Summer Excel Conference
Overview
In today’s fast-paced, data-driven world, financial professionals must do more than manage numbers — they must work smarter, faster, and with greater precision. This conference is designed to help you unlock the full power of Excel and modern data tools, equipping you with practical strategies to streamline workflows, automate repetitive tasks, and transform raw data into meaningful insights.
Through a combination of hands-on techniques and advanced applications, you’ll learn how to elevate your efficiency with smarter spreadsheet formatting, leverage automation to reduce manual effort, and harness the power of tools like Power Query in Excel and Power BI to clean, combine and analyze data with confidence. Whether you're looking to save time, reduce errors or enhance the impact of your financial reporting, this experience will provide the skills and strategies you need to take your data capabilities to the next level.
Walk away with not only new technical knowledge, but also a more strategic approach to your work — one that frees up time, reduces stress, and allows you to focus on delivering high-value insights.
Designed For
Business professionals seeking to elevate their Excel skills and productivity.
Objectives
- Apply advanced Excel formatting and automation techniques to improve efficiency, accuracy and consistency in your daily work.
- Utilize Power Query in Excel and Power BI to streamline data preparation, including connecting, cleaning and combining multiple data sources.
- Develop and transform data into structured, insightful outputs that support more effective financial analysis and decision-making.
June 1, 2026
General Session
- 1. Formatting Excel Spreadsheets & Automation Opportunities for Increasing Personal Efficiency & Effectiveness
Brian Tankersley, K2 EnterprisesBrian Tankersley
Brian Tankersley, CPA.CITP, is a consultant who advises U.S. firms and companies on accounting technology issues. He is a frequent speaker at continuing education courses for K2 Enterprises, and publishes a nationally recognized blog on accounting and technology (www.cpatechblog.com). He has also served as the technology editor for a major accounting industry publication. Brian has over 25 years of professional experience, including accounting, auditing, technology and education, and has been with K2 Enterprises since 2005.
Some estimates indicate that business professionals spend almost half their time in Excel applying formats. If you want better formatting results in less time, participate in this session to learn the best practices for formatting your Excel spreadsheets. Further, automation is a great way to save time, improve accuracy and effectiveness, and get more value from your workday. In this session, you will learn how to automate mundane tasks that take up too much energy so you can complete them automatically instead. One of the best things a person can do is invest time into automating their workday to help them achieve more work, reduce daily stress, and provide better mental clarity.
Learn best practices for applying formats in your workbooks. More specifically, you will learn about features such as Custom Format Codes, Templates, Styles, the Accounting Format, Precision as Displayed, date formats and many others, all of which can save you substantial time when working in Excel. Further, automation options abound, and in this session, you will learn how to take advantage of many personal automation tools and services. Learn about various automation platforms, creating automation workflows, and automation tools to become more efficient.
Credits: 2 - Computer Software & Applications
This session is available to registrants only.
General Session
- 2. Connect, Transform & Analyze Data Like a Pro With Power Query
Stephen Yoss, Senior Technology Strategist & Principal, K2 EnterprisesStephen Yoss
Stephen Yoss Jr., CPA, is a senior technology strategist and principal of MantisPRO, a company that focuses on helping organizations develop a technology strategy to streamline their business operations. Stephen has consulted with several companies on how to lower overhead, personnel and compliance costs by investing in technology and reengineering their business practices. He teaches his clients to embrace technology at every opportunity in order to increase efficiency and productivity. MantisPRO’s specialty is designing and building cloud based workspaces for companies to conduct all their operations virtually. Prior to starting MantisPRO, Stephen worked as an accountant in his family’s accounting practice, Yoss & Allen. While working there he became a CPA and completely redesigned the firm’s technology practices. Many of the technologies he consults on today were first designed, perfected and implemented in his family’s practice and with their clients. Stephen has also spent time working abroad as a management accountant in New Zealand. Stephen began working with technology at age 10, and started his first IT company at age 13, designing web applications for local businesses. He started writing original computer code at age 15 and has been working with technology ever since. Stephen is a graduate of Loyola Marymount University and holds degrees in accountancy and international business. He is currently pursuing a graduate degree in Information Systems and Technology at Claremont Graduate University. His research is focused in the areas of corporate technology and education technology strategy. He has been teaching professional continuing professional education since 2009 in self-study, webcast, in-house and live formats. He has presented to thousands of practitioners nationwide on topics such as cloud computing, mobile technology, spreadsheet design and best practices, information security, identity theft prevention and many more. Aside from working in technology and accounting he is a professional licensed pyrotechnician and works on major firework displays around the country. He lives in Claremont, California.
