20-21 October 2025 Crowne Plaza Surfers Paradise
Early Bird Discount Book By 26 Sept 2025!
The Young Guns Workshop returns in 2025 to help develop the next generation of leaders in the accounting profession. This event is purpose-built for ambitious professionals eager to advance their careers and drive real impact within their firms.
Who should attend?
The Young Guns Workshop is ideal for emerging leaders in the accounting industry on the path to leadership, including:
This program is tailored to support growth, whether you are already leading teams or preparing for the next step.
What You’ll Gain
Don’t miss this opportunity to empower your team and build your firm's future.
Register now
Super earlybird pricing is available until 30 June 2025!
Why Firms Should Invest in Their Future Leaders
Firms that invest in their people invest in long-term success. The Young Guns Workshop helps your team:
Program
Get ready to spend two jam packed days developing the skills and knowledge that will help take your career to the next level.
Day 1
Monday
20 October
Establish the Foundations of Leadership Success
Great leadership doesn’t happen by chance; it’s built on strong, intentional foundations. In this powerful workshop, you’ll uncover the seven essential pillars every business needs to lead high-performing, accountable, and resilient teams. From establishing a shared vision and meaningful values to fostering psychological safety and clarity of roles, this session helps leaders set the stage for long-term success and alignment.
Kylie Denton, Performance Advisory Group
Beyond the Numbers: Turning Insight into Action
It’s no longer enough to deliver the figures; clients want clarity, direction, and confidence in their next steps. This session explores a structured approach to advisory that helps you:
- Uncover what really matters to your clients
- Use financial analysis to prompt meaningful conversations
- Guide clients toward clear, confident decisions
- Build accountability and follow-through into your process
Learn how to move from data delivery to practical impact, creating lasting value for your clients and sustainable growth for your firm.
Mark Holton, Smithink
Morning Tea
AI: Current State, Trajectory, and What It Means for Your Firm
This practical session cuts through the AI hype to explore where the technology currently stands, where it’s headed, and why it matters. Michael will unpack the key business and strategic considerations, including common barriers to adoption and how to overcome them. The session will wrap up with an open discussion and Q&A to share insights and challenges.
Michael Donoghue, AdvisorAi
Sponsors Panel Discussion
David Smith will facilitate this session with our event sponsors, exploring a discussion on how their products and services are propelling the accounting industry into the future.
Lunch
Collaborative session 1
TBC details
Facilitated by Mark Holton and David Smith
Afternoon Tea
The Young Guns Playbook: Success, Setbacks and Smart Moves
Lessons I’ve learned and mistakes I’ve made from my career in Accounting, including:
- what separates a good practice vs a bad practice to further your career
- buying into, growing and selling a practice by age 38
- building a new advisory division
- building Three Rivers Group from the ground up
Matt Feehan, Three Rivers Group
Presentation Skills for Success
Presenting with confidence isn’t about being perfect—it’s about being clear, credible, and compelling. Whether you’re in the room or online, this session will help you find your voice, craft messages that land, and keep your audience engaged from start to finish. Walk away with practical tools to lift your presence, sharpen your delivery, and speak with real impact.
Petris Lapis, Artisan of Change
Networking introduction with…TBC
Networking session with drinks and canapes
In this “live” session you actually practice networking after being introduced to the:
- importance of networking to your career and success
- critical inhibitors to investing in your network
- easy to use techniques to actually get out there and network.
Day 2
Tuesday
21 October
Emotional Intelligence
Emotional intelligence is a core skill for today’s leaders. It shapes how you show up, how you respond under pressure, and how you bring out the best in your team. This session dives into the practical side of EQ—how to read the room, manage yourself, and lead with influence. Learn how to build trust, strengthen team dynamics, and lead with more clarity and connection.
Petris Lapis, Artisan of Change
Team Structure, Capacity & Resource Planning
In this era of scarce talent and margin squeeze, it is critical that firms are organised to enable their people to perform at their best. How teams are organised, the resources required, and how work is planned can transform the efficiency of the firm as well as the job satisfaction and personal development of the team. Come prepared to have traditional thinking challenged and ponder how changing the way your firm is organised might be the key to taking the business to the next level of productivity and client service.
