Bernadette L. Harris is an award-winning Tax and Forensic Accountant, TEDx Speaker, bestselling author and podcast host committed to “Keeping Small Business in Business.” As President of By The Book Accounting, she has helped thousands of entrepreneurs across the country start, operate, and grow thriving ventures.
Bernadette, a Certified Fraud Examiner (CFE), earned a B.S. in Accounting from the nation’s oldest HBCU, Cheyney University of Pennsylvania, and later earned her MBA from Keller Graduate School of Management and an MS in Fraud and Forensics from Carlow University.
Before launching her company, By The Book Accounting, in 2001, she taught Algebra and Geometry and led a high school basketball team to a district championship during her first year of coaching.
Bernadette has conducted workshops for the U.S. Small Business Administration, The Urban League, SCORE, Access to Capital For Entrepreneurs, Dress for Success, and other non-profit organizations. She has been featured on ABC, CBS, NBC, and other nationally known media outlets speaking on entrepreneurship and fraud prevention. She also serves as an Adjunct Instructor at the Atlanta Institute of Music and Media. Where she teaches Accounting and Tax Essentials for Entrepreneurs.
A native of Miami, FL, she now resides in Atlanta, GA with her husband, Anthony.
Connect with Bernadette on LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter.
Transcript
Intro: [00:00:04] Broadcasting live from the Business RadioX studios in Atlanta, Georgia, it’s time for GWBC Radio’s Open for Business. Now, here’s your host.
Lee Kantor: [00:00:18] Lee Kantor here. Another episode of GWBC Open for Business. And this is going to be a good one. Today, we have with us Bernadette Harris with By the Book Accounting. Welcome, Bernadette.
Bernadette Harris: [00:00:29] Thank you, Lee. Thank you for having me.
Lee Kantor: [00:00:31] Well, before we get too far into things, tell us about By the Book Accounting. How are you serving folks?
Bernadette Harris: [00:00:36] So, By the Book Accounting is a tax and forensic accounting firm. It is based in Atlanta, but our clients are actually all over the country. And I think we have a few clients that live abroad. And since 2001, we have been serving clients in multiple ways. One is tax preparation. So, we work with individuals helping them to file accurate tax returns, and we also work with business owners on the tax side. But the bigger part of what we do is working with small businesses and helping them to make sure that they’ve set up their businesses the right way and they’ve set up their businesses to last.
Bernadette Harris: [00:01:16] And so, that can include as much as creating accounting systems from the start, some way to track your income and expenses, whether Quickbooks or Excel. We also teach business owners as they’re growing their businesses, how to protect themselves from fraud. That’s where the forensic accounting comes in. And in the unlikely event that a person is a victim of fraud, we investigate those cases from the financial side.
Lee Kantor: [00:01:45] So, now, how did you get into accounting? Was that something as a child, you were always drawn to math, and numbers, and business?
Bernadette Harris: [00:01:52] You know me that my story is very interesting because, yeah, I have always been really good at math, but it didn’t equate to accounting for me. So, when I went to college, I went to college as an Education major. I thought, since I’m good at math, maybe I will teach math. And I took one education class, and I thought, “I don’t know if this is going to be the right path for me.” And my college algebra professor, she said, “Well, why don’t you try accounting? You’re really good at math. Why don’t you try accounting?” I had never thought about it because I’m a first-generation college student. And so, I said, “Okay.” And the next semester, I took accounting and fell in love. And so, here we are.
Lee Kantor: [00:02:39] And that’s a great example of how a person on your journey – it could be kind of semi-random person – can really propel someone in a new direction and open their mind to things that they hadn’t considered.
Bernadette Harris: [00:02:50] Yeah. And I think that, also, it speaks to the importance of really good teachers and teachers who are teaching because they love it. I think that the teaching part wasn’t far off because I still get to teach in what I do, I just do it in a different way. And when you have teachers along the way who are planting positive seeds, that makes the world of difference.
Lee Kantor: [00:03:14] So, now, when you started out, were you always kind of going after this entrepreneur and small business niche or was that something that just evolved over time?
