WCNBIF26: Business & Industry Fall Conference (Virtual)

Wassia Kamon, CPA, CMA, MBA, is Chief Financial Officer of Access to Capital for Entrepreneurs (ACE), a leading Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI) based in Georgia. She brings more than 15 years of experience across manufacturing, technology, pharmaceuticals, and the nonprofit sector, with leadership roles in accounting and FP&A.

Named the 2025 CFO of the Year by the Atlanta Business Chronicle and a two-time CPA Practice Advisor 40 Under 40 honoree, Wassia is a keynote speaker and guest faculty member for the Wharton Online FP&A Certificate Program. Her insights on finance leadership and governance have been featured in The Wall Street Journal, Accounting Today, Fast Company, and Strategic Finance.

She is the host of The Diary of a CFO podcast, where she interviews finance leaders about team leadership, governance, and the realities of the modern CFO role in growing organizations. She serves on the AICPA Women’s Initiatives Executive Committee and the AICPA Future of Finance Leadership Advisory Group.

Ted Abernathy serves as the Managing Partner of Economic Leadership, LLC. Economic Leadership, based in Shallotte, NC, is a small group of data, strategy, and best-practice policy experts that work with companies, foundations, and business organizations to analyze competitiveness, develop strategy, support leadership, tune communications, and reimagine the future. Over the past eleven years, the team has worked on about 200 projects in 29 states and internationally. Ted is the principal author of close to 125 reports on future trends, economic and workforce development, technology, and leadership, and he speaks on the economy to business groups almost every week. He currently serves as economic advisor to the Council of State Chambers and previously held a similar position to the Southern Governor’s Association.

In his 44-year career, Ted has led city, county, and regional economic development organizations and an economic policy think tank. Born in Dallas, North Carolina, Ted received his bachelor’s degree from the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, and his master’s from Johns Hopkins University, is a graduate of the Economic Development Institute and is an Eisenhower Fellow for global economics.

Brandon Laws is Vice President, Merchandise Controller at Lowe’s Companies, Inc., based in North Carolina.
Brandon Laws currently serves as Vice President, Merchandise Controller at Lowe’s Home Improvement, where he has extensive experience in retail, merchandising, inventory management, and finance. He has been with Lowe’s for over 26 years, contributing significantly to supply chain finance programs and inventory optimization initiatives. His leadership has been recognized for enhancing supplier participation and making Lowe’s supply chain programs among the largest and most successful in North America

Michael Scott has extensive experience in accounting and finance, currently serving as Managing Director for SEC Reporting, Consolidations, EBE, and Technical Accounting & ESG Controllership at The Clorox Company since September 2018. Previously, Michael held several roles at PwC, including Senior Manager from September 2016 to September 2018, and a secondment as Manager in Assurance at PwC Italy from August 2014 to September 2016. Michael began at PwC in 2007 as a Manager in Assurance, accumulating significant expertise in financial reporting and accounting operations. Michael holds a Bachelor of Science in Accounting from Penn State University, earned in 2007.

Since July 2024, Mark has been the Chief Executive Officer of the North Carolina Association of Certified Public Accountants. In this role, he works with the Board of Directors in the development and implementation of the organization’s strategic direction. Prior to this role, Mark joined NCACPA in May 2016 as their Chief Operating Officer, where he oversaw communications, engagement, professional development, learning and innovation, finance and administration. Prior to joining NCACPA, Mark worked in public accounting with Dixon Hughes Goodman LLP for 10 years and as Chief Operating Officer for Fidelity Bank for three years. Mark has served on various boards including NCACPA’s Board of Directors and Executive Committee, Junior Achievement of Eastern North Carolina, the Triangle Land Conservancy as a board member and treasurer, as well as on both the Wake Technical Community College and North Carolina State University’s Poole College of Management’s Accounting Advisory Boards.

