EP#45 Built for Sole Traders: Grant McCall on Making Accounting Simple with Rounded
Tune in to find out how Grant McCall turned spreadsheet pain into a purpose-built tool, why words matter as much as code, and what it actually takes to build software for real humans.
In this episode of Money Secrets, Fi sits down with Grant McCall — founder and Head of Product at Rounded, the beautifully simple accounting and invoicing app built specifically for Australian freelancers and sole traders.
Listen to Episode 45
What You’ll Learn in This Episode
From spreadsheets to software: Why the big incumbents weren’t cutting it for sole traders — and how Rounded was designed around money in / money out simplicity.
Language > jargon: How UX copy and plain English reduce fear, build confidence, and help non-accountants actually use their numbers.
The rise of the sole trader: What Grant’s seeing across the Australian market, and how tech is making independence more accessible.
Build the right thing (and say no): The art of choosing features, resisting bloat, and staying laser-focused on one customer: sole traders.
Integrations & consolidation: Why subscription fatigue is real — and how Rounded thinks about bringing key workflows under one roof.
Remote team, real rhythm: How a fully distributed crew ships product asynchronously across time zones (and keeps customers front and centre).
Lessons from 10 years in SaaS: Everything takes longer than you think, tech debt is real, and customer focus is a moat.
The human side of founding: Stress happens — why talking it out, naming the problem, and leaning on your team changes everything.
What’s next for Rounded: Continuous invoicing improvements, practical additions (think mileage tracking), and smarter data flows that keep things simple at EOFY and BAS time.
Built for Sole Traders: Grant McCall on Making Accounting Simple with Rounded
Money Secrets Podcast – Episode 45
Introduction
We've made a lot of progress as a society in many areas, but one thing that hasn’t changed enough is our relationship with money. If we want to tip the scales in favour of marginalised people, we need to understand the secrets to making money in small business.
The more we talk about money — especially the secrets that usually stay behind closed doors or on the golf course — the more empowered we become. My mission is to get more money into the hands of good people, specifically business owners like you.
Because I believe small business can change the world. And to do that, we need to be making more money.
Acknowledgement of Country
This episode was recorded on the lands of the Wurundjeri People of the Kulin Nation. I’d like to acknowledge them as the Traditional Owners and custodians of this land and water that I live, work and play on.
I pay my respects to Elders past and present, and recognise that sovereignty has never been ceded. This always was, and always will be, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander land.
Building Simple Software That Solves Real Problems (with Rounded’s Grant McCall)
This week on Money Secrets, I sit down with Grant McCall — founder and Head of Product at Rounded, an easy accounting and invoicing app built specifically for freelancers and sole traders in Australia.
Grant’s career reads like a creative Swiss-army knife: web + software design, UX, filmmaking, photography, advertising — and years as a sole trader himself. That combination led him to build the tool he couldn’t find: accounting software that speaks human, not accountant, and focuses on what matters most for sole traders — money in, money out.
If you’ve ever felt overwhelmed by bookkeeping tools, puzzled by finance jargon, or wished for a simpler way to invoice, track, and stay on top of tax — this one’s for you.
Meet Grant: Creative, Technical… and Unapologetically User-Obsessed
Grant started freelancing in high school (yes, really). Over two decades he shipped projects for major banks, small businesses and startups, while keeping a finger on the pulse of design, dev and storytelling. That breadth shows up in Rounded: design-first, plain language, and built around real workflows — not accounting degrees.
“If a sole trader doesn’t ‘get it’ straight away, we haven’t solved the problem.”
From Freelancer Pain to Product: Why Rounded Exists
Back in 2014–15, the choices were clunky spreadsheets or heavyweight tools (Xero, MYOB, QuickBooks) designed for larger businesses with finance teams. As a creative sole trader, Grant needed speed and clarity, not 400 features.
So he built it. Rounded launched with a simple promise: make invoicing, expenses and BAS prep straightforward for Australian sole traders. Bonus cred: Rounded’s first-ever paying customer is still with them 10 years later.
Words Matter: Translating Accounting into Plain English
One of Grant’s biggest gripes? Terminology. Four words for sales (income, revenue, turnover, sales). “Liabilities”. “Balance sheet”. No wonder people avoid their numbers.
