Future Accountants Unplugged
Honest conversations about what it takes to think, learn, and perform as a future-ready accountant, hosted by Yvonne Starkey, Chartered Accountant, lecturer and mindset researcher. Whether you’re studying for the CPA, CA, or ACCA, or already building your career, we share practical insights and real perspectives on learning, performance, and the accounting profession. Learn more at accountingstudyadvice.com.
Episodes
Toby York - The Future of Teaching Accounting
Toby is the founder of Accounting Cafe (https://accountingcafe.org/), a community for people who believe that accounting education can be an engaging and enjoyable experience for teachers and learners. We chatted about the future of accountants, and accounting, some of the challenges and considerations in teaching accounting, and some fascinating topics in between! Ranging from the good old bookk
Dr Chipo Simbi, PhD, FHEA - Failure!
No matter what goals we set ourselves, we're going to face challenges and setbacks. Chipo and I recorded a chat when we met in Sheffield at the British Accounting and Finance Associations' Education SIG conference in May 2026. I love her story and her energy. Her approach to and perspectives on dealing with failure are inspiring.
Wes Towers - Communication & Value-add as accountants
Wes Towers is a designer, marketer, and founder of Uplift 360, a digital agency built on data-driven decision-making and smart use of AI. A few years ago, a formal valuation report said his business was worth less than the assets it held and flagged AI as a major risk. Instead of retreating, Wes reworked his business model, embraced automation and AI tools, and went on to create his most profitabl
Tom Clendon - Sabotaging your studies?
Tom helps students pass their ACCA SBR exams, he’s been teaching and helping students pass high-level accounting exams for years. We chatted about how students sometimes sabotage their studies, how to balance life and work, and of course, whether the robots are going to take our jobs! Enjoy!You can find out more about Tom here. Contact him if you need help with your SBR ExamLinkedInWebsite
Prof Arshi - SECURE: Startup Business Model Evaluation Tool
A lot of accounting students I know dream about being an entrepreneur. In Part 1 of my discussion with Professor Tahseen Anwer Arshi, we spoke about some of his research relating to entrepreneurship. In this episode, we chat about the diagnostic tool he developed to help entrepreneurs evaluate and improve their business models. It’s called SECURE, and we chat about what it can do for you.Prof. Tah
Prof Arshi - The Influence of Hormones on Entrepreneurial Decisions
A lot of the accounting students I know dream of becoming entrepreneurs. In this episode, we explore a surprising angle on entrepreneurship: does your biology influence your decisions?I chatted with Professor Tahseen Anwer Arshi about his research on how hormones influence entrepreneurial decision-making. The research is fascinating, and I think you’ll enjoy our discussion of the takeaways for you
Adam Yannakakis ACCA - Finance Exam Skills
Adam focuses on providing students working towards professional finance qualifications with a proven accountability system to get them through exams. We chatted about challenges that finance students may not realise they’ll face, both in their studies and their professional careers. As always, I’m exploring the skills we need to develop to ensure we’re well prepared for our future careers, as Adam
KC Rottok - Leveraging your skills to build opportunities
In this conversation, I spoke to KC about the opportunities he’s created through the process of marketing his skills and business. This is a fascinating conversation with someone who uses their skills, invests in and builds on them, and uses them creatively to further their business opportunities. I chatted to KC a while back about the books he wrote (Links below), and he’s since built on this. Th
Dr Wiehann Olivier CA(SA) RA - Cryptocurrency
Update: Wiehann has recently completed his PhD, titled - "The Development of a Cryptocurrency Assertion-Based Framework for Financial Auditors." - We'll need to get him back for another chat to discuss his research with us.In this episode, I spoke to Wiehann Olivier about cryptocurrency accounting and auditing as a career. Wiehann is a partner and the digital asset lead for Mazaars S
Mindset - The Original Research
In this episode, I explore the origins of growth and fixed mindset research — revisiting three of the earliest studies that shaped the theory. We often use “mindset” as a simple label, but what did the original research actually reveal about how people respond to failure?Rather than treating mindset as a static label, I focus on its original intent: exploring how individuals interpret and respond
Tatum Thorne CA(SA)
I spoke to Tatum about her journey through her postgraduate qualification. We discuss failure, motivation, accountability, and study advice for those who feel like it’s not working out according to plan. Tatum shares her journey with other students to encourage them that while your path might not look the way you expected, it doesn’t mean that you won’t be successful. So if you’re having a bit of
Prof Elmar Venter - Accounting Education
In this conversation, I spoke to Professor Elmar Venter about accounting education. From what it is that accounting researchers actually research, to discussions on how students should think about their learning. Elmar is incredibly passionate about the value that accountants can add to society, so you’re going to enjoy this chat
Elton Pullen CA(SA) PhD
In this conversation, I spoke to Elton Pullen about research, studying and self-reflection, and the place that our faith has in our careers. Elton is a senior lecturer in Managerial Accounting. It’s always great to chat to people who have a passion for developing future accountants and Elton is definitely one of those people, so Iet’s get into this chat
Bruce Vivian (IFAC) - Sustainability
Bruce is currently the Director of Accounting Education at IFAC, and he's been great in sharing his insights with future accounting professionals. In this conversation, I spoke to Bruce Vivian about sustainability and how it will impact accounting students in the future. Our discussion also focusses on underlying skills and the need for intellectual curiosity - the trait that will protect us a
Hannah Macdonald ACA - Accountancy Hub
Hannah and I discussed the non-academic challenges that ACCA trainees and students often face. Hannah also focuses on neurodiversity, and we discussed this among a wide range of other topics.Accountancy Hub provides advice, community, and resources to prospective, studying, and post-qualified ACCA, CIMA, AAT, CIPFA, and ICAEW accountants, working with both individual students and firms.You can fin
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