strikes at the very core of that issue, and Professor Kern is on the front lines. Not only does he share his experience in the classroom and what he is seeing with his students, he also describes how he is bringing life to a subject and profession that is historically pretty dry.

Additionally, Jonathan shares his journey and why he got involved in academia in the first place, his view on the industry as a whole, what we can do better and much more!

Episode Highlights:
0:00 - Intro
1:09 - Introduction to Jonathan Kern
4:32 - Jonathan’s experience with a firm
8:14 - “What got you into academia?”
11:42 - How do we make accounting fun?
14:23 - Instilling trust and inspiring the next generation
20:04 - The issue with starting salaries
23:16 - Jonathan’s favorite accounting jingle and breaking down concepts
31:13 - Education and accounting’s pipeline
37:35 - Jonathan’s advice to who’s hesitating on studying accounting
40:18 - Advice to those who feel lost in the profession
46:29 - Episode wrap-up

ABOUT HOST YURI KAPILOVICH
Yuri, aka #thefuncpa, has been in the accounting profession for over 15 years and has seen, first hand, the challenges the profession brings. After seeing that no firm was fitting the bill, Yuri set out to do things his own way with his firm K&A and the journey began with LinkedIn posting at the front end.

Yuri is proud to bring you #thefuncpa podcast highlighting the fun and all the amazing opportunities our profession can bring us all.

CONNECT WITH YURI KAPILOVICH
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ykapilovich/
Website: https://www.thefuncpa.co/

CONNECT WITH JONATHAN KERN
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jonathan--kern/
Email: jkern@ou.edu

Welcome back to The Fun CPA Podcast! This week, host Yuri Kapilovich is joined by Scotty Scarano!

Scotty’s journey is nothing shy of incredible from buying out a franchise firm to growing it to over $1M in revenue to fully stepping out of the day-to-day to become an accounting Rapper (That’s right! OKR himself)

After performing at countless accounting conferences and experiencing some of the highest highs, Scotty realized that all the fame and glory meant nothing if he wasn’t spending time with what truly mattered – his family.

The name of the episode is Life’s Chapters because as Scotty went from being an accounting firm owner named Scott, to being Scotty to being OKR, we dive down to what is next and what this journey entails.

This episode is truly one for the books and I am incredibly thankful and blessed to be able to bring you this value-packed episode!

ABOUT HOST YURI KAPILOVICH

Yuri, aka #thefuncpa, has been in the accounting profession for over 15 years and has seen, first hand, the challenges the profession brings. After seeing that no firm was fitting the bill, Yuri set out to do things his own way with his firm K&A and the journey began with LinkedIn posting at the front end.

Yuri is proud to bring you #thefuncpa podcast highlighting the fun and all the amazing opportunities our profession can bring us all.

CONNECT WITH YURI KAPILOVICH

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ykapilovich/

Website: https://www.thefuncpa.co/

CONNECT WITH SCOTTY SCARANO

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/scottscarano/

Welcome back to The Fun CPA Podcast! This week, host Yuri Kapilovich is joined by Tim Petrey!

Tim is the CEO of HD Growth Partners and White Glove Payroll, where he leads with a mission to redefine the accounting industry through empathy, innovation, and community impact.

Starting his journey at HD Growth Partners (formerly HD Davis CPAs) in 2008, Tim took the helm as Managing Partner at just 25 years old. Under his leadership, the firm expanded from a small team to over 70 employees, earning accolades such as Accounting Today's #1 Firm in the Country for Women in 2021 and Karbon’s Breakthrough Firm of the Year in 2024.

In this episode, Tim shares his journey from humble beginnings to leading a transformative firm, offering valuable lessons on leadership, innovation, and the importance of putting people first in business – as well as more technical topics like his experience with merging and what to look for in a partner.

