Our Session Moderators

Gail Perry, CPA

Gail Perry is a CPA and the editor-in-chief of CPA Practice Advisor magazine. She has been advising the profession for over 20 years as an accounting journalist in addition to being a well-known public speaker, trainer, and the author of more than 30 books (including Mint.com For Dummies; Surviving Financial Downsizing: A Practical Guide to Living Well on Less Money; and, most recently, The Idiot’s Guide to Introductory Accounting). Gail facilitates two think tanks for the accounting profession – the Accounting Thought Leader Symposium and the Young Leaders Accounting Think Tank.

She is also the creator of Ensuring Success, a unique annual conference that brings leaders of the profession together to offer continuing professional education to thousands of accountants from the comfort of their own offices or homes. Gail is a member of the AICPA’s PFS Credential Committee, and the creator of a workshop for CPA.com designed to help tax accountants advance their practices to include personal financial planning services. Gail also maintains a small tax practice where she serves real estate agents and performing artists, and she has taught an online financial planning course for more than 10 years. Gail is a graduate of Indiana University where she earned her bachelor's degree in journalism. After returning to school to study accounting at Illinois State University, Gail earned her CPA and worked for Deloitte's Chicago office as a state and local tax specialist. She is a former tax columnist for the Indianapolis Star newspaper, has been a community college adjunct accounting professor, and was on staff for 10 years at the Indiana CPA Society as a computer applications instructor. Gail was the publisher and editor-in-chief of AccountingWEB before joining the CPA Practice Advisor team.

Alexandra DeFelice

Alexandra DeFelice is the Director of Marketing and Business Development for Payne & Fears LLP in Southern California. She has more than 20 years of diverse business development, coaching, and communications experience. Prior to joining Payne & Fears, Alexandra worked for a large regional law firm in Portland, Oregon, where she served as a business development manager for two of the firm’s six core industry groups. She previously served as senior manager for the North American headquarters of an international group of accounting firms.

Our Presenters for 2024

Tanya Baber EA, CTRS, NTPI Fellow

Tanya has been an enrolled agent since 2006 and received her bachelor's degree in Public Accounting and Business Administration from Colorado Mesa University. Tanya practices as a public accountant in the area of personal, business, and non-profit tax preparation, planning, consulting and representation as well as solving their complex tax problems. She is also a CTRS - Certified Tax Resolution Specialist. She has been practicing in accounting and taxation since 1994.

Tanya is a member in good standing of the National Society of Accountants (NSA), The American Society of Tax Problem Solvers (ASTPS), The National Society of Tax Professionals (NSTP), and the National Association of Tax Professionals (NATP). She also serves on the board of directors for a variety of local and national non-profits, and volunteers with Search and Rescue to give back to her community.

Ms. Baber enjoys teaching advanced level classes to CPA's, Accountants, Comptrollers, and other individuals seeking continuing education. She consults with and enjoys helping these same accountants and individuals with their own difficult tax resolution cases.

She also did a 30 minute radio program throughout the fall and winter of 2015. She enjoyed speaking about taxes and making sense of its complexity for the average person.

Davis Bell

Davis Bell is the CEO of Canopy, the firm-wide operating system helping accountants build the firms they've always wanted. Prior to his time at Canopy building the best practice management software in the industry, Davis has also held leadership roles in strategy, operations, and finance at a succession of SaaS companies including Instructure, Peek, SalesRabbit, and Imagine Learning. He's passionate about building innovative software that delights users. Prior to working in software he worked at Morgan Stanley, Bear, Stearns, and USAID. Davis is a graduate of Brigham Young University and Columbia University.

In his personal life, Davis and his wife Melissa are the parents of seven (not a typo) children. He vaguely remembers having some hobbies prior to having children, and occasionally bumps into evidence of these former hobbies in a dusty, cobwebbed corner of his garage. These included tennis and backpacking.

