Episode 159 - From Accidental Accountant to Sustainable Firm Builder - The Woodard Report Podcast
The Woodard Report Podcast: Featuring Heather Satterley and Joe Woodard
Release Date: 02/18/2026
Episode 162 - AI Adoption Is Accelerating—Are Firms Keeping Up? - The Woodard Report Podcast
The Woodard Report Podcast: Featuring Heather Satterley and Joe Woodard
On this episode of the Woodard Report podcast, Heather and Joe discuss new research on global AI adoption and what it means for accounting firms, highlighting how early adopters are gaining strategic advantages while others risk falling behind. They explore recent funding surges in AI-powered accounting tools, practical considerations for implementing AI within firms, and the importance of governance, strategy, and financial independence in adapting to rapid technological change. Current events — TV/Movie quote of the week — Excellent things we learned — Member...
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Episode 161 - AI Fluency, Pricing Strategy & the Future of Accounting - The Woodard Report Podcast
The Woodard Report Podcast: Featuring Heather Satterley and Joe Woodard
On this episode of the Woodard Report podcast, Heather and Joe discuss new research on AI adoption in the workplace, highlighting the growing wage and opportunity gap between AI-fluent professionals and those who are not. They also explore major shifts in the accounting tech landscape, including month-end automation, evolving pricing strategies, and competitive convergence among software platforms. Current events — TV/Movie quote of the week — Excellent things we learned — Member spotlight — Dave Eshbach of CleanSlate Financial Services The Woodard Report article of the...
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Episode 160 - AI’s New Accounting Era: The Foundation, the Fallout, and the Future - The Woodard Report Podcast
The Woodard Report Podcast: Featuring Heather Satterley and Joe Woodard
On this episode of the Woodard Report podcast, Heather and Joe discuss the launch of the AI Native Accounting Foundation (including its first award at Scaling New Heights) and what BotKeeper’s abrupt shutdown signals about the rise and fall of “tech-driven bookkeeping” first movers. They explore why the future is “human-first, AI-enabled,” arguing firms must shift from selling bookkeeping/tax prep to building advisory skills and wisdom-driven judgment that AI can’t replace. Current events — TV/Movie quote of the week — Excellent things we learned — Member spotlight...
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Episode 159 - From Accidental Accountant to Sustainable Firm Builder - The Woodard Report Podcast
The Woodard Report Podcast: Featuring Heather Satterley and Joe Woodard
On this episode of the Woodard Report podcast, Heather speaks with Amanda Aguillard about her path from discovering accounting at 16 to building a cloud-based firm, launching the peer-driven Accounting Salon community, and becoming COO at Padgett. They discuss how Padgett helps firms implement standardized systems to reduce decision paralysis and build a business that isn’t dependent on the owner. About Amanda Aguillard, CPA Amanda Aguillard was only 16 years old when she realized she wanted to become a CPA, and she’s used that passion to encourage innovation in the...
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Episode 158 - From 150 Hours to AI Hype: What’s Really Changing in Accounting - The Woodard Report Podcast
The Woodard Report Podcast: Featuring Heather Satterley and Joe Woodard
On this episode of the Woodard Report podcast, Heather speaks with David Leary about the biggest shifts shaping the accounting profession such as the rollback of the 150-hour CPA requirement and how alternative pathways are already boosting the pipeline of new accounting graduates. They also dig into what AI is actually good for (and where it still fails without strong firm processes and human oversight), plus why private equity in accounting can create serious conflicts of interest, particularly for assurance-related work. About David Leary David Leary is the Co-Founder and COO of Earmark. He...
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Episode 157 - From Bookkeeping to Business Coach: Collaboration, Advisory, and AI Done Right - The Woodard Report Podcast
The Woodard Report Podcast: Featuring Heather Satterley and Joe Woodard
On this episode of the Woodard Report podcast, Joe speaks with Tanya Hilts about how bookkeepers can move from compliance work into true advisory by leading with better questions, leaning into collaboration, and building confidence through real-time financial conversations. Tanya shares how AI tools like ChatGPT, Claude, and Perplexity can help generate smarter client questions and speed up analysis, while emphasizing that the real “threat” isn’t AI itself, but professionals who learn to use it well. About Tanya Hilts Tanya Hilts, CPB, FCPB is an award-winning accounting pro...
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Episode 156 - From Tax Filing to “Ask Luca”: Guardrails for AI and Client Boundaries - The Woodard Report Podcast
The Woodard Report Podcast: Featuring Heather Satterley and Joe Woodard
On this episode of the Woodard Report podcast, Joe and Heather speak about major January updates in the accounting space, including the IRS’s Free File program and why Joe prefers a subsidized third-party prep model over direct IRS filing. They also dig into how large firms like RSM are rolling out tightly governed generative AI tools (like “Ask Luca”), and what that teaches smaller firms about AI quality being driven by both model capability and data control. Current events — TV/Movie quote of the week — Excellent things we learned — Member spotlight — The Woodard...
