The reviews are in! Last month the great and the good of the bookkeeping world gathered for the ICB Bookkeepers Summit 2024. The event celebrated all that is good in the world of bookkeeping with familiar faces and new names alike.
‘Do it your way’
The theme of the summit this year was ‘Do it your way’ - designed to recognise the many different ways you can choose to be a bookkeeper. So it was apt that delegates ranged from sole-traders and the self-employed to large practice owners and those operating in business. The conference agenda – which comprised both in-person and online events – certainly reflected the breadth of the industry.
Keynote speaker(s)
Sahar Hashemi, founder of Coffee Republic, was our external speaker who opened the event with the story of how she built her business from scratch at the kitchen table – a familiar tale for many bookkeepers in the audiences! As always, our software partners providers great insight into the profession with speakers from Xero, Apron, FreeAgent, IRIS and Sage setting the tone.
Other agend highlights included stories from an array of ICB members. Lara Manton shared her tale of working on a fast-paced US TV Show and Claire Kendall FICB & Laura Murphy MICB took to the stage to talk about the impact of ICB branch network had on their businesses.
Later in the day, delegates enjoyed practical advice from industry notables including a session on pricing from Jo Wood MICB. Paul Aplin OBE also stopped by with a thorough update on all things tax and Will Farnell closed the event with his talk on the vital role of bookkeepers.
Thank you to all the speakers who took part. You can view photographs from the in-person summit on our Facebook page.
The reviews are in!
Don’t just take our word for it! Here’s some of the feedback from delegates this year.
“It was the best conference to date and I've attended several summits over the past eight years! The programme timing was great - everything ran on time and there was a good selection of exhibitors.”
“Love it. Not as overwhelming as other events, please keep it that way! Educational but not manic, more relaxed.”
“Venue was fantastic, great speakers, a real family atmosphere!”
“The virtual summit was the best ever, and the 20 minute slots worked very well!”
The LUCA Awards
The LUCA Awards Ceremony is always a special evening, and the 2023 event was no exception. It’s the only dedicated awards ceremony for bookkeepers and the perfect opportunity to be recognised by the community. Awards were presented topractices, students, training providers, software firms, financial services providers and – of course – bookkeepers! The biggest cheer of the night was reserved for the winner of the Bookkeeping Personality of the Year Award, Kirsty St John.
An hybrid event
But that wasn’t all... A few days after the summit we hosted a two-day virtual summit. The content is different from the in-person summit, but the theme was the same and there were plenty of opportunities to network via our app.
In addition to technical updates on AI, AML, Payroll and Basis Period Reform delegates enjoyed more bookkeeper stories and software demos. Half the day was split into two separate ‘tracks’ with content designed for different bookkeepers with different needs ‘go big’ or ‘stay strong’. Highlights included a talk from Jason Dalton MICB PM.Dip and Mark Bonney MICB of Safe Hands who recently won the Bookkeeping Practice of the Year at the Accounting Excellence Awards. Industry notables sharing expertiseincluded Ashley Leeds, Helen Bower FICB PM.Dip, Bev Flanagan, Rebecca Williams M.ICB and Claire AllenC.FICB
What next?
Ticket holders for the 2023 Bookkeepers Summit can continue to access the Virtual Summit content for another two months via the app.
Watch this space for upcoming announcements for ICB events in 2024. The Bookkeepers Summit is going on tour with a series of regional roadshows in the summer. And the Bookkeepers Annual Summit will be back in November. ICB will be announcing more details soon.
