Meet Luke!

Most accountants track their sales pipeline in their heads. Luke Frye thinks that's about as reasonable as a client telling you they keep their financials in theirs.

In Episode 68 of Protea Conversations, Zane Stevens sits down with Luke Frye, CPA, Accountant in Residence at Canopy. Luke's path into the profession is anything but typical: a lawn business he started at ten and sold at eighteen in small-town Wyoming, a first job handwriting journal entries for the City of Laramie, a move to New York with a credit card and a dream, and a seat as the first accountant at the startup that became Bench, where he helped scale a 50-person bookkeeping operation to 3,000 customers. From there he went on to Pilot, ran his own practice, consulted on firm growth, and now helps Canopy speak to accountants from the inside.

Zane and Luke get into what AI is really changing for firms, including why the biggest hurdle isn't the technology but the willingness to feel like a beginner again, and why AI tends to pull everyone toward average unless a skilled human stays in the loop. They talk about what happens when faster books take accountants further away from clients instead of closer, and how to handle clients who don't want their data anywhere near an LLM.

The second half is a masterclass in sales for accountants: why subscription billing changes the client relationship, why a $3,000-a-month engagement can be easier to sell than a $300 one, why you should follow up more than feels comfortable, and how charging $75 for a free class Luke couldn't fill turned it into a sold-out room.

Key Takeaways

- The biggest barrier to new technology is ego.

- AI elevates expertise; it doesn't replace it.

- Faster books open the door to advisory at every price point.

- Subscription billing changes the relationship.

- Going upmarket can be easier, not harder.

- Track your pipeline like you'd expect a client to track their books.

- Price signals value. Luke's free classes sat empty. Once he charged $75, they filled.

Notable Quotes

"The biggest hurdle to a lot of the new technology is willingness to learn, willingness to feel stupid again." — Luke Frye

"Sales is leadership. And a leader doesn't stop if they get slightly ignored." — Luke Frye

"Use the tools to elevate what you're good at, not to bring the things you're not good at to a mediocre level." — Zane Stevens

Connect with Luke

https://www.linkedin.com/in/lukefrye/

This is episode 68

Meet Michael!

Accountants are trained to run with the herd: don’t get ahead, don’t fall behind, don’t take risks. Mike Brown decided that wasn’t what clients needed.

Zane sits down with Mike Brown, CPA, co-founder of Brightline. They trace Mike’s path from a small-town Ontario history buff to nine years at Baker Tilly. Mike was a couple of years from the partner conversation when he walked away to start his own firm with his business partner Stacy, and they had nothing more than “concepts of a plan.”

Mike talks about why accounting records are really the history of a business, and why AI will probably cause an overcorrection back toward human service. He explains how a visionary–implementer partnership depends on productive conflict, and what changed when a November 2025 merger took Brightline from 8 people to 25 overnight.

He also shares the thinking behind Brightline’s public pricing calculator, why pricing transparency builds trust, and the leadership lessons he keeps coming back to: clear is kind, learn to say no, and just have the difficult conversation.

Protea Conversations is the podcast for accountants and service-firm leaders.

Chapters

00:00 Welcome and the guitar in the corner

02:44 From history buff to accountant

06:38 Will AI change how humans behave?

09:33 Processed food, overcorrection, and the future of AI

11:47 Building communication skills (and a McDonald’s Monopoly police escort)

14:51 From co-op terms to Baker Tilly to Brightline

17:01 Walking away from the partner track

20:21 “Ship it and iterate”: why accountants need to take more risks

21:31 Don’t run with the herd

22:58 Starting a firm with “concepts of a plan”

25:45 Visionary meets implementer: making partnership conflict productive

28:38 Seeking out conflict after a merger

30:51 From business owner to leader

35:46 Vivid Vision: writing down exactly what your firm should look like

38:16 A day in the life of a firm owner

42:14 Endless Customers and the pricing calculator

44:17 Why pricing transparency matters

48:02 How to get out of your own way

49:53 Leadership advice: clear is kind, and learn to say no

53:45 Mike outside of work: a lifelong learner

55:42 The Final Five

Books and resources mentioned

Get Well Soon by Jennifer Wright

Vivid Vision by Cameron Herold

Endless Customers by Marcus Sheridan

Radical Candor by Kim Scott

“Clear is kind, unclear is unkind” by Brené Brown

Connect with Micahel

https://www.linkedin.com/in/michael-brown-cpa-ca-1691714b/

Meet Melissa!

What happens when the business you built grows faster than the systems needed to support it?

In this episode of Protea Conversations, Zane sits down with Melissa Armstrong, CPA and founder of SteadyHand Accounting & Advisory, for an open conversation about entrepreneurship, accounting, identity, and rebuilding a firm. Melissa grew up in Puerto Rico in a family of accountants, even though she was convinced she would never become one herself. Her journey eventually took her through Big Four accounting, corporate finance, Spain, Colorado, and ultimately firm ownership.

