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Career Change

From Ticking and Tying to Selling Out Arenas: How One Auditor Became EDM Royalty

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A former Big Four auditor traded spreadsheets for turntables and now commands 11.8 million monthly Spotify listeners, sells out Madison Square Garden, and has racked up over two billion career streams. His name is John Summit, and he might just be the most famous accountant in the world.

On a recent episode of The Accounting Podcast, hosts Blake Oliver and David Leary dove into John’s remarkable transformation from EY auditor to global EDM superstar. His career change story captures something profound happening in the accounting profession right now.

From Audit Room to Arena Stage

“If you’re into electronic music, then you know who John Summit is,” Blake explained to David during the episode. 

The numbers tell an incredible story. John—born John Walter Schuster in Naperville, Illinois—followed the traditional accounting path at first. He earned his undergraduate and master’s degrees in accounting from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. From 2018 to 2019, he worked as an auditor at EY in Chicago, starting at $65,000 a year while DJing on weekends.

Blake even pulled up John’s CPA license during the show. “I went to the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation, and I looked him up by his original name,” he said. The license was active in 2018 and expired in 2022, right around the time John’s music career went stratospheric.

Today, John’s success metrics are staggering. His debut album “Comfort in Chaos” hit number two on the Billboard Top Dance/Electronic Albums chart and cracked the Billboard 200’s top 40. He headlines festivals like Coachella and Tomorrowland, and his own festival, Experts Only, draws 50,000 attendees.

Leaning Into the Accounting Story

What makes John unique is how he’s embraced his accounting past. His new album “CTRL Escape” drops on April 15th, Tax Day, and the cover art shows him sitting atop office ceiling tiles, the corporate world below giving way to open sky above.

“He’s dropping one track from the album every Wednesday,” Blake noted. “And the reason he’s doing it on Wednesday is that he remembers Hump day being the toughest day in the office.”

The album’s merchandise had David cracking up. “Crappy accounting firm swag. This is great,” he said, looking at the offerings. “It’s a backpack that says Summit CPAs, a pen that says Summit CPAs. This is so great he’s leaning into it like that.”

The music video for “Lights Go Out” drives the theme home. John appears in an oversized tan suit at “Summit CPAs,” working at an old green-screen computer before leading his fellow office workers in what Blake described as “basically like an accounting firm turning into a rave.”

The Profession John Left Is Disappearing

Blake and David’s conversation takes a darker turn when they discuss Botkeeper. One of the original “AI bookkeeping” startups announced it was shutting down after 11 years.

“They did the typical tech company ‘fake it ‘til you make it,’” David explained. Botkeeper promised AI-powered bookkeeping but was actually using offshore accountants in the Philippines. When real AI technology finally arrived through companies like OpenAI and Anthropic, investors weren’t interested in funding a company that had burned through capital on the false promise.

It wasn’t just Botkeeper. Jenesys, a UK-based AI bookkeeping startup, also entered a formal sales process after key investors pulled out. Clearly, the old model of pretending to have AI while using human workers is dead.

Meanwhile, companies with actual AI capabilities are thriving. Tax AI startup Accrual raised $75 million, Audit AI startup Fieldguide raised $75 million, and Pilot announced what it called an “AI accountant,” a fully autonomous system capable of running end-to-end bookkeeping with “zero need for human intervention” in typical cases.

Why Tax and Audit AI Are Different

Blake explained why investors are pouring money into tax and audit AI while bookkeeping AI companies struggle.

“When we moved to cloud bookkeeping and accounting, we were able to set up rules-based systems,” he said. “You can still automate 80% of bookkeeping work today with just the old tech.”

But tax and audit are different beasts. “Those areas of accounting were not automatable with rules-based tech, because there are too many gray areas, there’s too much complexity. But AI is starting to handle it really, really, really well.”

To illustrate the point, Blake shared his own experience with Claude, Anthropic’s AI assistant. He gave it access to a folder of scanned documents that his scanner had poorly named and asked it to organize them.

“It created a whole logical folder structure. Different types of files, receipts, legal documents, statements,” he said. “And then it put all the documents into those folders and renamed all the documents based on the content of the PDFs. And it did this in minutes.”

“You can get that if you’re a pro subscriber for like $20 a month. It’s incredible.”

The Entry-Level Jobs Are Vanishing

This AI revolution is having a profound impact on accounting careers. Technology is automating routine tasks that once defined entry-level positions at breakneck speed.

“We’re seeing reductions in entry-level jobs, not reductions in mid-career or later-stage career positions,” Blake observed. “It’s really, really hard to find a tax manager. Nobody can find a tax manager for their public accounting firm.”

The work being automated reads like a first-year auditor’s job description. “Requesting documents from clients, receiving and organizing them, rolling forward prior year workpapers, ticking and tying. AI is starting to do all of that stuff.”