Davis is active in his community, coaching many of his children's teams and serving on the board of UCAIR, Utah's partnership for clean air.

Canopy’s fully integrated practice management solution includes client management, document management, workflow, time & billing, engagements & proposals, and more. Trusted by over 3,000 accounting firms, Canopy’s solutions are SOC2-certified and data-encrypted.

David Cieslak

David Cieslak is Chief Cloud Officer and EVP with RKL eSolutions, a leading business process automation consulting firm with offices across the US. In his role, he is responsible for helping companies grow strategically with cloud-based solutions and industry-specific service expertise for ERP, CPM, CRM, AP Automation, and other critical business processes.

He is a frequent speaker for the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA), California Society of Certified Public Accountants (CalCPA) and other state accounting societies as his alter ego “Inspector Gadget.” He is a Sage Intacct Certified Consultant and holds the GIAC Security Essentials Certification (GSEC). He is the past Chair of the AICPA IT Executive Committee and past president of the California CPA Education Foundation.

Aaron Clayton

More to come...

Todd Cooper

A passionate advocate for the accounting profession, Todd has dedicated his 20+ year career to driving transformation by bringing innovate technology solutions to market in the professional services sector, as well as business and industry across the globe.

Todd joined the CPA.com team (an AICPA company) with an extensive leadership background at some of the most recognized technology providers in the accounting and finance industry. As Director of Channels he oversees the execution of the CPA.com channel strategy that focuses on developing, maintaining, and expanding relationships and contributions across the entire channel network. Todd collaborates with strategic partners to create and implement a mutually beneficial channel partner program that supports awareness, engagement, marketing, and revenue goals. This includes firm associations, industry alliances and networks, state societies, and industry thought leaders. Todd has been a featured speaker throughout his career in practice management, technology, and FinTech.

He lives outside Houston, TX where he enjoys spending time outdoors with his family, is active on multiple youth sports boards, and serves as an alumnus advisor for the college of business for his alma mater.

Nicole Davis

Nicole Davis stands at the helm of Butler-Davis Tax & Accounting, BD Payroll, and Groundworx Contractors as their founder and CEO, directing a dedicated team of 26 professionals. With over twenty years of expertise, she offers extensive knowledge in accounting, tax, financial oversight, and advisory services, catering to diverse clientele from various sectors. She possesses a unique prowess in tax strategy and is adept in small business accounting, notably within the construction, independent pharmacy, and service-oriented business industries.

Prior to establishing Butler-Davis, Nicole's professional journey was rooted in corporate accounting for prominent Fortune 500 entities. She initiated her career at ConocoPhillips, a leading oil and gas enterprise located in Bartlesville, Oklahoma.

Holding memberships with the American Institute of CPAs and the Georgia Society of CPAs, Nicole's educational accolades include an MBA from the University of Tulsa and a summa cum laude Bachelor of Science in Accounting from Grambling State University. Currently, she serves as the Vice Chair of the AICPA Practitioners Planning Committee and is a Committee Member for the Professional and Personal Liability Insurance Programs of the AICPA. Furthermore, Nicole is an active participant in both the Rockdale and Newton Chambers of Commerce.

Nicole and her spouse, JW, reside in Georgia, and are proud parents to five children. On social media, she's amassed a substantial audience of over 25,000 followers across various platforms, where she frequently posts about her life as a wife, mom, and CPA. Nicole is passionate about traveling, penning down her thoughts, whipping up meals, and indulging in reality TV shows.

Diana DiBello

Diana is the Sr. Manager of Product Solution Engineering for Avalara, and has spent over 25 years working with various industries in supporting the sales and use tax function. She has industry-recognized expertise in tax technology, leasing, jurisdiction identification, tax processing, telecom, and property tax.

Sean Duncan

Sean M. Duncan, CPA is the president of SMD Consulting & Accounting and founder of Chief Proactive Advisors, LLC. built his reputation as a thought leader in the accounting industry by focusing on advising, teaching, and helping clients with proactive strategy and planning.

