Blog - Earmark CPE

The New Earmark Is Here

A Fresh Look for the Way You Work We started Earmark because we believed continuing education for accounting and finance professionals could be a lot better than it was. Not a box to check at the end of the year, but something genuinely useful that fits into a real working…

Why an S Corporation’s Retained Earnings, AAA, and Stock Basis Rarely Match

S corporations have three separate ledgers — and mixing them up costs clients money. In Episode 28 of Tax in Action, Jeremy Wells, EA, CPA, breaks down retained earnings, AAA, and stock basis with a clear framework that exposes the costly errors even seasoned practitioners make. Don’t miss this one.

What Losing Your Best Bookkeeper Reveals About How You Price Yourself

What happens when your best employee outgrows you? In this crossover episode of The Unofficial QuickBooks Accountants Podcast and She Counts, host Alicia Katz Pollock joins Questian Telka and Nancy McClelland for a raw, relatable conversation about chronic underpricing, building a bookkeeper incubator, and finally charging what you’re worth.

Why the Most Profitable Accounting Firms of the Future Might Have No Employees at All

Blake Oliver and David Leary of The Accounting Podcast explore how one solo CPA is running an entire firm using AI — no employees needed. Plus: KPMG’s shocking federal exit, the economic risks of AI replacing workers, and live tests of the new QuickBooks and Xero connections to Claude.

A Toy Plane, an Answering Machine, and 1,800 Defrauded Investors: How Lou Pearlman Pulled It Off

Lou Pearlman built the Backstreet Boys and *NSYNC — then used their fame to run a $300 million Ponzi scheme for 20 years. On Oh My Fraud, host Caleb Newquist unravels how a toy plane, a fake airline, and a fictional accounting firm fooled 1,800 investors. The hand was always in the frame.

Your Accounting Firm’s Biggest Structural Problem Is Something You Built on Purpose

Are you the bottleneck in your own accounting firm? In this episode of Who’s Really the BOSS?, hosts Marcus and Rachel Dillon reveal the exact three-phase transition they used to transform their firm from a chaotic, siloed operation into a scalable team-based model — and the costly mistakes to avoid along the way.

What Happens When Your Best Employee Outgrows You?

The “QuickBooks Queen” Alicia Katz Pollock built a training empire — and still couldn’t see how much she was undervaluing herself. In this crossover episode of She Counts and the Unofficial QuickBooks Accountants Podcast, hosts Questian Telka and Nancy McClelland help Alicia unpack blind spots, burnout, and a bold $19K incubator program.

What Social Media Tax Advice Gets Wrong About Business Vehicle Write-Offs

Think buying a vehicle through your business unlocks big tax deductions? Think again. In Episode 27 of Tax in Action, Jeremy Wells, EA, CPA, breaks down the real rules on vehicle deductions — and why business ownership is often the wrong move for small business owners. The truth might surprise you.

Stop Losing Money on Cleanup Work by Automating the Parts That Don’t Need You

Can your firm actually profit from cleanup work — or does it just drain your team? In this webinar, Digits’ Megan Reid, a 15-year accounting veteran, demos how AI-native tools turn months of messy books into a completed, polished client deliverable in hours. Your next cleanup client could be your most profitable yet.

What 15 Years of Running an Accounting Firm Taught Marcus Dillon About Building Something That Lasts

Marcus and Rachel Dillon, hosts of Who’s Really the Boss?, mark 15 years of Dillon Business Advisors by breaking down their firm’s third reinvention — from a $2M revenue plateau to $6M and growing. Costly mistakes, structural breakthroughs, and a frank look at where independent accounting firms are headed next.

Phar-Mor’s Inventory Was Just Merchandise Driving Around in Circles on Trucks

How does a discount drugstore chain bankrupt a basketball league and vaporize $1.1 billion? Host Caleb Newquist of Oh My Fraud unravels the jaw-dropping Phar-Mor scandal — fake books, phantom inventory trucked in circles, and a CEO with a half-million-dollar gold wedding dress. This one’s wilder than fiction.

Why Are Big Four Firms Laying Off Partners When There Aren’t Enough Accountants to Go Around?

AI still gets 1 in 5 accounting tasks wrong, KPMG is cutting 100 audit partners, and Blake Oliver and David Leary are in the middle of a controversy with NASBA. In episode 485 of The Accounting Podcast, they unpack what all of it means for the future of the profession.

The Accounting Profession’s Favorite Performance Metrics Are Now Dangerously Misleading

The accounting world is being reshaped by AI, workforce cuts, and broken metrics — and most firms aren’t ready. Blake Oliver and David Leary of The Accounting Podcast dig into why the IRS is thriving with 25% fewer employees, why LUMBAR metrics are failing firms, and what the talent pipeline crisis really means.

Why Your Team Resists Change and the Simple Framework That Fixes It

Marcus and Rachel Dillon of Dillon Business Advisors have seen both ends of the change spectrum — and neither extreme is pretty. In this episode of Who’s Really the BOSS?, they share a practical four-part framework for leading your firm and team through change before it leads you.

AI Can Reconcile a Bank Account End to End Without Instructions

AI is quietly taking over core accounting work — and most firms aren’t ready. On Episode 482 of The Accounting Podcast, Blake Oliver and David Leary reveal how Perplexity and Palantir are moving into tax prep and audit selection, why 80% of firms see zero AI productivity gains, and what the three-person firm of tomorrow looks like.

The AI Trust Problem Accounting Can’t Afford to Ignore

Why can’t accounting AI afford a 70% accuracy rate? In Episode 34 of The Unofficial Sage Intacct Podcast, hosts Doug Lewis, Matt Lescault, and Emily Madere sit down with Sage’s Mark Hickman to unpack AI’s real role in finance, the adoption paradox, and what’s coming at Sage Future 2026.

Grieving, Relieved, Scared, and Strong All at Once: None of That Has to Cancel the Other Out

Co-hosts Nancy McClelland and Questian Telka kick off Season 3 of She Counts with their most personal conversation yet. Questian opens up about navigating divorce while running her firm, raising kids, and showing up on stage. Together they explore radical acceptance — and why falling apart might be your greatest professional skill.

The $450,000 Worth of Clients DBA Walked Away From on Purpose

Marcus and Rachel Dillon built Dillon Business Advisors from a $400K acquisition into a multi-million-dollar firm — and they’re sharing every number, mistake, and pivot. On the Who’s Really the Boss? podcast, this husband-and-wife duo reveals the raw truth behind 15 years of reinvention. Part one is not to be missed.

IPA Survey Data Reveals What Best of the Best Firms Actually Do Differently Than the Rest

Is your accounting firm leaving money on the table? Earmark Podcast host Blake Oliver and Chelsea Summers of Inside Public Accounting dive into fresh benchmarking data from 600+ firms — revealing why top performers earn 30% more per partner hour, what offshoring really does to margins, and why AI could break hourly billing for good.

Your Client Got a W-2 and a 1099 from the Same Company. Here’s How to Handle It

Worker classification is messier than most practitioners realize — and the mistakes are costly. In Part 2 of his series on the Tax in Action podcast, Jeremy Wells, EA, CPA, breaks down statutory employees, legitimate dual W-2/1099 situations, and the relief options that can save your clients from disaster.

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