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Session Descriptions
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Last Updated on: October 22, 2008
Conference sessions include general sessions and breakout sessions, organized
into tracks. You may choose to attend any session in any track. Click
on a track title to read a full description:
Pre Conference Sessions - (Monday,
11/10/08 - 8:00-4:00pm)
Pre Conference sessions are optional and anyone can register to attend
(Main Conference attendees receive a discount on Pre Conference sessions).
Taking
Your Practice Online
QuickBooks
Point of Sale Consulting
Web Stores
and Ecommerce Integration with PDG Commerce
FREE "Night School" Sessions (Monday, 11/10/08 - 7:00-9:30pm)
Evening sessions on 11/10 are free to all attendees of both the Pre Conference
sessions or the Main Conference.
Best Practices for Implementing Fishbowl Inventory
Learn the best practices for succeeding as a Fishbowl VAR. Topics will
include: Things Accountants Must Know About Fishbowl Inventory, Qualifying Opportunities
to Ensure Success, Case Studies, and a panel of experts who will share their experiences with implementing Fishbowl Inventory.
Adagio FX Financial Statement Design & Adagio by Softrak
Learn how Adagio FX can completely automate your or your client's month end financial statement creation, produce presentation quality statements formatted exactly the way you need in minutes. We’ll create budget, department and prior period comparatives while you watch – adding company logos and highlighting unusual variances. Drill down directly from the statement to the posted transaction detail to explain unusual results. Create side-by-side departmental comparatives in seconds.
Main Conference Keynote Sessions:
Jill
Ward - Senior Vice President and General Manager of Accounting Professional Division, Intuit Inc.
Perspectives on the Future of Accounting Software
Tues, 9:00 AM – 10:00 AM
Location: Media Center
In this keynote address, Ms. Ward will articulate how Intuit views the future of the accounting software marketplace, and how accounting professionals and third-party developers can prosper as a result of Intuit’s new initiatives. With Intuit’s “platform-as-a-service” strategy that facilitates the combination of Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) technology with platforms for third-party developers, you’ll hear how Intuit plans to continue to wow customers, developers, and accounting professionals.
Nina
Smith - President, Business Management Division, Sage Software
Helping Enable Success – Both Yours and Your Clients’
Weds, 9:30 AM – 10:30 AM
Location: Media Center
Today, a software company needs to produce products that do much more than just meet your accounting or other specific business management needs. Software companies must look at the big picture and how they can contribute to the comprehensive success of the businesses they serve – both your clients’ and yours. Nina will detail the many ways Sage strives to take a broad view to help enable your success across your entire enterprise, from listening carefully to customers’ views and desires, both long- and short-term, to keeping up with trends in technology, to providing services and programs that can help you better serve your clients.
Greg
LaFollette, CPA.CITP - Executive Editor of The CPA Technology Advisor
It’s a Great Time to be in Public Accounting
The perfect storm of technology, demographics, and legislation have combined to make the profession more profitable than ever.
G35: Thurs, 9:15 AM – 10:30 AM
Location: Media Center
As a retired software executive, as Executive Editor of The CPA Technology Advisor Magazine and as a practicing accountant, Mr. LaFollette enjoys an unusually dynamic view of our profession. In this presentation he will review how we’ve gotten to where we are as a profession, why some firms flourish while others languish, and he’ll lead us through his predictions based on the convergence of three major drivers. Those drivers are technology --- the hardware, software, services, and related best practices that make it possible for us to be so much more productive; demographics --- those fact-of-life realities that mean there are fewer and less experienced of us; and legislation --- the governmental, regulatory, and market forces that are requiring more and more of the profession. You’ll see why in concert, these seemingly unrelated forces are resulting in a bonanza for practicing public accountants.
Randy
Johnston - Executive Vice President and partner of K2 Enterprises and Network Management Group, Inc.
Technology Update
G20: Weds, 8:00 AM – 9:15 AM
Location: Media Center
There have been a tremendous number of hardware and architecture changes this year from servers to workstations, as well as new innovations in peripheral devices like mice and keyboards. Learn the latest on buying strategies and determining exactly what your business needs in order to not be left behind!
Doug Sleeter - Founder and President, The Sleeter Group, Inc.
Bringing it all Together – Navigating the Changes Ahead
G30: Thurs, 8:00 AM – 9:05 AM
Location: Media Center
With so many changes upon us and so many technologies emerging, it gets harder and harder to know which road to follow. In this session, Doug Sleeter will put into perspective the various technologies you’ve heard about during the conference, and he’ll present The Sleeter Group’s roadmap for what you can do today to begin travelling down the road of using online technologies for your practice and for your client’s businesses.
Conference Tracks |
Consulting Best Practices
& Tools
Understanding how software tools, operating systems, and related
technologies work together to create an overall system is critical
to succeeding in the accounting software consulting business. In
addition to several technology sessions, you will get a sampling
of the new products and services available to supercharge your practice.
You'll walk away with valuable skills, techniques and product updates
that apply across multiple industries.
- Successful Accounting Software Consulting Tips, Tricks, and
Best Practices
- Online Technologies That Will Change Your Practice and Your
Clients' Business
- How to Implement Document Management Technologies
- Troubleshooting QuickBooks Data Files - Expert Tips to Quickly
Identify Errors and Repair Data Files
- Networking the Accounting Software - Installing, Configuring,
and Maintaining Networks for Your Clients
View session descriptions for this track.
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Technologies & Trends
Stay up to date on new technologies and trends across all industries.
Learn the latest about Windows VISTA and how trends in networking,
online technologies, hosted applications, web applications, and
security will change how you work with clients and what you’ll
recommend for their internal systems.