Rounded’s UX leans hard on clear copy and intuitive flows. It centres the two questions sole traders ask daily:
What’s coming in?
What’s going out?
When the language is human and the interface is simple, confidence follows.
Sole Traders on the Rise (and Getting Savvier)
Rounded sees the same thing I do: sole trading is booming. More Australians are choosing independence, supported by better tools, online communities and accessible tech.
But with growth comes subscription sprawl — CRMs, email tools, payment platforms, automations. The result? Integration fatigue and a push toward consolidation. Rounded’s focus: keep the core rock-solid (invoicing, expenses, BAS prep), and integrate the essentials that reduce admin without bloat.
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Shipping V1 (and Not Over-Engineering It)
Reality check from a product founder: everyone ships too late with too many features. Grant teamed up with a strong backend engineer (hi Igor!), rebuilt the prototype properly, and shipped when it did the job: could a sole trader lodge their next activity statement with it? Yes → go live.
Early growth came via community, pitch nights and word of mouth. Then — the stripe integration scramble to accept their first payment (we’ve all been there). That customer is still paying today.
Running a Small, Distributed, Mighty Team
Rounded’s team spans the Philippines, Serbia, France and Australia. No forced overlap. Async first. Clear briefs. Slack + simple project tools. It works because the culture is consistent: user first, clarity always.
Lessons from 10 Years in Product & SaaS
1) Stay ruthlessly customer-focused.
The mission hasn’t changed: the best invoicing & accounting app for Australian sole traders. Decisions flow from that.
2) Everything takes longer than you think.
Features touch features. Tech debt is real. Patience + planning beats whiplash roadmaps.
3) Your team is everything.
The right people make hard problems solvable — and the journey sustainable.
4) Business is emotional (and that’s okay).
Stress shows up when we ignore things. Grant’s go-to? Talk it out. Say the problem out loud to your trusted people; the pressure drops and solutions appear.
What’s Next for Rounded
Deeper simplicity in the core (invoicing, expenses, BAS).
Thoughtful integrations where they remove admin (not add it).
New features led by clear, common customer needs (think kilometre tracking for those on the road).
A firm “no” to features that complicate the experience or serve too few.
Final Thoughts
What I loved most about this conversation? Grant’s care. For users. For language. For the quiet emotional labour of building a business.
Longevity in business comes from choosing — what to build, what to drop, what to say no to. Rounded’s first customer is still with them a decade later, and much of their team has grown together for years. Those are green flags you can’t fake.
If you’re a sole trader who wants less admin and more clarity (and calm), keep it simple. Tools should bend to you, not the other way around.
Outro
Thank you for listening to Money Secrets. If you loved this episode, please subscribe, share it with a friend, or leave a review. Your support helps us get these conversations into the hands of more good people who deserve to thrive in business.
We’ve come so far as a society in many ways, but money is one of the areas where progress hasn’t been enough. If we want to tip the scales in favour of marginalised people, it starts with understanding the secret: money in small business.
In this podcast, Money Secrets, host Fiona (Fi) Johnston—Chartered Accountant, small business advocate, and impact enthusiast—dives into the conversations we need to have about money. The secrets that once stayed behind closed doors (or on the golf course) are finally out in the open.
Fi’s mission? To get more money into the hands of good people, like you. She believes small businesses have the power to change the world, and the key to making a bigger impact is to make—and manage—more money.
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Thank you to everyone involved for bringing this podcast together. We are excited to hear from you with any questions, feedback or suggestions for future episodes that you might have. Send a Direct Message to @peach.business
If you are excited for what’s to come, please like this episode, follow the podcast and share it with your friends. We are thrilled you're here.
Want to find out more about Good Money Club? It's for female and non-binary business owners ready to make more money and impact. Join us?
Check out my FREE Pricing Training you need to set your prices for profitability.
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This podcast episode was recorded on the lands of the Wurundjeri People of the Kulin Nation and I'd like to acknowledge them as the Traditional Owners and custodians of this land and water that I live, work and play on. I'd like to pay respect to elders both past and present, and note that sovereignty has never been ceded. This always was and always will be Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander land.
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