Meet Brad Ebenhoeh

We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Brad Ebenhoeh. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Brad below.

Brad, first a big thank you for taking the time to share your thoughts and insights with us today. I’m sure many of our readers will benefit from your wisdom, and one of the areas where we think your insight might be most helpful is related to imposter syndrome. Imposter syndrome is holding so many people back from reaching their true and highest potential and so we’d love to hear about your journey and how you overcame imposter syndrome.
Starting out in the Big4 accounting firm world, the level of talent and expertise around me was huge, and there is a clear sense of “you must put in x amount of grind, to be respected.”

Imposter syndrome can hit hard when you compare yourself to seasoned professionals with years of experience and this inherent sense of accounting firm royalty. However, I realized early on that; a) I was just as capable as these finance leaders, if not better in some ways due to my fresh outlook, and b) the key to staying out of self-doubt was shifting my focus. Instead of trying to match others’ accomplishments, I focused on continuous learning and being the best version of myself. I stayed hungry for knowledge and was open to feedback.

When I transitioned this hard-won knowledge and experience to founding and running Accountfully in 2012, I focused on implementing the processes and systems that worked well for me. Running. your own business can allow those classic feelings of imposter syndrome to resurface. Especially when you realize you are not just responsible for your own work—you’re responsible for the success of an entire business and the financial well-being of my clients and growing team of employees.

In this stage of business ownership and management, I overcame imposter syndrome by leaning on my strong foundation of knowledge, surrounding myself with a capable team, and consistently delivering results that spoke for themselves.

I also learned to recognize that everyone, no matter their experience level, has moments of self-doubt. The key is to acknowledge it, reframe it as a growth opportunity, and remind yourself of your track record. Running a successful business for over a decade has shown me that success isn’t about being perfect; it’s about perseverance, adaptability, and trust in your skills and expertise.

I will also mention that there is a finite balance between taking too much advice versus trusting your instinct. Put in the time, do the work, and let your results and feedback remind you that you are a capable professional. While it is helpful to seek outside coaching and opinions, don’t get lost in constantly tearing down and reinventing the greatness you have already built.

And, for the love of all things mental health, stay out of the chaos of social media as much as you can. Stay grounded, focused, and true to your professional and personal goals.

Great, so let’s take a few minutes and cover your story. What should folks know about you and what you do?
I founded Accountfully alongside my wife, Meredith in 2012 to provide a more modern accounting solution to entrepreneurs and get back to a place of work-life balance. Both of us being traditional, Big 4-level accountants meant embracing burnout as a badge of honor to get to the higher-levels, and we were both done subscribing to that lifestyle and culture. We knew there was a better way, so we created it in Accountfully.

There was also a missed opportunity in the market to support the smaller businesses and be a flexible, scalable partner in their growth. As seasoned accountants, we understand the impact great bookkeeping, accounting and financial planning has on a business, but it needed to be fractional so that entrepreneurs could build it into their business slowly, affordably and add on more services as they had the budget and need.

Modern business owners like us also appreciate modern tech and cloud-based functioning. A huge part of our business model is tech-focused, allowing for upward mobility and remote support and access to financial data and functionality from anywhere.

The other side of the coin is the work-life balance aspect. We are primarily a remote team, which means we can support our nationwide clients from various time zones and can offer the best accounting talent in the US. We do not outsource any accounting function overseas. All of our team members are full time, W2 employees. A human-centric management approach has benefited our clients greatly, because it allows our team the mental space to be at their best and bring a sense of open-mindedness and innovation to servicing our clients. And the personalized expertise and service is unmatched.

As far as services go, we provide options that meet the needs of small business owners in the pre-revenue to over $10mm+ in annual revenue ranges. Hourly bookkeeping and controller-level services, fully outsourced accounting, finance and advisory (outsourced CFO), tax filing and planning, inventory management, and more specific distributor deductions management for those selling in wholesale/retail environments, to name a few.

The majority of our clients are complex inventory-based companies, but we have experience with, and serve all small business types. Think large agencies and service-based businesses like architects, photographers, creatives, tech-based Saas companies, and more. We support companies across the nation.

Outside of the accounting, tax and advisory functions, we have deep connections with other service providers in our clients’ industries that allow us to refer them to other service providers that can support them in their changing needs. Accountfully becomes a true partner in our client companies.

