Blogs

IMA Student Leadership Conference 2024 (Nov 7-9 in Anaheim)

By Trent Kramer posted 6 days ago
The Minneapolis Chapter is offering scholarships to assist students in attending the IMA Student Leadership Conference in 2024. Members of the Twin Cities Student Chapter at Metro State and Concordia are eligible. A handful of scholarships will be awarded to those expressing interest. Additional information including registration is available here: https://www.imastudentconference.org/event/3a7467d8-6dbf-4661-9714-c34197cd132e/websitePage:d040cd9b-8a1c-4c93-b1e9-7ee6dcdf6c0a

Management Accounting & The Blockchain

By Nathan Mavelil posted 22 days ago
I'm beginning the process to learn and research more about how management accountants will pave the way to the future of building accounting systems on the blockchain. The blockchain technology is something I'm still struggling to understand and wrap my head around, and I think that my research findings will be useful to other accountants interested. I'm using this space to post my questions to ChatGPT and what was outputted as a resource thread around the topic of blockchain and management accounting. For my initial post, I would like to set a baseline what is the blockchain, benefits and the terminology used when referring to the system. Blockchain ...

Remembering Val Felske, CMA (former Minneapolis Chapter and Northern Lights Council leader)

By Trent Kramer posted 06-17-2024
Val Felske went to heaven earlier this month at the age of 73 following a short battle with pancreatic cancer. She served in a variety of leadership roles at the IMA including President of the Minneapolis Chapter, President of the Northern Lights Regional Council, National Vice President and was a member of the Stuart Cameron McLeod society. She earned her CMA back in 1991. Needless to say, she was a significant contributor to our IMA community and cared for by those who were fortunate enough to know her. The link to her obituary that was published in the local Star Tribune is below: https://www.startribune.com/obituaries/detail/0000491069/ ...

IMA Minneapolis Chapter Election Results 2024-2025

By Trent Kramer posted 05-18-2024
Here are the IMA Minneapolis Chapter election results: President – Lianne B. Loeks Munson, CMA, CSCA Vice President of Engagement – James Powers, CMA Vice President of Communications – Ashley Davis, CMA, CSCA, FPA Past President – Trent Kramer, CMA, CPA, CSCA Treasurer – Todd Stenson, CPA Director of Education – Andrew Galas, MBA Director of CMA & Student Engagement – David Franz, CMA Secretary – Willy Arevalo, CMA Chapter Delegate – Ryan Chase, CMA, CSCA Chapter Delegate – Warda James-Hester, CMA, CPA One year terms are effective July 1st through June 30th. Our new board will convene to make ...

IMA Minneapolis Chapter Elections & Board Opportunities

By Trent Kramer posted 03-24-2024
Greetings, Chapter elections will be done online in April. Keep an eye out for that communication. It will be a google poll again. There are some role transitions and new opportunities this upcoming year. If you are interested in exploring a board role, please reach out to minneapolis@imachapter.org. We have introductory positions all the way up to key contributors. Our board very much want to get back to our in-person events and have been pursuing knowledgeable speakers with relevant expertise. We'll continue to balance in virtual events as they offer an added level of convenience. Any referrals or suggestions are appreciated. Until then, I'd highly ...

IMA Student Leadership Conference (SLC23)

By Trent Kramer posted 12-05-2023
In mid-November, the IMA hosted its annual Student Leadership Conference (SLC23) in Detroit, Michigan. Our chapter provided scholarships to four soon-to-be Metro State grads who represented us. This included Sam Heaston who is the IMA Twin Cities Student Chapter President. Over the course of three days, attendees learn about the latest trends in the profession and real-life industry case studies and more while taking it all in with fellow peers. These annual events specifically catered to students are dubbed “Accelerate your journey from the classroom to the board room”. These are great networking opportunities and attracts employers ...

