The Road to CA Podcast

Hosted by Alunga Madala

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115

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Sep 2026

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About the show

Many of us hope and believe that "it will end in CA(SA)". However, we forget that the destination is only the tip of the iceberg; and that the journey is an integral part of the dream. This journey is what differentiates us, it is what defines us, and it is what binds us. It is what transforms us into CAs(SA). But what lies on the trail to the summit of CA(SA)? Undoubtedly, inspiring stories, heartfelt passion, and trailblazing perspectives. There is still so much more to showcase and uncover... Hence, this is an exploration of the mountainous and arduous path towards CA(SA). This is The Road to CA.

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60 recent

October 12, 20261 hr 8 min

Becoming a CA(SA) in Tech - How to Get Started | Christiaan Coetzee

In today’s episode, we are joined by Christian Coetzee , CA(SA) SAICA Top35u35 Overall Winner in 2024 and founder of The Audit Toolbar. We chat about how an entrepreneurial mindset can shape a career in accounting and technology, and why the best solutions start with real problems. We also chat about: How Christian’s early business ventures sparked his entrepreneurial instinct; Why he chose the CA route as a way to understand businesses from the inside; How he balanced studying through UNISA with work, tutoring, and other ways of earning an income; How his experience in software and audit led him to build The Audit Toolbar; Why aspiring CAs interested in technology should start by solving a real problem in their own workflow; Why AI shouldn’t be applied to every problem, especially when a process can be handled deterministically; Why auditors won't be replaced by AI any time soon; The dangers of AI used by decision-makers who don’t understand its limitations; Why improving a process can mean questioning whether it should exist before automating it, and more. Enjoy! ____________________________________________________ Timestamps 00:00 - Risk, entrepreneurship, and why business thinking matters more than fear 00:43 - Feeling disconnected from the builder inside and why that frustration built up 03:22 - Christian’s background and the scale of The Audit Toolbar 05:14 - The AI assistant that screens his calls and what it can actually do 06:59 - Why he chose the CA route despite always wanting to build 07:30 - The Oreo-and-ice-cream business that became his first real entrepreneurship lesson 10:59 - Choosing CA as a path to understand business from the inside 13:09 - Starting articles straight after matric and surviving financially 16:00 - Why UNISA made the journey possible for him 17:26 - Moving from qualification into software and CaseWare work 21:41 - The audit frustration that sparked The Audit Toolbar idea 23:27 - The pressure that pushed him from floating to finally building 25:31 - Fatherhood, identity, and why urgency changed everything 28:47 - Why side hustles can delay the leap if they don’t match your real vision 32:29 - Building self-trust through small commitments and consistency 36:11 - How aspiring CAs should build tech skills by solving real problems 42:26 - The 15-minute rule for Google-first problem solving 44:49 - Why engineers should ask whether a process should exist at all 46:41 - What AI may replace in accounting and what it likely will not 50:39 - The biggest AI risk is not replacement, but ignorant decision-making 52:03 - Why auditors are paid for judgment and accountability 55:31 - Where AI may help most in audit workflows and review layers 57:57 - The true cost of AI and why hype hides the real economics 62:24 - Why process optimization should start with deleting, not automating ____________________________________________________ Connect with me on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alunga-madala ________________________________________ Follow us on Instagram - @the_rdtoca Follow us on LinkedIn - The Road to CA Podcast Subscribe to our YouTube - @TheRoadtoCAPodcast