Bernadette Harris: [00:03:23] Absolutely accidental. Absolutely accidental. I never thought that I was brave enough to be an entrepreneur. It was just never on my mind because, to me, entrepreneurship, it seemed like not real. Most of the entrepreneurs that I knew were people who were kind of hustling and not really making a lot of money. So, I just thought success looked like going to work for that same job for 30 years, like my mom did, and retiring. So, entrepreneurship fell into my lap. And I’m so grateful because it’s been the best decision of my life.
Lee Kantor: [00:04:07] So, what kind of was the impetus of kind of opening your mind to this entrepreneur path, and really embracing it, and kind of leaning into it? Because you’re not only doing accounting, you have books, you have a podcast, you have a blog, you teach courses. Like you’re just kind of have a whole boutique industry around you and your knowledge. So, how did you kind of expand the mindset of, “Hey, I’m an accountant,” or “I’m going to get a job,” to “Look, I can do lots of things, and I can help lots of people in different ways, kind of using the same base of knowledge”?
Bernadette Harris: [00:04:41] So, it started out very innocently. My cousin, a long time ago – this was probably about over 20 years ago – she had a Mary Kay party, and she asked is to come because she had just started as a Mary Kay rep. And you do what you do with your family, you support your family. So, I showed up along with a lot of my other cousins, and we had a great time at this party.
Bernadette Harris: [00:05:06] But one of the things that caught my eye – I was never like a really heavy makeup wear – so I learned some new techniques, I learned some things about skin care, but when the person who present it, who recruited her, she was a director in Mary Kay, and she was the director that was driving the pink Cadillac. So, she was like that top person in Mary Kay. And she started talking about the business opportunity. And I had never thought about it. It was never on my radar. And she piqued my interest. I thought, “Oh, my gosh. This class was so much fun, I could totally see myself doing this.”
Bernadette Harris: [00:05:51] So, I didn’t join right away, but probably about 18 months later, I joined Mary Kay. I had a blast. I made a lot of money, sold a lot of makeup, met a lot of people, and just empowered a lot of women because there were women who wanted to wear makeup, didn’t know how. There were women who wore makeup and didn’t know how. And then, there’s just people who just wanted to support me. And so, it was a very fun journey. And that was my introduction to entrepreneurship.
Bernadette Harris: [00:06:24] But being where I am now and By the Book accountinA, this is my true calling. This is where I’m supposed to be. And Mary Kay and a few other things that I did before By the Book Accounting were just a stepping stones to get me there because, this, being in entrepreneurship and being in By the Book Accounting has allowed me to impact the most people and allow my impact to be the greatest. And that’s how I know I’m where I’m supposed to be.
Lee Kantor: [00:06:57] So, now, when you’re working with entrepreneurs yourself right now, and mentoring them and kind of role modeling how to be a successful entrepreneur, are you seeing kind of the same mistakes entrepreneurs are making that they’re not setting themselves up for success or maybe they’re good at what they do, but they don’t know how to kind of build a business around what they’re doing?
Bernadette Harris: [00:07:17] That is absolutely what I see. And Lee, that is why I wrote my first book because I said, “Well, I keep getting these clients that come in, and they’re all making the same mistakes. So, maybe, if I write a book and tell them how to set up their businesses the right way and the things that they need to have in place, maybe they’ll stop making these mistakes.”
Bernadette Harris: [00:07:39] And so, that’s how I entered into becoming an author because I thought this will be a way for me to take my base of knowledge and be able to help more people. Because there’s only so many people that you and I can talk to in a day, right? If you have a workshop, there are only so many people who can come to the workshop. But something like a book can just really make an impact. When you don’t even think about it, when you’re asleep, your book can be making an impact. And so, that’s how I became an author just because I was trying to help people, even more people. And see, and we still come back to me being that teacher, just not in the traditional way.
Lee Kantor: [00:08:21] So, now, how much of your time is spent kind of educating, and motivating, and inspiring folks, and how much is actually doing accounting nowadays? Is your time kind of split between the two?
Bernadette Harris: [00:08:32] Somewhat. And you know what, Lee? One of the things that I realized is this year after the pandemic, and I realized that even though I spent a lot of time educating small businesses, I’m not doing enough and I need to do more because the pandemic opened our eyes, and I say it lifted the skirts of a lot of businesses to show the inadequacies of those businesses.