Episode Highlights:
0:00 - Teaser
1:21 - Episode beginning
2:37 - Intro to Tim Petrey
5:58 - How Tim got started
7:17 - Transitioning to running a firm
11:22 - Diving deeper into when Tim took over the firm
14:57 - Making changes right away, scaling
23:30 - Adding partners, growth and the income split
26:58 - Tim’s secret, “merging up”
33:55 - How do you find the right partner?
41:45 - Steps you can take to get your time back
47:14 - At what point should you hire someone?
51:20 - Tim’s advice for the profession as a whole
54:20 - Episode wrap-up

ABOUT HOST YURI KAPILOVICH

Yuri, aka #thefuncpa, has been in the accounting profession for over 15 years and has seen, first hand, the challenges the profession brings. After seeing that no firm was fitting the bill, Yuri set out to do things his own way with his firm K&A and the journey began with LinkedIn posting at the front end.

Yuri is proud to bring you #thefuncpa podcast highlighting the fun and all the amazing opportunities our profession can bring us all.

CONNECT WITH YURI KAPILOVICH
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ykapilovich/
Website: https://www.thefuncpa.co/
CONNECT WITH TIM PETREY
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/petreycpa/
Website: https://hdgrowthpartners.com/tim-petrey/

Welcome back to The Fun CPA Podcast! This week, host Yuri Kapilovich is joined by two guests – Tom Zehentner, Director of Growth and Product at FinOptimal and the founder of FinOptimal, Jesse Rubenfeld!

Together, Jesse and Tom have a substantial level of insight and experience in the accounting field – specifically in developing software that make posting accruals, keeping up with monthly journal entries, and financial reporting easier than ever for founders, owners, executives and accountants alike.

The fellas join Yuri this week to discuss the future of accounting – more specifically, where automation, AI and apps in general are taking the space. From a business ownership POV, Jesse and Tom also share their views on addressing competition in software development, finding your ‘perfect fit’ and both of their approaches to the vital mixture of personality and brand.

For aspiring coders or those of you working on your own piece of tech, this is a great episode to get a sneak peek into just what it takes to create a successful product – as well as ways that you can disrupt the field at large and contend with tech skepticism.

Episode Highlights:
0:00 - Teaser
0:45 - Episode beginning and introduction to Jesse and Tom
3:59 - Jesse’s experience with LimeWire
7:02 - Tom’s interest in automation
9:31 - Tech skepticism and bad automation
17:13 - “How do you find your ideal client?”
21:40 - “Where do you see tech and accounting taking that next leap?”
27:24 - Deciding what to focus on and addressing the competition
33:52 - Trying out different areas of the profession
41:33 - Jesse’s approach to personality and brand
47:18 - Episode wrap-up, where you can find Tom and Jesse

ABOUT HOST YURI KAPILOVICH

Yuri, aka #thefuncpa, has been in the accounting profession for over 15 years and has seen, first hand, the challenges the profession brings. After seeing that no firm was fitting the bill, Yuri set out to do things his own way with his firm K&A and the journey began with LinkedIn posting at the front end.

Yuri is proud to bring you #thefuncpa podcast highlighting the fun and all the amazing opportunities our profession can bring us all.


CONNECT WITH YURI KAPILOVICH
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ykapilovich/
Website: https://www.thefuncpa.co/

CONNECT WITH TOM ZEHENTER
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tom-zehentner-cpa-a0591b5b/
Website: https://www.finoptimal.com/

CONNECT WITH JESSE RUBENFELD
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jesserubenfeld/
Website: https://www.finoptimal.com/

This week’s guest comes from ‘across the pond’ – but his insights and expertise is far from foreign CPAs and firm owners alike.

Reza Hooda is the founder of Capture Accounting and a serious authority in the accounting industry. Reza delivers an invaluable service to his clients: He gets their time back and simplifies their processes so that they can focus on scaling, growing and generating revenue.

Additionally, Reza coaches others like him on how they can grow their own firm – everything from pricing, generating leads, closing deals and much more. You can check him out on his website, LinkedIn or podcast giving advice to shot-callers, accountants and aspiring entrepreneurs alike.

