Beyond the Bottom Line

Miguel Alexander Centeno
  • 5.0 (2)
  • Entrepreneurship

Beyond the Bottom Line is a podcast for founders and business owners who want practical insight they can actually use as they grow. Hosted by Miguel Alexander Centeno, founder and CEO of Centurion Firm, the show features in-depth conversations with industry experts, clients, and business owners about how they think through tax, cash flow, operations, and the decisions that come with running a real business. We focus on how things really work when you’re scaling, what challenges tend to come up, and how other founders, experts, and operators have dealt with them. If you’re building or growing a business (often somewhere between $500K and $25M+ in revenue), this show is designed to help you make smarter financial and operational decisions and keep more of what you earn.

  1. 1d ago

    The $100 Website That Led to a Fintech Company: Inside Aloha with Rodrigo Romero

    What happens when a self-taught 14-year-old hacker from the Dominican Republic grows up to rebuild the payments infrastructure for an entire industry? On this episode of Beyond the Bottom Line, Miguel sits down with Rodrigo Romero, founder and CEO of Aloha, a Miami-based fintech company building the banking and payments infrastructure powering the future of travel across the Americas. Rodrigo's path started far from fintech, building his first $100 websites in Yahoo Chat rooms, landing a $2,000 client at 14 without knowing how to build what he'd just sold, and eventually co-founding Aloha with Jorge Dupri after Jorge's own boutique hotels kept losing bookings to cross-border payment friction. What began as a software play quickly became something bigger: a platform solving the real problem underneath it, moving money seamlessly across countries and currencies for travel and hospitality businesses. In this conversation, Rodrigo breaks down why travel is one of the least "tech-touched" industries around, how Aloha protects both merchants and travelers from fraud and chargebacks, and why compliance can never be an afterthought in fintech. He also gets candid about the hardest pivot of his company's life, when the software layer they built to bootstrap the business started outgrowing the payments business it was meant to support and how he uses AI agents (not chatbots) to run reconciliation, investor outreach, and even serve as a sparring partner for his own blind spots. In this episode: How a Packard Bell computer and a printed HTML manual sparked a fintech careerWhy "just get a customer" beats perfecting your productThe real problem Aloha solves: payments, not just softwareHow Argentina's currency tax changes are reshaping cross-border travel spendingUsing closed-loop AI agents instead of prompt-and-wait AIWhy onboarding is a non-negotiable leadership principleWhat to look for in a co-founder (hint: not someone just like you)About Our Guest Rodrigo Romero is the founder and CEO of Aloha, a Miami-based fintech company building the payments and banking infrastructure powering the future of travel across the Americas. Alongside co-founder Jorge Dupri, he founded Aloha to help travel and hospitality businesses simplify cross-border payments, access local banking services, and move money seamlessly across countries and currencies. Learn more about Aloha, or connect with Rodrigo on LinkedIn. Connect with Miguel Connect with Miguel on LinkedIn or reach out at media@centurionfirm.com.

  2. Aug 11

    Minisode: The Joint Venture That Became a Merger: A Tax Firm Partnership Story

    Building a Business Partnership: Miguel & Daniela's Origin Story What does it actually take to merge two firms into one? On this episode of Under the Hood, Miguel sits down with his business partner, Daniela Menache, to talk about the real story behind how their partnership came together — nerves, negotiations, and all. Before they were partners, Daniela was running a full-service firm on her own, personally reviewing 500 tax returns a year while searching for a tax manager she never quite found. She was at a breaking point: find a partner, sell part of the business, or walk away from clients she loved. That search for balance is where this story begins. Miguel and Daniela take listeners through their "JV phase", the trial run before the full merger and get honest about what didn't go as planned. They dig into the messy, practical side of combining two firms: choosing which systems to keep and which to kill, aligning two different company cultures, cleaning up client contracts (and yes, canceling a lot of unused subscriptions), and discovering that reducing their client count actually grew their bottom line. This episode is a candid look at what complementary skill sets really look like in practice, why having a partner means you can actually take a vacation, and how they're now thinking about the future of their industry in the age of AI. In this episode: Why Daniela knew it was time to find a partnerWhat the "JV" phase taught them before they fully merged firmsHow they aligned two different company culturesThe surprising upside of cleaning up client contractsWhat they look for in a tax manager todayHow AI is shaping the future of their service modelMemorable quote: "Having a partner means you can actually take a vacation." — Daniela Menache

  3. Aug 4

    I Sold 10 Companies. Here's the One Thing That Kills Every Deal.

