Last week, Xero held its conference, Xerocon, in Austin, Texas. It was the fourth such conference in the United States, but the first outside of either of its U.S. headquarters, Denver and San Francisco.
Precon
The day before the official conference agenda was Precon, Xero’s full-day educational offering. Having participated in most of the other sessions before, I opted for the new BookkeeperX, taught by practice owner, Xero Ambassador and friend, Ryan Watson. BookkeeperX tells the tale of an “accounting technologist” from an app-intensive perspective, where Xero is only one piece.
As a CPA who has retooled many traditional small business processes, Ryan gave real-life examples of efficiencies and controls built from investment in the right products. What was especially impressive was that the content did not shy away from very specific, technical integration issues, but addressed them head on.
In closing, Ryan reminded even seasoned integrationists, like me, that ecosystem discovery and implementation is a never-ending process.
Xero Partner Community
Keri Gohman
After opening remarks from Keri Gohman, CEO Rod Drury revved up the crowd in typical fashion, by dropping a bit of artificial intelligence talk.
Rod noted that we are approaching the “end of accounting software,” which coming from a man with a serious stake in an accounting software company, seemed surprising on the surface.
However, advisors who have been around Xero for a while understand that the software has never been the destination.
Winning with clients means providing advisory services, and the more efficiently software can get us to good data, the better.
What resonated with me more than Rod’s shocker statement was this bit, “We’ve gone from an app to a platform to a community. A really holistic community out there to help small businesses.”
Rod Drury
It got me thinking about how and why Xero’s partner populace feels different than other groups.
Xero advisors have created a community that revolves around purpose and value, not revenue. It is a group of supportive accountants and bookkeepers.
Perhaps that comes from the spirit that Xero advisors have taken the road less traveled in the United States and chosen to stand against the big green monster.
Our deep-rooted community is why advisors who should be competitors are friends. We believe in leveraging technology in pursuit of a sustainable business built on passion.
The keynotes from Amy Vetter, Anna Curzon and Marcus Lemonis and panel discussions of Xero experts emphasized that passion trumps competition.
Xerocon
Xerocon 2017 Panel
Dave Emmerman said of the conference, “Someone asked if I was worried about sharing my expertise with a competitor. I’m not. Because I know the community, there just isn’t a threat. We want to help each other. In other places, advisors don’t know each other and that’s what leads to fierce competition.”
The spirit of comradery has not eroded even with significant gains in the U.S. market share. There were many new faces at the conference last week and with that, untold introductions.
The “buzz” of Xerocon comes from constant connections from the very top to the newest of partners. Rod and Keri make it a point, not just to meet advisors, but to truly listen to them.
Xero Advisors with Rod Drury
Global Investment in Advisors
There was a tangible international presence this year, Anna Curzon, Mel Power and many others, which reinforced Xero’s commitment to the U.S. market and the power of a global community.
Anna Curzon
Anna Curzon explained Xero’s investment in practice level tools, such as Xero HQ. It is designed to be a “one-stop hub for accounting practices.”
What began in beta last year as a reformatting of the comfortable My Xero dashboard, has been elevated to a true firm centerpiece.
Xero HQ works best as the landing page of advisors for all firm clients, not just Xero clients. With Xero HQ now being integrated with app partners like Hubdoc and Practice Ignition, it gives advisors insight into those connections from one screen.
Xero experts are familiar with client-level app integrations, but the idea that apps will now read and report on practice level data is a game changer. This feels like the beginning of an explosive upset in practice technology.
Snow in Texas
Rainey Street
A recap of Xerocon Austin would not be complete without a mention of the weather. I planned a pub crawl along Rainey Street for my training company (elefanttraining.com) because patio bars in Austin are always a good idea.
Not so, this year! It was freezing and rainy for three days, and on the third and final day, the rain turned to snow.
Always on the ball, the events team procured hundreds of blankets for the conference hall, which were then donated to local shelters after the conference.
elefanttraining
Emcee Greg Kyte told the entire audience, along with Patti and Scott Scharf, the married owners of Catching Clouds, who were huddled together under a single blanket, between keynotes, “Not only is this a work trip for the two of you, but it’s a romantic getaway.”
After hearing my story I bet you want to be part of the love fest that is the Xero Community? So make plans now to attend Xerocon 2018 in Atlanta, June 5-7, 2018. Austin sold out quickly. No doubt Atlanta will too.
A Note from the Editor - Am I the only one who sees the irony in this? Amanda planned a party on 'Rainey' street, which when everyone got there was really, 'Rainy' street. I wonder if it would work if you found a party street called 'fareweather'? Still the same, Amanda is to be commended for making the best of a 'wet' situation; because, as I understand it, everyone attending had a great time.
About the Author:
Amanda Aguillard
Amanda Aguillard, CPA is one of the leading authorities on all things Xero. Amanda has a thriving accounting practice, Aguillard Accounting, LLC, in New Orleans which is centered around Xero. She has served as one of Xero's American Ambassadors, and has also been anointed as a Xero Evangelist of the Year. Amanda also operates a training company called elefant training, as though she didn't have enough work to do already.
Amanda regularly contributes content to both the Xero Blog and Insightful Accountant, and is co-host of Insightful Accountant's 'The Xero Zone' webinars covering new and enhanced Xero features.