Yuri explores Reza’s come-up and experience that pushed him to go out and create his very own business where he can control (and design) his experience. You’ll also get a sneak peek into Reza’s POV on differentiation, the importance of niching down or specializing, and much more!

Episode Highlights:

0:00 - Teaser
0:53 - Introduction
2:43 - What surprised Reza when he went out on his own
8:46 - Reza’s “a-ha” moment
10:49 - Zooming in on Reza’s pricing experience
18:20 - Differentiating yourself w/o using price
21:15 - Building your dream team
26:34 - For new firm owners: how to successfully start right from the beginning
29:12 - How you can start and be like Reza’s example
31:53 - “Going deeper” and why you should specialize
35:05 - Episode wrap-up

ABOUT HOST YURI KAPILOVICH

Yuri, aka #thefuncpa, has been in the accounting profession for over 15 years and has seen, first hand, the challenges the profession brings. After seeing that no firm was fitting the bill, Yuri set out to do things his own way with his firm K&A and the journey began with LinkedIn posting at the front end.

Yuri is proud to bring you #thefuncpa podcast highlighting the fun and all the amazing opportunities our profession can bring us all.

CONNECT WITH YURI KAPILOVICH
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ykapilovich/
Website: https://www.thefuncpa.co/

CONNECT WITH REZA HOODA
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rezahooda/?originalSubdomain=uk
Website: https://www.rezahooda.com/

Welcome back to The Fun CPA Podcast! This week, host Yuri Kapilovich is joined by a legendary figure in the accounting profession, Allan Koltin.

Allan is the CEO of Koltin Consulting Group and one of the most influential voices in the accounting world. With decades of experience advising top firms on growth, leadership, and mergers, Allan shares insights into what drives success in professional services – more specifically in this episode – the interplay between accounting firms and private equity.

From his early days as the youngest partner at his firm to being ranked among Accounting Today's Top 100 Most Influential People, Allan brings a wealth of knowledge, real-world stories, and forward-thinking advice.

Come listen to an episode chalk-full of value as we really drill down on the ups and down of private equity in the accounting space.

Episode Highlights:

0:00 - Teaser

0:59 - Episode beginning and intro to Allan

7:22 - Allan dives into PE and accounting

14:33 - “How do we move autonomy to accountability?”

18:56 - What PE ownership brings (and takes away)

28:08 - Managing staff and seniors as PE money comes in

34:20 - Who are the true winners and losers?

39:02 - “What is the threshold at which we stop flipping?”

45:20 - Maintaining (and combining) culture

52:30 - Allan’s suggestion to people uneasy with PE

54:51 - Episode wrap-up

ABOUT HOST YURI KAPILOVICH

Yuri, aka #thefuncpa, has been in the accounting profession for over 15 years and has seen, first hand, the challenges the profession brings. After seeing that no firm was fitting the bill, Yuri set out to do things his own way with his firm K&A and the journey began with LinkedIn posting at the front end.

Yuri is proud to bring you #thefuncpa podcast highlighting the fun and all the amazing opportunities our profession can bring us all.

CONNECT WITH YURI KAPILOVICH

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ykapilovich/

Website: https://www.thefuncpa.co/

CONNECT WITH ALLAN D. KOLTIN

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/allan-koltin-24a8181

Website: https://koltin.com/

Welcome back to The Fun CPA Podcast! This week, host Yuri Kapilovich is joined by Nikole Mackenzie!

Nikole is the founder and CEO of Momentum Accounting – a firm built for founder led, self-funded businesses doing $1M–$10M in revenue.

Like Yuri, Nikole has always sought to have more control of her career through ownership of her own firm. Not only does she share her journey to build this successful business, she also details what pushed her to go out and get her very own shingle. Much like other accounting origin stories – it isn’t
pretty.