Steve Watson serves as Executive Officer of The Biltmore Company, where he provides overall managerial leadership for the organization and plays a key role in guiding its financial strategy and long-term business development. Prior to joining The Biltmore Company, Watson served as Vice President of Finance and Accounting and Controller for Revman Industries, a major textile manufacturer and marketing company based in Greenville, South Carolina. Earlier in his career, he held several senior accounting leadership roles, including Corporate Accounting Manager positions with multiple companies, including J.P. Stevens & Co.Watson earned his bachelor’s degree in Accounting from the University of North Carolina at Charlotte and holds an MBA from Clemson University. He is both a Certified Public Accountant (CPA) and a Certified Global Management Accountant (CGMA).

Tom Groskopf is a nationally recognized authority on accounting and auditing topics and has been named by Accounting Today as one of the top 100 most influential people in accounting as well as a Best-In-State CPA by Forbes. Tom is service line leader for Barnes, Dennig & Co., Ltd. A&A practice. He also serves as Technical Director for the AICPA’s Center for Plain English Accounting, a national A&A resource center. Tom is a founding member of the Private Company Council and was the past representative from the U.S.A. on the International Financial Reporting Standards’ Small- and Medium-sized Entity Implementation Group. Tom previously served on the advisory-only FASB Private Company Financial Reporting Committee, and he served a three-year term on the AICPA’s Technical Issues Committee.

Paige Cocke, CPA, Is the Founder of Realize Success LLC, where she advises owners and executive teams on financial strategy, governance readiness, and leadership execution and is a Partner and Fractional CFO at Rankin McKenzie. Over the past two decades, she has operated at every level of the finance function — from SEC reporting and IPO consolidation to divisional CFO and enterprise strategy leadership.

She has led organizations through high-growth expansion, multi-state complexity, and successful acquisition. Paige has shortened close cycles from 30 days to 5, renegotiated restrictive lending structures to unlock operational flexibility, built driver-based forecasting models for executive decision-making, and prepared companies for audit readiness and sale. Earlier in her career, she played a lead role in the $10B IPO spin of Genworth Financial from GE and presented quarterly forecasts and operating results directly to CEO, CFO and Investor community.

Her session, Controller to CFO, addresses the real transition most finance professionals underestimate. Moving from technical expert to enterprise leader requires more than stronger financial reporting. It demands expanded business acumen beyond the numbers, the ability to analyze issues strategically, sharper communication that influences decision-makers, and the confidence to manage conflict while engaging and inspiring cross-functional teams.
In this session, Paige distills key elements from her executive development framework into a practical roadmap. Participants will examine the gap between their current operating level and true CFO leadership including strategic thinking, customer-focused financial insight, forecasting and modeling capability, and executive presence. Attendees will leave with a clear “GAP Map” to identify development priorities and concrete next steps to accelerate or intentionally redefine their path forward.

In Beyond the Numbers: Turning Analysis into Action, Paige addresses a pat

Paige Cocke, CPA, Is the Founder of Realize Success LLC, where she advises owners and executive teams on financial strategy, governance readiness, and leadership execution and is a Partner and Fractional CFO at Rankin McKenzie. Over the past two decades, she has operated at every level of the finance function — from SEC reporting and IPO consolidation to divisional CFO and enterprise strategy leadership.

She has led organizations through high-growth expansion, multi-state complexity, and successful acquisition. Paige has shortened close cycles from 30 days to 5, renegotiated restrictive lending structures to unlock operational flexibility, built driver-based forecasting models for executive decision-making, and prepared companies for audit readiness and sale. Earlier in her career, she played a lead role in the $10B IPO spin of Genworth Financial from GE and presented quarterly forecasts and operating results directly to CEO, CFO and Investor community.

Her session, Controller to CFO, addresses the real transition most finance professionals underestimate. Moving from technical expert to enterprise leader requires more than stronger financial reporting. It demands expanded business acumen beyond the numbers, the ability to analyze issues strategically, sharper communication that influences decision-makers, and the confidence to manage conflict while engaging and inspiring cross-functional teams.
In this session, Paige distills key elements from her executive development framework into a practical roadmap. Participants will examine the gap between their current operating level and true CFO leadership including strategic thinking, customer-focused financial insight, forecasting and modeling capability, and executive presence. Attendees will leave with a clear “GAP Map” to identify development priorities and concrete next steps to accelerate or intentionally redefine their path forward.

