In this episode of Accounting for Growth, host Chad Person and fractional CMO Dawn Howard tackle one of the biggest pressures facing CPA firm leaders today: technology.

Instead of chasing buzzwords and shiny tools, they walk through what it really looks like to modernize a firm in a way that drives growth, improves realization, and supports your people.

They discuss why so many firms feel behind on tech, how to build a realistic roadmap, the role of change management, and what meaningful ROI actually looks like—beyond just licenses and implementation costs.

🔑 Key Topics & Takeaways

•Why every firm feels pressure to “modernize” (and why most don’t feel ready)

•Start with the problem, not the tool

•Build a realistic technology roadmap

•Staff training & adoption as the real barrier

•Client & staff experience: the invisible ROI

•Change management & “getting people in the boat”

•Measuring ROI beyond licenses

•Start small, pilot, then scale

•Leadership & talent development through tech projects

Links

Dawn Howard– Fractional CMO, YorCMO

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dawn-howard-m-s-b4a6b911

Accounting for Growth is the podcast for CPA firm leaders who know referrals aren’t enough. Hosted by Chad Person, founder of AccountingCMO and fractional CMO to high-growth accounting and advisory firms, each short episode features outside experts with fresh takes on how accounting firms can overcome inertia, unlock opportunity, and confidently scale.

In under 12 minutes, you’ll hear punchy, actionable conversations with marketers, data experts, technologists, and strategic advisors working at the edge of accounting innovation. Whether it's AI in sales, better positioning, or building a smarter pipeline, each guest brings a clear takeaway on how to drive meaningful, measurable growth.

Brought to you by AccountingCMO and powered by yorCMO, this podcast helps you rethink growth, without fluff or filler.

Ways to Tune In

Youtube: https://youtu.be/bQhQGbU4kyA

•Amazon Music - https://music.amazon.com/es-co/podcasts/0dd0a29a-4f47-4480-b01b-6115ddccb42e/accounting-for-growth

•Spotify -https://open.spotify.com/episode/4uGxGsuJPMs2vgc7RThgWm?si=fQxYnDEiQtinP5co97EuZA

•Creator: https://creators.spotify.com/pod/profile/accounting-for-growth-pod

•Fractional C-Suite Retreat is produced by Frost Media Group

Learn more at https://frostmediagroup.com