For more than a decade, the Digital CPA (DCPA) conference produced by CPA.com has been one of the last live events CPAs attend before the year ends. It has always tried to offer a view into where CPA firms and related trends are headed in terms of practice and technology, and I am attending this year with some thoughts in mind.
While I haven’t attended every DCPA since the inaugural event in Dec. 2012, I have been a part of a majority of them, and each year I am reminded how much it came to resemble, in spirit anyway, the Practitioners Symposium and Tech+ Conference (PracTech) of old. For those of us who remember, this was the AICPA’s annual confab specifically dedicated to the eponymous themes and, in my view, the one conference CPAs gleened much of what they do now at DCPA about their futures.
It is true, “PracTech” sessions are still available during the AICPA & CIMA’s ENGAGE megacon. But having a comparatively intimate (I use the term loosely) event solely dedicated to the latest practice management and technology trends impacting CPA businesses, as well as their clients, is what is found primarily at DCPA. I dare say it is why CPAs and the service providers that do attend choose to do so each year.
First off, as I do each time I’ve attended, I am looking forward to seeing at least 1-2 new platforms I’ve not heard of before or seen “live.” When DCPA began the only service providers in attendance were those affiliated with then CPA2Biz’s partner program, so it’s been good to see that expand over the years to other non-affiliated platforms.
While it may not be the main reason CPAs attend DCPA, because of the relative intimate nature (as I mentioned) of the “vendor hall,” or in the case of this event, the Resource Center, every attendee has a great opportunity to connect with the platform vendors and see anything new they may have. DCPA also does offer each vendor a chance to have a captive audience for a 15-minute demonstration, which again, if you are looking for that, is a decent add.
One of the bigger draws, for me this year, is to see if there is any kind of passing of the torch or recognition therein between outgoing AICPA CEO Barry Melancon and their new Executive Mark Koziel. I say “new” lightly as Mark has a long history with the AICPA and did spend the past four years at the helm of another large CPA institute, Allinial Global. Barry typically gives a keynote, offering bits of his state of the profession speech from ENGAGE and some additional notes specifically tailored for the DCPA audience.
With Melancon having spent 30 years heading up the AICPA, Koziel’s entrance should be noteworthy for DCPA attendees, the Institute, and CPAs at large. In all likelihood, the mantle will be given to Barry for one last time, as he is often paired with CPA.com President Erik Asgeirsson for Q&A about current affairs and future trends impacting the profession.
Finally, as I always do, I am looking forward to interacting with the CPAs in attendance. With all due respect, it is their views that matter most when it comes to any indicators of where the winds of the profession are truly blowing.
Granted, it is widely understood that most who do attend DCPA represent mid-larger firms and not quite the majority of the profession. Still, their views of what is impacting their practices and clients’ businesses do offer a window into what matters most to CPAs on the whole.
So, off to Denver I will go and report and social media share on the goings on, I will. I’ve always appreciated that, unlike ENGAGE, DCPA’s producers have always chosen to have the event in different locations each year. And because socializing is a key part of any live event, it is a welcome location to do so for a variety of reasons.
Stay tuned…