Two AICPA Chairmen will share their stories, their passion for inclusion and belonging, and what the Association is doing to ensure a more inclusive workforce in the CPA profession. They’ll also share why it’s imperative for you to have a seat at the leadership table and what role you can play in making that happen.

Learning Objectives:

• Recognize key leadership traits for continued success.
• Identify our professions' pipeline initiatives.

People prosper when they can fully be themselves—when they feel welcome and don’t feel any pressure to keep parts of themselves hidden. That spirit of inclusion allows us to have better conversations and feel good about ourselves, our jobs, and each other. Ultimately, inclusion drives growth for companies because it creates an environment where innovation thrives. In this session you’ll learn strategies for how to provide an environment of psychological safety, address an environment where you feel excluded, and ensure that you’re not setting yourself up to be excluded.

Learning Objectives:

• Identify strategies to foster psychological safety within their teams or organizations.
• Identify methods to address exclusionary environments.
• Recognize personal inclusion practices to avoid setting themselves up for exclusion.

Self-awareness is a form of stepping back and observing your thoughts and feelings as they unfold. Or it can be a more complex, layered awareness of how your thoughts feed into your emotions, physical sensations, and behaviors. In this session you will learn how being self-aware might lead to feeling that more things are under your own control than you thought: decisions might feel easier to make; you might find it easier to tell someone why something is important to you; or you might find it easier to show up as your true, authentic, professional self without fear of being rejected.

Learning Objectives:

• Identify techniques and strategies to cultivate self-awareness through self-reflection.
• Identify the intricate relationships among their thoughts, emotions, physical sensations, and behaviors.
• Recognize authentic self-expression and the effective communication of their values, needs, and priorities to others.

In this session, we'll explore the diverse careers available to CPAs and how embracing these opportunities can not only broaden your professional horizons but also enhance your skill set and marketability in today's competitive landscape. We'll also delve into the often-overlooked yet immensely rewarding aspect of volunteering within the profession. Whether you're a recent graduate embarking on your CPA journey or a seasoned professional looking to revitalize your career, this session will equip you with practical insights and actionable strategies to harness the full potential of your CPA license while making a meaningful impact through volunteering.

Learning Objectives:

• Identify the diverse career paths for CPAs.
• Identify strategies to leverage your CPA license for professional growth and career advancement.
• Recognize the impact and benefits of volunteering within the CPA profession.

Peer-to-peer roundtables provide the opportunity to network with other professionals, exchange ideas, collaborate and share tips and techniques for advancing up leadership ranks effectively.

We all hit those career moments when self-doubt starts whispering in our ears. Instead of just trying to “fix” ourselves, let’s flip the script. This session dives into the good, the bad, and the ugly sides of self-doubt: what’s healthy, what’s not, and how to create work environments where everyone can thrive. We’ll explore why imposter thoughts pop up in the first place, how they can hold us back, or even push us forward. We’ll also discuss simple shifts in perspective and practical exercises to help you move past doubt and keep your career on the upswing.

Learning Objectives:

• Distinguish between healthy and unhealthy self-doubt as well as their impacts on personal and professional growth.
• Recognize what causes imposter thoughts and when they can be helpful or just get in your way.
• Recall mindset shifts and exercises you can use to boost your confidence and keep moving forward.

What if the life you want isn’t out of reach—it’s just on the other side of refusing to settle?

In this powerful keynote, Nesha Pai shares her transformative story of reinvention, resilience, and rising again through some of life’s most unexpected challenges.

From quitting her job after being told she had a "mom gap" in her résumé, to building a successful remote-first business before it was common, to facing betrayal, burnout, breast cancer, and the loss of her sister—Nesha's lived experiences form the foundation of a compelling and actionable message: Don’t settle.

In this session, Nesha offers a framework built on 6 real-life turning points, each delivering a transformative principle your audience can apply right away. 

Tailored for audiences who are navigating transition, burnout, ambition, or reinvention, this keynote speaks to anyone ready to live beyond expectation—and fully into the life they know they’re capable of.

Learning Objectives:

• Learn how to say no to what no longer serves you to make space for what does
• Pioneer your own path even when no one else sees the vision
• Stretch beyond your comfort zone to reclaim courage and creativity
• Learn how to follow the dream that keeps resurfacing
• Use life’s hardest moments as clarity tools

Want to stand out as a leader who brings people together? Discover how to lead with purpose by creating inclusive spaces where everyone feels heard and valued. Through relatable stories and interactive polling, you'll explore how to spot subtle exclusion, respond with confidence, and build trust across differences. Leave with ready-to-use tools to navigate crucial conversations and lead boldly with empathy, awareness, and impact.

Learning Objectives:

• Recognize the hallmarks of intentional leadership and how limited awareness or exposure can create barriers to inclusive leadership.
• Identify strategies for recognizing and addressing exclusion or inaccessibility in workplace interactions.
• Recall techniques to navigate crucial conversations, implement inclusive workplace practices, and raise awareness of potential workplace challenges.

Peer-to-peer roundtables provide the opportunity to network with other professionals, exchange ideas, collaborate and share tips and techniques for advancing up leadership ranks effectively.

Many emerging professionals can benefit from the wisdom of others in the profession, which makes mentoring, sponsorship, and coaching invaluable. But can you distinguish between a coach and a sponsor? Do you know what successful mentoring entails? This session will identify the differences between a mentor, a sponsor, and a coach, and how they all are crucial to your growth. This session will also discuss the types of mentors, the role of the mentor and the mentee, why both parties must actively manage the process, and how to get the most out of the relationship.

Learning Objectives:

• Distinguish between coaching, mentoring, and sponsoring to understand what type of support to seek at different stages of your career and how to find the right advocates for your professional growth.
• Identify skills to build meaningful relationships with mentors and sponsors.
• Recognize basic coaching and mentoring techniques, including active listening, asking effective questions, and providing helpful feedback.
• Identify how to position yourself for visibility and growth opportunities within your organization.

Navigating feedback is one of the most powerful ways to accelerate your growth as a young professional. This session will equip early-career professionals with strategies to seek, receive, and act on feedback throughout the year, not just during formal evaluations. 

You’ll learn how to build working relationships with leaders so that feedback becomes a regular, expected part of your development, not a guessing game. The session will also address challenges many professionals of color face around receiving equitable and actionable feedback and teach techniques to advocate for yourself professionally while building trust and transparency. 

Participants will gain actionable tools to ensure they are never caught off guard at performance reviews and can consistently align their performance with both formal and informal expectations.

Learning Objectives:

• Identify strategies for seeking feedback throughout a project cycle.
• Recognize the importance of building feedback-centered relationships with leaders.
• Select a personal feedback plan to align ongoing performance with expectations and reduce surprises during formal reviews.
• Recognize when and how to seek clarification or additional feedback to support career progression, especially in environments where bias or unclear standards may exist.
• Identify techniques to receive feedback constructively and use it to drive personal and professional growth.

Join us for an inspiring recount of the journey from intern to Partner, highlighting the highs and lows navigated along the way. Gain valuable advice on how you too can rise to a leadership position within your organization.

Learning Objectives:

• Identify the key milestones and challenges in the journey from intern to partner.
• Recall strategies for leadership and career advancement.