But her second year as a business owner changed everything. After experiencing rapid growth, Melissa found herself beyond capacity, struggling through hiring challenges, and with one client representing roughly half of her firm's revenue. Eventually, she made the difficult decision to let go of that client, restructure the business, rethink hiring, raise her fees, strengthen her boundaries, and rebuild SteadyHand with a much clearer vision.

The conversation also goes well beyond business. Melissa shares candidly about pursuing financial independence, the personal cost of constantly pushing forward, learning to listen to her body and herself, and redefining what success actually means.

In this episode:

• Growing up in Puerto Rico and finding a career in accounting

• Why Melissa originally wanted nothing to do with the profession

• Building a network after moving countries and cities

• The value of authenticity in relationships and business

• Lessons from Big Four accounting

• Taking the leap into firm ownership

• Why rapid growth created unexpected problems

• The danger of client concentration

• Hiring before you're ready—and hiring when it's already too late

• Making the decision to walk away from major revenue

• Burnout, capacity, and building a sustainable business

• Raising fees and establishing stronger client boundaries

• What “SteadyHand 2.0” looks like

• Financial independence, identity, and redefining success

• The importance of having people around you who can help

Melissa also shares one of the biggest lessons from her journey: build relationships, stay curious, ask for help when you need it, and be willing to change when the business you're running no longer supports the life you're trying to build.

Connect with Melissa Armstrong and learn more about SteadyHand Accounting & Advisory, her newsletter, and her podcast No Se Habla Taxes.

Connect with Melissa

LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/andersonpetergeorge/

Meet Anderson!

What does the accounting firm of the future actually look like?

In this episode of Protea Conversations, I sit down with Anderson Petergeorge, co-founder of Quanto, to talk about accounting, entrepreneurship, AI, marketing, niching, and what it really takes to build a modern accounting firm.

Anderson started his career at KPMG before moving into finance and eventually entrepreneurship. What began as an attempt to build an AI-native accounting firm evolved into something very different: a business helping accounting firms grow through sales, marketing, technology, and content.

We talk about why understanding the fundamentals of bookkeeping still matters, even when AI promises to automate more of the work, and why firms need to be careful about adopting technology simply because everyone else is doing it.

Anderson also shares his perspective on hiring in an AI-driven world, why AI should make people more effective rather than simply replace them, and the danger of using new technology to do more of the same work you already dislike.

We also dive into niching, identifying your ideal client, building a personal brand, creating valuable content, and why accountants have a unique opportunity to turn their experience and client knowledge into genuine thought leadership.

Along the way, Anderson shares lessons from entrepreneurship, building alongside a co-founder, learning from customers, the influence of his family, and why having the right people around you matters.

In this episode:

00:00 – Welcome to Protea Conversations

03:30 – From accounting to entrepreneurship

05:55 – Anderson and Zane’s shared KPMG experience

10:00 – Why accountants should understand bookkeeping

13:45 – Becoming an entrepreneur

22:35 – How Quanto evolved from its original idea

30:25 – Turning expertise into valuable content

34:40 – Finding your niche and ideal customer

42:20 – How accounting firms should approach hiring in the AI era

46:25 – Are accountants using AI to do more work they already hate?

49:00 – Why leaders need to start with “why”

49:50 – The best advice Anderson has received

If you are an accountant, firm owner, entrepreneur, or anyone trying to understand how AI and technology are changing professional services, there is plenty to take away from this conversation.

Connect with Anderson

LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/andersonpetergeorge/

Protea Conversations is the podcast for accountants and service-firm leaders.

Subscribe to the channel!

Meet Dan!

In this episode of Protea Conversations, Zane sits down with Dan McMahon, CPA, CM&AA, founder and managing partner of Integrated Growth Advisors.

Dan shares his journey from a shy accounting student who loved the certainty of debits and credits to becoming an audit partner, business development leader, entrepreneur, and advisor to business owners and accounting firms.

The conversation covers how public accounting shaped Dan’s business acumen, why relationships played such an important role in his career, and what ultimately led him to leave public accounting and start Integrated Growth Advisors.

Dan also shares lessons on leadership, communication, trust, and why the best leaders need to learn how to “see around corners.” We also talk about Dan’s ongoing work to become a better communicator through improv, storytelling, and stand-up comedy.

In this episode:

- Dan’s path into accounting

- Becoming a partner in public accounting

- The importance of relationships and business development

- Leaving public accounting to become an entrepreneur

- Common leadership challenges business owners face

- Why trust matters in advisory relationships

- How leaders can “see around corners”

- Improv, storytelling, and becoming a better communicator

Chapters

00:00 – Welcome

03:32 – Dan’s path into accounting

18:15 – Overcoming shyness and learning to communicate

22:49 – The road to partnership

30:39 – Becoming an entrepreneur

35:08 – Integrated Growth Advisors

39:46 – Common business-owner challenges

43:21 – Leadership and seeing around corners

46:50 – Becoming a better communicator

53:02 – Rapid fire

Connect with Dan

LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/danmcmahoncpa/

This is episode 64

Meet Camden!

