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Off Ledger

A Careers and Business podcast Explicit

#79 in Careers · 🇬🇧
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About the show

Off Ledger explores the personal journeys of the leaders in the accounting profession. We aim to inspire those who seek to follow in their footsteps and reassure them that sometimes it doesn't all go to plan....and that is OK.

Newest episodes

Off Ledger Podcast S2 #3 Breaking the Silence on Pressure: Steven Byford

31 min

In this episode, Steven Byford, Tax Manager at Barrons Chartered Accountants in Essex, shares what drove him into the profession: watching his mum start from nothing after his parents’ divorce and wanting to be the one who could tell her everything was sorted. He opens up about the pressure he put on himself through the ACA, the near panic attack in his first professional exam, and why he saw struggling as weakness until his relationships began to suffer. He talks candidly about finding a therapist, what therapy actually involves, and why he still goes twice a month. Honest, considered and full of hard-won wisdom for anyone navigating their way to the top of a firm. Watch all episodes from the Off Ledger Podcast: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLQSiFIz0D3vQ

Off Ledger Podcast S2 #2 From Side Hustle to Sole Practitioner Auditor: Amy Hancock

31 min

In this episode, Amy Hancock, Owner and Director of Hancock and Hastings in Dunstable, shares how she turned down a university place for an accountancy apprenticeship and built a side hustle for friends in construction that grew into a full practice. She opens up about being passed over for partnership, negotiating her exit from the firm she’d spent seven years in, and why she’s determined to prove that a sole practitioner can do audit properly. She also talks about the criticism she’s faced from big firm auditors, her scepticism about AI in audit, and the Top of the Pops dream she had at nine. Honest, considered and full of hard-won wisdom for anyone navigating their way to the top of a firm.

Off Ledger Podcast S2 #1 From Football Scholarship to CEO: Mitch Hahn

34 min

In this episode, Mitch Hahn, CEO and Growth Director at Nordens, shares how he went from signing a football scholarship at 16 to leading an 80-strong accountancy firm. He opens up about falling into accounting by accident, the founder who gave him the freedom to keep chasing football and saw a business developer he couldn’t yet see in himself, and putting his hand up to become CEO without knowing what the job really involved, just before COVID hit. Honest, considered and full of hard-won wisdom for anyone navigating their way to the top of a firm. Watch more episodes from Off Ledger Podcast: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLQSiFIz0D3vQ

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All episodes

Off Ledger Podcast S2 #3 Breaking the Silence on Pressure: Steven Byford

31 min

In this episode, Steven Byford, Tax Manager at Barrons Chartered Accountants in Essex, shares what drove him into the profession: watching his mum start from nothing after his parents’ divorce and wanting to be the one who could tell her everything was sorted. He opens up about the pressure he put on himself through the ACA, the near panic attack in his first professional exam, and why he saw struggling as weakness until his relationships began to suffer. He talks candidly about finding a therapist, what therapy actually involves, and why he still goes twice a month. Honest, considered and full of hard-won wisdom for anyone navigating their way to the top of a firm. Watch all episodes from the Off Ledger Podcast: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLQSiFIz0D3vQ

Off Ledger Podcast S2 #2 From Side Hustle to Sole Practitioner Auditor: Amy Hancock

31 min

In this episode, Amy Hancock, Owner and Director of Hancock and Hastings in Dunstable, shares how she turned down a university place for an accountancy apprenticeship and built a side hustle for friends in construction that grew into a full practice. She opens up about being passed over for partnership, negotiating her exit from the firm she’d spent seven years in, and why she’s determined to prove that a sole practitioner can do audit properly. She also talks about the criticism she’s faced from big firm auditors, her scepticism about AI in audit, and the Top of the Pops dream she had at nine. Honest, considered and full of hard-won wisdom for anyone navigating their way to the top of a firm.

