INTHEBLACK

When was the last time you had a work disagreement? How was it for you?

How you handle workplace conflict can make or break a work relationship, a project, or a whole team's trust in each other.

In this episode, Genevieve Hawkins, Founder of Mentally at Work, unpacks what it means to disagree well at work.

She explains why assuming good intent is the first step to any productive disagreement, and why reframing conflict as curiosity (rather than a battle to be won) changes the outcome entirely.

You'll learn her expert insights on:

• How to distinguish a disagreement from a fight driven by emotion

• Why being convinced you are right can prevent you from hearing useful perspectives

• How asking questions and listening can interrupt adversarial exchanges

• Ways to address passive aggression by describing observable behaviour and inviting an explanation

• When to pause, manage rising tension and return to a difficult discussion with a clearer perspective

• How to prepare for uncomfortable conversations and disagree with a manager constructively

The central lesson is that understanding another person's perspective doesn't require you to abandon your own.

Listen now.

Host: Tahn Sharpe, INTHEBLACK Editor

Guest: Genevieve Hawkins, Founder, Mentally at Work. She helps boards, executives and leadership teams navigate the conflicts, commercial pressures and cultural dynamics that typically derail transformations.

You can learn more about Genevieve at her website.

Loving this episode?

Listen to more INTHEBLACK episodes and other CPA Australia podcasts on YouTube.

And don't forget to click subscribe to the channel for a wide range of content that will help your career.

CPA Australia publishes four podcasts, providing commentary and thought leadership across business, finance, and accounting:

With Interest

INTHEBLACK

INTHEBLACK Out Loud

Excel Tips

Search for them in your podcast platform. Email the podcast team at [email protected]

CFOs can learn a lot about pricing and leadership from Costco.

In this episode of How CFOs Think, the former Costco CFO Richard Galanti explains how Costco Wholesale – a multibillion-dollar global retailer with warehouse club operations in 14 countries – has used pricing discipline, operational efficiency, transparency and long-term thinking to build customer loyalty and value.

Listeners will learn:

• Why Costco maintains strict limits on product mark-ups

• How operational efficiency helps protect customer value

• Why Costco sometimes accepts lower short-term earnings

• How transparency shapes relationships with investors and suppliers

• What the CFO contributes to major capital and strategic decisions

• Why monthly performance reviews support better decision-making

• What new CFOs should focus on during their first 90 days

• How long-term financial discipline can support shareholder returns

Tune in with special guest Richard Galanti, who will also be speaking at CPA Congress 2026.

Host: Ky Chow, media trainer, journalist, writer and presenter

Guest: Richard Galanti, who joined Costco in 1984 after helping raise the company's original outside capital as a banker and spent close to 40 years as its CFO.

Richard Galanti will appear at CPA Congress 2026.

Loving this episode?

Listen to more INTHEBLACK episodes and other CPA Australia podcasts on YouTube.

And don't forget to click subscribe to the channel for a wide range of content that will help your career.

CPA Australia publishes four podcasts, providing commentary and thought leadership across business, finance, and accounting:

With Interest

INTHEBLACK

INTHEBLACK Out Loud

Excel Tips

Search for them in your podcast platform. Email the podcast team at [email protected]

Technical expertise can produce exact numbers. However, communicating what those numbers mean is a different, but incredibly valuable, skill.

This episode explores why storytelling is becoming an increasingly important capability for accountants and finance professionals.

You will learn:

• Why peer credibility matters alongside formal authority

• How storytelling can help financial insights drive action

• Why numbers can influence behaviour, not just describe performance

• How technical professionals can develop their communication skills

• How the TLC framework can structure thinking, presentation and communication

• How to make financial recommendations stand out to busy decision-makers

Explore the story behind the numbers — and why narrative is becoming an essential finance discipline — with special guest AJ Kulatunga, a leadership keynote speaker who will be speaking at CPA Congress 2026.

Host: Jackie Blondell, Editor, CPA Australia

Guest: AJ Kulatunga, a leadership keynote speaker specialising in execution intelligence for CFOs

AJ Kulatunga is speaking at CPA Congress 2026.

You can learn more about him at his website.

Loving this episode?

