Small businesses offering 401(k) plans see 40% lower employee turnover in the first year, yet only 10% receive benefits guidance from their accountants. Justin Kurn explains how Dark Horse CPAs identifies the right triggers, such as growing staff or high turnover, to initiate benefits conversations. Meanwhile, Julia Miller from Gusto breaks down how accountants can help clients navigate the cost and complexity of offering health insurance, retirement plans, and other benefits. The conversation reveals how positioning yourself as a benefits advisor can double or triple your fees while helping clients attract better talent and reduce costly employee churn.

Chapters

• (00:56) - Meet Our Guests
• (01:26) - The Growth Story: Dark Horse CPAs' Success
• (02:04) - Advisory First Approach: Transforming Client Relationships
• (03:38) - Gusto's Role in Benefits: An Overview
• (07:37) - Challenges and Solutions: Small Businesses Offering Benefits
• (10:25) - The Cost and Complexity of Benefits: Breaking It Down
• (15:00) - Advisory Conversations: Identifying Client Needs
• (19:23) - Gusto's Support for Accountants: Tools and Resources
• (25:43) - Affordability and Competitive Advantage
• (26:40) - Partnering with Gusto for Benefits
• (28:19) - Gusto's Software Solutions
• (29:12) - Client Experiences with Gusto
• (29:52) - Gusto's User-Friendly Platform
• (39:10) - Implementation and Timeline
• (47:42) - Increasing Revenue through Advisory Services
• (49:52) - Conclusion and Final Thoughts

Download the Earmark CPE App

Apple: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/earmark-cpe/id1562599728

Android: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.earmarkcpe.app

Connect with Our Guests:

Julia Miller
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/julia-g-miller

Justin Kurn
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/justinkurn
Website: https://darkhorse.cpa/justin-kurn-cro/

Connect with Blake Oliver, CPA

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/blaketoliver
Twitter: https://twitter.com/blaketoliver/

What if the foundation of financial accounting is fundamentally flawed? Tom Selling, author of The Accounting Onion blog, argues that historical cost accounting creates a "truth in labeling problem" that allows management to manipulate earnings while failing to capture economic reality. Through compelling examples from oil and gas, pharmaceuticals, and subscription businesses, he explains why value creation often occurs years before GAAP recognizes a single dollar of revenue. You'll discover how a $2 change in expected cash flows can trigger a $400,000 impairment loss, why the FASB shifted focus from earnings to balance sheets, and how current corporate governance essentially lets management "grade their own papers." This conversation challenges core assumptions about what accounting should measure and offers a provocative vision for reform.

Chapters

• (01:21) - The Myth of Honest Financial Accounting
• (02:28) - Management Gaming the System
• (03:22) - Historical Cost Accounting Explained
• (05:44) - Examples of Manipulation and the Enron Scandal
• (09:16) - Impairment and Depreciation Issues
• (13:26) - Alternatives to Historical Cost Accounting
• (20:59) - The Disconnect in Value Recognition
• (25:08) - R&D Expenses and Unrecognized Assets
• (25:39) - Challenges in Valuation and Accounting
• (27:08) - Measuring Assets and Liabilities
• (28:09) - Industry-Specific Accounting Limitations
• (31:08) - The Role of Transparency in Accounting
• (34:12) - Subscription Businesses and Revenue Recognition
• (44:22) - The Problem with Estimates and Auditing
• (48:18) - Conclusion and Summary

Download the Earmark CPE App

Apple: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/earmark-cpe/id1562599728

Android: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.earmarkcpe.app

Connect with Our Guest, Tom Selling

The Accounting Onion: http://accountingonion.com

Connect with Blake Oliver, CPA

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/blaketoliver
Twitter: https://twitter.com/blaketoliver/

What happens when Congress votes to eliminate the watchdog that's overseen public company audits for two decades? In this episode, Blake Oliver sits down with three leading accounting academics—Maureen McNichols from Stanford, Nemit Shroff from MIT, and Daniel Aobdia from Penn State—to examine the research behind the PCAOB's effectiveness and what elimination could mean for audit quality. You'll discover why companies with clean audit inspections can raise capital more easily, how the infamous "40% deficiency rate" actually works, and why these researchers believe dismantling the PCAOB could undermine trust in U.S. capital markets. The conversation reveals the hidden economics of audit oversight and explains why there hasn't been a major public company fraud since Enron and WorldCom.

Chapters

• (00:49) - Legislation Impact on Audit Oversight
• (01:10) - Meet the Experts
• (02:59) - Discussion on PCAOB's Elimination
• (08:17) - Research Insights on PCAOB's Effectiveness
• (20:11) - Deficiency Rates and Audit Quality
• (24:50) - Economic Impact of Fraud and PCAOB's Role
• (25:20) - Regulatory Model of the PCAOB
• (25:59) - Incentive Structure and Audit Quality
• (26:59) - Inspection Deficiency Rates
• (28:54) - Restatement Rates vs. Deficiency Rates
• (30:23) - Auditor-Client Relationship Tensions
• (31:42) - Documentation Issues in Audits
• (35:15) - Effectiveness of PCAOB Inspections
• (37:49) - Impact of PCAOB on Financial Reporting Quality
• (40:33) - Potential Elimination of the PCAOB
• (44:00) - Conclusion and Final Thoughts

Download the Earmark CPE App

Apple: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/earmark-cpe/id1562599728

Android: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.earmarkcpe.app

Connect with Our Guests:

Maureen McNichols
https://www.gsb.stanford.edu/faculty-research/faculty/maureen-mcnichols
Nemit Shroff
https://mitsloan.mit.edu/faculty/directory/nemit-shroff
Daniel Aobdia
https://directory.smeal.psu.edu/dza5396

Connect with Blake Oliver, CPA

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/blaketoliver
Twitter: https://twitter.com/blaketoliver/