As a result, “it’s really hard to get a job as a staff accountant because nobody wants to train you and they don’t have work to give you to justify the cost of training you for several years.”

Even the Big Four Feel the Pressure

In an ironic twist, even KPMG International is feeling the AI pressure. The firm recently pushed its own auditor, Grant Thornton UK, to lower its audit fee by 14%, arguing that AI-driven efficiencies should reduce costs.

“The negotiations reportedly included pressure tactics, where KPMG threatened to switch auditors if Grant Thornton didn’t agree to a significant reduction,” Blake said, citing Financial Times reporting.

The fee went from $416,000 in 2024 to $357,000 in 2025. As Blake wryly noted: “I think KPMG ought to watch out, because now clients are going to ask for the same fee reduction.”

The Pyramid Is Crumbling

This pressure on fees creates a domino effect. Lower fees mean less money for staff. Fewer entry-level positions mean the traditional pyramid model of public accounting, where large numbers of junior staff support a small number of managers and partners, is collapsing.

“The whole model is going to have to shift,” Blake said. “The pyramid model of accounting is going away. And that’s going to fundamentally change our profession, because that’s been the way everyone got into accounting for a hundred years.”

Blake predicted that within five to ten years, timesheets and time-based billing will disappear entirely. The firms that survive will abandon the old model of counting hours and bodies.

There is a silver lining for those who adapt. Blake shared his own experience. “I saw a 5x increase in my revenue just as a freelancer” after embracing cloud technology. His effective hourly rate went from $20 to $100, and his workload actually decreased.

The Escape Route Is Closing

John Summit celebrates his escape from accounting through music that resonates with millions who understand the cubicle grind. He drops tracks on Wednesdays because that was the hardest day to push through. He releases albums on Tax Day. He sells fake accounting firm swag as merchandise.

But the entry-level accounting experience he’s immortalizing—the fluorescent lights, the routine tasks, the path that led him from college to Big Four—is rapidly disappearing. Future accountants may never know that particular grind because the jobs simply won’t exist.

Accounting will likely survive with higher earnings for those who remain and adapt. But the traditional path into the profession will evolve.

As David suggested during the show, if you’re Summit CPAs—a real accounting firm that happens to share the name—you might want to figure out how to capitalize on all the traffic coming your way. Because in a profession being reshaped by AI, you need to grab opportunities wherever you find them.

For the complete discussion of John’s journey, the AI transformation of accounting, and what it means for the profession’s future, listen to the full episode of The Accounting Podcast.

Why Military Experience Creates Exceptional Accountants

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What do submarine oxygen levels have to do with solving the accounting talent shortage? More than you might think. For Navy veteran Mark Steinhoff, the precision required to manage life-support systems hundreds of feet underwater created the perfect foundation for his accounting career. 

On a recent episode of the Earmark Podcast, Steinhoff shared how his military experience, where a single error could be catastrophic, prepared him for a profession where accuracy is essential.

The Surprising Parallels Between Military Service and Accounting

At first glance, maintaining life support systems on a nuclear submarine and balancing financial statements seem worlds apart. Yet for Mark Steinhoff, the transition felt surprisingly natural.

“The military is very structured. You’ve got that typical hierarchy, chain of command, everything’s procedural compliance. You’ve got to follow the rules,” Steinhoff explains. “And accounting is very similar. There’s a lot of rules, processes, guidelines, and regulatory compliance.”

Steinhoff served as a machinist mate auxiliary on the USS Alabama (the submarine featured in the movie Crimson Tide). His job required extraordinary precision. As he describes, “Everything you touch on the boat, if you want to take a bolt off, you have to document it. There are procedures you have to follow.” This rigorous documentation mirrors accounting’s fundamental requirement to record and verify every transaction.

The military’s verification systems also parallel accounting’s internal controls. Steinhoff points to the “two-party check” system used on submarines. “If one person wanted to go do work, they would go through independent verification, and then the other person would independently do it.” This approach is remarkably similar to the separation of duties in accounting, where different people handle different parts of a transaction to reduce errors and fraud.

The stakes in both environments are high. On a submarine, “There’s no option for mistakes.” A failed oxygen system means disaster for the entire crew. While accounting errors might not immediately threaten lives, they can certainly threaten livelihoods, affecting businesses, jobs, and investments.

Using Military Benefits to Get an Accounting Education

For veterans considering accounting careers, education is the bridge between military experience and professional opportunity. Steinhoff’s path shows how military benefits can make high-quality accounting education affordable, even at prestigious private universities.

Steinhoff left the Navy in June 2020, just as the COVID-19 pandemic began. With uncertain civilian job prospects, he decided to use his GI Bill benefits for college.

