She Left a 15-Year Career and Hit Capacity in Year One | Katie Helle

You're grinding through tax season wondering when it gets easier. What if the answer isn't working more, it's being more intentional about what you build and who you build it with?

Katie Helle walked away from a 15-year career at a traditional firm, launched Scaled Accounting, and hit capacity faster than she ever planned. Her growth engine? Referral partnerships with financial advisors, real relationships built at conferences, and online communities where firm owners actually send each other business.

In this conversation, she breaks down how she schedules tax prep to protect her 40-hour weeks, why she intentionally doesn't want to scale into a massive firm, and what happened when growth came so fast she didn't have SOPs ready for the team she had to hire mid-tax-season.

If you're building a firm around your life instead of the other way around, this one's for you. 

Ready to turn your firm into a lead-generating, profit-driving machine?
We help Bookkeepers, Accountants & Fractional CFOs generate consistent local leads, book perfect-fit appointments, and close premium clients, without cold outreach or ad guesswork.

Let’s map out your growth plan together → Book your free strategy call

Transcript

Welcome And The Big Promise

SPEAKER_00 0:00

Welcome back to another episode of the Accounting Leads Now podcast. We got an incredible guest lined up for today's episode. So without further ado, let's get into it. In a world where tax accountants are expected to burn the midnight oil, our guest today has a bold message. You don't need to work long hours to achieve exponential growth. She's revolutionized the accounting industry by combining cutting-edge technology with personalized strategy, and she's exceeded her business goals in just one year, all while maintaining a healthy work-life balance. We'll dive deep into how she's managing her time so effectively and explores the innovative solutions driving her success. Plus, she's not afraid to challenge the traditional norms of the industry. Get ready to uncover the secrets to redefining accounting success. We are pleased to welcome to the show the founder of Skilled Accounting Solutions, Katie Healy. Katie, welcome to the show. Katie, I'm so excited to have you here today.

SPEAKER_01 0:59

Thank you for having

Plenty Of Work To Go Around

SPEAKER_01 1:00

me.

SPEAKER_00 1:00

Katie, I would love to break some limiting beliefs. What's one belief you hold about firm growth marketing or the accounting industry that most people would disagree with?

SPEAKER_01 1:13

Um, well, I feel like uh anyone can do this in terms of firm running if you put your mind to it and you, you know, are willing to have an open mind. And I would say people fear that they're not going to be busy or there's not enough work, and that just is not the case at all. There's more work to go around in our industry than there are accountants, and it is unbelievable how busy even this year has been with people looking for for you know an accountant to work with. So there's there's this limiting belief that, oh, I don't know, I'm I'm worried that you know there won't be enough work, and that's just really not the case at all.

SPEAKER_00 1:56

So let let's dive into that because what stood out to me when I met you in Arizona um a handful of months ago, you were you're relatively new into business, but you were you were telling me it's just been booming pretty much since day one. What's been the secret to your success? Because I'm in a lot of Facebook groups, we have a lot of people come through our ads, they want to have conversations with us, they don't know how to grow their firm. You haven't run into that issue. You've had success kind of right out of the gate, which is so amazing.

Relationships That Drive Fast Growth

SPEAKER_00 2:29

Like, what has worked so well for you?

SPEAKER_01 2:31

You know, I think it is the fact that I worked for a prior firm for 15 years, so I really cultivated a lot of relationships. I think really what it comes down to is actually cultivating relationships, not only with clients, but also referral sources, you know, people such as attorneys and financial advisors, because they can be great referral sources for you. I mean, I have a financial advising team that really has been a blessing for my firm because they refer me a lot of business. And I have another financial advising team that I I have teamed up with as well. And I think it it just creates a great experience for the client when we can work together as a team from the financial advising side and the accountant side. And you know, they're they're great referral partners, and then also just getting yourself known in the community, in the accounting community and the tax community, because really there are a lot of firms at capacity that don't have anywhere for people to go. And if you introduce yourself to people, go to a conference, you know, let people know what you're doing, who you are, the kind of clients you like to serve, there's plenty of work to go around. I mean, I have people referring business to me that isn't taking business anymore because they're just booked, you know? And so it's really just cultivating that relationship, whether it be with clients or even, you know, colleagues, referral sources, those kind of things.