New Financial & Managerial Accounting Associate (FMAA) Certification

By Trent Kramer posted 12-02-2023
The IMA is introducing the new Financial & Managerial Accounting Associate (FMAA) designation in January. This is another opportunity for Accounting & Finance professionals (young and alike) to expand their knowledge. The exam focuses on the five disciplines pictured below. https://www.imanet.org/FMAA-Campaign Anyone can take this exam regardless of an education or experience requirement. The price and time commitment look right. Check it out.

PACE Free Two-Day Virtual Conference (September 14th & 15th)

By Trent Kramer posted 08-30-2023
The Profitability Analytics Center of Excellence (PACE) is hosting a two-day virtual conference on September 14th & 15th. This is offered to members at no cost of which joining this organization is also free. Members of IMA's leadership are directly involved within this like-minded group furthering our profession. Free membership and registration is available here: https://www.profitability-analytics.org/profits-plus Date and time: Thursday & Friday, September 14-15 from 7:30am-12:30pm CST Topics and speakers include the following: More about this organization: The Profitability Analytics Center of Excellence ...

Exemplary Young Professional Award --> Ashley Davis, CMA, CSCA, FPA

By Trent Kramer posted 07-06-2023
As our chapter was celebrating our 100th anniversary on the eve of the biggest event of the year (IMA23 in Minneapolis), our very own Ashley Davis was presented with the Exemplary Young Professional Award . This honor recognizes y oung professionals who display outstanding and creative approaches to problem solving within the Accounting and Finance profession. There were three members worldwide this year honored as such with the other recipients being within the Philippines and the Beirut chapters. So, this is a very select crowd to be a part of. Ashley Davis serves as our Vice President of Communications and does an exceptional job in this role. ...

IMA Champion Award --> Shari Nepper, CMA, MBA

By Trent Kramer posted 07-04-2023
As our chapter was celebrating our 100th anniversary on the eve of the IMA's biggest event of the year (IMA23 in Minneapolis), our very own Shari Nepper was presented with the IMA Champion Award. This honor recognizes a member who has demonstrated exceptional volunteerism and leadership skills that are beyond the call of duty in service to the IMA and serves as an example for others to follow. This is a prestigious award attained by only a select few having consistently demonstrated unselfish commitment and exceptional performance in support of our organization. For well over a decade, Shari has and continues to exhibit the exceptional leadership qualities ...

IMA23 Annual Conference Recap

By Trent Kramer posted 06-17-2023
The IMA's annual Accounting & Finance Conference was hosted in Minneapolis June 11-14. This was an excellent opportunity to further your understanding of our profession as well as earning CPE credits and networking with fellow participants. The IMA brought in a bevy of exceptional speakers onto the grand stage. Attendees had the opportunity to choose from up to four simultaneous presentations to choose from at a given time slot. Keynotes and round-tables brought us all together in the Hyatt Regency Nicollet Ballroom. Meals were provided in the Tech-Knowledgy Center along with the opportunity to visit around 50 exhibit booths. There was even a relaxation ...

IMA Minneapolis Chapter 100th Anniversary Boat Cruise Recap

By Trent Kramer posted 06-11-2023
We celebrated the IMA Minneapolis Chapter's 100th anniversary tonight with a boat cruise downtown on the Mississippi River. Thank you to all of those who were able to attend. We had nice weather and were able to host this on the eve of the IMA's biggest event of the year. Off on the right foot -- looking forward to the IMA23 conference. This should be a week to remember.

Chapter Election Results 2023-2024

By Trent Kramer posted 04-27-2023
Below are the IMA Minneapolis Chapter election results for 2023-2024: President – Trent Kramer, CMA, CPA, CSCA Past President – Lianne B. Loeks Munson, CMA, CSCA Vice President of Engagement – Bhavesh Parekh, CMA, PMP, ACMA Vice President of Communications – Ashley Davis, CMA, CSCA, FPA Vice President of Professional Education – James Powers, CMA Treasurer – Shari L Nepper, CMA, MBA Director of Education – Andrew Galas, MBA Director of CMA & Student Engagement – David Franz, CMA Secretary – Willy Arevalo, CMA Chapter Delegate – Warda James-Hester, ...