Listen to more INTHEBLACK episodes and other CPA Australia podcasts on YouTube.

And don't forget to click subscribe to the channel for a wide range of content that will help your career.

CPA Australia publishes four podcasts, providing commentary and thought leadership across business, finance, and accounting:

With Interest

INTHEBLACK

INTHEBLACK Out Loud

Excel Tips

Search for them in your podcast platform. Email the podcast team at [email protected]

Change is the one constant in today's work landscape.

This episode sparks fresh ideas on leading people through change without losing their trust or buy-in.

Expert guest Richard Gerver – who has worked with Google and Deloitte and will speak on Leading Humans Through Continuous Change at CPA Congress 2026 – looks at why restructures so often fail on the human side, not the technical one.

He explains why:

• Asking questions beats presenting answers
• Change works better when people have ownership of it
• Organisations need to move from "managing change" to becoming comfortable with continuous change
• Leaders should unlock the ideas and potential already inside their organisation
• Psychological safety and leader vulnerability are essential to innovation
• Resilience isn't about asking people to cope with more, it's something leaders help build

If you're leading a team through a restructure, a system migration or AI adoption, this conversation reframes resilience as something you build deliberately, not something people simply have or don't.

Give it a listen this week.

Host Tahn Sharpe, INTHEBLACK Editor, CPA Australia

Guest: Richard Gerver, award-winning change and leadership speaker with a background in education, innovation and human potential

For more information on Richard Gerver, head online to his international speakers bureau page.

Richard will speak at CPA Congress 2026.

Loving this episode?

Listen to more INTHEBLACK episodes and other CPA Australia podcasts on YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/@CPAaustralia/podcasts

And don't forget to click subscribe to the channel for a wide range of content that will help your career.

CPA Australia publishes four podcasts, providing commentary and thought leadership across business, finance and accounting:

With Interest https://www.cpaaustralia.com.au/tools-and-resources/podcasts/with-interest

INTHEBLACK https://www.cpaaustralia.com.au/tools-and-resources/podcasts/intheblack

INTHEBLACK Out Loud https://www.cpaaustralia.com.au/tools-and-resources/podcasts/intheblack-outloud

Excel Tips https://www.cpaaustralia.com.au/tools-and-resources/podcasts/excel-tips

Search for them in your podcast platform. Email the podcast team at [email protected]

Chapters:

00:00 Richard Gerver on leadership vulnerability and empowering teams

00:29 Introduction to Richard Gerver, change leadership expert and educator

01:27 How Richard Gerver transformed a failing school through empowerment

04:54 Employee empowerment vs top-down change management

06:15 Why continuous change is the new normal for leaders

10:51 How to get employee buy-in for organisational change

13:00 Leadership, psychological safety and encouraging innovation

16:58 Resilience, failure and learning in a changing workplace

20:29 Leading humans through change, AI adoption and ERP transformation

22:25 Richard Gerver's advice for finance leaders managing major change projects

23:41 Key takeaways and CPA Australia Congress 2026 preview

What does responsible leadership look like when short-term performance still matters?

This episode explores stewardship as a practical approach to balancing profit, purpose, stakeholder interests and long-term value.

Key learnings include:

• What stewardship means in today's leadership environment
• Why organisations are shifting from short-term thinking to long-term value creation
• The connection between purpose, values and leadership effectiveness
• How leaders can build cultures of accountability and responsibility
• Balancing stakeholder expectations in a complex world
• Practical actions individuals can take to become better stewards in their own roles

This podcast aims to help leaders understand how a stewardship mindset can drive both sustainable business success and meaningful societal impact.

Tune in now.

Host: Patrick Viljoen, ESG Lead, CPA Australia

Guest: Rajeev Peshawaria, CEO of Steward Leadership Institute and an internationally recognised author, speaker and leadership expert whose work has challenged executives around the world to rethink the purpose of leadership and the role of values in driving sustainable success.

You can find more about Steward Leadership Institute on LinkedIn.

Loving this episode?

Listen to more INTHEBLACK episodes and other CPA Australia podcasts on YouTube. Head to our podcast page CPA Australia - YouTube

And of course, click subscribe to the channel today.