    If your business can't run without you for a month, it's not a business yet, it's a job. In this episode, Miguel sits down with Christine "Chrissy" McDannell, serial entrepreneur, author, and founder of Magnolia Firm, a boutique M&A brokerage known for handling digital business exits from start to finish. Chrissy has personally built and exited 10 startups and now helps founders navigate valuation, positioning, due diligence, and close. For any founder who's ever wondered what their business is actually worth, or whether anyone would even want to buy it, this conversation is a masterclass in thinking like a buyer before you ever plan to sell. Chrissy breaks down her "7 R's" framework for what makes a business acquirable (remote-based, relocatable, recurring revenue, retention of clients and team, removal of the owner, revenue growth, and repeatable processes), and why the single hardest habit for most owners to break is being the best salesperson in the room. The conversation also gets refreshingly specific: how add-backs and personal expenses actually get treated in a sale, why cash transactions can quietly cost you multiples of their face value, what a personal guarantee really protects, and why so many small business owners walk away from six or seven figures simply because they assume nobody would want to buy what they've built. Chrissy also shares how she's navigating AI's impact on her own industry and the founders she works with, including the AI Implementation Club she runs in Austin to help business owners stop talking about AI and start building with it. Other insights from this episode include: The "7 R's" framework Chrissy uses to evaluate whether a business is truly sellableWhy removing yourself as the top salesperson is the last (and hardest) step before an exitHow personal expenses and "gray area" add-backs actually get treated during due diligenceWhy cash-based transactions can cost sellers multiples of their face value at exitThe role (and limits) of seller financing and personal guarantees in a dealWhat buyers are really looking for in remote, recurring-revenue digital businessesWhy so many founders undervalue their business or give it away instead of selling itHow AI is reshaping which businesses are sellable, and what founders should do about itThe emotional reality of exiting: what happens financially and mentally the moment the deal closesAbout Our Guest Christine McDannell is a serial entrepreneur, author, and speaker, and the founder of Magnolia Firm, a boutique M&A brokerage specializing in digital business exits. She has built and exited 10 startups over her two-decade career and is the author of Get Acquired: Seven Steps to Your Most Lucrative Exit. She also leads the AI Implementation Club in Austin, a weekly in-person build session for founders. Learn more about Magnolia Firm at magnoliafirm.com, or the AI Implementation Club at AIIC.club. Connect with Miguel on LinkedIn or media@centurionfirm.com

  4. Jul 28

    Minisode: Common or Embarassing Questions

    We get asked a lot of questions at Centurion Firm questions like, "If I can't pay my taxes, do I even need to file?" or "Isn't transferring money to myself the same as payroll?" Most clients feel a little embarrassed to ask these questions out loud, so in this minisode, Miguel's partner, Daniela Menache, decided to answer them anyway. There are no stupid questions, just real ones people are quietly Googling (or asking AI) instead of asking us directly. We go through the ones we hear most: filing when you can't pay, whether the IRS actually knows your income, the real difference between an LLC and an S corp, why duplicate transactions show up in QuickBooks, and whether your business credit card really covers everything you buy with it. If you've ever nodded along in a meeting with your accountant while quietly wondering what a balance sheet actually is, this one's for you.

