The conference for accountants in practice

Jake is a television presenter, podcaster, author and businessman who is one of the most respected sports broadcasters in the UK.

Having joined CBBC in 2001, by 2005 he was hosting Sportsround, covering major international sporting events such as the 2006 Commonwealth Games in Melbourne, the World Cup from

Vipul, MD at Advancetrack is a successful UK-based accounting technology entrepreneur. 

He founded Advancetrack in 2003, creating what has become one of the most trusted brands in the accountancy outsourcing space. 

He is a chartered accountant and chartered tax adviser, having worked in regional and Big Four firms across audit and tax. 

Vipul is well-known in the accountancy world; his role bringing him into contact with practices on a daily basis. 

Using technology at the heart of the business, Advancetrack serves technology led firms and tech businesses globally from 4 delivery centres in India.

Damian is an international speaker and bestselling author who combines his practical and academic background within sport, organisational development and change psychology, to help organisations and teams to create a high performing culture.

Damian is an acclaimed author, whose books – on the psychology of high performance, teams, culture, leaders and change – have been translated into 10 languages.

He was appointed as a Professor of Organisational Psychology and Change for Manchester Metropolitan University in September 2010. His innovative and exciting approach has been praised by Sir Richard Branson, Muhammed Ali, Sir Terry Leahy, Sir Roger Bannister, Tiger Woods, Jonny Wilkinson and Sir Alex Ferguson.

Ian is CTO at Advancetrack. Following an early career in engineering, academia, and management consulting, Ian turned his focus to IT, delivering projects for clients across healthcare, manufacturing, and professional services while teaching at leading business schools. He has worked in over twenty countries for both multinational corporations and small businesses, is a published author, and holds a Doctorate on knowledge transfer into businesses.

Ian’s expertise spans business process and IT systems architecture, design, and improvement. What sets him apart is his ability to integrate IT and human aspects of design with traditional business process skills. This comes from his doctoral research, interest in human performance, extensive process experience, and his ability to work closely with technical teams — he is even a Microsoft Certified Professional Developer.

He moves effortlessly from strategic, big picture thinking to the smallest practical details and has worked across Operations, Finance, HR, IT, and Quality functions, giving him a broad, holistic perspective. Over the past decade, Ian has focused heavily on start-ups and SMEs, gaining experience that ranges from early-stage ventures to £20bn global multinationals.

Emma, Director at Wellden Turnbull, has a degree in Accounting and Finance from the University of Southampton and was top 10 in the school of management. She joined Wellden Turnbull in 2014 as a Senior from another local firm. She has since assumed the role of managing one of our audit and accounting teams and in April 2019 was promoted to director.

Emma has experience with a varied range of clients, across a number of different industries and sizes.

Emma enjoys helping clients improve the efficiency of their accounting function, including moving over to cloud-based software, such as Xero. Away from the office, Emma has a keen interest in Art, including visiting galleries and painting.

Harriet is a Partner at UHY Hacker Young and a leading voice in helping accounting firms evolve their service offering for a changing world. 

With extensive experience advising SMEs and overseeing complex audits, she combines deep technical expertise with a passion for guiding businesses through transformative shifts. 

Harriet specialises in sustainable business strategy and the emerging field of carbon accounting, championing the role accountants can play in helping clients understand climate risks, unlock new opportunities and build resilient, future‑ready organisations. 

A strong advocate for the profession’s transition from traditional compliance to higher‑value advisory work, she is dedicated to empowering both firms and their clients to thrive in the next era of business

David is CEO at XU Magazine, the independent news source for users of accounting apps & their ecosystems.

He is also Director at DH Accountants & Tax Advisors, who provide comprehensive financial support on all business matters, from company structure and tax through to general financial admin

Joanne is Joint Managing Director at Seymour Taylor, where she leads the firm’s business development and helps guide its evolution as technology reshapes the accounting profession.

Her expertise spans accounts, audit, group reporting, and outsourced accounting and finance director services. Joanne also leads the firm’s Outsourced Accounting Services and Digital Solutions Team, helping clients strengthen their finance functions through smarter processes, automation and digital tools.

Joanne joined Seymour Taylor 23 years ago and in 2021 became Joint Managing Director of the business. 

