Jake Gronowski, CPA - Founder

Jake grew up in SE Michigan and played on the basketball and golf teams, attending catholic school and graduating from Notre Dame Prep (Pontiac, MI).

He worked hard to get where he is today, developing a blue-collar work ethic. He founded Jake's Lawn Service from age 12 to 22, being recruited by local residents to mow their lawn every week, April - October in SE Michigan. His purchase of an exmark zero-turn lawn mower allowed him to cut his time in half and minimize direct labor. 

He later graduated debt-free from Oakland University in 2015 with a Master of Accounting (MAcc) and went on to begin his professional career in the audit practice at Deloitte & Touche. He also holds a Bachelor of Science in General Mgt from Oakland University as well (B.S. '14).

Jake holds over 10 years of professional experience in audit, financial accounting advisory, and corporate accounting/interim controllership roles. Jake is a licensed CPA in both Michigan and Tennessee and is a member of the AICPA.

In 2025, he founded 12 South Advisory, PLLC, which specializes in helping small business owners and start-ups to make the right financial decisions and adopt proactive, forward-looking accounting. While bookkeeping is important, forward-looking models are equally important when building and scaling a business.