Virtually every business owner hates tax season.  It’s surprisingly common for owners to push off tax obligations, which unfortunately results in stiff penalties from the IRS.  Shiloh Johnson, an Inglewood, California native, has arrived with a tax application built to relieve businesses of their tax related stresses.

 

Shiloh is an open book.  She shares her journey as a mother, business owner, and risk-taking tech entrepreneur. We talk about everything from mental health to building the first version of your product!

 

Founder Bio:

Shiloh Johnson is a long-time accountant and founder of ComplYant, a technology platform offering business owners and entrepreneurs a simple way to manage tax rules and requirements. Rooted in the firm belief that complex tax laws and nuanced regulations often create barriers for small or underrepresented business owners, her company’s mission is to ensure that organizations of all colors, shapes, and sizes have access to accurate fiscal guidance.

 

Recently, Shiloh Johnson was awarded a startup grant by the Annenberg Foundation and Pledge LA, along with capital from MuckerLab and Slauson & Co. She has participated in Grid110 and Techstars LA accelerators. She has written course content for the National Association of Tax Professionals, and is a member of the Institute for Professionals in Taxation, American Institute of CPAs, and the National Association of Black Accountants

 

She fights for the undeserved. She believes that the color of your skin should not impact your likelihood of success. Everyone deserves complete and accurate fiscal guidance and financial success.

 

Shiloh holds a bachelor’s degree in accounting, a master’s degree in taxation, and Certified Public Accounting licenser (*inactive).

 

Timestamps:

2:40  Shiloh’s upbringing in Inglewood, CA

6:33  Life as a mother, accounting major, and tax accountant

8:38  How Shiloh launched her own accounting firm

17:23  Selling the accounting services firm to jumpstart her startup ambitions

20:05  The case for running a standalone startup versus build a product inside of services firm

22:33  The inspiration behind launching ComplYant

25:59  Shiloh’s process for maintain the mental health needed to balance life as a mother and founder

29:16  A unique skillset is a source of confidence as a parent/entrepreneur shooting for the stars

32:24  The Product: What is ComplYant App?

35:29  Building the first version of the product | A focus on adoption

37:53 Lessons learned finding talent to build initial product

43:21  Integrating AI to automate inefficient internal processes

46:35  Shiloh’s funding journey | Understanding when it makes sense to raise outside funding

51:15 Why it made sense for ComplYant to raise venture funding

53:59  The decision to build as a solo founder