Off Ledger Podcast S2 #1 From Football Scholarship to CEO: Mitch Hahn

34 min

In this episode, Mitch Hahn, CEO and Growth Director at Nordens, shares how he went from signing a football scholarship at 16 to leading an 80-strong accountancy firm. He opens up about falling into accounting by accident, the founder who gave him the freedom to keep chasing football and saw a business developer he couldn’t yet see in himself, and putting his hand up to become CEO without knowing what the job really involved, just before COVID hit. Honest, considered and full of hard-won wisdom for anyone navigating their way to the top of a firm. Watch more episodes from Off Ledger Podcast: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLQSiFIz0D3vQ

Off Ledger Podcast #15 From Bali to Bedford: Alex Falcon Huerta on Building a Life on Her Own Terms

25 min

In this episode, Alex Falcon Huerta, founder and CEO of Soaring Falcon, shares a story shaped by real hardship, from a difficult childhood and homelessness at 16 to qualifying as an accountant two months after losing her mother, right before her ACCA finals. She opens up about building one of the UK's earliest fully digital, paperless accounting practices, becoming a genuine digital nomad long before it was fashionable, and why she's now backing a new venture, Accountant in Bedford, ahead of Universal Studios' arrival in the town. Honest, considered and full of hard-won wisdom for anyone navigating their way to the top of a firm.

Off Ledger Podcast #14 Forbes 30 Under 30: Grace Hardy on Building an Empire from Bali Rain

25 min

In this episode, Grace Hardy, founder of Hardy Accounting and the first female accountancy firm owner in the UK to make the Forbes 30 Under 30 list, shares how a rainy season in Bali derailed her travel plans and accidentally launched her career, why she left networking events behind for TikTok and Instagram, and how she turned trolls, bullying, and dyslexia into fuel rather than obstacles. She opens up about lobbying for financial education reform, launching her own fintech after government funding fell through, and the simple question she asks herself in every difficult moment: what would a man do? Honest, considered and full of hard-won wisdom for anyone navigating their way to the top of a firm.

Off Ledger Podcast #13 From Sailing Instructor to Global CTO: John Toon

31 min

In this episode, John Toon, Group CTO and Head of Technology at HLB International, shares his unlikely route into accounting, from years spent as a sailing instructor and water sports guide across the UK, France and beyond, to turning down a well-paid job running a watersports centre in Ireland for an £8,000-a-year training contract. He opens up about hoovering up knowledge across every specialism he could find, the self-doubt that still creeps in years after a decision, and why he's never had a five-year plan and doesn't think you need one either. Honest, considered and full of hard-won wisdom for anyone navigating their way to the top of a firm.

Off Ledger Podcast #12 From 150 Rejections to MD: Julie Falchevska

27 min

In this episode, Julie Falczewska, Managing Director of Maslins in Tunbridge Wells, shares how she moved to the UK from Ukraine barely speaking English, spent three years writing to the same accountancy firm before they finally said yes, and worked her way from trainee to the top of the firm she qualified with. She opens up about the leadership books that got her through, why she still doesn't believe she has fully shaken imposter syndrome, and the moment her own team drew her picture as the leader they most admired. Honest, considered and full of hard-won wisdom for anyone navigating their way to the top of a firm.

Off Ledger Podcast #11 Trust Your Gut: Sarah Harkness on Building InAccountancy

36 min

In this episode, Sarah Harkness, Managing Director of InAccountancy, shares her unconventional route into the profession, from Adidas boardrooms in Germany to becoming MD of an accountancy firm without ever training as an accountant. She opens up about the instinct that told her something was wrong when a member of her team wasn't who she claimed to be, the imposter syndrome that still shouts loudly in rooms full of qualified accountants, and the recent sale of the firm to Cowgills. Honest, considered and full of hard-won wisdom for anyone navigating their way to the top of a firm.

Off Ledger Podcast #10 17 Blood Clots, a White Streak, and a New Lease on Life: Lucy Cohen's Brush with Death (Part 2)

20 min

In this episode, Lucy Cohen, founder of Mazuma and President of AAT, opens up about the day her body inexplicably formed 17 arterial blood clots, the hospital sprint that followed, and the strange guilt that comes with surviving something you weren't supposed to. She talks candidly about therapy, an eating disorder in her early twenties, and how she found healing on a powerlifting platform where, for once, there was no talking her way out of anything. Honest, considered and full of hard-won wisdom for anyone navigating their way to the top of a firm. This is part two of a two-part conversation. Part one covered Lucy's unconventional route into accounting and the birth of Mazuma.

