As a consultant for the accounting profession, attending conferences is an essential part of my career. In May 2023, I had the privilege of attending ExpensiCon 2023, held in Puglia, Italy.
Being my first time attending this conference, I had high expectations, and I'm happy to say Expensify exceeded them. This conference was more than just a professional gathering—it was a cultural experience.
In this article, I share my takeaways from the conference.
First-class experience
It's not every day you get to attend a conference of such a grand scale and with such luxurious accommodations. Expensify rented out the entire Borgo Egnazia resort in Puglia, Italy, for the conference. The resort in the southeast "boot" of Italy is a bit off the beaten path, so attendees could experience the beauty of that region of Italy without the typical crowds of tourists.
Expensify also spared no expense when it came to social gatherings. The beach party, golf course on the resort, and excursions into town were exceptional. But the event's highlight was choosing from a selection of classic cars to take for a spin on our last night in town.
Connecting with colleagues
ExpensiCon is an invite-only event. With just 130 attendees (and their plus ones), it's much more intimate than most conferences I attend. Because of its size, I had an opportunity to meet new people and have more in-depth conversations with old friends and new colleagues.
The conference was structured to provide content sessions in the morning and opportunities for one-on-one connections with colleagues and the Expensify team in the afternoon, which gave us plenty of time to network before the evening's social events. This was a great way to learn, build relationships with colleagues, and establish new business connections.
Learning about Expensify's evolving offerings
One of the highlights of this conference was learning about new developments in Expensify's offerings.
The platform is evolving to become more conversational between payees and payors. We got to test the new chat-based functionality during the conference, as they used the app to communicate with attendees, share agendas and other documents, and allow attendees to ask questions of presenters during their sessions.
I was also happy to hear that Expensify is ramping up its customer service team to ensure they can provide complete and timely answers to questions. This should be a huge help to firms as it supports the product they recommend to their clients.
George Clooney was the headliner of the conference, which wasn't a random decision. The Clooney Foundation for Justice, which works in over 40 countries on issues related to prosecuting war crimes, reforming discriminatory laws, freeing innocent people, and obtaining reparations for victims, is an Expensify customer. Clooney entertained and had a great message about making the world a better place.
Attending ExpensiCon 2023 in Italy was an experience of a lifetime. It offered more than I expected; I got to experience Italian culture, network with colleagues, and learn about an evolving platform that makes life easier for accountants and their clients.
If you're not already using Expensify and recommending it to your clients, check out the ExpensifyApproved! Accountants Program. Maybe I'll see you at the next ExpensiCon.
Jim Boomer, CEO of Boomer Consulting, Inc., is an expert on managing technology within an accounting firm. He serves as the director of the Boomer Technology Circles, The Advisor Circle and the CIO Circle. He also acts as a strategic planning and technology consultant and firm adviser to CPA firms across the country. Accounting Today called him a “thought leader who can help accountants create next-generation firms.” Jim is a prolific writer with a monthly column in The CPA Practice Advisor and has been published in a number of industry publications including Accounting Today, Accounting Web, the International Group of Accounting Firms and several state society publications.