  5. Jul 21

    The Real Story Behind Leaving PwC to Build Centurion Firm

    What if the "raise" that was supposed to keep you happy was actually the moment you realized you needed to leave? In this episode, Miguel Alexander Centeno joins Alex Roman, host of Humans in Accounting, for a wide-ranging conversation about the real path from Big Four tax to founding Centurion Firm. It's a rare chance to hear Miguel on the other side of the mic, answering the kinds of questions he usually asks his own guests. For any founder or business owner who has ever wondered whether the leap from a stable paycheck to building something of their own is worth it, this conversation is a grounded, honest look at what that decision actually costs and what it can return. Miguel walks through the inflection point that pushed him out of public accounting (an 8% raise offer after growing an engagement into the millions), the reality of his first year in business (a $56K gross, and not even hitting his own salary target), and the mistake that nearly burned him out early: saying yes to every client regardless of fit. The conversation also digs into how Miguel and his team found their footing by identifying the right niches: Airbnb hosts and digital marketers in the early days, and how that same instinct for finding "who you're uniquely positioned to serve" still shapes Centurion Firm's work today, including their focus on the R&D tax credit. Miguel and Alex also get into where AI fits into the future of accounting, why Miguel sees it as a tool rather than a threat, and the advice he'd give someone considering the leap in 2026. Other insights from this episode include: The moment Miguel realized incremental raises weren't going to get him where he wanted to goWhy "who wants to pay me for this" was Miguel's version of testing product-market fitThe real numbers behind his first year in business, and why he didn't hit his own goalThe client-mix mistake most new firm owners make, and how to avoid burning out on the wrong clientsHow Miguel identified Airbnb hosts and digital marketers as his first profitable niches, and whyThe role outbound sales played in scaling the firm, and bringing on Ashton as the first hire focused on itMiguel's take on AI's role in accounting, and why he sees it as an opportunity rather than a replacementThe advice Miguel would give someone thinking about leaving a Big Four firm to start their own practice todayAbout Our Guest Miguel Alexander Centeno is the Managing Partner of Centurion Firm and host of Beyond the Bottom Line. After beginning his career in Big Four tax at PwC, he left in 2017 to build a strategy-first tax advisory practice for founders, startups, and growing businesses. Learn more about Humans in Accounting and Alex Roman's podcast. Connect with Miguel on LinkedIn or media@centurionfirm.com

  6. Jul 14

    Cash Flow, Controllers & World Cup

    Most business owners think they need a CFO. What they actually need is a controller. In this episode of Beyond the Bottom Line, Miguel Centeno sits down with Nikole Mackenzie, founder of Momentum Accounting, to unpack why so many growing businesses hire the wrong financial help at the wrong time, and what actually causes a business to look profitable on paper while running out of cash in the bank. For founders and business owners, this episode tackles one of the most common blind spots in running a company: assuming your P&L tells the whole story. Nikole breaks down why a business can show a profit and still have no cash at the end of the month, walking through the two biggest culprits, timing differences between when revenue is earned and when cash actually arrives, and balance sheet items like equipment purchases, debt principal payments, and owner distributions that never show up on the P&L at all. The conversation also gets into the practical side of managing cash: how to read a cash flow statement, why days sales outstanding (DSO) is one of the most useful metrics for catching a collections problem early, and why chasing high-interest debt like credit card cash advances is usually a symptom of a business that isn't actually profitable, not just a timing issue. Nikole and Miguel also break down the real difference between a bookkeeper, a controller, and a CFO, and why most business owners skip a step they need. Other insights from this episode include: Why "profitable on paper, no cash in the bank" usually comes down to timing differences or balance sheet items invisible on the P&LHow to read a cash flow statement, starting with the operating activities sectionWhy distributions and debt principal payments never appear on the P&L, and where they actually show upThe tax consequence founders often miss: distributions taken in excess of income get taxed at 20%Why DSO (days sales outstanding) is a key early warning metric for collection issuesHow to tell the difference between a cash flow timing problem and a business that simply isn't profitableWhy high-interest debt (credit card advances, quick-cash lenders) is often a red flag rather than a solutionThe real difference between a bookkeeper, a controller, and a CFO, and why most businesses need a controller before they need a CFOWhy "CFO" is a title anyone can claim, while CPA is an actual certificationAbout Our Guest Nikole Mackenzie is the founder of Momentum Accounting, a remote team of 12 working with small businesses across the U.S. to build out their full financial operating system, including bookkeeping, controller-level reporting, and CFO-level strategy. Momentum works with roughly 60 monthly recurring clients ranging from $1M to $10M in revenue, spanning SaaS, professional services, and trade industries like disaster restoration, HVAC, and plumbing. Connect with Miguel Centeno on LinkedIn or reach out at media@centurionfirm.com

