René Lacerte’s Post

There’s a lot of focus on the challenges facing small and midsize businesses, but one in particular deserves our attention: the #accountant shortage. Accounting is the language of business, and without a strong new generation of accountants coming through the talent pipeline, SMBs and accountants alike face a real dilemma. The businesses and accountants I’m talking to all agree the shortage  adds a new layer of complexity for running a business in the US: SMBs — and their accountant partners — have to do more with less. The good news is that lots of accounting firms are tackling the shortage head on: rethinking their services, embracing new technologies, and finding innovative ways to go the extra mile for their #SMB clients through a winning combination of strategic counsel and a deep commitment to helping clients meet their goals.  Their grit and agility is inspiring. But the shortage highlights the need for continuous innovation to help both businesses and accountants navigate this challenge.  SMBs need the best possible advice to help them thrive. And with the right support, accountants can spend less time crunching numbers and more time advising clients. This is where technology can help, and it’s why we’re working on these innovations every day at BILL. I’d love to hear from you: how is your business or firm dealing with the accountant shortage?

It was great seeing the Houston-based BILL team a few weeks ago. This is a tight-knit team of people, who are super passionate about our mission and our customers. I loved the opportunity to sit down in person with them and talk about some of the great innovations they’re helping to drive. Johnny Lipowski and team - thanks for the Texas BBQ & warm Houston hospitality!

Thanks to a16z, Alex, and Immad for a great conversation about fintech trends, Gen AI, and entrepreneurship! BILL is a dynamic company, in a dynamic category. Having the opportunity to build connections and share reflections on serving SMBs is always a passion of mine. 

Thanks to Vishal Verma and Sidebar for hosting and to Bhaskar Ghosh for leading the conversation. Lots of ground covered and lots of fun had - loved hearing and sharing stories of innovation and entrepreneurship with Rob Das and David Hornik.

Thanks David! Looking forward to catching up for a discussion about our BILL journey. After 18 years of building BILL, there's no shortage of reflections or stories to tell! Every entrepreneur's journey is different and there is so much we can learn from each, so I'm also really looking forward to hearing from Rob Das about his experience building Splunk.  

Always great to catch-up with Jon Fortt to talk about what we are hearing from SMBs, our BILL innovation focus, and AI agenda. SMBs are the backbone of our economy, and their success is vital. We’re excited to be part of that journey.

I always enjoy sitting down with Michal Lev-Ram and this conversation was no exception. We talked about topics I’m passionate about: SMBs and leadership. The last four years have seen a constant flow of change for business and makes managing the day-to-day more challenging and critical at the same time. Michal’s questions were a great reminder of how important it is to take time to reflect on the journey, lessons learned along the way, and how leadership styles and approaches evolve over the years. Thank you Michal for the thoughtful conversation, and the opportunity to share some of my own leadership lessons with present and future entrepreneurs.

Entrepreneurs create and build businesses because they’re impatient for change: whether that’s a better way of doing things, a better product, or a better service. The most successful entrepreneurs I’ve met marry that impatience with the patience and determination it takes to build a company that will endure for generations to come.  It was great to sit down with Dan Rosen to talk about these ideas for his Commerce Ventures podcast, as well as my own reflections on building a category-defining company, and serving SMBs. Thanks for the conversation Dan!

Company meetings are always fun and informative. This week was especially so as we got to hear about passion and the source of it from Jamil Mitchell, our BILL Director of Workplace Services. Jamil was sharing the planned activities we have around Black History month.  He framed his thoughts around passion and learning, and ultimately how we can support each other.  When he talked about passion, he shared his story of growing up spending Sunday mornings with his Dad cooking breakfast. His Dad always encouraged the family to express themselves through music, so there was always a lot of singing and laughter. One Sunday morning, Jamil was quietly attempting a Whitney Houston classic. His Dad stopped him mid-song and said, “everything you do, you should do with passion.”  Tears began to well up inside and Jamil started tapping that.  He sang loudly and proudly – he sang from his heart, and sang with passion, and by the time he was done there wasn’t a dry eye in the family. Jamil’s story was deeply moving to all of us at BILL.  I believe that bringing passion to everything we do as humans is key to our success and happiness. Jamil brings that passion to BILL every day in service of our customers, our mission and our values. I want to thank Jamil for sharing his story with the company, and for reminding us that with passion, anything is possible. 📸: Robert and Jamil, courtesy of Jamil