Jason On Firms Podcast

🚀 Get smarter faster by learning with other firm owners: https://www.rlz.io/
📩 Want a simple way to keep up with accounting firm and AI? I break it down every week in my newsletter: https://www.jasononfirms.com/newsletter

☎️ Leave me a voicemail at (1)516-980-4968!
📧 Email me! jason@jasononfirms.com

In this episode, I answer the nine AI questions I hear most often from accounting firms, covering how to securely use AI with client data, why I recommend Claude over ChatGPT and Copilot, where firms should start with AI, and practical workflows for QuickBooks, spreadsheets, email, and tax software. I also share my thoughts on the latest IRS AI guidance and why I disagree that AI savings should automatically lower client fees, then wrap up with a Mailbag on bank statement automation, QuickBooks MCPs, IT security, work papers, value pricing, and why I believe AI will make human expertise even more valuable.

🔥 Here’s that Roast-My-Firm intake form: https://airtable.com/appZ7dtNz3oaTWWZT/shrybn5166E9t12ag📚 A curated list of the apps I actually use and recommend: https://www.jasononfirms.com/apps

💰 Today's Sponsors
Financial Cents: Book a demo here: https://hubs.li/Q03PYVrp0 and use code Jason10 to receive 10% off the Team or Scale annual plan for firms with 2+ users.
Soraban: https://www.soraban.com/
MakersHub: https://makershub.com/get-started?utm_source=podcast&utm_medium=partner&utm_campaign=jasonstaats
Canopy: getcanopy.com/jason Schedule a demo to see for yourself, and receive a $75 gift card after your demo

// Chapters:
00:00 - The 9 Biggest AI Questions
01:43 - AI & Client Data Security
06:22 - Why Claude Beats Copilot
08:04 - Should You Switch from ChatGPT?
08:17 - Where Should You Start with AI?
10:50 - Building Your First AI Agent
14:49 - Best Beginner AI Use Cases
17:00 - AI & QuickBooks Automation
20:56 - Can AI Automate Tax Software?
23:20 - Should Clients Know You Use AI?
25:37 - IRS Says AI Should Lower Fees?
32:23 - Mailbag
32:48 - How Do I Automatically Fetch Bank Statements?
38:09 - Secure Client Credentials Without Sharing Passwords
40:44 - Are Traditional Work Papers Still Worth It?
44:05 - How Do You Handle AI Discount Requests?
47:22 - Can Claude Post Journal Entries to QuickBooks?
52:04 - Is Thomson Reuters Falling Behind on AI?
54:06 - IT Security for a New Fractional CFO Firm
56:20 - Does AI Kill Creativity and Advisory?
01:02:00 - Closing thoughts

🗣️ Continue the discussion on social!
X https://twitter.com/jasononfirms
LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/jstaats/
YouTube https://www.youtube.com/@jasoncpa

🚀 Get smarter faster by learning with other firm owners: https://www.rlz.io/
📩 Want a simple way to keep up with accounting firm and AI? I break it down every week in my newsletter: https://www.jasononfirms.com/newsletter

☎️ Leave me a voicemail at (1)516-980-4968!
📧 Email me! jason@jasononfirms.com

In this episode, I break down five change management traps inside accounting firms, from overwhelming the team with too much change to letting C and D clients block the firm you actually want to build. I also talk about niche opportunities in soccer and space accounting, recurring AI workflows, Intuit’s stock drop, simplifying client onboarding, rolling out Claude to a team, trial balance workflows, and how large a solo AI-powered firm could become.

🎤 I’m going live! Grab your tickets here: https://www.jasononfirms.com/events
🔥 Here’s that Roast-My-Firm intake form: https://airtable.com/appZ7dtNz3oaTWWZT/shrybn5166E9t12ag📚 A curated list of the apps I actually use and recommend: https://www.jasononfirms.com/apps

💰 Today's Sponsors
Cloud Accounting Staffing: https://portal.cloudaccountantstaffing.com/candidates
Soraban: https://www.soraban.com/
Canopy: getcanopy.com/jason Schedule a demo to see for yourself, and receive a $75 gift card after your demo
Financial Cents: Book a demo here: https://hubs.li/Q03PYVrp0 and use code Jason10 to receive 10% off the Team or Scale annual plan for firms with 2+ users.
MakersHub: https://makershub.com/get-started?utm_source=podcast&utm_medium=partner&utm_campaign=jasonstaats