SPEAKER_00 4:03

That's so cool. What would you say to the listener or the firm owner who they haven't they haven't gone to a lot of conferences, they haven't invested in the travel, and there's a lot of them that go around. It can get expensive booking, you know, flights and hotels and and all the accommodation. What would you say to that firm owner who's either getting started or maybe who's been in business for a couple of years who who's like, no, I don't, I don't, I don't think that stuff works, and it's just a lot of money.

Conferences And Communities That Help

SPEAKER_01 4:30

So I will tell you, conferences for me were transformational between attending conferences and meeting people and then also joining accounting communities. I am a member of Jason Stats Realize uh accounting community, uh, accounting community, and um, it's a it's a bunch of great firm runners that uh you know have problems just like all of us have, you know, and it is it was it has been absolutely transformational. I've met some really incredible people in that community as well as at conferences, and they are what have really pushed me to start my own firm when I did, you know, it was the support and the camaraderie, and it was incredible, and it was truly life-changing for me, like literally. And um, I would say that if you can't afford to go to travel to a conference, try small conferences locally, you know, maybe get involved with your state society. Um, there's usually conferences locally that they put on. Try to get involved in online communities. You know, Logan Graf has a really great community called Counter that is for new firm runners. That community is incredible. I'm also a member of their as well. That, you know, just is nice to talk to other people and get their experiences. And it's also really great because people are really willing to share the wealth of knowledge with firm running. They don't gatekeep it. So if there's a problem, you can post something and people will give you advice, or they're oftentimes willing to share, you know, maybe a document on how you're they're doing things. It's incredible, it is absolutely incredible and worth every penny and time amount of time you spend uh investing in in this for sure.

SPEAKER_00 6:24

What I'm hearing a lot of is the abundance mindset, and I can relate a ton from marketing masterminds that I'm a part of. I've been a part of a couple different ones, and it was really cool to see actually at Women Who Count and then Connect, um, and a couple other ones I've attended, but on on the marketing side and in the accounting ones, really, how open everyone is to sharing, sharing tips. Like, because as you said, there's so much business out there in the US to go around. Like if someone said tomorrow, hey Katie, here's 200, 300 clients, can you take them on? That would I'm guessing would probably stress test the business quite a bit. So, and probably many people listening. So, like joining those communities, attending those events, hearing what's working, what's not working for other firms goes goes so far, and and I I can't recommend that enough. And I mean, even being at Women Who Count and then last minute deciding to go over to connect with everyone was huge because it's like wow, this it reinforced to me how important it is to get out in those communities. And have you attended other events for industries you work in, or have you primarily attended like professional learning events in the indust like for the accounting and bookkeeping?

SPEAKER_01 7:41

Yeah, I've mostly attended uh accounting conferences. I have definitely thought about uh venturing out and going into attending some conferences in the industries that I serve. I mostly serve service-based businesses, but I have a uh a large client that is a uh spa, so to say. They have multiple locations, and I really enjoy working with them and I really enjoy that industry. And I would love to go to like a cosmetology type conference or something like that just to learn more about the the type of spas and salons that are out there, and maybe I can serve them as well.

SPEAKER_00 8:24

Yeah, absolutely. I know that that for us has been a pretty transformational strategy for growth. It's it's obviously a lot long, it's a longer term play than put up an ad and someone comes in, maybe bring them in that day. But just as you were talking about how transformational it is kind of hanging out with your own tribe, getting out and and into the the home service industries and walking those floors, and now you become the go-to industry expert for the home service space can be massive. So I would challenge you if there's uh, you know, check out which ones are coming up and and you know, step outside your comfort zone a little bit to to jump into those events.

SPEAKER_01 9:04

Yeah, I definitely I definitely plan on doing that because I think it would be a lot of fun. Learn something new. And I'm always love I always love learning, and this would be a great way to challenge myself for sure.

SPEAKER_00 9:17

Absolutely. So, Katie, things have been going really well the last year. What's something that maybe hasn't gone to plan that caught you off guard? Like, wow, I wasn't expecting this to be so hard.

When Growth Outruns Your Systems

SPEAKER_01 9:31

So I would I would say uh the hardest thing for me has been the fast growth. I was not prepared for it.

SPEAKER_00 9:40

It's a terrible thing to have happen.