Camden Bean didn't set out to build software for accountants; he grew up around them. After dropping out of college to join Divi, a fintech startup founded by his uncle, Camden helped take the company from zero to $100M in ARR in two and a half years before it was acquired by Bill.com. From there he ran a $100M venture fund, got hooked on what AI could actually do, and eventually built Ping — the "client intelligence" platform now used by firms from top-20 shops down to solo practitioners.

In this episode, Camden and Zane get into why the word "advisory" has become meaningless in the accounting industry, why Camden thinks firms should be building an MRC instead of a CRM, what it actually takes to make AI agents useful for client work, and the one thing every firm needs to do right now to be ready for what's coming. They also swap new-dad stories, talk about why Camden dropped out of school, and close out with a rapid-fire round covering audiobooks at 2x speed and butter chicken.

Timestamps

00:00 — Welcome, Camden Bean

03:50 — Studying accounting, then dropping out to join Divi full-time

07:12 — His honest take on the four-year college degree

09:32 — Inside Divi's early days: unpaid intern to core team

13:39 — Raising and running a $100M venture fund

16:05 — The idea that became Ping

21:28 — Why an engineering-only support team changes everything

23:52 — Building and motivating a team without leaning on money

34:41 — Why Ping stays laser-focused on accounting, not every industry

37:11 — Forget the CRM — build an MRC (Managing Relationships with Clients)

43:35 — Camden's #1 piece of advice for firms getting ready for AI agents

45:21 — Fatherhood, free time, and what's next

46:55 — Rapid-fire round

Key Takeaways

- "Advisory" has become a buzzword nobody can define. Camden argues the industry needs real, specific playbooks

- Build an MRC, not a CRM. Static systems that just store client data aren't the point — the value is in a system that proactively surfaces what to do next.

- AI-readiness starts with data aggregation.

- Responsibility motivates more than money.

- Relationships open the door; the product keeps people.

Notable Quotes

"Nobody knows what advisory means. It's all ethereal."

"We're building the opposite of a CRM. We're building an MRC — we're helping you manage your relationships with your clients."

"If you're not putting your data in a place that's easily queryable by other agents... that is the most important thing you can do right now."

Connect with Camden

LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/camden-bean/

Business - https://www.pingassistant.com/

Meet Chase!

In this episode, Chase Damiano shares his journey from chemical engineer to successful entrepreneur and business consultant. He discusses the importance of leadership, delegation, creating psychological safety, and scaling businesses while maintaining passion and purpose.

Key topics

- Journey from engineering to entrepreneurship

- Importance of leadership and vulnerability

- Strategies for scaling and delegation

- Signs of burnout and how to prevent it

- Building systems for business growth

Sound bites

"Leadership is about giving power, not taking it"

"Creating psychological safety through vulnerability"

"Define responsibility and success clearly"

Resources

The E Myth by Michael Gerber - https://www.amazon.com/E-Myth-Master-Entrepreneur-About/dp/0887307280

Notion - https://www.notion.so/

Commonwealth Joe Coffee - https://commonwealthjoe.com/

Connect with Chase

LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/chasedamiano/

Twitter - https://twitter.com/chasedamiano

Business - https://humanatscale.com/

Meet Jennifer!

In this episode, Zane sits down with Jennifer Green, founder and partner at Jade Consulting, to explore what it really takes to build a people-first, scalable accounting firm.

Jennifer shares the story of how she got started in accounting after an unexpected layoff in investment banking, and how that early experience shaped her approach to leadership, flexibility, and business ownership. She explains how Jade Consulting grew from a solo practice into a fully remote team of 15 women across Canada, serving scaling entrepreneurs with bookkeeping, accounting, payroll, sales tax, and financial reporting support.

The conversation also dives into the firm’s merger journey, the importance of systems and processes, and how cloud accounting changed the role of accountants from paper-pushers to trusted advisors. Jennifer and Zane discuss the culture of accountability and care inside Jade Consulting, including open office hours, flexible schedules, charitable giving, and a strong emphasis on authenticity.

They also explore the role of AI and automation in modern accounting, from saving hours on reporting to improving efficiency without losing the human judgment that clients rely on. Jennifer closes by sharing her vision for the future: continuing to scale the business, building toward a “choice point,” and creating a firm that can thrive with or without her at the center.

Key topics include:

- Building a culture-first accounting firm

- Scaling beyond the founder bottleneck

- The shift from desktop to cloud accounting

- Remote team leadership and flexibility

- AI, automation, and the future of bookkeeping

- Preparing a business to be sell-ready

If you enjoyed this conversation, you’ll love Jennifer’s practical wisdom on leadership, growth, and creating a business that supports both people and profit.

Connect with Jennifer:

Personal LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/jenniferallengreen/

Jade Consulting - https://www.jadeconsulting.ca/