// Chapters:
00:00 - Getting Everyone Aligned
01:19 - The Dirty Dozen Returns
02:12 - Change Management Traps
02:18 - Trap #1: Change Overload
06:10 - Trap #2: Incentives Gap
09:00 - Trap #3: Quiet Skeptics
15:17 - Trap #4: Carve-Out Clients
18:17 - Trap #5: Adoption Letdown
21:49 - Change Management Recap
22:27 - Accountants Power The World Cup
22:39 - Niche Of The Week
24:33 - Passion-Driven Firm Niches
27:47 - Space Accounting Returns
30:58 - Mailbag Begins
31:29 - Building Recurring AI Workflows
34:23 - Should I Sell Intuit Stock?
38:07 - Simplifying Client Onboarding
42:13 - Rolling Out Claude To A Team
44:42 - Trial Balance After Engagement Manager
49:27 - Fear Of AI Tool Switching
51:05 - How Big Can A Solo AI Firm Get?

🗣️ Continue the discussion on social!
X https://twitter.com/jasononfirms
LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/jstaats/
YouTube https://www.youtube.com/@jasoncpa

🚀 Get smarter faster by learning with other firm owners: https://www.rlz.io/
📩 Want a simple way to keep up with accounting firm and AI? I break it down every week in my newsletter: https://www.jasononfirms.com/newsletter

☎️ Leave me a voicemail at (1)516-980-4968!
📧 Email me! jason@jasononfirms.com

In this episode, I explore the sudden rise of AI agent platforms built specifically for accounting firms and ask whether Claude will remain the long-term home for firm-built agents. I compare launches from Ramp, Digits, Pilot, Puzzle, Mercury, Canopy, and Double, then answer a listener question about what firm owners should focus on during the summer months. In the mailbag, I cover software firms should avoid,  practice management system selection, and what to do when Claude makes mistakes in bookkeeping workflows.

🎤 I’m going live! Grab your tickets here: https://www.jasononfirms.com/events
🔥 Here’s that Roast-My-Firm intake form: https://airtable.com/appZ7dtNz3oaTWWZT/shrybn5166E9t12ag📚 A curated list of the apps I actually use and recommend: https://www.jasononfirms.com/apps

💰 Today's Sponsors
Cloud Accounting Staffing: https://portal.cloudaccountantstaffing.com/candidates
Soraban: https://www.soraban.com/
Canopy: getcanopy.com/jason Schedule a demo to see for yourself, and receive a $75 gift card after your demo
Financial Cents: Book a demo here: https://hubs.li/Q03PYVrp0 and use code Jason10 to receive 10% off the Team or Scale annual plan for firms with 2+ users.
MakersHub: https://makershub.com/get-started?utm_source=podcast&utm_medium=partner&utm_campaign=jasonstaats

⚒️ Tools I mentioned
-Ramp Stack https://ramp.com/lp2/stack
-Digits Agentic Close https://digits.com/blog/agentic-close/
-Pilot Meridian https://meridian.pilot.com/
-Puzzle AI Close https://puzzle.io/ai-close
-Canopy Coworker https://www.getcanopy.com/coworker/
-Mercury Command https://mercury.com/command
-Double https://doublehq.com/

// Chapters:
00:00 - The AI Agent Gold Rush
07:58 - Where Agents Actually Live
12:11 - The Future Of Firm Automation
15:31 - Summer Priorities For Firms
18:36 - Take A Break This Summer
20:17 - Make Big Tech Changes
22:04 - Building Better Systems
26:51 - Planning For Growth
30:57 - Hiring Before Busy Season
31:53 - Strategic Thinking Time
33:32 - Mailbag
33:43 - Any Software To Completely Avoid?
36:22 - AI Influencers & Phantom Products
40:50 - Should Firms Try Instead?
42:18 - What Happened To SmartVault?
46:11 - Which Practice Management System Should I Choose?
49:30 - What If Claude Makes Mistakes?
54:01 - From How-To To What-To-Do
55:00 - The Future Of Space Accounting

🗣️ Continue the discussion on social!
X https://twitter.com/jasononfirms
LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/jstaats/
YouTube https://www.youtube.com/@jasoncpa

🚀 Get smarter faster by learning with other firm owners: https://www.rlz.io/
📩 Want a simple way to keep up with accounting firm and AI? I break it down every week in my newsletter: https://www.jasononfirms.com/newsletter

☎️ Leave me a voicemail at (1)516-980-4968!
📧 Email me! jason@jasononfirms.com

In this episode, I break down the six biggest traps accounting firm owners fall into when trying to build a higher-quality, more profitable client list. I explain why concentration risk is often overblown, why firms struggle to commit to a niche, how big-money clients can distract you from your ideal business, and why regularly curating your client list is one of the most important jobs of a firm owner. I also answer questions about firing clients through pricing increases, whether prompt libraries still matter in the AI era, partnering with specialists for services like sales tax and payroll, and what I think about Claude’s QuickBooks Online integration and the future of AI-powered accounting workflows.