SPEAKER_01 9:42

I mean, honestly, right? But uh I was not prepared when I started my firm full-time, you know, had a practice management system that I had had set up like before actually like fully launching. And I'd been working behind the scenes on doing those things, but it was really like a quick process of like just to keep track of work and stuff like that. And I didn't really take the time to create like SOPs and like step-by-step process because it I knew it was right here, right? And I did not intend on growing the way I did. I started out myself and now I have a bookkeeper, a part-time tax preparer, and a part-time admin, right? So I had to take what was in here, and I've been trying to put redo our practice management system so that there are, you know, distinct processes in place on who's doing what. And then also teaching the team all the things that I know up here that it's just from me doing being in the industry for so long, right? I would say that was my biggest mistake is not taking the time initially to lay it all out. I just did not expect it to grow as quick as I did. I mean, the first tax season, I was like, oh, this is gonna be excellent. You know, it's gonna be kind of like a slow process with building the business. I'll have some time to work on this. And it just simply wasn't, it wasn't that way at all. And so it was one of those where I got into March of last year and I was like, oh my gosh, I need to hire a tax preparer to help me because it's just too much. And, you know, I went out on my own with very intentional purposes, right? Like I did not want to have the grind of the traditional accounting firm. I worked that for a long time and I worked a lot of hours, and I have a small child and a family at home, and I just don't want to do that anymore. You know, when I was young and didn't have kids, it was not a big deal. But when I'm older, the last thing I want to be doing is working 70 hours a week during tax season. So I was really intentional. I've

Boundaries And Scheduled Tax Prep

SPEAKER_01 11:50

been really intentional with, you know, the kind of clients that I work with, one, and then also making sure that I set hard boundaries to maintain that work-life balance. I don't typically work more than 40 hours a week, and you know, even in the summer months, I work less than that because I do like to travel. So, you know, you can't have a huge client base with a small team that I have and not work a lot of hours. And I I came into the the tax season, the first tax season, just schedule, I was scheduling out tax preparation. This is kind of a new thing in the industry where firms are scheduling tax preparation rather than letting people just drop drop their documents off, and when they get it, they start preparing the tax return. I was really strategic in that the first year, and I wanted to make sure I was able to maintain that work-life balance. And it actually has worked really well. We've we've um enhanced the process a little bit this year to make it a bit easier for us on the back-end side, the team side, and then also the clients with scheduling and whatnot. So it's been it's been a fun journey for sure. I mean, I think every firm owner and even business owner needs to have a great mindset of learning, right? Things are never going to be exactly perfect, and you have to be willing and able to learn new things to, you know, make your business better.

SPEAKER_00 13:27

What's surprised you the most about you now being in the business owner seat from when you got started to today?

SPEAKER_01 13:37

Well, I often think about this because, you know, I always wanted to do this, but I I never thought I could, you know, I think it was a a lack of confidence, perhaps. You know, there was always the fear of what if, right? What if clients, what if I can't build my business? You know, I am the income generator for our family, and leaving a very stable job was scary, you know, like you are lots of sleepless nights trying to figure this out, planning it in advance. But I I think that, you know, once you the aha moment for me was like writing it out on paper of okay, here's what I'm making now, and this is what I need to do. What does that look like in terms of client base or tax returns or accounting work? Because I do accounting services too. What did that actually look like? And then when you break it down in smaller increments, it was like an aha moment to me, like, oh, well, that's not that difficult. I could probably do that. And then it just got way better, you know, as the time the the year went on and and things just um grew real fast.

SPEAKER_00 14:51

That's so awesome. Well, I I have a this is a bit of a hot topic, I find in the in the accounting space. How

Sales Confidence And Better Communication

SPEAKER_00 14:59

is the sales like learning learning sales or having those sales conversations been for you? Because I'm guessing in your pastoral that probably wasn't something that came across your desk too much. Um, and I know a lot of other firm owners, when it comes to sales, some get, you know, they're either really shy and they they don't like that part, or they have this incredible confidence because everything's been a referral and they've it's like, oh, I could close everything. I'm curious, where do you feel you fall into the bucket with your confidence when it comes to those sales calls? When people are like, hey, Katie, tell me how you can help my business out.