September 20, 202643 min

How Big Four Articles Builds Your People Skills | Rudi Witkowsky

In today’s episode, we are joined by Rudy Witkowski CA(SA), the Half-Week Accountant and fractional CFO. We chat about how your network and ability to meet and deal with other people is your greatest differentiator in your career and in your articles. We also chat about: How choosing a gap year after articles instead of a secondment led to backpacking through Asia and teaching English; Why qualifying as a CA is the starting point, not the destination; How external audit developed his people skills, credibility, communication, and resilience; Why positivity only matters when it is backed by competence, reliability, and consistency; The lessons he learned from competing on Tropica Island of Treasure , including teamwork, communication, mental toughness, and never taking your eyes off the prize; Why turning a passion into a full-time career can sometimes negatively change your relationship with it; How Rudy moved into fractional CFO work and developed the Half-Week Accountant model; Why CAs should focus on the value of their skill instead of simply counting hours; Why delivering work too early can reduce its perceived value and create more pressure; How saying “we” and presenting yourself as part of a team or entity builds trust and credibility; Why you should never say, “I’ve never done that before”; Enjoy! ____________________________________________________ Timestamps 03:15 - How travel and a gap year after articles sparked the freedom bug 08:28 - Why CA is a starting point, not the end of the journey 09:20 - People skills, positivity, and credibility in audit 13:10 - Ethics, competence, and character in professional life 14:49 - The Tropica Island of Treasure experience 15:57 - Why you should never take your eyes off the prize 18:01 - Why your network is your strongest asset 20:55 - The pressure of turning a passion into a full-time career 23:16 - Why side passions can remain valuable outside your career 24:50 - Working smarter, not harder, in finance 28:47 - Why CAs should value skill over clock-watching 29:52 - Why you should never deliver early just to look fast 33:25 - The danger of getting overloaded with extra work 34:07 - Why saying “we” builds trust and credibility 38:33 - Never say, “I’ve never done that before” 39:48 - Learning HubSpot overnight and saying yes to opportunity ________________________________________ Connect with Rudi on LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/rudiwitkowsky/ Connect with me on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alunga-madala ________________________________________ Follow us on Instagram - @the_rdtoca Follow us on LinkedIn - The Road to CA Podcast Subscribe to our YouTube - @TheRoadtoCAPodcast

September 6, 20261 hr 2 min

10 Lessons from Q2 of CA Advisory Articles

We survived busy season and are finally back! Today, we discuss my top 10 lessons from Q2 for your knowledge, wisdom and application: Be patient, never passive (The Sign-off Stack and Optimal Asymmetry career strategies) To be the real deal: show, don't tell but don't show too much (On being brilliant enough, and no more) What's sweet is sweet but short and sweet is even sweeter (On networking with execs) Expectation control is career alchemy (Kant, Phenomenology, & Over-delivering through simply under-promising) You are not what you have, but what you give (On qualities & The Four Agreements) Wherever you are, there you are (On projecting the life you want to live) With people, always guess up, never guess down (On giving the benefit of the doubt in networking) Youth and a notebook is a charming thing (Sun Tzu's wisdom of why there are masters all around us) It's about what you know, who you know, who knows you and what they know you for (The Diary of A CEO's lesson on knowledge, skills, network, social proof, reputation & The Networking Equation) People who forget you seem to owe you (Robert Cialdini's Reciprocity x Dale Carnegie's Remembering names principles) And of course, we chat about more :) Enjoy! P.S. If you want the video version, head over to YouTube here ________________________________________ Connect with me on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alunga-madala ________________________________________ Follow us on Instagram - @the_rdtoca Follow us on LinkedIn - The Road to CA Podcast Subscribe to our YouTube - @TheRoadtoCAPodcast

June 29, 202633 min

How to Meet Your Mentor | Grant Greef Pt 2

Once more, we are joined by Grant Greeff - CA(SA), CEO of Paradise Games Bahamas, and one of the most people-obsessed leaders you'll meet. We chat about how you should go about finding a mentor. We also chat about: Why Grant moved his family to the Bahamas and how it was a move towards , not away; The Lekker Network - the "10th province" of SA and how expat South Africans are still building home from abroad; Dollar revenue, rand overhead and the real maths behind working internationally; Compounding, dollar-cost averaging, and diversification as metaphors for career and life, and more. Enjoy! ________________________________________ Listen to Part 1: Spotify Apple Podcasts YouTube ________________________________________ Connect with me on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alunga-madala ________________________________________ Follow us on Instagram - @the_rdtoca Follow us on LinkedIn - The Road to CA Podcast Subscribe to our YouTube - @TheRoadtoCAPodcast

June 22, 202646 min

The Waiter Who Became a CEO | Grant Greeff Pt1

We are joined by Grant Greeff - CA(SA), CEO of Paradise Games Bahamas, former MD at SuperSport Bet, and deeply reflective leader. We chat about his journey from waiting tables to serving in the C suite, and how unconventional roads lead to extraordinary places. We also chat about: How Grant started his CA journey as an academic trainee at UCT - while running his own business; How serving at an event led to him doing Pick and Pay articles; The power of having your story ready and being open to experience; Why your degree is not your portfolio, and how to start building one now; Grant's Career XP formula: Time × Exposure Rate; Respecting the role, not just the person - a lesson from meeting politicians, and more. Enjoy! ________________________________________ Check out CANDID: https://www.youtube.com/@grantgreeff ________________________________________ Connect with me on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alunga-madala ________________________________________ Follow us on Instagram - @the_rdtoca Follow us on LinkedIn - The Road to CA Podcast Subscribe to our YouTube - @TheRoadtoCAPodc