In today’s data-driven environment, financial professionals are expected not only to analyze numbers but to transform them into actionable insights. This course offers a deep dive into the practical applications of Power Query in both Excel and Power BI, tailored for those who already have a foothold in financial data analysis. Participants will learn how to streamline their data preparation process, saving time and reducing errors by automating the tedious tasks of connecting to various data sources, combining datasets and cleaning up data for more efficient analysis.
As the backbone of any insightful report or dashboard, clean and well-structured data is a must. This course goes beyond the basics, equipping attendees with the skills to create custom columns and perform advanced data transformations that lead to more meaningful financial reports. By the end of the sessions, participants will not only have sharpened their analytical capabilities but will also carry the confidence to tackle complex data challenges with ease. Don’t miss the opportunity to refine your data skills and bring new levels of proficiency to your financial analysis.
Credits: 2 - Specialized Knowledge
This session is available to registrants only.
General Session
- 3. Excel PivotTables for Accountants
Tommy Stephens Jr., Shareholder, K2 EnterprisesTommy Stephens Jr.
Tommy Stephens Jr., CPA.CITP, CGMA, is a shareholder in K2 Enterprises and a consultant to small businesses and CPA firms. Since 2003, he has been affiliated with K2 Enterprises and in 2007 he joined the firm as a partner. To date, he has lectured nationally on subjects such as internal controls for small businesses, practice management and marketing, computer hardware and software applications, tax strategies and compliance, and financial accounting standards and applications. Over the past 18 years, Tommy has presented in excess of 1,100 educational sessions to more than 28,000 participants nationwide. Prior to K2 Enterprises, he managed his own public accounting practice in the metropolitan Atlanta area. In his practice, he provided accounting, tax and consulting services to individuals and a wide variety of small and emerging businesses. As part of his practice, he developed a successful consulting practice providing installation and support services of small business accounting software. Tommy also spent several years at BellSouth Corporation in positions of increasing responsibility culminating as the manager of cost accounting.
Many business professionals consider PivotTables the most powerful feature in Excel, yet most accounting and financial professionals do not use them in their day-to-day activities. If you are ready to learn how to take advantage of PivotTables or extend your existing knowledge of PivotTables, then plan to participate in this course. You will learn how to build PivotTables, group data inside PivotTables — including grouping options for fiscal periods — and create user-defined calculations in your PivotTables. You will also learn advanced PivotTable techniques, including building PivotTables that consolidate data from multiple data ranges and PivotTables that connect dynamically to external databases and financial accounting systems. Additionally, you will learn to take advantage of other Excel features associated with PivotTables, including Slicers, Power Query and Power Pivot. You will be a master of Excel PivotTables at the end of the day!
This course is for you if you have been leery of working with PivotTables or have struggled to realize their many benefits. With some information, guidance, and coaching from your K2 instructor, you will be ready to use PivotTables to analyze and report on extensive data sets in a fraction of the time you spend completing such tasks.
Credits: 1 - Accounting
Credits: 1 - Computer Software & Applications
This session is available to registrants only.
General Session
- 4. Excel Charting & Visualizations
Mac McClelland, Associate, K2 EnterprisesMac McClelland
Lawrence A. (Mac) McCIeIIand, J.D., is an attorney and accounting professional and an associate of K2 Enterprises of Hammond, La. and Network Management Group of Hutchinson, Kan. McCIeIIand was formerly the director of the Centre for Financial Studies at the University of Otago in Dunedin, New Zealand, where he lived and worked for seven years from 1990 to 1996. He was also a member of the faculty of the Advanced Business Programme, ranked in the top 100 MBA programs in the world by The Economist, specializing in business strategy and strategic management accounting. He gained his practical experience in information systems with the National Aeronautics and Space Administration and has an established practice in business and technology consulting. McCIeIIand has taught hundreds of CPE seminars to accountants and business managers in the U.S., New Zealand, Australia, Japan, and Southeast Asia. His presentations are highly rated, and he has won several awards for teaching excellence. McCIeIIand has been published in leading business and practitioner journals, including Tax Ideas, Computers in Accounting, Journal of Accounting Education, Chartered Accountants Journal of New Zealand, and the top-rated Journal of Accounting Research.
Are you tired of struggling to create compelling charts and graphs? Join our session and transform your data into stunning visualizations that captivate and inform your audience. This isn’t just another seminar on basic charts; it’s a comprehensive guide to mastering advanced, interactive, and dynamic visualizations in Excel.
In this session, you’ll learn how to create visually appealing charts that are not only informative but also engaging. Discover the secrets to making your data come alive with interactive elements that ensure your audience understands and retains the information you present. Whether you’re looking to enhance your communication skills or impress your stakeholders, this seminar is a must-attend.
Don’t miss out on the opportunity to take your Excel skills to the next level. Sign up now and start creating visualizations that make a lasting impact!
Credits: 2 - Computer Software & Applications
This session is available to registrants only.
Non-Member Price $497.00
Member Price $347.00