SPEAKER_01 15:38

Yeah, so I I feel like sales is in my blood. I think it's in my DNA. My dad was in sales my his whole entire life. He's still in sales, right? And when I was younger, I um had a business that I was selling um jewelry for a home-based business. And I was a one of the top sellers in Arizona. And so it was, I feel like it's in my blood. So to me, it's really easy to talk to people about the services that I do offer and how we can help their business. I also have an extreme passion for helping business owners. I love seeing a business start at A and going to selling their business years later. It's so inspiring to me to see them grow their business with me helping them along the way. So I kind of use that when I go into talking to people. And I think honestly, at the end of the day, you can you can sell yourself to somebody in like the first five seconds of communicating with them, right? When you're meeting with them, how are how are you talking to them? Are you, do you have a great personality? Are you fun? You know, like they're not gonna want to work with someone who's boring, you know, or doesn't um doesn't necessarily answer their questions. I think people want you to listen. And I think that is so important. And I don't win every sale, right? I don't, and I don't want to win every sale because I feel like if I were to win every single sale, then either I'm not pricing right or you know, I'm I'm not really looking at what I what kind of businesses I want to work with, right? Like I'm just more of a generalist, I am a generalist, right? But I typically work with service-based businesses and high net worth individuals. So if I take on anybody and everybody, that's going to really start pushing the capacity load, right? And again, I'm very hard on my boundaries, right? And so I think in terms of if someone were wanting to learn what to do, I think I think you need to have a mentor, right, to help them walk them through learning how to talk to people. I have been at I attended in the fall the theater of public speaking. I don't know if you're familiar with Misty Majia and the theater of public speaking, but I attended their um training, their intermediate uh training last fall, which it was incredible because it really helps you communicate better, you know, and I kind of look at it, it it's not just a communication of business, it's like communication all over personally and professionally. So I've really enjoyed that and I've learned a lot in just doing that. But also, you know, I think it comes with finding someone that that has a lot of experience that maybe is a successful firm. That's why I love when people just starting out want to reach out to me and ask me questions because I feel like it's my job to share the wealth of knowledge, right? Like it's it's not all rainbows and butterflies. There's a lot of, you know, there's a lot of stress and um whatnot. But I think if you if you if the good outweighs the stress, it's far worth it in the end.

SPEAKER_00 19:02

Yeah, that's so cool. With with the training you took, you did you get I uh I don't know how to word that did you get out of it what you anticipated when you signed up? Walk me through that a little bit.

SPEAKER_01 19:17

So I didn't really know what to expect. I had a friend in the industry, Nancy McClelland, who was like, you need to take this class. This is such a great class. I really want to get into education uh for accountants as well, like doing webinars and training and whatnot. And so she's like, You need to take this. I think it will be really helpful for you. So I was like, okay, she told me I need to take it. I I should take it, right? And so I I signed up in the very first class. I was like, what the hell did I get myself into? You know, like, oh man, I don't think I I don't think I'm meant for this, right? And then so I didn't go into it with a lot of expectation. And when I left there, it it it it was so transformational for me. Like I can see things differently with talking to people, and then when people are teaching, you know, I can see see such a difference now that I didn't necessarily see previously, so much so that I also am attending their advanced retreat this this spring. So so I'm working on that as well. But you know, it's it's I think I think firm owners, in or maybe actually any business owner, they have to have this learning mindset. They have to continue to learn and grow. Because if you become stagnant, what do you have to offer not only your team, but also your clients and customers, right? You have to be willing to continue to learn. And I just am like this little sponge right now that's wanting to learn all the things.

SPEAKER_00 20:53

I love that. What what's next? What's next for you? What's next for the business?

SPEAKER_01 20:59

Yeah, so um this year I think is going to be a really busy year, uh, not only, you know, business-wise, but I am now a member of the Intuit Tax Council. So I'm involved in that. And thanks. Yeah, it was it's it's exciting, it's a lot of fun. You know, it's it's really cool to see what they're working on, and um, you know, being kind of a voice in the process of things is is is fun. So it involves some traveling, which is really nice. Um, this summer I'm really hoping to leave for about six weeks. Uh, so that will be really fun, hopefully, to spend with with my family. And as far as like business growth goes, you know, I'm continuing to grow, but I don't I don't want to become this million, multi million dollar firm because I feel like it's going to take away that purpose of starting the firm. My why is my daughter and my family, and Although it's it's great that I can grow, it defeats the purpose of spending time with them, right? And I know the you can bring more people on, but there comes more headaches, right? When you have a larger team, sometimes it's harder to manage. And I I just I just don't want to do that. I I want to grow and help the clients that I have now and have you know bring on new clients as as needed and you know, just give them the best service that they they deserve.