June 15, 202631 min

Don't Be the Best, Be the Only

In today's solo episode, we explore what it means to explore a singular path to your dreams on the road to CA(SA). We chat about some thoughts and ideas on becoming the best CA only you can be - and why authenticity is differentiation in the market of value creators. We go over: How to get rich (without getting lucky) by Naval Ravikant Productive yourself by Naval Ravikant Meditations on talent by Kevin Kelly inter alia. Do the Wrong Thing by Alunga Madala If by Rudyard Kipling An ode to the fools by Alunga Madala Enjoy!

June 7, 202645 min

Do It Because You Love It | Mohamed Ebrahim Tayob Pt2

Once more, we are joined by Mohamed Ebrahim Tayob - CA(SA), founder and host of the Chat EBT Show, and entrepreneur. We chat about doing what you love :) We also chat about: Why he recently left corporate; The story of how he started his podcast Chat EBT; Steve Jobs’ failure story that led to his being fired from Apple; Why starting is the gift not to the world but to yourself; Starting his fractional IA consultancy, You H8 Admin; His experience working for a US firm remotely; Transferable skills from his podcast work into his other professional work; Businesses stories of failure towards success and more. Enjoy! ________________________________________ Listen to Part 1: Spotify Apple Podcasts YouTube ________________________________________ Check out Chat EBT Show ________________________________________ Connect with me on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alunga-madala ________________________________________ Follow us on Instagram - @the_rdtoca Follow us on LinkedIn - The Road to CA Podcast Subscribe to our YouTube - @TheRoadtoCAPodcast

June 1, 202638 min

What If Articles Were Shorter? | Mohamed Ebrahim Tayob Pt1

Today, we are joined by Mohamed Ebrahim Tayob - CA(SA), founder and host of the Chat EBT Show, and entrepreneur. We chat about his experience with shorter articles through RPL and what it meant for his career. We also chat about: Taking the plunge of being yourself; The power of singular purpose and vision; Why we should zoom out on our careers to contextualise our failures; Why the greatest businesspeople are not the best musicians, but the best conductors; How the CA journey shapes you into a leader, and more. Enjoy! ________________________________________ Check out Chat EBT Show ________________________________________ Connect with me on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alunga-madala ________________________________________ Follow us on Instagram - @the_rdtoca Follow us on LinkedIn - The Road to CA Podcast Subscribe to our YouTube - @TheRoadtoCAPodcast

May 24, 202647 min

The Fire of Articles & The Power of Persistence | Oreel Reddy

Today, we are joined by Oreel Reddy , CA(SA), ACMA and CGMA, and Finance & Operations Manager at Avanti Coffee Company. We chat about how persistence, humility and staying in the fire long enough can shape both your career and your character. We also chat about: His unconventional route to becoming a CA(SA) His unconventional route to becoming a CA(SA) through the CIMA-SAICA reciprocal agreement; Self-funding and studying part-time through UNISA; The fire and humility of articles; Why communication and storytelling are becoming critical skills for finance professionals; The difference between understanding numbers and influencing people; Why many aspiring professionals give up a little quicker than they should; His old school’s “brick by brick” initiative and the importance of building legacy within communities; What South Africa can learn from China’s culture of efficiency and innovation, and more. Enjoy! __________________________________________________ Check out the MVSS brick initiative __________________________________________________ Connect with me on LinkedIn: Alunga Madala LinkedIn Follow us on Instagram - @the_rdtoca Follow us on LinkedIn - The Road to CA Podcast LinkedIn

May 17, 202634 min

Why She Never Settled Even Studying Part-time | Amogelang Tia Mawela Pt2

Once more, we are joined by Amo Tia Mawela , award-winning CA trainee at AGSA and community developer. We chat about how perseverance and never settling for the easy path took her through her part-time postgraduate studies. We also chat about: Her brief explorations in tax articles; Getting a job in estate wealth consulting at a bank during her part-time CTA studies; The non-linear nature of the CA journey but also why it’s definitely not indefinite, and more. Enjoy! _________________________________________ Listen to Part 1: Spotify Apple Podcasts YouTube _________________________________________ Connect with me on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alunga-madala _________________________________________ Follow us on Instagram - @the_rdtoca Follow us on LinkedIn - The Road to CA Podcast Subscribe to our YouTube - @TheRoadtoCAPodcast