Off Ledger Podcast #9 The Manic Pixie Dream Girl of Accounting: Lucy Cohen on Building Mazuma (Part 1)

27 min

In this episode, Lucy Cohen, founder of Mazuma and the largest female-founded accounting business in UK history, shares her unconventional route into the profession, from a careers advisor opening a book at random to walking into a hotel and talking her way into a job. She opens up about growing up without money, feeling like an outsider in rooms full of privilege, and why a good dose of naivety was exactly what she needed to disrupt an industry she didn't even know she was disrupting. Honest, considered and full of hard-won wisdom for anyone navigating their way to the top of a firm. This is part one of a two-part conversation. Part two covers the birth of Mazuma, power lifting, mental health, and Lucy's brush with death.

Off Ledger Podcast #8 From Watching His Dad Nearly Lose Everything to Building Elevate: Liam Wilson

22 min

In this episode, Liam Wilson, Director of Elevate Accountancy in Wrexham, shares how watching his father's business nearly collapse shaped his drive, the rapid rise through private equity-backed firms that eventually hit a wall, and the leap of faith that led him to build a firm on his own terms. Honest, considered and full of hard-won wisdom for anyone navigating their way to the top of a firm. 

Off Ledger Podcast #7 From Filing Cabinets to Full Digital: Eriona Bajrakurtaj on Rebuilding Her Father's Firm

36 min

In this episode, Eriona Bajrakurtaj, Owner and Director of Majors Accounts in London, shares what it took to take over her father's practice and drag it into the digital age, the team fallout that came with it, and the offshoring gamble that kept the business alive when she gave birth to her second child just days before going back to work. Honest, considered and full of hard-won wisdom for anyone navigating their way to the top of a firm. 

#6 From Junior to Director: A Seven-Year Climb to the Top Table with Luke Hamblett

24 min

In this episode, Luke Hamblett, Associate Director at Lewis Smith in Dudley, shares his journey from audit junior to the top table, the relationship-building skills that set him apart, and the presentation that helped convince the partners he was ready to step up. Honest, considered and full of hard-won wisdom for anyone navigating their way to the top of a firm. 

#5: What Nobody Tells You About Running a Firm, with Lucy Williams

28 min

In this episode, Lucy Williams, Managing Partner at Team JS opens up about the management buyout that transformed her role, the decisions that kept her up at night, and the mentors who helped her get there. Honest, considered and full of hard-won wisdom for anyone navigating their way to the top of a firm.

#4: How Do You Lead People Nobody Taught You to Manage? With Ermal Krutani

16 min

In this episode, Ermal Krutani reflects on 23 years of growth, the management mistakes he made along the way, and the moment he realised that pride was getting in the way of everything. Working in accounting but the biggest lessons had nothing to do with numbers.  Honest, self-aware and packed with lessons for anyone stepping into a leadership role for the first time.

#3: Is Bigger Really Better? Antoniya Beyriyska, Operations Director at Ask the Boss, on Redefining Success

26 min

Most firms measure success by how fast they're growing. Ask the Boss decided to measure it differently. In this episode, Antoniya Beyriyska reflects on the decision to shrink the team, shed the wrong clients and rebuild around the ones they love to come out the other side more productive, more profitable and happier for it. If you're leading a firm and wondering whether bigger really does mean better, this one is essential listening.

#2: What Losing Everything Taught Me About Leading a Firm with Rob Newman

23 min

Not many firm leaders will tell you about the moments that nearly broke them. Rob Heaton will. In this episode, Rob talks with rare honesty about losing everything and rebuilding from scratch. He reflects on what that journey taught him about leadership, delegation and knowing when to say no, and why the hardest lessons have made him the leader he is today.  If you've ever wondered how the best firm leaders are forged, this episode has your answer.

#1 "I Still Don't Quite Believe It" - Laura Kenyon on Building LKA from Nothing

19 min

Laura Kenyon left a corporate career at KPMG, started an accounting firm from her spare bedroom, and built it into a 23-person practice. In this episode, Laura talks candidly about leading from the gut, the office decisions she'd rather forget, and why imposter syndrome never really goes away. If you're leading a firm or thinking about starting one, this one's for you.

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