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Episode 155 - Try the Train: New-Year Tech, Big Hope, and the Power of “No” - The Woodard Report Podcast
The Woodard Report Podcast: Featuring Heather Satterley and Joe Woodard
On this episode of the Woodard Report podcast, Joe and Heather speak about early-2026 accounting and tech happenings, including new CPE training for Intuit Enterprise Suite, and why leaning into AI skills can create outsized professional value. Current events — TV/Movie quote of the week — Excellent things we learned — Member spotlight — The Woodard Report article of the week — Thank you to our show sponsor, CorpNet! CorpNet is the trusted leader in business formation and compliance services, offering one of the best tools for accountants, CPAs and tax...
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Episode 154 - Dancing Toward Trust: Community, Collaboration, and the Human Side of Accounting - The Woodard Report Podcast
The Woodard Report Podcast: Featuring Heather Satterley and Joe Woodard
On this episode of the Woodard Report podcast, Heather speaks with Nancy McClelland, CPA about her journey as the “Dancing Accountant” and how embracing authenticity, community connection, and people skills has shaped her firm and career. They explore the importance of trust, niching, and collaboration between bookkeepers and tax professionals. About Nancy McClelland, CPA is a CPA on a lifelong mission to educate the professionals who support small businesses and their communities. She runs 'Ask a CPA', a Q&A membership for bookkeepers who want to learn to prepare “tax-ready" books;...
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Episode 153 - Accidental Accountant to Trusted Advisor: Navigating Nonprofits, Pricing, and the Future of AI - The Woodard Report Podcast
The Woodard Report Podcast: Featuring Heather Satterley and Joe Woodard
On this episode of the Woodard Report podcast, Joe speaks with Megan Tarnow about her journey as an “accidental accountant” who built a successful niche practice serving nonprofits and the unique challenges that come with pricing, staffing, and mission-driven work. Megan shares practical insights on why clean data, strong advisory relationships, and a controller-level mindset matter more than ever, especially as AI begins to reshape bookkeeping and analysis. About Megan Tarnow Megan Genest Tarnow is a long-time QuickBooks ProAdvisor with over 25 years working at the intersection of...
info_outlineOn this episode of the Woodard Report podcast, Heather speaks with Amanda Aguillard about her path from discovering accounting at 16 to building a cloud-based firm, launching the peer-driven Accounting Salon community, and becoming COO at Padgett. They discuss how Padgett helps firms implement standardized systems to reduce decision paralysis and build a business that isn’t dependent on the owner.
About Amanda Aguillard, CPA
Amanda Aguillard was only 16 years old when she realized she wanted to become a CPA, and she’s used that passion to encourage innovation in the industry she loves. That commitment lives on through her work as the Chief Operating Officer of Padgett, one of North America’s largest accounting service and business consulting providers.
Amanda oversees operational and logistical guidance for the company’s network of firms. This includes identifying and incorporating the latest cloud technologies into the Padgett operating model. She also is focused on developing and facilitating the necessary trainings to ensure these platforms and tools are successfully implemented by Padgett firms.
Amanda, who is a past Top 50 Women in Accounting, is the author of Xero: A Comprehensive Guide for Accountants and Bookkeepers. She was the Xero Evangelist of the Year in 2016, and used her experience as a Xero Certification instructor to co-found Elefant, a continuing education company for accountants and bookkeepers. She has written numerous articles for industry publications, including the Journal of Accountancy.
Prior to joining the executive team at Padgett, she ran Aguillard Accounting LLC, focusing her efforts on providing unparalleled client support service through a cloud-based practice that could be done anywhere in the world. Amanda also is the founder of Accounting Salon, a thinktank of cloud accounting experts, and its virtual offshoot, SALONv.
Amanda, who holds a Master’s Degree in Taxation from the University of Denver, regularly speaks at state CPA societies and industry technology conferences, including Accountex, AICPA Engage, Scaling New Heights, Clio Cloud Conference and Xerocon.
When she’s not advocating for her industry, she spends her time cooking for her two children, reading historical fiction and backcountry hiking.
Learn more about Amanda
Thank you to our show sponsor, Puzzle! Puzzle is the next generation firm: AI-powered, human-led. Puzzle replaces manual QuickBooks workflows with AI-driven books built for review, approval, and audit-ready accountability. Learn more at Puzzle.io.
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