Michelle Coussens is a strategic planning consultant who has owned and operated Plan B Consulting for more than ten years. Her services span training and assistance in preparing strategic and business plans, assisting in plan development and execution, and various other aspects of operational excellence. In addition, she facilitates meetings and retreats in project management, leadership, ethics and other interpersonal topics, and she conducts business analysis for various types of entrepreneurs and organizations worldwide. She is a mentor for students and alumni at Northwestern University and other organizations and Michelle is on the faculty of the American Management Association and of NeighborWorks® America, where she teaches numerous different strategic planning, management, and analytical seminars.

Specific topics include:

• How the roles and functions of accounting and financial professionals are changing
• Considerations to automate various tasks across the entire accounting lifecycle
• The power of artificial intelligence and machine learning on accounting processes
• Ways these applications can streamline your financial management processes and systems
• Ways to transform pieces of data into business intelligence
• How to better, and more efficiently, forecast and address financial needs and issues
• Ways to incorporate powerful analytic capabilities that enable interactive exploration and deliberate financial strategy
• Considerations in selecting and working with an outside vendor