The Receipt Bank Blog

My first Xerocon in 2011 was in beautiful Taupo, New Zealand. At the time I was a bookkeeper building my own practice and I was excited by the opportunity technology offered - enabling me to increase my capacity, work remotely and improve the services I offered my clients. There were a few lone voices at Xerocon back then, with just 250 in attendance and a question mark in many minds about the cloud’s future.

Fast forward to Xerocon 2015 and there’s now a band of many (over 1,000 in fact!) with an influential voice in the accounting and bookkeeping industry. In fact, now I see many proactive practices employ ‘cloud champions’, who focus on using the best of breed software to deliver a better client solution.

As usual, this year’s New Zealand Xerocon continued to inspire and motivate with a variety of great speakers. Chief Marketing Officer, Andy Lark’s exploration of ‘the new financial web’. International Rugby League Icon, Graham Lowe, sharing his 12 Key Dynamic Principles, including ‘Discover the Power of your Team Early’. Gerhard Vorster, Chief Strategy Officer at Deloitte, focussing on what’s next in disruption.

The ‘Diversity in Business’ breakfast session was a big highlight - a discussion that encouraged cultural and gender diversity in the accounting and finance industry. Hosted by Victoria Crone, Xero’s NZ Managing Director, the three inspirational guest speakers were Hon Louise Upston, Minister of Women; Sina Wendt-Moore, Chief Executive of Leadership New Zealand; and Jacki Johnson, CEO of IAG. It was great to see these conversations in a group environment, challenging the status quo and giving these leaders a platform to share their challenges and wisdom.

And of course, we loved the energising buzz, traffic and chatter in Add-on alley! Congratulations to all the nominees and winners of the Xerocon 2015 awards. It’s a privilege for Receipt Bank to be partnered with so many winners. We thrive in creating and working with others in this dynamic environment and industry!