We deliver regular content that will help boost your career skills and capabilities.

Additionally, INTHEBLACK online has stories on everyday ethics issues.

CPA Australia publishes four podcasts, providing commentary and thought leadership across business, finance, and accounting https://www.cpaaustralia.com.au/tools-and-resources/podcasts

INTHEBLACK https://www.cpaaustralia.com.au/tools-and-resources/podcasts/intheblack

INTHEBLACK Out Loud https://www.cpaaustralia.com.au/tools-and-resources/podcasts/intheblack-outloud

Excel Tips Excel Tips | CPA Australia

With Interest https://www.cpaaustralia.com.au/tools-and-resources/podcasts/with-interest

Search for them in your podcast platform. Email the podcast team at [email protected]

Email the podcast team at [email protected]

Growth is not the problem. Undisciplined growth is.

Does revenue growth without financial discipline create value or destroy is the question at the centre of this expert-led episode.

The 2025 Australian Accounting Awards CFO of the Year Priyan Fernando explains why revenue growth can mask falling margins, tightening cash flow and weakening financial discipline.

Listeners will learn:

• Why growth does not necessarily create profitability or value
• Where profit commonly disappears as businesses scale up
• How cash flow differs from profit
• Which KPIs growing SMEs often overlook
• What a fractional CFO looks at first when entering a business
• How dashboards can improve financial visibility
• How finance leaders can challenge the assumption that growth always equals success
• Where to start when a fast-growing business has weak financial discipline

For SME owners, CFOs and senior finance professionals, the discussion offers a practical perspective on financial controls and questions that matter as a business scales up.

Tune in now.

Host: Ky Chow. Ky is a business journalist, media trainer, writer and presenter.

Guest: Priyan Fernando. Priyan is a CPA and founder of fractional CFO practice Metrix Advisory. He is also the 2025 Australian Accounting Awards CFO of the Year.

Learn more about Metrix Advisory at its website.

Loving this episode?

Listen to more INTHEBLACK episodes and other CPA Australia podcasts on YouTube. Head to our podcast page CPA Australia - YouTube

And of course, click subscribe to the channel today.

We deliver regular content that will help boost your career skills and capabilities.

Additionally, INTHEBLACK online has stories on everyday ethics issues.

CPA Australia publishes four podcasts, providing commentary and thought leadership across business, finance, and accounting https://www.cpaaustralia.com.au/tools-and-resources/podcasts

INTHEBLACK https://www.cpaaustralia.com.au/tools-and-resources/podcasts/intheblack

INTHEBLACK Out Loud https://www.cpaaustralia.com.au/tools-and-resources/podcasts/intheblack-outloud

Excel Tips Excel Tips | CPA Australia

With Interest https://www.cpaaustralia.com.au/tools-and-resources/podcasts/with-interest

Search for them in your podcast platform. Email the podcast team at [email protected]

Salary still matters.

However, it is no longer enough to attract and retain accounting and finance professionals.

In this episode, explore how the Australian employment market is changing and what workers want from their careers today.

The 2026/27 Hays Salary Guide answers questions you've been asking about career progression, flexibility, skills development and AI.

For employers, the challenge now is building a proposition that goes beyond just pay.

In the Hays Salary Guide for financial year 2026/27, you'll hear expert insights on:

• How salary is no longer the only factor when people change jobs
• How AI adoption is changing the way businesses hire and grow
• The key skills in demand and what can help you stand out
• Why career progression is becoming almost as important as salary
• Why flexibility has shifted from a differentiator to an expectation
• Where are the accounting and finance skills shortages
• Why technical accounting expertise still matters
• How accountants can move closer to commercial decision-making
• What recently qualified, mid-career and senior professionals can do to stay competitive
• Why employers need to combine remuneration with progression, flexibility and wellbeing

Tune in now.

Host: Adrienne Biscontin, external affairs adviser, CPA Australia

Guest: John Summers, Hays business director for accountancy and finance

You can read the Salary Guide Australia FY26/27 at the Hays website.

Loving this episode?

Listen to more INTHEBLACK episodes and other CPA Australia podcasts on YouTube. Head to our podcast page CPA Australia - YouTube

And, of course, click subscribe to the channel today.