She is known for her practical approach, open communication style and dedication to helping clients and her team truly understand the story behind the numbers.

Natasha is Managing Partner at HaysMac, a leading mid-tier accountancy and tax advisory firm headquartered in London. 

Appointed in 2022 after joining as a graduate 25 years ago, she advises scaling businesses in the creative, media, and technology sectors. 

Under her leadership, HaysMac has achieved double-digit growth, expanded into South Africa, undergone a rebrand, and been named one of The Sunday Times ‘Best Places to Work’ for two consecutive years. 

A champion for positive change, Natasha led the firm to win ‘DEI Champion of the Year’ at the 2025 Lloyd’s British Business Excellence Awards and featured in INvolve’s 2024 Global Empower Role Model List for her advocacy of inclusion.

Richard is the Managing Editor of AccountingWEB, the UK’s leading publication for the accounting profession, where he oversees content that keeps accountants and finance leaders ahead of the curve. 

A business journalist for over a decade, he reports on tax, technology, firm growth, and the latest industry trends. 

He also plays a key role in shaping two of the profession’s flagship events, the Finance, Accounting & Bookkeeping Show (FAB) at the Birmingham NEC and the Accounting Excellence Awards.

Michael is the co-founder and CEO of Castaway, a business forecasting and modelling cloud app.

It was founded on the fundamental belief that Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs), and their advisors, have the power to move the world forward.

Understanding the complexity these businesses face, co-founders Michael and Jo, united in their shared passion for learning from history’s greatest minds, embarked on the journey to establish Castaway Forecasting.

Steve Cox is a chartered accountant (FCCA) and industry expert with over 20 years of experience at the intersection of accountancy, technology, and strategy. As the former Chief Evangelist and Head of Market Insights for the UK’s leading software provider, Steve has spent two decades collaborating with the UK government, professional bodies, and fintech innovators to shape the future of the profession.

Through The AIR Network, Steve acts as a keynote speaker, non-executive director, strategic advisor and renowned community creator. Steve is dedicated to “fuelling the conversation” that moves the industry forward. Known for his ability to translate complex legislative and technological trends into actionable business strategies, Steve provides the vital insights boards need to drive innovation and sustainable growth.

Castaway makes powerful SaaS financial forecasting software, delivers education, and provides customer experiences to help businesses and their advisors understand their future.

With customers around the globe, Castaway helps you with 3-way forecasting, cashflow forecasting, budgeting, KPIs, performance reporting and more.

With clarity and rigor, Castaway supports better decisions and inspires SMEs and their advisors to plan confidently.

By using Castaway, you will save time, money & have a greater understanding of your business and clarity about the future.

The all-in-one cloud platform for faster accounts, tax, and workpapers

Fed up with clunky desktop systems?
Get a cloud-based, collaborative workspace for working papers, accounts prep, and tax—all in one place. Get Active.

Reduce manual effort and increase accounting accuracy with Active’s all-in-one cloud accounting platform.

Accounts, tax, and workpapers weren’t built to sit alone. With 2-way bookkeeping, document management, and timesheet integrations enabled by a powerful open API, Active fits nicely into your existing cloud tech stack to create automated end-to-end workflows.

The only platform to automate payment collection end to end. No more chasing, no more aged debt, no more work at all.

There is nothing more important for your business than getting paid. We pride ourselves on our excellent support, and you can sleep easy knowing we’ve got your back if the worst happens.

Whatever the format or software, we can work with it. Our world-first agentic AI can connect to any software without IT effort, or upload your data and we turn it into invoices in seconds.

Only Adfin allows you to automate chasing end to end. Our AI agents do the hard work for you, taking care of the mundane aspects of credit control. Adfin automates replies to basic queries and flags those it needs help with. More broadly, Adfin gives you the tools to stay on top of your receivables and get paid.

The independent news source for users of accounting apps and their eco-systems. 

XU Hub, XU Magazine and XU Biweekly are collaboratively produced by an independent group of accounting software users.

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Xero is a leading, cloud-based accounting software designed for small businesses, sole traders, and their advisors. It automates financial tasks like invoicing, bank reconciliation, expense tracking, and payroll, allowing users to manage business finances from anywhere using a browser or mobile app.