Meet Alex Gagné, CPA, M. Tax.

When the tax expertise of a large firm meets the speed of a technology platform.

At Stamped, we believe that the best technology tools are worthless without top-caliber human experts to bring them to life. That’s why today we introduce Alex Gagné, CPA, M. Tax., the person who ensures every day that our clients receive the best possible tax advice, at the right time and without friction.

1. Alex, can you introduce yourself and tell us about your professional background?

Of course! I’m from Valcourt, in Estrie, and I made my way to HEC Montréal for my bachelor’s in accounting. From there, I wanted to go as deep into the specialty as possible: I did the national CPA program in parallel with a full-time Master’s in Taxation at Université de Sherbrooke, and I passed the Common Final Examination in September 2017. My first real tax role was at a Big Four firm starting in October 2017, where I climbed the ranks from Tax Senior to Tax Manager, then Senior Tax Manager, over more than 8 years in total. In between, I took a detour in industry as a Finance Manager, which gave me a very different perspective: that of someone who works inside a company and understands the financial realities from within. Finally, in December 2025, I joined Stamped as Senior Director of Tax, and that’s where I am today.

2. You spent more than six years at one of the world’s largest accounting firms. What convinced you to make the jump to Stamped?

A large firm is an extraordinary school. I learned a rigor and professional standard there that you don’t find everywhere, and I worked on tax files of a complexity that few CPAs see in their careers. What brought me to Stamped is mainly an opportunity I saw: what if we could deliver that same level of tax expertise, but in a model where technology handles all the logistics? It felt like the natural next step in my career. My time in industry had also shown me how much SMBs need a tax partner who truly understands their operational reality, not just the Income Tax Act. At Stamped, I get to be that partner.

3. What exactly is your role at Stamped as Senior Director of Tax?

I oversee the entire tax side of our services: corporate tax returns, tax planning, corporate structure optimization, and tax matters for clients with operations across multiple provinces or internationally. I define the tax methodology our team applies, I validate positions on complex files, and I’m the main point of contact for clients with specific tax needs. What makes this role unique compared to a similar position at a traditional firm is the environment I work in. The data is already structured and accessible in our platform, documents are centralized, and collaboration with clients happens in real time. I spend less time chasing information and more time interpreting it. For a tax specialist, that’s a concrete, day-to-day difference.

4. Taxation is often seen as a complex and opaque field for SMB leaders. How do you make it accessible to your clients?

It’s a challenge I love taking on, and I’d say my time in industry helped me a lot with that. When you work as a Finance Manager inside a company, you quickly realize that executives have very concrete questions: am I paying too much tax? How do I structure my compensation optimally? Is this the right time to pay myself a dividend or a salary? These questions are technical from a tax standpoint, but the stakes behind them are human and very direct. My job is to answer in language that speaks to entrepreneurs, not in the jargon of a 40-page tax memorandum. I had actually practiced this kind of teaching long before my professional career: during my studies, I taught accounting to classes of 10 to 50 students as a tutor. Making complex concepts accessible is something that has always driven me.

5. What tax opportunities do Canadian SMBs miss most often?

There are a few that come up over and over again. The small business deduction is often poorly optimized, especially in structures with multiple entities. The investment tax credit is also frequently overlooked, even though it can represent significant savings for companies investing in equipment or infrastructure. R&D credits (SR&ED) are a real goldmine for tech and scientific companies, but many don’t know they qualify or fail to properly document their activities throughout the year. And then there’s everything related to exit planning: business sales, the lifetime capital gains exemption on qualified small business corporation shares. These are topics we should discuss long before the owner is ready to sell, ideally several years in advance. At Stamped, we aim to have these conversations proactively, not just when it’s time to file the annual return.

6. How does the Stamped platform concretely change the way you work on tax files?

The most immediate change is access to information. At a traditional firm, preparing a tax return often starts with a document hunt: financial statements that aren’t ready yet, bank statements we’re waiting on, asset information to track down. At Stamped, all of that is already centralized in our platform. The financial data is structured, the documents are there, and my team accesses everything it needs without wasting time. That lets me dive straight into analysis and optimization. The other big advantage is real-time collaboration with clients. If I have a question about a specific transaction, I ask it in the platform, the client replies, and we move forward. No phone calls, no emails lost in an inbox. For someone like me who describes himself as autonomous and self-taught, working in such a well-structured environment is genuinely liberating.

7. The Master’s in Taxation is a program very few CPAs complete. How is that a concrete advantage for your clients?

The Master’s gave me a depth of analysis that the standard CPA program doesn’t offer. It goes much further into the mechanics of the Income Tax Act, tax jurisprudence, international tax treaties, and advanced planning strategies. Concretely, for my clients, it means I can take positions with confidence on tax questions that fall outside the ordinary, without having to systematically refer to an external specialist. It also means I know when to recognize that a tax situation intersects with broader legal or financial issues, and when other experts need to be involved. For an SMB, having access to that level of tax expertise without paying Big Four fees is a real and tangible advantage. That’s exactly Stamped’s value proposition.

8. Did your time in industry as a Finance Manager change you as a professional?

Yes, a lot. Going from external consultant to internal manager is a fairly radical shift in perspective. At a large firm, you see files from the outside, you arrive with your questions, do your analysis, and leave. In industry, I was inside the machine. I lived the financial processes daily, I took part in operational decisions, I understood how a tax decision could have concrete consequences on cash flow or operational planning. That experience made me much more attuned to the practical realities of entrepreneurs. Today, when a client talks to me about an expansion project or a potential acquisition, I’m not only thinking about the tax implications: I’m thinking about every dimension that comes with it. That’s a way of advising that is much more useful for SMBs.

9. How do you see the impact of artificial intelligence on tax practice in the coming years?

I’m convinced AI will transform taxation, but not in the way some fear. Compilation, compliance checking, and standard form preparation will be increasingly automated, and that’s a good thing. It will free tax specialists to do what machines can’t yet do: strategic planning, interpreting new legislative provisions, advising in unprecedented situations. What I’m experiencing at Stamped is already a preview of that reality. Our AI handles the mechanical side, and I devote my time to finding optimization opportunities the client would never have spotted alone. Tomorrow’s tax specialist will be more of a strategist and communicator than a forms technician. Personally, that’s exactly the role I was looking for when I joined Stamped.

10. A message for SMB leaders who still manage their taxes reactively rather than proactively?

I completely understand them. When you run a business, taxes are often last on the priority list. You deal with them when you’re forced to, which is at filing time. But that’s where money gets left on the table. Tax planning needs to happen throughout the year, at the moment business decisions are being made. Should I buy this equipment this year or next? Should I pay myself a bonus before year-end? Is my corporate structure still optimal for my current situation? These questions have tax answers that can make a real difference to what ends up in the owner’s pocket. At Stamped, my role is to be that proactive partner who anticipates these questions before it’s too late to act. I always enjoy connecting with entrepreneurs who want to take control of their tax situation.