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APA Conference & Awards 2023
National Motorcycle Museum, Solihull
17th October 2023
What can I expect on these days?
The AP Conference welcomes some of the best industry experts and personalities to speak and present, giving delegates key insights, anecdotes and more!
This year we will be exploring methods of overcoming imposter syndrome and battling adversity. Expect workshops, panels, inspiring speakers, and industry insights on topics such as recruitment challenges, customer understanding, fraud prevention and future trends.
8:30am
Coffee & Registration
9:00am
Welcome Address
Jamie Radford
9:10am
Challenges with recruitment & career development
Karen Young
9:40am
Keynote Speaker
Who made YOU the expert??! I’m going to change your life
Brad Burton
10:15am
"Mindset - The Golden Ticket"
This interactive and high energy session focuses on helping you develop your mindset, positivity and self-belief. It's aimed at helping you think about yourself and the things that matter most.
The session will introduce tools and techniques to help you build a positive mindset, to help you believe more in yourself and achieve what you want to.
Now that's the Ticket!
John Sunderland-Wright
10:45am
Break & Networking
11:15am
Finding your Voice & Motivate your team
Unlock the power of leadership as this keynote dives into finding your voice and igniting motivation within your team. Discover strategies to inspire and empower, fostering a dynamic and cohesive work environment
Lubnah Allam
Nicola Stevenson
Rebecca Howard
Nicholas Brierly
Josie Phelps
11:45am
When Best Practice Is Not Enough: Taking Your AP Operations One Step Further
Merely employing recognized best practices is no longer enough in many organizations. Yes, they protect against fraud and result in fewer duplicate payments and enable regulatory compliance. But, what about those organizations and professionals who are looking for more, those who are looking to squeeze every last drop of efficiency and profitability out of their accounts payable operation? In this session we’ll identify five strategic opportunities, for those professionals willing to push the envelope and go the extra mile.
After this session you will be able to:
• Develop investigative skills to help weed out AP errors where most don’t look
• Take the Mr. Beast Approach: Additional productivity shortcuts
• Create a continuous user-friendly learning platform
Mary Schaeffer
12:15pm
Lunch & Networking
12:15pm
Workshops & Networking
Session 1 – Knowing your customers and their challenges
Unveiling the power of customer-centricity, this keynote explores the importance of
understanding customers and their unique challenges, paving the way for tailored
solutions and meaningful connections that drive success.
Mark Harrison
Dan French
12:15pm
Workshops & Networking
Session 2 – “How Clean Data is crucial to the AP/P2P process”
Susan will take us through the importance of wearing your COAT when it comes to data. a not to be missed workshop
Susan Walsh
1:15pm
Develop & Create an AP/P2P Dashboard
Unleash the potential of an AP/P2P dashboard in this panel discussion, where you'll learn how to
develop and create powerful tools & strategies for streamlining processes, enhancing visibility, and
optimising financial operations.
Sarah Turner
Mandy Wilson
Kat Moy
Gareth Jones
Helen Dines
1:45pm
Break
1:55pm
Workshop - Session 1 - Softco - P2P Automation - Achieving Best Practice
In this Panel Discussion, host Killian McCarthy, Sales Director, SoftCo, will join Martin Ray, AP Manager, Superdry Plc, Nick Swallow, Financial Systems Manager, apetito and Jane Green, SSC Manager, VP Group. The expert panellists will explain how their organizations approached the automation of their Procure-to-Pay function. From market research and vendor selection to the importance of putting vendors to the test and going live. Attend this session if you want to understand the pitfalls to look out for, the hard questions to ask, and the stakeholders to involve to ensure P2P project success & best practices.
Martin Ray
Jane Green
Nick Swallow
Killian McCarthy
1:55pm
Workshop - Session 2 - Pagero - Assessing the direct and indirect impact of new government legislation on AP
In this session, we will delve into the impact of government regulations on Accounts Payable.
Our exploration will trace the shift of government mandates from a focus on AR, indirectly affecting
AP, to the current state of affairs where AP is increasingly central to new legislation. Additionally, we will examine the ViDA proposals, which are set to change everything, to identify
potential opportunities and discuss how being prepared can bring substantial benefits to your AP
department.
Matthew Hammond
2:25pm
Break
2:40pm
Workshop - Session 1 - Bottomline - The Power of Payables: Driving Growth, Efficiency and Control
In this session, Bottomline's Richard Ransom will explore three key boardroom agendas facing Account Payable (AP) and Procure-to-Pay (P2P) professionals.
• The drive of digitisation for payment efficiency
• How to realise opportunities within the evolving innovation & regulation landscape
• The focus on liquidity management for agility and growth
Richard Ransom
2:40pm
Workshop - Session 2 - Xelix - In pursuit of innovation and excellence’: Liberty Global’s Accounts Payable Transformation Story with Xelix
Liberty Global plc is a multinational telecoms company with operations in six countries and 20,000+ employees. Liberty Shared Services (LSS) is responsible for running their HR & Finance functions, including Accounts Payable.
Seeking to transform via building standardised, automated, and repeatable solutions, LSS selected Xelix as a technology partner, in pursuit of scaling out and becoming an independent shared services company.
Hear from Toni and Sarah of LSS who will be sharing how Xelix has transformed their audit and control processes - delivering millions in cost savings, huge time savings, healthier vendor relationships, reduced risk, and improved team morale.
Paul Roiter
Toni Trudgill
Sarah Willman
3:10pm
Break
3:20pm
Headline Speaker
Eddie is an entertaining and inspiring presenter, talking about how to succeed against all the odds. He reminds audiences that success isn’t always about winning, but about trying.
You’ll also learn how this Eagle landed on his feet, even if it wasn’t in quite the same style as his sporting rivals!
Eddie 'The Eagle' Edwards
4:00pm
Closing Remarks
Join us for this year's biggest AP Industry Conference
OCT17
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National Motorcycle Museum, Solihull
Join us for the largest Accounts Payable Conference in Europe, with a full day of panels and workshops before an evening of celebration, good food and entertainment.
Choose between the full experience with a Conference and Awards Gala Dinner ticket, or opt to attend the Conference only.
- Conference Only: £99pp
- Conference & Awards Dinner: £149pp
Headline Conference Sponsor
Headline Awards Sponsor
Conference Sponsors
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