Right people, right place, right time. A conversation with Carla Caldwell

04/19/23 • 42 min

Carla Caldwell, Stuart's long-time friend and ex-colleague, joins him for a delightful conversation about her journey in accounting, accounting technology, consulting, and entrepreneurship.

Reminiscing together (00:05)
How family and mentors influenced Carla's accounting journey (01:55)
Finding her superpower in accounting and technology (05:20)
The game-changing opportunity to be a part of Xero's early days in the US (12:10)
Carla's post-Xero venture as technology and process consultant for accountants (21:20)
Harnessing the power of technology (rather than resisting it) (24:00)
How the accounting industry might solve the talent challenge (27:30)
Building meaningful, personal connections with your staff (30:00)
How the 'Working Geniuses' model uplifts her staff (34:00)
Carla's most memorable clients (38:30)

Carla Caldwell, Stuart's long-time friend and ex-colleague, joins him for a delightful conversation about her journey in accounting, accounting technology, consulting, and entrepreneurship.

Reminiscing together (00:05)
How family and mentors influenced Carla's accounting journey (01:55)
Finding her superpower in accounting and technology (05:20)
The game-changing opportunity to be a part of Xero's early days in the US (12:10)
Carla's post-Xero venture as technology and process consultant for accountants (21:20)
Harnessing the power of technology (rather than resisting it) (24:00)
How the accounting industry might solve the talent challenge (27:30)
Building meaningful, personal connections with your staff (30:00)
How the 'Working Geniuses' model uplifts her staff (34:00)
Carla's most memorable clients (38:30)

Previous Episode

Are accountants the missing piece of holistic wealth management? A conversation with Rob Santos and Rory Henry

Rob Santos and Rory Henry of Arrow Root Family Office join Stuart to discuss how accountants are primed to be strategic advisors in the wealth and family management space.

Together, they talk about:

Why accountants are well-positioned to get involved in wealth management (02:15)
The origin story of Arrowroot Family Office (07:00)
Creating a personalized financial advisory experience (09:40)
Diversifying an accountant's portfolio with wealth management (12:00)
Are accountants the future of investment advisory? (15:30)
How accountants can add value to a holistic financial plan (28:06)
Planning for succession as firm owners (32:00)

Next Episode

Turning all of life's lemons into lemonade, with Candy Bellau

Candy Bellau grew up with an unconventional father who applied his genius in all the wrong ways. In this episode, Candy candidly shares how others' mistakes enlightened her to live a life of integrity, and what she's doing to maintain work-life balance for herself and her staff.

Learning how to do bookkeeping at 14 years old (01:20)
Uncovering major accounting fraud while working as a bookkeeper (03:00)
How Candy's evil genius father shaped her moral and ethical codes (05:00)
Reconnecting with her father on his deathbed (12:00)
Candy's accidental involvement with a check-kiting scheme (18:00)
A brief stint as a Peace Corps volunteer in Namibia (22:00)
How Candy put a fraudulent executive behind bars (25:00)
Finding a new sense of purpose as a coach (29:00)
Putting family first, not just for the owner, but for every staff member (32:00)