David Smith, Smithink
Morning Tea
What High-Performing Accounting Firms Do Differently
What are the top-performing firms doing differently, and how can you apply those insights in your own career? Julia Thomson from The Benchmarking Group joins Mark in conversation to unpack the key findings from The Crunch: The Annual Accounting Firm Benchmark Report, highlighting what today’s most profitable firms are doing differently. Explore what drives profitability and performance, from streamlined systems and proactive leadership to smarter service mix and a focus on quality over quantity. You’ll also gain insight into emerging trends, including the rise of AI in accounting, the biggest challenges on the horizon, and the opportunities for those ready to lead change. Walk away with a sharper understanding of what it takes to thrive in a modern accounting firm.
Julia Thomson, The Benchmarking Group + Mark Holton, Smithink
Young Gun Session
TBC details
Rebecca Williss, Smith Thornton + Mark Holton, Smithink
Lunch
Collaborative session 2
TBC details
Facilitated by Mark Holton and David Smith
Afternoon Tea
Open Forum and Questions
Facilitated by Mark Holton and David Smith, Smithink
Workshop Close
It is highly recommended for attendees to stay for the entire duration of our workshop in order to maximise the value and benefits they will receive.
Our workshop is carefully designed to provide comprehensive insights, practical skills, and valuable knowledge that build upon each other throughout the sessions. Please organise travel for after the end of the workshop.
Please organise travel for after the end of the workshop.
OUR 2025 YOUNG GUNS WORKSHOP FEATURES SPEAKERS & INNOVATIVE THINKERS INCLUDING:
David Smith Smithink
David Smith Smithink
David Smith is Australia’s most experienced specialist independent IT consultant, having over 25 years involvement with accounting businesses. David was Managing Partner of PKF Sydney; President of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in 2003; created PKF CRS and Superfund software; and coaches practitioners in practice strategy, management & process improvement.
Julia Thomson The Benchmarking Group
Julia Thomson The Benchmarking Group
Julia Thomson is an experienced strategic marketer, with a passion for data insights and economic analysis.
With two decades of experience, she has supported the growth of hundreds of small to medium Australian businesses via developing practical strategic plans, information memorandums, business cases and feasibility reports.
As a key member of The Benchmarking Group, Julia oversees data analysis and industry trends for 200 Australian sectors, drawing from diverse sources such as the ABS, ATO, The Benchmarking Group database, and third party research reports. Her expertise enables business owners to understand their industry dynamics and leverage trends for a competitive advantage.
Prior to this, Julia consulted directly with Australian businesses to write and secured competitive government grants. She has also held lead strategic marketing roles in Australia and Asia.
Her academic record includes a Bachelor of Media and a Masters in International Marketing, and she is currently pursuing a Masters in Applied Economics. Julia resides in Adelaide with her husband and three children, with the latest addition to the family arriving just last year.
Kylie Denton Performance Advisory Group
Kylie Denton Founder & Director | Performance Advisory Group
Kylie Denton is a highly experienced financial consultant, bestselling author, dynamic speaker, and the Founding Director of Performance Advisory Group. Specialising in leadership and sales within the financial services industry.
With over 33 years of experience in the financial services industry and formal qualifications in organisational psychology, Kylie brings a unique blend of expertise as a former financial adviser and a professionally certified coach.
Kylie is one of Australia’s most trusted thought leaders in sales and leadership within the financial services industry, renowned for her ability to influence and embed lasting behaviour change. She has successfully guided thousands of financial professionals and senior leaders to achieve outstanding results.
Passionate about driving growth and success, Kylie is dedicated to helping leaders excel in the financial services sector.
Mark Holton Smithink
Mark Holton Smithink
Mark Holton has more than 30 years experience as an Accountant and Tax Agent in practice. Mark is also the Managing Director of Dynamic Taxation and Training Services, as well as the founding CEO of 2020 Asia Pacific. Mark has developed specialised skills in the area of adult education and training with extensive experience in both private and public sector industries in Australia, New Zealand, United Kingdom and North America. He is also a respected consultant in taxation and business management.