“They pay you a little stipend to pay your rent and get you through college. They pay for your books, and they pay for your tuition,” Steinhoff explains. However, many veterans don’t realize they can maximize these benefits through programs like the Yellow Ribbon Act, which allowed him to attend Texas Christian University (TCU), a private school with an annual tuition of about $50,000.

“Most of the time the GI Bill pays for public schools, but with the Yellow Ribbon, the school makes a deal with the VA to split the difference,” he explains. “The school covers 50% and the VA covers 50%.”

Steinhoff treated college as a “full-time job,” completing a double major in finance and accounting in three years. Now, he’s using additional state-level benefits to pursue an MBA at the University of Texas at Dallas.

“Texas has a program called the Hazelwood Act, which gives you another 36 months of tuition-free education at a public school,” he notes. This combination of federal and state benefits provides a clear pathway to meet the 150 credit hours required for CPA licensure.

Creating Value in Accounting Through Military Experience

While education provides the technical foundation, it’s in the workplace where veterans like Steinhoff discover their military background creates unique advantages in accounting roles.

“In a small company, maybe there aren’t processes or procedures in place,” Steinhoff notes. “Coming from that military environment, I could write a procedure, train people, and create those processes.” This skill is particularly valuable in growing companies where accounting systems may not have kept pace with business expansion.

Steinhoff’s current role at a water utility company shows how military expertise finds unexpected applications in accounting. “They liked me a lot because there are not many accountants who have worked on water systems,” he explains. “From a submarine, that was my whole life. I could tell you how a pump works, I could tell you how the valves work.” This combination of technical operational knowledge with accounting skills enables him to understand the organization’s financial and physical infrastructure.

The military’s emphasis on translating complex technical information into actionable intelligence also serves veterans well, as accounting evolves beyond compliance toward business advisory roles. “Accountants are expected to take data and translate it,” Steinhoff observes. “Veterans fit this role because business owners want someone who can take numbers and translate them into easy-to-understand language.”

For veterans considering this career path, Steinhoff acknowledges the transition requires courage. “It’s a leap of faith. When you’re getting out of the military, it’s a big challenge because it’s this whole different world.” But he emphasizes that the responsibility given to service members far exceeds what most civilians experience at similar ages.

“The military gives 18-year-olds more responsibility than any other jobs. They put me on a submarine working on things where other lives are at risk,” he notes. “If you could do that, you could do this.”

A Win-Win Solution for Veterans and the Profession

The accounting profession faces a talent shortage and needs more analytical, tech-savvy professionals who can translate financial data into strategic insights. Meanwhile, thousands of disciplined, detail-oriented veterans transition to civilian life annually, bringing with them the exact qualities the profession desperately needs.

Mark Steinhoff’s journey from maintaining submarine life support systems to managing accounting operations for a water utility shows the natural connection between military service and accounting work. The procedural rigor required to keep sailors alive underwater is the perfect foundation for the exacting standards of accounting.

For veterans thinking about their next career, accounting offers a structured environment with clear advancement paths that will feel familiar after military service. With education benefits through the GI Bill and state programs like the Texas Hazelwood Act, the required accounting education is affordable without accumulating significant debt.

For accounting firms and businesses struggling to fill positions, veterans are an untapped resource, bringing maturity, discipline, and transferable skills. Their experience with high-pressure situations, procedure development, and translating complex information aligns perfectly with accounting’s evolution toward more strategic business advisory roles.

The accounting profession isn’t just about numbers; it’s about creating systems that provide reliable information for critical decisions. Veterans spend years operating in environments where systems thinking and procedural discipline aren’t just professional requirements but matters of survival.

Listen to the full Earmark podcast episode to hear Steinhoff’s complete story and gain more insights on transitioning from military service to accounting. His journey offers a blueprint for how the accounting profession might find its next generation of leaders from those who’ve already proven their ability to perform when the stakes couldn’t be higher.

Building a Successful International Tax Practice: Lessons from Japan

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Nearing his 30th birthday, California CPA and former English teacher Eric Azevedo found himself at a career crossroads. Having spent years in rural Japan teaching English, he longed for a profession with greater stability and higher earning potential. Rather than pursuing law school as he once planned—or even a career in software—Eric ultimately chose accounting. Little did he know that studying at California community colleges for the CPA Exam would pave the way for a thriving international tax practice serving American expatriates across Japan.

In a recent interview on the Earmark Podcast, Eric opened up about his unique journey from philosophy major to accounting professional, revealing the practical realities of working in a different culture and navigating complex dual-tax systems.

From Santa Monica College to Tokyo: A Career-Changer’s Leap

Eric’s decision to become a CPA began when he returned to California after several years in Japan. Enrolling at Santa Monica College and Irvine Valley College, he completed the accounting courses required to sit for the CPA Exam—often taking advantage of online classes to balance work and study. Within about four years of taking his very first accounting class, Eric earned his license.