Additionally, the two discuss the ups and downs they’ve experienced in running their own business, the industry at large, what ‘CAS’ is and why it’s Nikole’s bread-and-butter and much more!

Like many of the guests on “The Fun CPA” – Nikole is an inspiration for those of you out there feeling disillusioned with “the grind” and a reminder that there are other paths that in this business that can lead to more fulfillment and balance.

Episode Highlights:

0:00 - Teaser
1:11 - Introduction
3:20 - Where Nikole first discovered CAS
4:44 - Nicole’s “OG” public accounting days
8:21 - “The moment”
12:49 - What CAS is
16:19 - Nikole’s ideal client
19:15 - “Spent a bunch of money on the wrong things”
24:40 - Losing a big client
27:10 - The ups and downs of having your own business
34:22 - Advice to CPAs that feel lost
37:56 - What can smaller firms do to enrich their careers?
42:46 - Episode wrap-up

ABOUT HOST YURI KAPILOVICH

Yuri, aka #thefuncpa, has been in the accounting profession for over 15 years and has seen, first hand, the challenges the profession brings. After seeing that no firm was fitting the bill, Yuri set out to do things his own way with his firm K&A and the journey began with LinkedIn posting at the front end.

Yuri is proud to bring you #thefuncpa podcast highlighting the fun and all the amazing opportunities our profession can bring us all.


CONNECT WITH YURI KAPILOVICH
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ykapilovich/
Website: https://www.thefuncpa.co/

CONNECT WITH NIKOLE MACKENZIE
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nikolemackenzie/
Website: https://momentumaccounting.com/

Welcome back to The Fun CPA Podcast! This week, host Yuri Kapilovich is joined by Randy Crabtree!

Randy is co-founder and partner of Tri-Merit Specialty Tax Professionals and an author, lecturer and host of The Unique CPA podcast.

His aptly named “Unique CPA” podcast is the perfect descriptor for Randy’s journey – not only to become a CPA – but also his path towards business ownership. His experience in toxic, corporate environments inspired him to build his own ideal firm with a focus on an employee-first culture.

Randy’s career has yielded many insights both big and small that have informed his business practices and POV on the industry, such as the importance of networking and conferences, why you should root for other people, and much more.

For you would-be owners out there or even soloprenuers trying to get their first client – this episode will be sure to inspire you AND give you concrete advice on how you can grow and evolve in an industry that has a complicated reputation for burnout and poor mental health management.

Episode Highlights:

0:00 - Teaser

0:57 - Episode beginning

4:45 - How Randy discovered accounting

9:23 - What Randy experienced vs. what he expected

20:35 - What happened after Randy left the firm

24:35 - Habits of never leaving, celebrating colleagues

27:35 - What made Randy sure he needed to move on

30:50 - Randy’s approach when he started out

33:27 - Is organic growth still relevant?

34:30 - Randy’s firm and why he sold

39:08 - Randy post-sale

43:20 - How Randy started another firm, what he did different
49:17 - A significant mindset shift in how the business is run

52:05 - How to get intentional about sales

55:39 - Avoiding the same mistakes while building a business

1:03:48 - The desire to start doing conferences

1:09:45 - Randy’s advice to the new school

1:13:45 - Episode wrap-up

ABOUT HOST YURI KAPILOVICH

Yuri, aka #thefuncpa, has been in the accounting profession for over 15 years and has seen, first hand, the challenges the profession brings. After seeing that no firm was fitting the bill, Yuri set out to do things his own way with his firm K&A and the journey began with LinkedIn posting at the front end.

Yuri is proud to bring you #thefuncpa podcast highlighting the fun and all the amazing opportunities our profession can bring us all.

CONNECT WITH YURI KAPILOVICH

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ykapilovich/

Website: https://www.thefuncpa.co/

CONNECT WITH RANDY CRABTREE

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/randy-crabtree-1945a67/

Website: https://tri-merit.com/