Chapter Elections & Board Opportunities

By Trent Kramer posted 02-26-2023
Our chapter elections will be held in late March or early April via online voting again. There are opportunities to get further involved for those who are interested. The Minneapolis Chapter has been very fortunate to have both highly engaged members and an exceptional board. Lots of additional effort goes on behind the scenes. Especially as group of volunteers, this is something that is never to be taken for granted. The IMA has opportunities to further engage whether at a local level or broader scale. As someone who is approaching serving for nearly a decade (many have done so far longer), I'd highly recommend considering a role. There are varying ...

The Finance Gem Newsletter by Oana Labes, MBA, CPA

By Trent Kramer posted 02-25-2023
There is a free weekly newsletter called The Finance Gem by Oana Labes, MBA, CPA that has great insights for us Accounting & Finance professionals. She posts Infographics and brief write-ups on LinkedIn covering a wide variety of topics that are in our wheelhouse. Her content is quick, concise and to the point. The Finance Gem is free to subscribe to, you can view prior weeks before doing so here and has my personal endorsement.

IMA23 Exhibitors and Sponsorship Opportunities

By Trent Kramer posted 01-23-2023
Is your organization interested in being an exhibitor or a sponsor at the IMA23 annual Accounting & Finance conference? Additional information is available here . This link can get you access to the four page 2023 Exhibitor & Sponsor Prospectus. The brief PDF has an overview of benefits, demographics, pricing and further details. For exhibitor and sponsorship questions, please contact: Randall Kurtz Strategic Account Manager randall.kurtz@imanet.org Thanks for helping make the IMA's biggest event of the year an enjoyable & unique experience.

CMA Exam Prep Promotion (by BCertified Pro)

By Trent Kramer posted 01-06-2023
Our colleagues at BCertified Pro has a special CMA exam prep promotion to share exclusively with us: Chapter members can benefit from a 25% Discount on ALL CMA packages (Training & Material) + an additional Special 10% discount on by using promo-code CMA10N for February – March 2023 term. B Certified Pro is a USA training company, providing CMA Globally with chapter affiliations, and is an approved CMA course provider by IMA. Learn more here .

IMA23 Early Bird Registration - Special Rate through January 13th

By Trent Kramer posted 12-17-2022
Registration for the IMA's biggest event of the year is now open. There is a discounted rate for the conference through January 13th. Click here to reach the IMA23 landing page. Lots of helpful information is available including the preliminary agenda and list of speakers. The IMA has negotiated a special group rate of $219/night for those looking for overnight accommodations (reference group code " G-IMAC" when booking). For those traveling from out of state, the IMA has partnered with Delta and United Airlines on discounted fares. This information is available on the IMA23 landing page within the Event Info dropdown. Our chapter will have a ...

Lawyer Humor for the Holidays

By Trent Kramer posted 11-21-2022
Our chapter recently was in the process of procuring a local CPA to present business ethics to us. His engagement agreement was remarkably simple and easy to follow. That is quite a distinction from our counterparts at the bar. John C. Maxwell has a great excerpt in his book The Winning Attitude: While Accounting & Finance is heavily rules-based (GAAP being ~10k pages), perhaps we have taken a more enlightened path than at least some other professions....

IMA's Annual Conference & Expo Coming to Minneapolis in 2023

By Trent Kramer posted 11-12-2022
The IMA's biggest event of the year is coming to Minneapolis in 2023! Attendees can earn 30+ CPE over the course of four days in June. Experts and industry leaders with advanced knowledge pertinent to the Accounting & Finance profession will share their valuable insights with us. Our chapter will host a hospitality suite for entertainment & socializing in the evenings. Join us for appetizers, drinks & friendly colleagues. It has been too long staring at a computer screen--now we all get the chance to get back together at this grand-scale event. #IMA23 is sure to be a memorable experience. Our peers from all over the world will be in attendance. ...