Gary Cokins is an internationally recognized expert, speaker, and author in enterprise and corporate performance management improvement methods and business analytics. He is the founder of Analytics-Based Performance Management, an advisory firm located in Cary, North Carolina at www.garycokins.com . Gary received a BS degree with honors in Industrial Engineering/Operations Research from Cornell University in 1971. He received his MBA with honors from Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management in 1974.Gary began his career as a strategic planner with FMC’s Link-Belt Division and then served as Financial Controller and Operations Manager.

In 1981 Gary began his management consulting career first with Deloitte consulting, and then in 1988 with KPMG consulting. In 1992 Gary headed the National Cost Management Consulting Services for Electronic Data Systems (EDS) now part of HP. From 1997 until 2013 Gary was a Principal Consultant with SAS, a leading provider of business analytics software.

Jamie received his doctoral degree in 1977 from Indiana University and joined the Kelley School of Business in 1990, where he held the Alva L. Prickett Chair of Accounting and served as Chairperson of the Accounting Department and Graduate Accounting Programs. During his career he also held positions at the University of Washington (Seattle), University of Zurich, Northwestern University, and INSEAD.

His research interests include financial reporting and auditing issues, and he published over 30 articles in the top academic accounting journals. He has served as Associate Editor of The Accounting Review and has received numerous awards for both research and teaching. Professor Pratt has authored two popular textbooks, one in its 10th edition, as well as many other educational materials, including casebooks, spreadsheet exercises, and state-of-the-art, interactive cd-rom products. He is now CEO of Prattedu, an on-line provider of video-based courses in the area of financial reporting and analysis. These courses are taken by CPAs to earn CPE credit and are used in corporate management training programs.

Jennifer F. Louis, CPA has over 25 years of experience in designing and instructing high-quality training programs in a wide variety of technical and “soft skills” topics needed for professional and organization success. In 2003, she founded Emergent Solutions Group, LLC, where she focuses her energy on designing and delivering high-quality, practical, and engaging accounting and auditing training. She was most recently Director of Audit Product Development at Surgent Professional Education, and prior to that served as Executive Vice President/Director of Training Services at AuditWatch, Inc., a highly-respected training and audit process consulting firm. Before joining AuditWatch, Jennifer was the Financial/Operational Audit Manager at AARP. At the start of her professional career, Jennifer was an Audit Manager for Deloitte & Touche LLP, where she frequently served as a local and national instructor. Jennifer graduated summa cum laude from Marymount University with a BBA-Accounting. Besides loving life on the lake with her husband in Charlotte, NC, she enjoys hiking with her little dog Frodo Beggins, and savoring any precious moments spent with her two young adult boys.

Jason Dinesen (EA, LPA) is a tax nerd, entrepreneur, tax expert and a well known presenter of continuing education courses. He has an impeccable acumen for tax subjects, by virtue of which, he is known to create very well researched course materials helping individuals and businesses with accounting, bookkeeping, tax preparation, and business advisory in various industries.

Known for his sharp tax interpretations, he is one of the quickest to bring the analysis of the latest tax updates and IRS guidance to the professional community. Jason has coached over 200,000 accounting, tax, and HR professionals on various topics of accounting, individual taxation, corporate taxation, professional ethics and much more. He has presented over dozens of webinars on Form 1099 (MISC & R); marriage in the tax code; tax updates; the new Form W-4, payroll updates, filing status, tax credit and other issues relating to the modern-day household setting.

Moreover, Jason is known to be producing every other webinar/course a little different and updated from the previous one. No wonder, he is a top ranked presenter whose webinars and self-study course materials are very well received by the audience. He also teaches 2 classes at Simpson College, Individual Income Tax and Business Analytics.

Jason always had a knack for radio shows and has and regularly features as an anchor for Radio Iowa. To reinvent this aptitude, he has recently started his own series of podcasts on myCPE ‘The Jason Show’, an edutainment podcast series that also provides continuing credits to the listeners.