CPAs across the United States possess so much valuable knowledge about business, finances, AND taxes; but all too often they shy away from sharing their wisdom in a timely and actionable manner.

Over the last 25+ years, Sean has accumulated a diverse and unique set of credentials and knowledge that he shares through speaking at conferences and events, in private seminars, one on one with clients, and with his very talented team at SMD.

A recognized expert on comprehensive financial and business strategy, Sean M. Duncan, CPA has been a speaker at AccountingWeb Live, Insightful Accountant’s Future Forward, Scaling New Heights, and many other conferences. He is a member of ADP’s Accountant Advisory Council, and Ignitions Client Council.

He has contributed to Intuit’s Accountant blog, and is a frequent contributor to articles in The Dallas Morning News, Insightful Accountant and other publications and has made numerous appearances as a TV or radio show guest, and often speaks at conferences across the United States.

W. Michael Hsu

Michael knows firsthand the transformative impact accountants can have when they step into the role of trusted advisors. As the founder of DeepSky, the premier CFO Advisory Firm, Michael has spent over a decade and half pioneering ways to turn traditional accounting practices into strategic, value-driven partnerships. His MEASURE x HACK Method™, now embraced by firms and entrepreneurs across the U.S., simplifies financials into clear actions that drive growth and unlock potential.

Michael’s journey from CPA to thought leader in financial intelligence wasn’t without its struggles. He learned early that providing numbers alone wasn’t enough—businesses needed accountants who could offer insights, solutions, and strategic direction. This realization pushed him to create not only DeepSky but also the CFO Club, a training ground for the next wave of financial leaders who want to elevate their client experiences from basic services to impactful CFO advisory roles. With fintech innovations and a robust online education and accountability platform, Michael continues to support accountants in expanding their reach and effectiveness.

Attendees of Michael’s session will discover actionable strategies to redefine their client interactions and build lasting relationships through expert financial guidance. Join him to learn how to become the advisor your clients can’t do without—because in today’s world, numbers only tell part of the story, but it’s your insights that drive success.

Gaynor Mielke, Chief Opportunity Officer, Charisma Ink, MS, CBC, CTC, CTRC-E

Gaynor Meilke is a business strategist and certified business and transformational coach. She is the owner of Charisma Ink, a marketing and B2B consulting firm that specializes in services for accounting and tax professionals.

Randy Johnston, MCS, MCP

Randy Johnston has been an entrepreneur, technologist, and teacher for most of his career. He has helped start and run many businesses, and founded Network Management Group, Inc. and owns half of K2 Enterprises. He has written for accounting and technology publications for four decades, and for CPA Practice Advisor since 2000.

Al-Nesha Jones, CPA, MBA, MOM

Al-Nesha Jones is the founder of ASE Group, a full-service accounting, tax, and advisory firm focused on empowering small business owners to build strong and sustainable businesses. She was recently recognized as a 2023 Top 100 ProAdvisor by Insightful Accountants, one of Ignition's 2023 Top 50 Women in Accounting, a 2022 NJCPA Ovation Award Winner for her firm's DEI efforts, and also as a 2021 CPA Practice Advisor "40 Under 40" Professional.

She is currently a Participant in the ProConnect Customer Council for Intuit Inc., 2021 – 2024, a member of the Intuit Trainer/Writer Network, an inaugural member of the CHIP Professionals Council (CHIP is bridging the gap between consumers of financial products and financial professionals of color), a member of the National Society of Black CPAs (NSBCPA), a member of the National Association of Black Accountants (NABA), and a mentor at her high school (Saint Vincent Academy) and college (Montclair State University) alma maters. Outside of being a self-proclaimed 'cool mom', her biggest accomplishment to date has been creating rewarding career opportunities for her team members that mirror the opportunities she didn’t have when she left her corporate career. She currently leads a 100% female team, where they have flexibility in both their schedule and work location, to ensure they can prioritize all of the nouns that bring them joy.

