Austin J. Alwell, Senior Client Accounting Specialist

Even as a child, Austin Alwell never took a childish approach to his finances.

“I’ve just always had a love of numbers. I remember wanting to be a small business owner as a kid and I always had a fascination with keeping track of my money,” recalls Alwell of what led him to pursue a career in accounting. “I was very cognizant of my finances, whether it was Christmas money or cash I earned babysitting. Accounting was always in the cards.”

Now as a Senior Client Accounting Specialist at Rudler, PSC, he plans on helping his clients keep track of their finances to achieve their goals as well.

A native of Foster, Kentucky, Austin graduated from Northern Kentucky University, the same institution from which he will graduate with his Master’s in Accounting with a focus in Data Analytics. He first gained experience with the firm as a co-op in 2020 then joined Rudler full-time in December 2022, working his way up to his present position of senior accountant. His role sees him prepare returns for individuals, trusts and businesses, perform a variety of monthly client advisory tasks as well as assist with data collection and reporting and preparation for business valuations. Before joining Rudler full-time, he also spent a brief period interning with MCM, CPAs and Advisors.

Austin also helps train new co-ops and staff in various aspects of the business. His proudest accomplishment so far has been to help clients earn $5 million+ of refunds in just over two years as one of a four-member employee retention tax credit team.

While he may have only been away for a short time, Rudler was – and remains – close to his heart.

“Rudler’s President, Alex Weidner, took me out to lunch twice while I was at the other company just to check in and see how things were going. He said ‘If you love where you're at, I wish you nothing but the best. However, if you ever have any second thoughts, the door is always open to come back here,’” Austin recalls. “That meant a lot to me that he would reach back out and check in to genuinely see how I was doing – he wanted me to be happy. The people here are amazing. Whether it's the PTO policy, or the flexibility that they offer of being able to work from home or in the office, they’ve clearly got the employees at heart and it shows. The people and the culture are what keeps you here.”

In working with clients, he hopes they will see the same dedication to finances he’s enjoyed since his youth.

“I have been in this industry for almost five years now and a lot of professionals my age just graduated or are going into their first job. At Rudler, I've had the chance from the get-go to jump into doing real meaningful work and attend client meetings,” he says. “I've gained a lot of experience so that when I’m walking into a client interaction, there’s no sense of ‘Oh, here's this kid that just graduated college.’ Instead, I have had an opportunity to show and prove I have a lot to offer, which is what I strive for every single time.”

In his personal life, Austin is a fan of all things sports/outdoors. He has also served as a freshman/junior varsity soccer coach at his alma mater, Bishop Brossart High School, and is an active member of his church. He is also a graduate of the Northern Kentucky Chamber of Commerce’s Regional Youth Leadership Class of 2018 and Eva G. Farris Leadership Academy of 2023.