Bernadette Harris: [00:09:02] When I saw that there were businesses who weren’t able to qualify for PPP funding, businesses who weren’t able to qualify for EIDL, and unfortunately, businesses that are essentially closed now, it makes me realize that I still have a lot more work to do as it relates to educating small businesses. And I don’t know. I mean, I know it’s not my job alone, but I am just determined to do as much as I can to help businesses stay in business. So, my tagline is keeping small business in business because small business is important. Small business changed my, life and I just want that for everyone else.
Lee Kantor: [00:09:45] Yeah, I agree wholeheartedly. I think small and midsize businesses, they’re the lifeblood of communities, and they’re kind of the unsung heroes because they’re doing a lot of the heavy lifting, and they’re hiring folks, and they’re supporting community things that people just take for granted. And you’re going to miss them when they’re gone. That’s for sure.
Bernadette Harris: [00:10:03] Absolutely. There’s a statistic that I read that said that 47.5% of US workers work for a small business. And so, maybe it’s not the mom and pop store on the corner but, like you said, those medium sized businesses even. But a small business is anything under a hundred employees. A hundred employees is a lot of people.
Lee Kantor: [00:10:26] Yeah. The government definition of a small business and what you have in your head of a small business are not the same.
Bernadette Harris: [00:10:32] Yeah, yeah. So, I try to help. I’m helping small businesses. So, if it’s one employees or a hundred employees, those are the people who have my heart.
Lee Kantor: [00:10:42] Now, any advice for them? Like, right now, a lot of them are struggling and a lot of them are kind of having a hard time with the pandemic impacting their businesses. Is there are some low-hanging fruit, maybe something you can share that a place to start to help them kind of weather the storm?
Bernadette Harris: [00:10:59] So, one of the things that I’ve realized is how important it is for small business owners to have a relationship with an accountant because many of them, they’re really smart. I do my own taxes, I keep my own books, and I kind of do. And maybe you know how to do Turbo Tax, maybe you know how to do Quickbooks, but I think that when we get to the point where we’re doing too much DIY, we miss out on the relational things that, like you said, that low-hanging fruit that someone who does this as a profession is able to see. And the $500 that you save every year, what did you miss out on as a result of it?
Bernadette Harris: [00:11:49] And so, those businesses that are struggling, I would definitely say it is really important to have a relationship with an accountant. And having a relationship with an accountant doesn’t necessarily mean that this accountant is a line item on your monthly budget. It may be just, I have clients who just pop in, and they just schedule a consultation when they need help or guidance, and that may cost them a couple hundred dollars a year as opposed to not having that guidance, and making the mistakes, and having it come to me later to fix it. So, we always know it’s a lot easier to plug a pinhole than it is to replace the whole roof.
Lee Kantor: [00:12:33] Right. And it’s one of those things where it’s an investment. I mean, hopefully, you have a relationship with an accountant that’s saving you thousands of dollars and costing you hundreds of dollars and not vice versa.
Bernadette Harris: [00:12:45] Yeah, the benefit should always outweigh the cost.
Lee Kantor: [00:12:51] Yeah. It’s not an expense in my book. It’s an investment. Now-
Bernadette Harris: [00:12:55] I agree, I agree.
Lee Kantor: [00:12:57] … tell us about your involvement with GWBC. Why did you choose to join that association and why has it been important to you?
Bernadette Harris: [00:13:06] Well, GWBC has been really important to me because multiple things. There’s the opportunity to network with like-minded business owners. And so, that is so critical because entrepreneurship can be lonely sometimes, especially if the people who are close to you, they’re not entrepreneurs, they don’t get it. They may rah-rah you as much as they possibly can, but if you are not an entrepreneur, you don’t get this. You can’t get it by looking in. So, being a part of GWBC and being able to network and connect with business owners that are like me, it’s been out of this world.
Bernadette Harris: [00:13:53] One of the biggest things that GWBC has helped me with is this year, I was accepted into the Mentor Protege Program. And in that program, they match a WGBC member with a corporate member, and the corporate members serves as a mentor to the protege. And let me just tell you, like having access to someone who works in corporate America and them being able to impart things on you to help you grow your little small business has been tremendous.
Bernadette Harris: [00:14:31] And so, as a result of working, I’ve been working with my mentor, and even though this year looks a lot differently because we haven’t met in person, and we’ve been doing like video meetings, and things, and over the phone, but working with my mentor this year, one of the things that I said that I wanted to do was to grow and scale my business. Well, over the couple of months that we’ve been working together, he’s helped me to put together a plan to be able to hire a virtual employee and feel very confident about it.
