Why equity belongs in every engagement

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By Janet Berry-Johnson | for Net Gains

What does social justice have to do with spreadsheets? According to Meg K. Wheeler, accountant, activist and founder of The Equitable Money Project, a whole lot.

In this candid conversation with The Net Gains, Wheeler breaks down how accounting professionals can be powerful agents for economic equality. From rethinking client education to pushing for policy change, she challenges the profession to look beyond compliance and toward impact. If you've ever wondered how your daily work could help close wealth gaps, this one's for you.

You launched The Equitable Money Project to close financial gaps for marginalized small business owners. How can accountants play a more active role in reducing economic inequity through their day-to-day work?

As accountants, we are often the only source of financial education for many of the people we work with. This means it’s even more important that we educate our clients on the current economic system, how it may or may not impact their economic status and steps they should take to build generational wealth. We want our clients to feel empowered to make informed short-term and long-term decisions about their money and that empowerment always begins with education.

Many clients, especially those historically excluded from traditional financial systems, may feel intimidated or distrustful of financial professionals. What can accountants do to build trust and create more inclusive client experiences?

This all starts with understanding where our clients are coming from. We cannot serve them well if we do not educate ourselves on their individual and collective challenges, barriers and experiences regarding money. We also must approach our work through an inclusive and intersectional lens, recognizing the substantial barriers faced by certain marginalized groups and how our traditional advice may need to be adapted to address the privilege and inequity that inherently exist in our society. Make your values explicit in your words and actions. Trust will come as your clients see you living your values. 

You’ve seen firsthand how financial education intersects with policy and social support systems. How can accounting professionals use their platform to advocate for clients who are navigating challenges like student debt, caregiving, or access to capital?

As accountants, we bring a degree of expertise and authority to these conversations. We are also “on the front lines,” directly observing the challenges and barriers that many of our clients face. If we care at all about inclusivity and equity, we must use our platforms to advocate for critical policy issues like manageable student debt repayment, access to affordable childcare, housing and healthcare and access to capital to grow their businesses. One way we do this is through our Call Your Representatives Substack, a weekly script you can use to call your Congressional representatives about a pressing policy issue. 

What advice would you give to accounting pros who want to align their practice with social justice values but don’t know where to start?

Start by outlining your values so you can use them as a guiding light when you approach this work. Then, evaluate different areas of your business and observe how those values you identified are met (or not). This can feel overwhelming and you shouldn’t try to tackle it all at once. Start with one area, such as how accessible your client portal is or if your call availability offers flexibility for working people and caregivers who may need to meet outside of business hours.

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The Net Gains is curated and written by Janet Berry-Johnson and edited by Bianca Prieto.