Meet the TAA Team!
👉Daniel van der Heyden | TAA Founder & Tax Agent
Daniel is the driving force behind TAA! He has spent 20+ years working across pretty much every corner of accounting: financial accounting, tax, bookkeeping and virtual CFO work.
I started The Accounting Academy because I saw too many talented accountants being used as cheap labour instead of being properly mentored.
Most experienced practitioners don't want to train the next generation. They're too busy, too protective of their knowledge, or just not interested. Training people is genuinely what I enjoy most, so I decided to build something around it.
I've worked in traditional accounting firms, in firms that only served startups, and eventually helped build one of Australia's first fully remote, tech-driven accounting practices from the ground up. That breadth gave me a perspective most supervisors don't have: I've seen what good looks like across a lot of different models and I've seen how badly the industry can let people down when they're trying to build something real.
I decided to stop watching and start fixing.
👉Shane Burns | Tax Agent
Shane has been in accounting since 2006 and brings nearly two decades of private practice experience with him. Shane is our tax agent on the ground, and his signature is on every tax return that goes out. You're in good hands.
My name is Shane Burns, and I've been working as an accountant in private practice since 2006. Over that time I built a strong foundation in delivering reliable, high-quality accounting services while developing long-term relationships with my clients. Around the COVID-19 period, the shift to working from home gave me the opportunity to reassess my direction — and in 2022 I made the decision to establish my own firm. I now provide comprehensive accounting services alongside Virtual CFO support to help businesses gain clarity, improve performance, and make confident financial decisions. Outside of work, I've been married for 21 years and have two kids and a Frenchie who keep life busy. On weekends you'll usually find us at the beach, working on the house, or getting involved in Excel Cup racing when we can.
👉Laura Crennan | Knowledge Management
Laura and Daniel go back a long way. They built a firm together from the ground up (along with Armin). Laura's a Chartered Accountant with deep expertise in accounting and CFO services, and she brings that same rigour to everything she does here. Laura is heading up our knowledge management, working through your support tickets, building out the courses, and making sure the knowledge base actually answers the questions you're asking.
I'm Laura, Sydney-born and mum to 3 girls. Professionally, I'm a Chartered Accountant, Fractional CFO, and most recently a Tax Agent in Training! I've been working in finance for 15 years and my passion lies in supporting small businesses and their founders. I'm currently based in the UK with my family, which is why you'll sometimes get emails from me at odd hours (sorry!), but we're on a trajectory back home and I'm looking forward to meeting you all in person one day soon.
👉Armin | Reviewer
Armin and Daniel have worked closely together for the past four years, and there are very few people we trust more when it comes to getting the detail right. She's the one reviewing your work, and if you've had feedback that's genuinely helped you improve, there's a good chance Armin was behind it.
I'm Armin, an accounting professional with over 22 years of experience across Australia, the Philippines, and Singapore. My background spans financial reporting, taxation compliance, audit, payroll, and management advisory services, with most of my career spent in senior roles reporting directly to business owners. I'm known for my attention to detail, my willingness to go beyond the brief, and my ability to adapt quickly to new environments and systems. I work across Xero, XPM, Hubdoc, Dext, and a range of other platforms, and I'm always adding to that list. What I enjoy most about this role is the combination of technical rigour and the opportunity to help practitioners grow. Getting a return right matters, and so does making sure the person who prepared it understands why.