We deliver regular content that will help boost your career skills and capabilities.

Additionally, INTHEBLACK online has stories on everyday ethics issues.

CPA Australia publishes four podcasts, providing commentary and thought leadership across business, finance and accounting https://www.cpaaustralia.com.au/tools-and-resources/podcasts

INTHEBLACK https://www.cpaaustralia.com.au/tools-and-resources/podcasts/intheblack

INTHEBLACK Out Loud https://www.cpaaustralia.com.au/tools-and-resources/podcasts/intheblack-outloud

Excel Tips Excel Tips | CPA Australia

With Interest https://www.cpaaustralia.com.au/tools-and-resources/podcasts/with-interest

Search for them in your podcast platform. Email the podcast team at [email protected]

Chapters:

00:00 Intro

00:21 Hays Salary Guide 2026: Key labour market trends in Australia

01:15 Why career progression rivals salary for employee retention

03:27 Hybrid work expectations and talent attraction strategies

05:03 Career development plans that improve employee retention

06:05 AI adoption in accounting and finance: Training gap revealed

07:39 Accounting and finance skills shortages in Australia 2026

09:07 CPA qualification, technical accounting skills and salary growth

10:05 Employer of choice strategy: Salary, flexibility, AI and benefits

11:38 How AI and automation are changing accounting careers

12:43 Career advice for accountants: Commercial skills and decision-making

13:44 Early-career and mid-career accounting growth opportunities

15:14 CFOs, finance leaders and leading AI-driven change

15:45 Salary pressure, cost of living and retention risks in 2026

16:26 Key takeaways for employers and accounting professionals

17:03 Accessing the Hays Salary Guide 2026 and final thoughts

(This is an encore presentation of this INTHEBLACK podcast episode, first published on February 3, 2026)

Cognitive bias. It quietly shapes many of the decisions made in accounting and finance – often without you realising it.

This unintended bias can become a risk if left unchecked – especially in professions built on precision, trust and ethical responsibility.

Drawing on real-world examples, this episode explores the diverse types of cognitive bias, and how they can impact accounting and finance professionals in our day-to-day work.

Key learnings include:

• Why cognitive bias exists and when it becomes a professional risk
• How common biases affect financial judgement
• The ethical consequences of bias in accounting and finance
• How organisational culture can reduce or reinforce biased thinking
• Practical steps individuals can take to challenge assumptions and improve decisions
• How the rise of AI and automation adds a new layer of complexity to decision-making

The discussion also shows how biases such as confirmation bias, anchoring and overconfidence quietly influence decisions, often without conscious awareness.

Host: Tahn Sharpe, Editor, CPA Australia

Guest: Dr Victor Goh Weng Yew, a PhD in applied psychology and Associate Professor at the Department of Psychology at HELP University in Malaysia, where he is also the acting dean.

For more, head to HELP University online and to its page on LinkedIn.

And there is a CPA PD course on AI and Ethics in Malaysia featuring expert local speakers, case studies and examples.

Loving this episode?

Listen to more INTHEBLACK episodes and other CPA Australia podcasts on YouTube.

And don't forget to click subscribe to the channel for a wide range of content that will help your career.

CPA Australia publishes four podcasts, providing commentary and thought leadership across business, finance, and accounting:

With Interest

INTHEBLACK

INTHEBLACK Out Loud

Excel Tips

Search for them in your podcast platform. Email the podcast team at [email protected]

Every workplace has them – the colleague whose communication style grates on you, the team member whose approach seems to undermine everything you're trying to do, or the manager you simply can't read.

In finance and corporate environments, where pressure is high and collaboration is non-negotiable, navigating these relationships isn't optional.

In this episode of the INTHEBLACK podcast, experts discuss the reality of working with people you don't like.

They explore why tension in teams can actually be a competitive advantage, how to tell the difference between a personality clash and a systemic problem, and what self-awareness really demands of us when conflict arises.

Practical, honest and occasionally confronting, this is a conversation every professional needs – not because you'll always like your colleagues, but because you have to work with them anyway.

Tune in now.

