Kyle Brown
Snapshot:
Industry / Sector: Business / Corporate, Communications / Media, Creative Industries
Career Type: Business Owner
Education Pathway: University
Mid Coast Connection: Born & raised on the Mid Coast
The Blurb:
Kyle Brown is an accountant and co-owner of UpBound, a business helping small enterprises navigate their financial needs. Despite working in a field often seen as numbers-driven, Kyle leads with empathy—supporting a diverse range of clients by understanding their unique challenges.
He’s passionate about building strong teams, avoiding tunnel vision, and encouraging emerging professionals to embrace broad experiences.
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Current Role: Accountant and business co-owner
Key Skills: Empathy, adaptability, financial literacy, client relationship management
Professional Insights:
Empathy is essential in accounting to support clients with varied backgrounds and needs
Emphasizes the value of team collaboration to balance the often solitary nature of accounting work
Enjoys his work most when surrounded by a strong, supportive team
Advice to Younger Self: “Take as many experiences as you can and as wide-ranging as you can.”
Reflection: Exposure to different industries and business types is invaluable, especially in accounting
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“Empathy is probably the biggest thing in accounting.”
“You’ve got to be aware of where people are coming from and what they need help with.”
“Don’t just go straight through—take as many experiences as you can.”
“Having the team around us is Far and Away the best bit.”
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[0:10] Intro
Hi, my name is Hailey. Welcome to the Human Library video series. In this video series, we interview people and hear their stories.
Today we met with Kyle Brown. He is the co-owner of Upbound and does bookkeeping and accounting. He talked about how important empathy is when he working as an accountant. Kyle also tells us the importance of taking up a variety of experiences when you’re first starting out in your career, and not to settle on just one job or one career path.
[0:50] What does your professional life look like at the moment?
Busy! I’m an accountant, and I have been for the last 10 years. I currently run my own business in Taree, and we focus on smaller businesses and individual tax returns, that sort of thing.
The industry at the moment is very under-resourced, so there’s just a lot of work to try and get through. Obviously, the ATO decides what we need to do and what we don’t do, and they’re increasing the workload as well.
[1:27] Is there a skill that you use to keep going in your work?
I think it’s probably not a thing you’d put with accounting very often, but I honestly think empathy is probably the biggest thing in accounting. You have to be driven and you have to enjoy the work, but the best way to enjoy the work is by wanting to help those clients. Without wanting to help those clients, I don’t think you could make it through the industry because it is so time-consuming—and at times, so dreary and boring. Empathy is probably the biggest thing.
[2:08] Can you describe a specific time where you’ve had to use empathy in your role?
Yeah, I would say it’s basically constant. You have a wide range of business owners you’re dealing with, who all have a wide range of skills. You have to be empathetic to their situation. Some of them are making heaps of money but don’t really understand what to do with it or how to run their business. Others are really good at running a business and not making any money. You've got to be aware of all those different things, be able to put yourself in their shoes, and see where they’re coming from and what they need help with, and where you can insert yourself to help the most.
[2:47] What is your favorite thing about your role at the moment?
It’s the team that we have around us. Coming to work because we’ve got a good team is always fun , and we always make the best of it. That’s far and away the best bit.
[3:04] Can you describe why having a team around you is important to you?
Obviously, with accounting, the actual work is quite monotonous—a lot of self-based computer work. You could go days or even weeks in accounting without even needing to talk to anybody from a work perspective. But having a team to be able to break out of that mode with, to bounce ideas off, and to ask questions too—that definitely helps improve morale while you’re getting through all that work.
[3:38] If you could give your younger self one piece of advice when you were first starting out in your career journey, what would it be?
To take as many experiences as you can—and as wide-ranging experiences as you can. It’s so important, especially in accounting, to have a wide range of knowledge from all different kinds of businesses and all different areas. Don’t just go straight through thinking, "I’m going to go here, stay there, and move along."
Please note: All content is correct at the time of recording.