Roman Kepczyk

Roman H. Kepczyk, CPA, CITP, CGMA, is the Director of Firm Technology Strategy for Rightworks. His primary focus is helping firms throughout North America effectively use information technology and accounting applications by optimizing their tax, audit and administrative production workflows. He has spent the past 27 years consulting exclusively with CPA firms and 10 years with the CPA firm of Henry & Horne where he was the partner in charge of administration and information technology. Roman has served as a member of AICPA Council, PCPS Executive Committee, AICPA IT Executive Committee, and is also an Advisory Board Member to the CPA Firm Management Association and BDO Alliance IT Advisory Board.

Roman was named by INSIDE Public Accounting as one of the profession’s Most Recommended Consultants from 2005 through 2022, CPA Practice Advisor’s Top 25 Thought Leaders from 2011 through 2023, and Accounting Today’s Most Influential People in Accounting (17 years and counting). He currently writes for AICPA Professional Insights, Thomson Reuters Audit and Accounting Update, and CPA Practice Advisor.

Vaughan Long

Vaughan is an Enrolled Agent (EA) and the founder of both Tax Solutions Alliance (a firm that specializes in IRS Tax Resolution) as well as the owner of Ally Tax & Accounting (a firm that specializes in small business taxes and accounting). Vaughan is based in Richmond, VA. Vaughan was mentored in the world of the IRS by a former IRS Revenue Officer and the two of them worked many cases together over the years until his mentor retired in 2019.

Vaughan has previously taught for the Virginia Society of Enrolled Agents (VASEA), the National Association of Tax Professionals (NATP), CPA Academy and is currently in his 2nd year as the Director of the VA Tech Income Tax School for whom he has also taught for the past 8 years.

Vaughan has been married for 24 years to his wonderful wife and has 2 great children, a son and a daughter.

Blake Oliver, CPA

Blake Oliver, CPA, is the founder and CEO of Earmark, an app that offers NASBA-approved CPE for listening to your favorite accounting and tax podcasts. He co-hosts The Accounting Podcast, a Top 25 Business News show on the Apple charts and the most popular podcast for accountants and bookkeepers worldwide. He has been named one of Accounting Today’s top 100 most influential people and recognized as one of CPA Practice Advisor’s “40 Under 40” in the accounting profession.

In 2012, Blake founded Cloudsourced Accounting, an online accounting services company with a mission to disrupt the business model of traditional accounting firms. The company was an early adopter of cloud accounting technology, which enabled Blake’s staff and clients to collaborate 100% remotely. Aprio Cloud acquired Cloudsourced Accounting in 2015.

After a stint at Armanino LLP, California’s largest accounting and consulting firm, Blake took the leap into tech startups. He joined FloQast as a product marketer and later led marketing at Jirav. In 2021 he set off on his own again to found Earmark CPE, a mobile app that enables accounting and tax professionals to earn CPE for listening to podcasts.

Blake holds a Bachelor of Music from Northwestern University and an Accounting Certificate from UCLA. He lives in Scottsdale, Arizona, where he enjoys hiking, swimming, and cycling.

Enrico Palmerino

Enrico is the founder and CEO of Botkeeper, which provides accountants with an automated bookkeeping platform using human-assisted machine learning and AI. Botkeeper's platform delivers the fastest, most accurate, and low-cost bookkeeping available to accounting firms seeking a scalable CAS solution for their clients.

Enrico also serves on the Board of OnProcess Technology and Fidelity Bank and is an investor and advisor in several prominent tech companies. He has been recognized as one of the Top 100 Most Influential People in Accounting, Top 30 Most Inspiring Business Leaders, and 2020 Golden Bridge Entrepreneur of the Year.