  7. Jul 7

    Minisode: Building Resilience at Work

    Most people think resilience means toughing it out. Ashton has learned it's actually about not making a bad moment worse. In this minisode, Miguel sits down with Ashton to learn the habits that keep him steady under pressure, from how he structures his day around his own energy to the boundaries that protect his focus, to the mental process he runs before responding to an angry client instead of reacting to one. The lesson underneath it all: the instinct to match someone's frustration, whether it's a client or your own kid, is almost always the wrong move. What actually works is separating the facts from the emotion, owning what's yours to own, and letting the rest go. For founders who feel like every bad interaction threatens to derail the whole day, this episode is a reminder that staying calm isn't a personality trait. It's a practice, built one small decision at a time.

    Minisode: Building Resilience at Work

  8. Jun 30

    Why Your Biggest Cybersecurity Risk Isn't AI, It's Your People

    Most business owners think cybersecurity is about hackers in hoodies breaking through firewalls. The reality is far simpler, and far scarier: your biggest security risk is your own people. In this episode, Miguel sits down with Matt Mulcahy, founder of Miami Cyber, to unpack what cybersecurity actually looks like for small and mid-sized businesses in the age of AI. Matt shares how a $25 million wire transfer was approved by a real executive on a real video call, except the "executive" on the other end was an AI-generated deepfake. From there, the conversation moves into the practical: how AI is changing phishing, why passwords are on their way out, and what it actually means to adopt AI responsibly instead of just rolling it out and hoping for the best. If you're a founder trying to figure out where AI ends and risk begins, this episode breaks down exactly what to prioritize first. Other insights from this episode include: Why "vishing" (voice phishing) is now a real threat, thanks to AI's ability to clone a voice from just 10 seconds of audioThe most common cybersecurity gaps Matt sees in companies under 20 employees, and why most IT providers don't prioritize that segmentWhy policy should come before technology when rolling out AI in your company, and what that policy conversation should actually coverThe hidden risk of giving employees AI tools without training, and why "buying licenses" isn't the same as adoptionWhy passkeys and authenticator codes are replacing SMS-based two-factor authentication, and what business owners should switch to nowThe real difference between a company that's "using AI" versus one that's leveraging Model Context Protocol (MCP) to connect AI directly to their business dataWhy Matt believes the technology itself is the least important part of a successful AI rollout, and what actually drives success or failureAbout Our Guest Matt Mulcahy is the founder of Miami Cyber, a technology services firm built around a service-first approach to cybersecurity, IT, and responsible AI adoption for small and mid-sized businesses. With a background spanning technology consulting, managed IT services, and AI implementation, Matt works closely with founders to make sense of a fast-moving technology landscape. Miami Cyber recently became a certified Anthropic partner, and Matt is an active member of the Miami founder community, where he regularly hosts educational events focused on AI readiness and cybersecurity. Connect with Miguel on LinkedIn or media@centurionfirm.com

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About

Beyond the Bottom Line is a podcast for founders and business owners who want practical insight they can actually use as they grow. Hosted by Miguel Alexander Centeno, founder and CEO of Centurion Firm, the show features in-depth conversations with industry experts, clients, and business owners about how they think through tax, cash flow, operations, and the decisions that come with running a real business. We focus on how things really work when you’re scaling, what challenges tend to come up, and how other founders, experts, and operators have dealt with them. If you’re building or growing a business (often somewhere between $500K and $25M+ in revenue), this show is designed to help you make smarter financial and operational decisions and keep more of what you earn.

Information

  • Creator
    Miguel Alexander Centeno
  • Years Active
    2025 - 2026
  • Episodes
    33
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © 2026 Beyond the Bottom Line
  • Show Website
    Beyond the Bottom Line