🎤 I’m going live! Grab your tickets here: https://www.jasononfirms.com/events
🔥 Here’s that Roast-My-Firm intake form: https://airtable.com/appZ7dtNz3oaTWWZT/shrybn5166E9t12ag
📚 A curated list of the apps I actually use and recommend: https://www.jasononfirms.com/apps

💰 Today's Sponsors
Cloud Accounting Staffing: https://portal.cloudaccountantstaffing.com/candidates
Soraban: https://www.soraban.com/
Canopy: getcanopy.com/jason Schedule a demo to see for yourself, and receive a $75 gift card after your demo
Financial Cents: Book a demo here: https://hubs.li/Q03PYVrp0 and use code Jason10 to receive 10% off the Team or Scale annual plan for firms with 2+ users.
MakersHub: https://makershub.com/get-started?utm_source=podcast&utm_medium=partner&utm_campaign=jasonstaats

// Chapters:
00:00 - The Client List Asset
01:27 - The Dirty Dozen Returns
02:23 - Trap #1: Concentration Risk Fear
06:38 - Trap #2: The Commitment Gap
09:10 - Trap #3: Big Money Clients
10:28 - Trap #4: Curation Hesitation
13:09 - Trap #5: Big Fish vs Minnows
18:17 - Trap #6: The Machine Problem
22:24 - Protecting The Client List
23:18 - Mailbag
23:44 - Raising Prices to Lose Bad Clients
26:54 - Are Prompt Libraries Still Worth It?
30:17 - Goals vs Prompts in AI
32:07 - Strongest AI Use Cases Today
36:14 - Process Improvement Career Paths
38:14 - Sales Tax Apps for Ecommerce
43:18 - Claude + QuickBooks Integration
52:35 - Tour Wrap-Up & Community Thanks

🗣️ Continue the discussion on social!
X https://twitter.com/jasononfirms
LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/jstaats/
YouTube https://www.youtube.com/@jasoncpa

🚀 Get smarter faster by learning with other firm owners: https://www.rlz.io/
📩 Want a simple way to keep up with accounting firm and AI? I break it down every week in my newsletter: https://www.jasononfirms.com/newsletter

☎️ Leave me a voicemail at (1)516-980-4968!
📧 Email me! jason@jasononfirms.com

In this episode, I share five real AI workflows that accounting firms are already using in production, from reading handwritten checks and verifying tax transcripts to automating audit checklists, preparing spreadsheet workpapers, and building AI-powered email dashboards. I explain how firms should think about moving from AI assistants to AI-driven workflows and why documentation, goals, and process design matter more than prompts. Then I review an accounting firm built by a non-accountant, discuss pricing and niche strategy, and answer questions.

🎤 I’m going live! Grab your tickets here: https://www.jasononfirms.com/events
🔥 Here’s that Roast-My-Firm intake form: https://airtable.com/appZ7dtNz3oaTWWZT/shrybn5166E9t12ag📚 A curated list of the apps I actually use and recommend: https://www.jasononfirms.com/apps

💰 Today's Sponsors
Cloud Accounting Staffing: https://portal.cloudaccountantstaffing.com/candidates
Soraban: https://www.soraban.com/
Canopy: getcanopy.com/jason Schedule a demo to see for yourself, and receive a $75 gift card after your demo
Financial Cents: Book a demo here: https://hubs.li/Q03PYVrp0 and use code Jason10 to receive 10% off the Team or Scale annual plan for firms with 2+ users.
MakersHub: https://makershub.com/get-started?utm_source=podcast&utm_medium=partner&utm_campaign=jasonstaats

// Chapters:
00:00 - Five AI Workflows Firms Use Today
18:01 - AI-Powered Email Dashboards
20:24 - Roast a Firm
31:30 - Mailbag
35:20 - Buying Legacy Firms in the AI Era
49:45 - Mailbag 2
59:45 - Closing thoughts

🗣️ Continue the discussion on social!
X https://twitter.com/jasononfirms
LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/jstaats/
YouTube https://www.youtube.com/@jasoncpa