Finance and Tax

Andrew Acer of Cogent Analytics shares how ranch discipline, family businesses, a burnout at 33, and a deliberate reset shaped his philosophy of stewardship-based leadership.

Jon Hilton of LBMC shares how West Point grit, ExxonMobil scale, and a Berkeley data science degree converged into an AI practice helping middle market companies move past enthusiasm into results.

Brie Bolopue and Rochelle Lierz of Good Apple share how they built a fractional leadership firm for small business, why exit planning starts years early, and what the silver tsunami means for business owners today.

Meir Spiegel of B2B CFO shares how he built financial systems from scratch at VIP Wireless and now helps privately held businesses see what their numbers can't tell them.

Nathan Anderson built NimbleTech inside Nimble after a master's rejection redirected him. Now protecting remote accounting firms with fractional IT, compliance, and cybersecurity.

Ramona Cedeno, founder of FiBrick, shares how she built a fractional CFO firm from one email, why capital readiness is a lifestyle, and what financials reveal about fundability.

Brandon Thornton of Thornton Tax shares how a kinesiology grad inherited a 70-year family tax firm, built a strategic tax practice, and is now targeting 25 acquisitions in five years — without losing what made each firm worth building.

Megan Roberts of HD Growth Partners shares how a playwriting degree, a factory floor, and a military cohort shaped the systems thinking that scaled a firm from $6M to $15M in three years.

Amy Spandau of Ablaze Financial shares how 25 years of startup CFO experience — and losing everything on a ranch deal — led her to build back-of-house infrastructure for founders at the one-to-five million mark.

Rich Waigand of SFW Partners shares how 30 years of relationship-first accounting, a painful leadership transition, and a nonprofit born in a hospital room shaped one of St. Louis’s most respected CPA careers.