Matthew Feehan Three Rivers Group
Matthew Feehan Three Rivers Group + Prophet Gap
Matt is the Managing Director at Three Rivers Group and CEO at Prophet Gap.
Graduating with both law and accounting degrees, Matt has over 20 years of hands-on experience in public practice accounting.
For Matt, strong relationships are the bedrock of good business and great outcomes, and his passion for transforming “the numbers” into meaningful insights has continued to make him a trusted advisor to his client and their families.
Understanding the client, their goals and pain points is the most critical part of being a good accountant.
Michael Donoghue AI Advisor
Michael Donoghue AI Advisor | GenAI Adoption | Business Transformation | Fintech
Michael Donoghue is a trusted advisor on the practical, business-focused adoption of Generative AI, equipping leaders with the tools and knowledge they require to understand the changing business landscape of AI and prepare their businesses with confidence.
As Founder of AdvisorAi, Michael developed an AI Adoption Framework that bridges the AI knowledge gap and empowers business leaders to confidently navigate the rapidly evolving AI business environment.
A former CEO and tech founder with over 16 years’ experience in fintech, digital innovation, and large-scale digital transformation, Michael brings a wealth of real-world expertise to his engagements. His track record includes leading some of Australia’s largest fintech digital transformation projects for major insurers, telecoms, and the Reserve Bank of Australia. He holds AI credentials from Oxford University, combined with extensive formal and executive business training, underscoring his business understanding and credibility.
Michael’s training workshops and keynotes, include “Demystifying AI, Delivering AI Business Value Today, Simply & Cost Effectively” and “AI Current State & Trajectory: Tactical & Strategic Considerations”, are tailored to demystify AI for executives and teams. By translating complexity into actionable insights, practical frameworks, and real-world use cases, Michael ensures organisations can unlock the tangible benefits of AI quickly and cost effectively.
As a subject matter expert for Vistage, the global CEO coaching and peer advisory organisation, and an accomplished facilitator, Michael advises businesses on how to navigate the rapidly evolving AI landscape. Whether addressing boardrooms, executive teams, or cross-functional teams, his mission is to inspire a culture of exploration and continuous learning while ensuring clear, impactful outcomes from AI adoption.
Petris Lapis Artisan of Change
Petris Lapis Author Presenter Director
Petris has worked in accounting, law, academia, banking, business and training. She has consulted to government and industry and published several books and hundreds of papers. She has studied commerce, law, coaching, NLP and hypnosis and is passionate about helping professionals thrive and succeed.
Rebecca Williss Smith Thornton
Rebecca Williss Smith Thornton
Rebecca has been a partner in Smith Thornton since 2012, and is that rare leader who combines passion, intellect and vast commercial knowledge with a nurturing persona.
Rebecca brings a high level of business acumen to the table. From business advisory, succession planning, strategic planning and mentoring, she wears many hats, fuelled by her desire to play a role in the collective success of the business community. She considers it a privilege and a responsibility that clients can entrust their business to Smith Thornton.
Your Investment
Super Early Bird Pricing until 30 June 2025
Smithink Members
(discounted pricing)
$995 First attendee
$850 Additional attendees from the same firm
Non-Member firms
$1250 First attendee
$1095 Additional attendees from the same firm
Early Bird Pricing from 1 July - 26 Sept 2025
Smithink Members
(discounted pricing)
$1195 First attendee
$950 Additional attendees from the same firm
Non-Member firms
$1450 First attendee
$1195 Additional attendees from the same firm
Standard Pricing booking from 27 Sept 2025
Smithink Members
(discounted pricing)
$1450 First attendee
$1195 Additional attendees from the same firm
Non-Member firms
$1650 First attendee
$1450 Additional attendees from the same firm
Event Cancellation Policy
In the event that you are unable to attend, a complete refund will be issued upon receipt of written cancellation requests sent to an*********@******nk.com: submitted within 21 days prior to the workshop date.