In this episode of The Intentional Owner, Kaustubh Deo sits down with Michael Young to explore the realities of building and scaling a people-first accounting firm after a long and uncertain search journey. Michael shares how he transitioned from Big Four accounting into entrepreneurship, ultimately acquiring and growing Bay Business Group while navigating the challenges of hiring, client selection, and operational discipline. The conversation dives into what small business owners should actually expect from bookkeeping, controller, and CFO services, and how financial clarity can drive better decision-making. Along the way, Michael offers an honest look at the emotional and practical challenges of search, and why defining your “why” matters more than anything. They discuss: - The differences between bookkeeping, controller, and CFO support, and what small businesses actually need - Why search is unpredictable and heavily influenced by luck, not just effort - How to scale a people-driven business and the challenges of hiring high-quality talent - The importance of client selection, scope control, and saying no to the wrong fit - How AI is changing accounting and why advisory and judgment still matter Support our Sponsor Bay Business Group provides managed accounting and finance--think bookkeeping to fractional CFO--for scaling businesses. Learn more at ⁠https://bay-biz.com/⁠ Have SMB questions for Kaustubh and Sam? Email them to ⁠kd@sunthra.com⁠ and they will answer them on the Pod! Links: Kaustubh on Substack - ⁠https://bigdealsmallbusiness.substack.com/p/read-me-first⁠ Sam on X - ⁠https://x.com/Sam_Rosati⁠

Topics:

(00:00:00) - Intro
(00:01:26) - Introducing Michael Young
(00:04:06) - Dropping search to build a startup
(00:07:49) - Bookkeepers vs controllers
(00:11:35) - When do you need a CFO?
(00:13:03) - Owner finance literacy
(00:14:51) - Scaling a people firm
(00:16:42) - Client fit and boundaries
(00:20:09) - Operational metrics and change
(00:24:07) - Family life and time control
(00:25:22) - Long term vision and short term priorities
(00:28:50) - Ideal client profiles
(00:31:37) - Searchers as clients
(00:34:02) - Churn and scope control
(00:35:41) - Sales versus service
(00:36:34) - AI and accounting
(00:39:01) - Future proofing systems
(00:44:53) - Search journey reflections