Some of our older clients are now exiting with favorable acquisitions that we are supporting too. It is nice to know that our services were able to help create healthy, profitable businesses that are now being purchased by bigger companies. Some of these founders were barely getting by with an hourly bookkeeper piecing together the books one month at a time when they became clients. Now they are thriving and selling their successful business and moving to the next big adventure as successful entrepreneurs.

Since our founding in 20212, we have grown tremendously. We have been on the Inc. 5000 list every year since 2019 and we have a team of over 70 accountants. We have earned growth and service-excellence related awards from the likes of Cin7 and various South Carolina business organizations. We are headquartered in the amazing Charleston, South Carolina and keep a small satellite office in Nashville, TN.

In the coming months and years we are continuing to grow our team and provide relevant services to our growing book of clients.

Looking back, what do you think were the three qualities, skills, or areas of knowledge that were most impactful in your journey? What advice do you have for folks who are early in their journey in terms of how they can best develop or improve on these?
Looking back, three qualities stand out as being the most impactful in my journey: adaptability, relationship-building, and a deep understanding of business operations.

1. Adaptability
While I always had an internal “CEO” compass at play, it was still not super black and white when transitioning from corporate life to running my own firm, I had to adapt to challenges like managing a small business, building a client base, and staying ahead of ever-changing regulations. For those early in their journey, my advice is to embrace change and see it as an opportunity rather than a threat. Get comfortable being uncomfortable—it’s in those moments of uncertainty that you’ll grow the most. I handle the sales and marketing side of the house, so I knew right away that I would have to take in the feedback from sales calls and clients and adapt our services, messaging and brand to appeal to our target client.

2. Relationship-Building
The ability to build genuine relationships has been invaluable. Technical skills are great to have, but to build a business you need to know how to network and build authentic relationships. Trust is the foundation of success in this field. Clients don’t just hire you for your technical expertise—they hire you because they trust you to guide them through complex decisions. My advice? Invest time in active listening, understanding client needs, and delivering on your promises. Relationships are built on consistency and care over time. Some of our best relationships in the industry and with previous and current clients are what fuel a consistent stream of referrals every month.

3. Deep Understanding of Business Operations
Working as an accountant and for multiple companies; from the corporate and private worlds gave me invaluable lessons in how to run a business and how not to. To discern the best way to venture out on your own CEO life, means taking the time in the “business trenches” to learn proven methods and take what resonates. Knowing how businesses operate—from cash flow management to inventory planning to scaling effectively—has allowed me to better serve my clients. Luckily, as an accountant by trade, I have a deep, formal understanding of how to manage a profitable business. For those starting out, don’t limit yourself to just learning the technical aspects of accounting, though. Take the time to understand the challenges your clients face in running their businesses, and you’ll be able to provide solutions that go beyond the numbers.

Advice for Early Professionals:

Seek mentors: Surround yourself with people who are further along in their journey and can provide guidance and perspective. Your circle should make you a little nervous, not boost your ego. Sometimes these mentors come in the form of great team members. When you hire and trust great people, you can learn a lot and have faith in the fact they have your best interest at heart. If they don’t support you in this aspect, then they don’t have a place in your circle/business.
Invest in lifelong learning: Stay curious and continue to build both technical and soft skills. Industry certifications, seminars, and even business podcasts can provide valuable insights.
Be patient: Success doesn’t happen overnight. Focus on consistently delivering value, and the results will follow. Always be authentic, operate with integrity and be your best self. Know that clients may leave, but you can be confident knowing you have done your best and left the impression you wanted to. You will find these clients return or they have referred you business nine times out of ten.
Running a successful firm for over a decade has taught me that these qualities aren’t developed overnight. They require practice, reflection, and a willingness to learn from every experience—both successes and setbacks.

Who is your ideal client or what sort of characteristics would make someone an ideal client for you?
Our ideal client is one that is seeking a long-term partner to support their goals and growth. They are a small business that wants to lean into our abilities to set up their accounting systems and tech stack and methods properly from the beginning. They take advantage of the personalized service and expertise our team provides. They are an active participant with the financial data we offer and seek our advice when making hard decisions. They know that when the time comes, adding or enhancing their service level is a good move, because we know their business inside-out and we can support them efficiently with not only core accounting services, but with tax and advisory services. Our countless testimonials from long-standing clients proves we are an important part of the small business journey from startup, to scale, to exit.

Contact Info:

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