Jason was born and raised in Iowa and has a degree in corporate communications from Simpson College in Indianola. He has a big family that includes his wife, two sons, 5 cats and 3 dogs. Jason holds season tickets to University of Iowa football, and enjoys using his chainsaw. Topmost item in his 2022 bucket list is to learn how to properly ‘nose & taste’ whisky.

Marcey Rader believes that health powers productivity. She is a multi-certified health and productivity expert, one of 800 Certified Speaking Professionals® worldwide, digital wellness practitioner, three-time author, and creator of the Powered Path™ Playbook.

Sought after by start-ups to Fortune 100 companies, she's spoken for tens of thousands of people on five continents. As an award-winning global speaker, she trains accountants to maximize their energy, improve focus, conquer the calendar, master tasks, and extinguish their email. In 2022, she was nominated for two MyCPE awards. Her Health-Powered Productivity podcast comprises bite-sized nuggets of knowledge delivered in 3-15 minutes. Many leaders and teams use the podcast as pre-work and discussion opportunities before meetings.

Marcey's contributed to or been featured in tv, print, and video, most notably Money, Inc., Shape, Fast Company, and Thrive Global.

Jeff Badu is a parallel entrepreneur and a wealth multiplier. He’s a Licensed Certified Public Accountant (CPA) and the Founder and CEO of Badu Enterprises, LLC, which is a multinational conglomerate that owns several key companies. His marquee company is Badu Tax Services, LLC, which is a CPA firm that specializes in tax preparation, tax planning, and tax representation for individuals and businesses. Another key company is Badu Investments, LLC, which is primarily a real estate investment company that acquires residential and commercial real estate properties in areas such as the South Side of Chicago in efforts to restore traditionally underserved areas. What sparked his interest in launching these companies is his passion for helping people minimize their tax liability and ultimately multiplying their money by investing it and building multi-generational wealth. His purpose in life is to inspire and support the super hungry to take hold of infinite resources in order to create an abundant lifestyle.

Julie joined Harper & Company CPA Plus in November 2013. An MBA with over 13 years of professional leadership experience, Julie brings a strategic approach to managing the practice. Empowering others to develop into their best professional selves is her passion. Her superpower is teaching people how to get out of their own way so they can successfully execute change, build positive cultures, and move their businesses forward. With specific expertise in the business of public accounting, Julie also speaks nationwide and enjoys inspiring others in the profession to take action, evolve, and grow.

Shawn McCabe, MSA, MBA, CFP® has received the most votes as myCPE - Most Promising Personalities in Accounting 2021 and hence we are glad to announce him as the winner in this category for this year.

Here’s more information about his background.
 After serving ten years of active military service and completing a combat tour in Afghanistan, Shawn started his career in financial planning and investments in 2007. Joining the industry at the beginning of the “Great Recession” allowed him to quickly learn that the stock market can be unpredictably cruel, and at the same time, extremely rewarding to those who stayed the course. Also, during that time, he and his clients became an invaluable part of each other’s lives. They relied on him to get them through the worst markets in years. He learned more about life, trust, perseverance, and the undeniable need for clients to have genuine and executable plans.

As a Financial Advisor and the CPAlliance™ Director with CPS Investment Advisors, Shawn’s passions and profession are aligned. He gets to enrich and grow the CPAlliance™ program by helping CPAs become CPA financial planners and teach them how to help clients achieve or protect their financial independence. His ability to understand and breakdown the most complex problems, along with his broad professional experience, uniquely equips him to be the perfect coach, mentor, and trainer for the CPAlliance™ members, as well as, advise clients on how to achieve and protect their financial independence. When he’s not helping CPAs and clients plan and execute, he can be found spending time endurance training (or binge watching the next great Netflix series) with his wife Amy, playing guitar, and singing worship tunes with Emma, watching Isabella make pyramids with her water ski team, or rooting Ethan on as he plays Lacrosse for his high school.