Bernadette Harris: [00:15:08] And so, my new employee starts in a couple of days, and I’m just excited about the fact that I’ve been able to do it because I had a lot of anxiety around that, Lee, let me just tell you. And so, to get over the anxietym and just get to the point of excitement, and I can’t wait to be able, one, be able to bring somebody else on, so that they can help me with that accounting piece, Lee, so that I can focus a little bit more on the education part, it is amazing. So, I know that was a long answer, but I really felt that.
Lee Kantor: [00:15:41] Well, I think that it’s a great testament to you as a lifelong learner. And you spend so much of your time and energy historically in teaching other people that you’re open to be taught and to learn from others. That’s a great quality for everybody, and that’s a great lesson for leaders out there that there’s help. And don’t be afraid to ask for help and people want you to win. There’s a lot of people out there that want you to win. So, if you’re in the right group, you can do anything.
Bernadette Harris: [00:16:11] Yeah, I agree. I agree. I always say that there are more people for you than there are against you. Sometimes, it’s just you have to find your people.
Lee Kantor: [00:16:20] Right, you’ve got to find your tribe. That’s what Seth Godin, one of my favorite writers, says is if you can’t find your tribe, make your tribe. And just when you’re around people that are supportive and they’re celebrating your work, it gives you a lot of confidence and resources to really take your business to the next level.
Bernadette Harris: [00:16:37] Absolutely.
Lee Kantor: [00:16:39] So, now, what’s next for you? What could we be doing to help you in your journey? I know you got your podcast that’s going on that, I guess, started recently. And then, your blog is a lot of information. Your courses are out there, your books, and I’m sure you’re looking for clients. What can we be doing to help you?
Bernadette Harris: [00:16:57] So, absolutely. I’m definitely. So, now that I have a new employee and we’ve essentially doubled my capacity, so we’re definitely taking on new clients. So, this is individuals, as well as small businesses, who need help with tax preparation. I love working with small businesses, and my absolute sweet spot is working with them when they first get started.
Bernadette Harris: [00:17:21] So, if you’re just getting started with your business, I love working with you to make sure that you’re doing things right from the start. The businesses that take advantage of those services usually lasts a little bit longer and the business owners enjoy it a little more. And so, new clients, of course, we’re always open for that. And so, I always tell people, go to my website, bythebookaccounting.com, schedule of discovery call, and let’s see if we’re fit. And if we are, I’d love to work with you.
Bernadette Harris: [00:17:54] As you mentioned, Lee, I’m also a podcast host and this is a passion project of mine. It is a project with my daughter and myself. And we started the podcast in July of 2020. July 1st actually is when our first episode dropped. And it’s a weekly podcast where we just talk about the good, the bad and the ugly in entrepreneurship.
Bernadette Harris: [00:18:19] And the really cool thing about the podcast is we talk about entrepreneurship from two different generations of entrepreneurs because I am a first-generation entrepreneur, and then my daughter is now a budding entrepreneurs. So, it’s a really cool conversation between the two of us, and it gives you an opportunity to kind of see me outside of the boardroom. So, you get to see me and my personality. And also, you can kind of overhear the relationship that I have with my, now, adult daughter. So, those are some ways. The podcast is called the CEO Launch. We’re on all major platforms. So, follow us on social media and subscribe wherever you listen to podcasts.
Lee Kantor: [00:19:04] Good stuff. Well, congratulations on all your success, and you’re doing important work, and we appreciate you. Thank you.
Bernadette Harris: [00:19:10] Thank you. I appreciate being here.
Lee Kantor: [00:19:13] All right. This is Lee Kantor. We will see you all next time on GWBC Open for Business.
About GWBC
The Greater Women’s Business Council (GWBC®) is at the forefront of redefining women business enterprises (WBEs). An increasing focus on supplier diversity means major corporations are viewing our WBEs as innovative, flexible and competitive solutions. The number of women-owned businesses is rising to reflect an increasingly diverse consumer base of women making a majority of buying decision for herself, her family and her business. 
GWBC® has partnered with dozens of major companies who are committed to providing a sustainable foundation through our guiding principles to bring education, training and the standardization of national certification to women businesses in Georgia, North Carolina and South Carolina.
