This year’s conference of the Sleeter Group is being called SleeterCon 2015 and will include four, information-packed days (Nov.16 thru 19), plus pre-conference workshops with deep-dive training sessions on several solutions. The Conference Expo Hall will feature more than 100 exhibitors and serve as a one-stop learning-shopping experience that allows attendees to meet developers face-to-face and get an in-depth look at their technological solutions. The conference is even more focused than in past years on cloud solutions to meet the needs of accountants and consumers alike.
Doug Sleeter, founder of the Sleeter Group, said “The accounting profession is evolving at lightning speed. In the “internet of things” age you are forced to keep up or be left behind. Changing market demands are forcing change on how every business operates. Just as your clients are now leveraging the Internet to sell and support their products, you too are needing to continually adjust your firm processes and business model to maximize growth, and to ensure the value of your business does not get eaten away by changing demands in the marketplace. Small business owners want collaboration, more real-time data, less paper to manage and business intelligence they can use (and understand!).”
Unlike some conferences SleeterCon is not ‘single-product focused’, it provides opportunities for those attending to be exposed to multiple ‘core software’ products like Xero, Sage and QuickBooks, as well as others. It also draws upon the ecosystems of all of these ‘core products’, find out how to expand your accounting or consulting practice into a wealth of Apps (applications) for all manner of functionality that fit into or work with your favorite accounting solution.
But SleeterCon is not only about the ‘technology’, it is also about practices and concepts that are presented at introductory to deep-dive levels of education. From exciting Keynotes by industry thought leaders and concept originators to skilled educators teaching more than 70 topics, SleeterCon is a way for you to learn more about everything impacting the accounting and consulting profession today. It’s not only about staying current but getting ahead of the curve, and developing a competitive advantage. Conference officials said, “Across the entire business world, the most successful people and companies are those who continually reinvent themselves and respond to changes in the business environment. We all strive to become the most skilled practitioner, but the fact is, even the most skilled professional cannot remain relevant unless he or she is agile in business.”
But as with most conferences of this nature, perhaps the most meaningful learning experienced does not come about as a result of exhibits, or training sessions, or keynote addresses, or thought-leader panels, it comes by your own interaction with your colleagues. The ability to connect with your peers as well as experts, to form new alliances, and to create new linkages that serve to build your practice is the best part of all. I know personally that when I attend meetings like this it is first and foremost about ‘meeting those present’, I can’t begin to tell you how many friends and associates I have made at these events.
Then again, SleeterCon 2015 is in Las Vegas (at the Bellagio, one of the finest resorts on ‘the Strip’), so perhaps the thrills of Vegas are the perfect ‘make your trip’ factor. It’s not too late, even though the conference will be underway by the time you read this, jump a plane (Southwest Airlines flies into and out of Vegas almost every 15 minutes from somewhere) you can probably be at the conference in time for the Monday afternoon sessions.
While other obligations preclude me from attending ‘this year’, Gary our publisher, will be ‘on the ground’ at SeeterCon 2015 and will be feeding us information and stories from the conferences daily events. So be on the lookout for conference details later this week.
Murph