Opportunity knocked almost immediately: a single Skype interview led to a job offer at a Tokyo-based firm. Eric moved back to Japan on short notice, eager to gain experience in both U.S. and Japanese tax systems.

Bridging Two Tax Systems—And Two Cultures

Once in Tokyo, Eric encountered very different tax structures. 

The United States is one of only two countries in the world—alongside Eritrea—with a citizenship-based tax system. Americans living in Japan must still file U.S. tax returns, including complex forms like 5471 (for owners of foreign companies) and FBAR (for foreign bank accounts over $10,000). Meanwhile, most Japanese rarely file returns at all—employers handle year-end payroll adjustments. 

Understanding these differences—and guiding clients through them—is now Eric’s specialty.

Cultivating Cultural Fluency

Eric says that in Japan, communication styles tend to be less direct. Understanding when and how to speak up can determine whether a meeting proceeds smoothly or grinds to a halt.

Audits tend to be less adversarial. Eric says, “If you push too hard, you risk prolonging the process. It’s about staying polite and finding a solution.” This contrasts with the more confrontational style some CPAs experience in U.S. audits.

“I’m basically the only American in the office,” Eric says. “We have staff from Korea, China, the Philippines—all with a focus on serving foreign residents. It’s important to adapt culturally to make clients comfortable.” (Since our interview, Eric’s firm has added another US accountant to the team.)

Regarding the work culture, Eric’s firm’s founder intentionally avoided “salaryman” traditions of endless overtime and obligatory after-work gatherings, making the environment more appealing to foreign hires. 

Life in Rural Japan: Remote Work, Bullet Trains, and Big Windows

After eight years in Tokyo, Eric relocated to the countryside. He now works as a contract employee for his old firm while also handling his own U.S. tax clients. Living among forests and mountains, he’s built a home office full of natural light—complete with high-speed internet that makes remote work seamless.

  • Commute: Eric travels to Tokyo twice a month, taking a 70-minute ride on the bullet train.
  • Daily Routine: A self-described “not super early riser,” Eric starts his workday around 9 or 10 a.m., relying on video calls and remote access to firm software.
  • Nature & Wildlife: Bears and wild boars roam nearby—quite a change from Eric’s Tokyo apartment.
  • Cultural Hobbies: Weekends are reserved for hobbies and relaxation; onsens (hot springs) are among Eric’s favorite escapes.

Fees, Growth, and Training the Next Generation

Eric’s firm charges fixed fees aligned with client revenue, reflecting typical local practice. For his U.S. expat services, he charges per form but keeps fees moderate—aware that many expats must file only because of America’s unique rules.

Word of mouth has fueled steady growth. He’s now training a colleague—a Chinese national finishing her U.S. CPA credentials—to handle returns for more straightforward clients. This arrangement frees Eric for higher-complexity cases while positioning the practice for further expansion.

“I don’t advertise,” Eric explains. “Clients tend to find me through referrals. My challenge is managing time and figuring out how to scale.”

Advice for Prospective Expat CPAs

For aspiring accountants who are interested in working abroad, Eric’s journey serves as a valuable guide:

  1. Focus on Fundamentals First: Attaining a U.S. CPA license can be done flexibly through community college coursework and exam prep—even if you’re overseas.
  2. Leverage Your Language Skills: Fluency in the local language is invaluable. Eric’s Japanese helped him land work in Tokyo more easily.
  3. Adapt to Local Norms: Understand that professional etiquette, social expectations, and communication styles vary greatly. Listen first, then speak.
  4. Stay Open to Opportunity: Eric’s entire career launched from one Skype call and a willingness to move back to Japan on short notice.

Making the Most of Japan: Travel Tips

Whether you plan to work in Japan or just visit, Eric recommends:

  • Tokyo: An endless array of districts, restaurants, and cultural sites.
  • Historic Towns: Kurashiki in Okayama Prefecture offers a glimpse into samurai-era architecture.
  • Onsen Retreats: For a restorative experience, explore hot spring destinations off the beaten path.
  • Autumn Visits: Fall foliage in rural Japan rivals any scenic backdrop, and cooler weather makes the onsen even more inviting.

Conclusion: Merging Cultures, Mastering Tax

Eric Azevedo’s journey proves that building a successful international tax practice requires more than technical knowledge. Cultural competence, flexible communication, and a willingness to adapt to new ways of doing business are critical. In navigating both U.S. expat tax complexities and Japan’s distinct work culture, Eric shows how melding two worlds can create a uniquely rewarding career path.

To hear Eric’s full story listen to his interview on the Earmark Podcast.