SPEAKER_00 22:33

I love how intentional you are with everything, Katie. Like every everything from the start of this interview to now, you just I feel you have a very crystal clear goal on exactly what you want, what it looks like, and why you're doing it. Like you just mentioned, I I admire that a lot because I I get very clouded at times, and I feel like it's easy to I need I need to get to this size because that's what everyone else around me is doing, or I need to be doing this because that's what these peers have done. But you have a very laser-focused vision on what you want in your business. So I really admire that.

SPEAKER_01 23:13

Thanks. You know, I don't feel like every person has to have this multi-million dollar firm to be successful, right? You can have a very small firm and enjoy what as long as you're enjoying what you're doing, really at the end of the day, that's all that matters. Yeah, money is great, but it it's not what necessarily makes you happy, you know, to be a business owner. And um, I just I worked too long in a traditional industry, a traditional firm that I just don't want to, I was burnt out. I I was ready for a change, and I don't want to get to that burnt out point again. I want to continue to enjoy what the profession that I absolutely love.

Defining Success Without Bigger Headaches

SPEAKER_01 23:56

And so it is really important to be intentional. But I want people to know that you don't like you can have a very successful firm, and success is a different measure for everybody, whether it be, you know, money or you know, the feeling inside, as silly as that sounds, you know, but it it doesn't necessarily mean comparing yourself to other people, right? I have a friend that I met through Jason's Dats Realize, and he started his firm right around the same time that I did. And so we kind of like are we have this little buddy system where we meet every three weeks and we like talk through things, and it's really great to have this, you know, friend to go along this journey because it's quite the journey. And, you know, it's so funny because we are are very different but similar in in ways, right? He is very anxious to grow a bigger firm, and I'm like, I'm just loving where where I'm at, like I just am okay having a small firm. But I love that about us because I don't feel like it's a competition. I feel like, you know, that's what makes each of us great, right? And we learn so many different things from everybody that you know you just can't compare yourself to other people. It's just not fair to you, and it's it's not fair to everybody.

SPEAKER_00 25:13

That's you've just shared so much knowledge, and I'm I'm just enjoying this conversation so much. So thank you so for that. What's the final piece to wrap this up for everyone? You've already shared again so much advice, so much wisdom, but what is the best piece of advice you've ever received, personally or professionally? What comes to mind?

SPEAKER_01 25:34

Figure out your why. Why are you doing this? Why? Because the why is what determines a lot in the future, right? You don't, you if you don't know your why, you're not gonna have a clear-cut path of where you want to be. And I think that makes a really big difference. I I do know people who have spun their wheels trying, trying to get their firms up and running. And I really think what it boils down to is they didn't know their why. They didn't know why they wanted to do this, you know, who they wanted to serve, what was their goals within the business. When I first

Find Your Why And Stay On Track

SPEAKER_01 26:11

started, I really took the time to create like a vision for myself, you know, with goals of the firm and um mission statement, because I I feel like that's really important. That helps us keep to the north star, right? And if you don't have that all figured out, and it's not perfect, you know, and it certainly can be modified as you grow. But if you don't have a starting point, how can you be successful?

SPEAKER_00 26:39

Yeah, if yeah, if you don't know where you're going, it if you can't see the bullseye, and you could use all the analogies, but you can't see the bullseye, it's hard to throw and hit it.

SPEAKER_01 26:49

Yeah, yeah, exactly.

SPEAKER_00 26:51

This was incredible. Um, how can people get in touch with you if they want to continue the conversation? They want to reach out. How uh where can we where can we push them to uh contact you?

SPEAKER_01 27:00

Yeah, so uh you can connect with me on LinkedIn. Uh my uh profile is MKD Healy, CPA. Uh, you can also visit my website, scaledaccounting.com, and there's a little uh let's connect button on there, and there's a little questionnaire, and on there is one of them is Talk Shop. And so I'm more than happy to you know connect with people in the industry and answer any questions, or you know, if they they just don't know where to begin, I can hopefully provide some words of wisdom.

SPEAKER_00 27:32

I love it. Katie, thanks again for coming on. This has been absolutely amazing.

SPEAKER_01 27:37

Awesome. Well, thank you so much for having me. I

Where To Reach Katie Healy

SPEAKER_01 27:40

greatly appreciate it.