Host: Tahn Sharpe, Editor, CPA Australia

Guests: Tammy Tansley, consultant, Leadership and Workplace Culture, and Paula Brough, director, Centre for Work, Organisation and Wellbeing, Griffith University

Want to learn more about this episode's guests?

Head to Tammy Tansley's website and Paula Brough's experts page on the Griffith University website.

And the INTHEBLACK website has articles on today's episode subject and more for finance and business professionals.

Loving this episode?

Listen to more INTHEBLACK episodes and other CPA Australia podcasts on YouTube. Head to our podcast page CPA Australia - YouTube

And of course, click subscribe to the channel today.

We deliver regular content that will help boost your career skills and capabilities.

CPA Australia publishes four podcasts, providing commentary and thought leadership across business, finance and accounting https://www.cpaaustralia.com.au/tools-and-resources/podcasts

INTHEBLACK https://www.cpaaustralia.com.au/tools-and-resources/podcasts/intheblack

INTHEBLACK Out Loud https://www.cpaaustralia.com.au/tools-and-resources/podcasts/intheblack-outloud

Excel Tips Excel Tips | CPA Australia

With Interest https://www.cpaaustralia.com.au/tools-and-resources/podcasts/with-interest

Search for them in your podcast platform. Email the podcast team at [email protected]

The data doesn't lie.

With 40 per cent of workers' current skill sets expected to be transformed or obsolete by 2030, it leads to a question many are asking: How do professionals working in finance and accounting become indispensable in the coming years?

In this episode, INTHEBLACK tries to answer that by exploring the one skill that professionals can focus on to help them remain valuable.

The expert insights in this episode include:

• Why AI widens the gap between average and exceptional professionals

• The human skills that are becoming more valuable, not less

• How critical thinking protects against AI errors and hallucinations

• Why emotional intelligence and communication remain competitive advantages

• How to build a career that evolves alongside AI

• Practical advice for accountants, finance professionals and business leaders planning the next decade

If you're looking to stay indispensable in an AI-enabled workplace, this episode offers practical guidance grounded in real-world leadership experience.

Host: Tahn Sharpe, editor, INTHEBLACK, CPA Australia.

Guests: David Carney and Amanda Kenafake. David is executive director of the Career Industry Council of Australia, and CPA Amanda is CEO and executive director of financial services provider Power Tynan.

Learn more about the the Career Industry Council of Australia (CICA) at its website.

Similarly, head online for more information on the services provided by Power Tynan.

Loving this episode?

Listen to more With Interest episodes and other CPA Australia podcasts on YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/@CPAaustralia/podcasts

And don't forget to click subscribe to the channel for a wide range of content that will help your career.

CPA Australia publishes four podcasts, providing commentary and thought leadership across business, finance and accounting:

With Interest https://www.cpaaustralia.com.au/tools-and-resources/podcasts/with-interest

INTHEBLACK https://www.cpaaustralia.com.au/tools-and-resources/podcasts/intheblack

INTHEBLACK Out Loud https://www.cpaaustralia.com.au/tools-and-resources/podcasts/intheblack-outloud

Excel Tips https://www.cpaaustralia.com.au/tools-and-resources/podcasts/excel-tips

Search for them in your podcast platform. Email the podcast team at [email protected]

Chapters:

00:00 Technical vs Client-Friendly Answers in Accounting

00:24 Introduction: Future of Accounting Skills and AI Impact

01:02 Pace of Change: Should Professionals Feel Alarmed or Excited?

01:32 Adapting to AI: Mindset, Experimentation, and Career Planning

02:53 Key Skills for Modern Accountants: Problem Solving and Emotional Intelligence

04:27 Does AI Amplify Performance? How to Use AI to Enhance Skills

06:02 AI as an Amplifier, Not a Leveller: Why Context Still Matters

07:30 Using AI Under Pressure: Avoiding Blind Trust in Outputs

09:14 Human Skills vs Technical Accuracy: Communicating for Client Understanding

12:40 AI Risks: Bias, Hallucinations, and the Need for Critical Thinking

13:00 Career Advice: Owning Your Learning and Adapting to Change

15:29 How to Become an Indispensable Accountant: Growth Mindset and Upskilling

16:40 Closing Remarks and Key Takeaways