The Art of Succession

menu close

How We Rebuilt Our Business After Losing Key Team Members

/ 49:07/S5 E8

This GPT has already supported hundreds of multi-generational businesses through complex transitions, and I’ve translated that experience into a free Custom GPT available on our website. Explore it here: https://bit.ly/art-of-succession-our-GPT 

------------------------------------------------

Want to be a guest on our podcast? Apply and share your expertise with our audience at https://www.podmatch.com/member/artofsuccession 


Welcome to The Art of Succession Podcast. Host Barrett Young, CPA, a Tax and Marketing Partner at GWCPA, shares the firm's Quarter Three 2026 update and an honest look at the firm’s ongoing succession journey. In this episode, Barrett discusses the challenges of operating with a smaller team, the unexpected benefits of reduced capacity, and how GWCPA is becoming more intentional about the clients and services it takes on. He also explores the role of offshoring, the limitations of AI in solving current staffing challenges, developing his team into stronger tax reviewers, and the firm’s evolving vision for long-term client transformation.

Barrett shares how GWCPA has responded to multiple team departures while still entering the end of tax season further ahead than ever before. He explains why the current staffing challenge is really a business model problem, how the firm is rethinking its services and capacity, and why he has temporarily stepped back into the tax reviewer role. He also discusses the future of AI and accounting, the importance of using technology to remove low-value work rather than replace human judgment, and the firm’s goal of becoming a transformational partner for business owners through succession and exit planning.

Barrett also reflects on the bigger purpose behind GWCPA’s work, including the importance of developing future leaders and building a company that can continue beyond its current owners. From Katie passing all four sections of the CPA exam in six months to redefining what a long-term GWCPA client should look like, this quarter three update explores the challenges, progress, and long-term vision shaping the firm’s next chapter.


Key Takeaways:
  • Why GWCPA is intentionally staying smaller while reassessing its business model and client base.
  • Why offshoring may play a role in GWCPA’s long-term staffing strategy, but is not a short-term solution.
  • How GWCPA is preparing its team to become stronger tax reviewers through peer review and structured workflow.
  • Why developing future leaders and building a company that can outlast its current owners is central to GWCPA’s succession journey.

Additional Insights:
  • Why reduced capacity can create an opportunity to become more selective about clients and services.
  • Why GWCPA’s goal with offshoring is to elevate existing team members rather than simply replace preparation staff.
  • What Barrett believes should define a three-, ten-, twenty-, or forty-year GWCPA client relationship.

Here are a few quotes from the episode:
  • “It’s a business model problem. It’s not a staffing problem.” - Barrett Young, CPA
  • “The future is going to be accountants plus AI.” - Barrett Young, CPA
  • “The tax return is a piece of what we do. It’s an entry point.” - Barrett Young, CPA

Join Barrett as he shares GWCPA’s Quarter Three 2026 update and provides an honest look at the firm’s succession journey. Hear how a smaller team, staffing challenges, AI, and changing business needs are shaping the firm’s strategy. Barrett also discusses developing future leaders, redefining the client experience, and building a company that can continue creating value long after its current owners step away.


Episode Highlights
[00:00] - Teaser
[03:06] - Why Q3 Was a Difficult Quarter 
[07:09] - Refocusing the Business Around the Right Clients 
[12:36] - Turning a Staffing Problem Into a Business-Model Problem 
[18:43] - The Need for Experienced Tax Reviewers 
[21:24] - Current Standing For The Coming Tax Season
[30:55] - AI, Accounting, and the Future of Trusted Advisors
[37:31] - Redefining the GWCPA Client Journey Through Succession and Legacy
[47:26] - Q4 Priorities and What Comes Next 


FOLLOW THE HOST:

FOLLOW THE PODCAST:
How We Rebuilt Our Business After Losing Key Team Members

headphones Listen Anywhere

More Options »
Broadcast by