- Windows VISTA, Office 2007, and Trends in the Accounting Software
Market
- Securing Your Information in an Insecure World
- Integrating Paperless Document Management Technologies
View session descriptions for this track.
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Reporting & Analytics
Perhaps the one area that should be first in the minds of accounting
software consultants and software developers is the area of developing
efficient, meaningful, and accurate financial reports. Unfortunately,
quite often the reports are an afterthought, and if the systems
are not set up well in the first place, reporting is at best difficult,
but at worst impractical or even impossible. Several developers
and consultants have gone to great lengths to tackle the challenges
surrounding reporting and analytics. Come learn from the combined
experiences of the top experts and developers in the reporting,
analytics and business intelligence area.
- Tools and Best Practices for Custom Reporting
- Using Business Intelligence Tools to Provide Insight to Your
Clients’ Businesses
- Using ODBC and Other Tools to Create Custom Reports from Accounting
Software Data
- Payroll Options for Consultants and Clients
View session descriptions for this track.
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Online Technologies and Solutions
As the proliferation of the Internet continues to influence the
practice of accounting, there are literally hundreds of new and
exciting products and services that you can use to improve your
practice and your clients’ businesses. Come learn from the
industry’s experts about these leading-edge technologies that
you can start implementing right away. Learn about new online applications,
hosted desktop applications (ASPs), remote support, online backup
technologies, and online services to improve your AR and AP.
- Web Shopping Carts, Online Banking, Merchant Account Technologies,
Products and Solutions
- Client Collaboration Technologies and Techniques - Remote Access,
File Transfer, and Remote Hosting (ASPs)
- Automating the AP Process, New Opportunities for Consultants
and Clients
- Online Payroll Options. Learn how Anytime-Anywhere Makes Payroll
Services Profitable for Consultants and More Secure for Clients
View session descriptions for this track.
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Business Development & Marketing
Whether you are just starting out, or ready to take your business
to the next level, set the stage for your success. You’ll
benefit from the experience of successful professionals who will
reveal tips and techniques that will ensure your success in the
lucrative market of accounting technology consulting. Learn from
our experts how training is the most effective way to build and
nurture your consulting practice, and learn specific ways to make
your training professional and effective.
- The Next Generation Accounting Practice
- How to Embrace Change to Succeed in the Coming Years
- The Importance of Customer Relationship Management (CRM) for
You and Your Clients
- Becoming a Value Added Reseller (VAR) to Expand Your Practice
and Earn Revenues from Software Sales
- How Software Training Supercharges Your Practice and Specifics
on How to Conduct Effective Seminars
View session descriptions for this track.
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Industry Solutions
Every industry has its own vocabulary, methods and processes specific
to the business. Industry experts will share insights from their
vast experience to help you navigate through many of the solutions in the marketplace.
We will focus on five industries; Construction, Manufacturing,
Not-for-Profit, Professional Services, and Retail. In each
of these sessions, we will drill down on the specific challenges,
questions, and gray areas that are indigenous to these industries.
You’ll walk away with practical, usable tips that you can
begin to use immediately in your practice.
- Manufacturing Solutions; Add-ons, and Best Practices
- Professional Services Solutions; Add-ons, and Best Practices
- Distribution and Wholesale Solutions; Add-ons, and Best Practices
- Retail Solutions; Add-ons, and Best Practices
- Non-Profit Solutions; Add-ons, and Best Practices
View session descriptions for this track.
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The Sleeter Group’s Awesome
Add-on Awards for 2008-2009
As you develop your consulting practice, it’s important to
identify the best-of-breed products that help you solve client issues.
With the growing number of add-on software vendors in the market,
it gets more difficult to stay up to date on which products are
worth focusing on. In addition to great solutions, some vendors
are developing VAR programs that open new opportunities for consultants.
Each year The Sleeter Group reviews dozens of software add-ons and
related software/hardware solutions, from which we pick the standout
products that deserve your consideration as you implement solutions
for your clients.
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Intuit Academy
Led by Intuit insiders... learn ways to increase your proficiency
with Intuit products and services, and help you better serve your
clients.
- What’s New in QuickBooks
- What’s New with Intuit Payroll
- What’s New in the ProAdvisor Program
- Myths and Truths: The Paperless Office
- Looking Beyond National Borders for Your Business
QuickBooks ProAdvisor Advanced Certification Prep Track:
- Extending QuickBooks Functionality through Integration
- Payroll Done Right: An Advanced End to End Perspective
- QuickBooks Files: Sharing, Managing, and Maintaining Data Integrity
- QuickBooks Reporting and Analysis for Financial and Operational
Management and Job Cost Tracking.
View session descriptions for this track.
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Exhibitor Webinars
New! 2008 Conference Exhibitor Webinars (Free!)
Many of our Gold and Platinum Exhibitors are presenting their solutions
via a Webinar hosted by Doug Sleeter. Visit our Webinars
page to view these free webinars. Many of these exhibitors will
not be presenting their solutions at the conference, so watch the
webinars now to learn about their solutions. Many are offering discounts
and special offers to webinar attendees. You do not need to register
for the conference to view this webinars.
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Contact
The
Sleeter Group, Inc. is registered with the National Association
of State Boards of Accountancy (NASBA) as a sponsor of continuing
professional education on the National Registry of CPE Sponsors.
State boards of accountancy have final authority on the acceptance
of individual courses for CPE credit. Complaints regarding registered
sponsors may be addressed to the National Registry of CPE Sponsors,
150 Fourth Avenue North STE 700, Nashville, TN, 37219-2417. Web
site: www.nasba.org The Sleeter Group is also registered with the
Internal Revenue Service for Enrolled Agents.