Botkeeper has raised $90M from marquee investors and serves several thousand companies and 80+ accounting firms, processing 40M+ transactions per quarter.
Prior to Botkeeper, Enrico was co-owner and Managing Director of SmartBooks, a cloud accounting firm which grew from 6-40 employees in 3 years before he was bought out in 2015 so he could launch Botkeeper. Early in Enrico’s career he was ranked 2nd among Bloomberg’s Top 25 Entrepreneurs Under 25 in recognition of his co-founding of ThinkLite. Enrico grew ThinkLite from a dorm-room startup to $8.5M ARR before graduating college and successfully exiting the venture.

Andy Root

Andy is a Strategic Account Executive at Canopy and brings over a decade of experience in sales and firm operations, working with accounting firms nationwide. Through years of collaboration and consulting, he has developed a deep understanding of the needs of firm owners at every level of a modern business model.

Cathy Rowe

Cathy Rowe is an accomplished Product Manager with an established record of building a strong, high performing team that delivers innovative solutions that drive increased profitability for global Fortune 500 companies. She has a proven ability to manage and lead new and existing product development which will increase user productivity. Cathy has contributed to strategic planning and execution, as well as experience with roadmap and budget preparation and resource analysis required for execution. Her passion is ensuring customers are able to have an optimal workflow that will allow them to best meet the needs of their clients, and remain profitable.

She excels in problem solving, and user-centered design. In 2013, Cathy was named as one of the Top 40 Under 40 thought leaders in the accounting profession by CPA Practice Advisor due to the fact that she made significant progress in bringing the customer workflow perspective into the Design and Development processes at CCH. CCH customers are now consulted & involved in all phases of Design and Development within the CCH Axcess and Prosystem fxproducts at CCH. This initiative drives increased Productivity and Ease of Use into all aspects of the CCH products while streamlined integrations between products is occurring to match the end-to-end work CCH customers are conducting.

Dr. Sean Stein Smith

Sean is an Associate Professor at the City University of New York – Lehman College. He serves on the Advisory Board of the Wall Street Blockchain Alliance, where he chairs the Accounting Working Group. Sean also serves as an Advisor to Crescent City Capital, a cryptoasset investment fund. Sean has also been named one of the Top 100 Most Influential People in Accounting, and has been named a past winner of the NJCPA Ovation Award for Innovation.

He has also been named a 40 under 40 in the accounting profession from 2017-2022 by CPA Practice Advisor and the NYSSCPA in 2021. Sean was named on the NJBIZ Power 50 in Accounting in 2021 & 2022. He was also awarded the Outstanding Young CPA of the Year Award by the AICPA in 2022. In 2022, Sean also earned the Certified Cryptocurrency Auditor certificate offered by the Blockchain Council, and in 2023 he completed an Executive Education program in AI Strategy at MIT.

Brian Tankersley, CPA, CITP, CGMA

Brian Tankersley, CPA, CITP, CGMA (@bftcpa) is a renowned technology consultant, speaker, and author in the accounting industry. With over 30 years of experience, he has dedicated his career to helping accounting professionals navigate the ever-evolving world of technology. As the Director of Strategic Relationships at K2 Enterprises, Brian delivers high-quality seminars and courses on topics such as accounting software, data analytics, and cybersecurity.

Kenneth W. Taylor, Jr. CMI

Ken Taylor is a key member of Forvis Mazars’s State and Local Tax (SALT) Services division, where he leads the sales and use tax consulting practice. With extensive experience in providing indirect tax services, Ken has worked with both public and private clients across various industries, including manufacturing, retail, transportation, technology, and oil and gas. Ken’s expertise encompasses automating sales/use tax compliance, offering technical assistance and research, audit defense, drafting opinion memos, conducting buy and sell side due diligence reviews, identifying and recovering indirect tax overpayments, providing ASC 450 (formerly FAS 5) assistance, and performing tax function effectiveness reviews.

