Episode 11 of The Enrolled Agent Advocate Podcast examines how innovation and inclusion are reshaping tax practice through the lens of Nayo Carter-Gray, EA, MBA.  

Nayo didn’t set out to be an enrolled agent. In fact, she had all intentions of becoming a corporate lawyer. A wrong class, a right turn, and suddenly she’s seeing a whole profession in a new light.  

These early moments sparked a different kind of career story. She was connected with a mentor who showed her a different view on the tax profession. Years later the roles flip: he’s texting her for advice on how to use technology. It’s a unique snapshot of what she’s built since: expertise that compounds, and a habit of handing the ladder back down. 

That instinct to widen the path runs through everything. Nayo believes inclusion isn’t a tagline; it’s how you design a firm and a profession. She knows many people have never even heard of enrolled agents. So, she talks about the work in plain English. She opens doors where she can.  

As immediate past chair of NAEA’s Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Committee, she focused on real on-ramps for those who might not see themselves here yet. And through the Accounting Cornerstone Foundation, she helps more tax and bookkeeping professionals get to continuing-education conferences—including NAEA’s Tax Summit—when cost or logistics would have said “not this year.” 

Then there’s the tech. Nayo is the founder of 1st Step Accounting, a fully virtual, paper-free, eco-conscious firm. She built it that way before it was fashionable, with automation, secure portals, and cloud accounting used for one thing: to make work clearer and clients calmer. She’s “the techie”, someone who can help a practitioner pick a stack that fits the way they serve, not the other way around. It’s also why platforms like Intuit, FreshBooks, and Gusto value her feedback. She pushes for tools that build trust, not busywork. Technology should reduce friction, not flatten judgment. 

Through it all, her north star stays the same: “Making Accounting a Little Less Taxing® ”—for clients, for practitioners, for the next generation.  

If you’re curious about Nayo Carter-Gray’s brand of innovation and inclusion in tax, Episode 11 of The Enrolled Agent Advocate Podcast is worth your time. You’ll hear how a wrong class turned into the right career, how mentorship becomes a flywheel, how inclusion becomes infrastructure, and how a smart, paperless stack can lift the whole experience. Listen in for takeaways you can use this week and a nudge to open the door a little wider than you found it. 

Play “Breaking Barriers: Leading with Innovation and Inclusion in Tax and Accounting with Nayo Carter-Gray, EA” on your favorite platform: 

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