In addition to his primary role, Ken collaborates with Forvis Mazars’s telecommunication consulting team to deliver state and local regulatory compliance services. He is well-versed in regulatory reporting requirements and excels at designing and implementing compliance processes for clients.
Before joining Forvis Mazars, Ken gained valuable experience at an international accounting firm, where he provided similar services.

Ken is a proud United States Marine Veteran and holds a B.S. degree in accounting from Indiana University, Bloomington. He is also a Certified Member of the Institute (CMI) through the Institute for Professionals in Taxation®, where he serves as an instructor for Sales Tax School II.

Terrell Turner

Terrell A. Turner, CPA, is a distinguished accounting professional and entrepreneur. He has been recognized three times as a "40 Under 40" CPA and twice as a Global Finance Influencer. In 2020, he founded the TLTurner Group, a premium accounting firm that provides accounting, advisory, and data analytics services to law firms. As the CEO and managing partner, Terrell oversees marketing, sales, and staff development functions.

Ronald Ulrich

Ronald Ulrich is the Vice President of Product Consulting and Compliance for ADP Retirement Services. He is responsible for delivering products and services to plan sponsors in order to help them maintain their retirement plans in compliance with all applicable IRS and DOL regulations. Ron has over 25 years of experience in the recordkeeping and administration of retirement plans and holds the ASPPA Certified Pension Consultant (CPC), Qualified Pension Administrator (QPA), and Qualified 401(k) Administrator (QKA) designations, as well as a B.S in Management from Kean University.

Amy Vetter, CPA, CGMA, RYT500, CSP

Amy Vetter is the CEO of The B³ Method Institute and a pioneering leader who blends business acumen with mindfulness to drive transformation across industries. With a career spanning over 25 years in finance, SaaS, and corporate leadership, Amy has empowered organizations to achieve both business success and personal fulfillment. She developed The B³ Method®—Business + Balance = Bliss—to help professionals integrate their work with their passions, fostering cultures of balance and innovation.

Amy’s experience includes leadership roles at top firms like XERO and Intuit, where she led strategic growth and cultural change. A keynote speaker, best-selling author, and podcast host, Amy connects with diverse audiences by sharing practical strategies for achieving work-life harmony. She has published three books, including her most recent Disconnect to Connect, to inspire countless readers to take action and make monumental life changes. Through her podcast, Breaking Beliefs, Amy challenges her audiences to rethink their beliefs while pursuing excellence in their career and lives. Amy's mission is to inspire leaders to create purpose-driven, thriving organizations.

Chris Vignone

An acclaimed state and local tax specialist and thought leader, Chris is known for identifying multimillion-dollar tax-saving opportunities for Fortune 1000 companies and implementing operational changes for long-term business efficiency. With more than 25 years of experience, he has expertise in SALT and income audit defense and refund claims, VDAs for state and local taxes and unclaimed property, state and local credits and incentives, and tax technology consulting.

Garrett Wagner

As an emerging leader in the CPA landscape and an expert at understanding the new millennial generation, Garrett focuses on monitoring the evolving technologies and best practices in the industry to achieve the highest degree of success without being afraid to break free from traditional methods.

Garrett works with CPA firms across the country helping them to implement lasting change by understanding the unique needs of each organization.

Garrett specializes in corporate taxation and can successfully implement ideas and change by using his communication style to get support from key members of the Firm. With his ability to think outside the box, develop procedures, and train staff it has allowed Garrett to have tremendous success in bringing about lasting change.

Garrett believes that the public accounting landscape is undergoing a tremendous change and that by focusing on developing the next generation of leaders and understanding the shift in the profession to providing value added consulting services, that Firms can obtain long lasting success.

Started the LinkedIn group Innovating Trailblazers to provide support for the next generation of leaders by allowing them to share ideas, frustrations, and support each other's growth.

Specialties: CPA, CITP specializing in helping business owners achieve personal and professional success.