In Beyond the Numbers: Turning Analysis into Action, Paige addresses a pat

Jon Lokhorst, CSP, CPA, PCC, is a leadership coach, corporate trainer, keynote speaker, and the author of Mission-Critical Leadership: How Smart Managers Lead Well in All Directions. He works with organizations to develop leaders everyone wants to follow, build teams no one wants to leave, and deliver exceptional results. Before launching Your Best Leadership LLC, Jon enjoyed a 30-plus year career as a CPA, CFO, and organizational leader. He has a Master’s degree in Organizational Leadership and is recognized by the International Coach Federation as a Professional Certified Coach. Jon is member of the National Speakers Association and served recently as President of the Minnesota chapter. He has earned the Certified Speaking Professional Designation (CSP), a distinction held by less than 20 percent of NSA members. On a personal note, Jon loves grandparenting and being “Papa” to his four adorable littles, as he calls them.

Ruth King is well known as the “Profit and Wealth Guru.” She is passionate about helping small business owners get profitable and stay profitable.

Ruth is a serial entrepreneur having owned 8 businesses in the past 37+ years. One of her businesses, Business Ventures Corporation, began operations in 1981. Through Business Ventures, she coaches, trains, and helps contractors and others achieve the business growth and goals they want to achieve.

Jon Lokhorst, CSP, CPA, PCC, is a leadership coach, corporate trainer, keynote speaker, and the author of Mission-Critical Leadership: How Smart Managers Lead Well in All Directions. He works with organizations to develop leaders everyone wants to follow, build teams no one wants to leave, and deliver exceptional results. Before launching Your Best Leadership LLC, Jon enjoyed a 30-plus year career as a CPA, CFO, and organizational leader. He has a Master’s degree in Organizational Leadership and is recognized by the International Coach Federation as a Professional Certified Coach. Jon is member of the National Speakers Association and served recently as President of the Minnesota chapter. He has earned the Certified Speaking Professional Designation (CSP), a distinction held by less than 20 percent of NSA members. On a personal note, Jon loves grandparenting and being “Papa” to his four adorable littles, as he calls them.

Deborah Grayson Riegel is a keynote speaker and consultant who teaches leadership communication for Wharton Business School and Columbia Business School. She is a regular contributor for Harvard Business Review, Inc., Psychology Today, Forbes, and Fast Company. The author of “Overcoming Overthinking: 36 Ways to Tame Anxiety for Work, School, and Life,” she consults and speaks for clients including Amazon, BlackRock, KraftHeinz, and The United States Army. Her work has been featured in worldwide media, including Bloomberg Businessweek, Oprah Magazine, and The New York Times.

As part of the executive leadership team at NCACPA, Robert is responsible for external operations of the Association. He leads multiple teams to drive the advocacy, outreach, and engagement strategies that advance NCACPA’s mission and elevate the value and influence of the CPA brand.

Robert has extensive experience as a lobbyist, fundraiser, and chief staff executive for professional associations. A native of Tennessee, he worked in Nashville and Atlanta before moving to Raleigh in 2013. He earned his Certified Association Executive credential in 2020.

Alex Lehmann, Chair of NCACPA, brings more than 20 years of public accounting experience to his work advising individuals and privately held businesses on tax planning and compliance. He joined MPC in 2005 and also spent over a decade in commercial banking, giving him a broad perspective across industries.
In 2025, Alex was named one of Forbes’ America’s Top 200 CPAs, recognizing his leadership and commitment to the profession. He serves on the AICPA Governing Council and remains active in NCACPA’s advocacy and professional development efforts.
Alex is also passionate about the arts, currently serving as Treasurer of Theatre Raleigh. Born in Italy and raised in South Florida, he holds a finance degree and MBA from Florida International University. He and his family live in North Raleigh.

Since July 2024, Mark has been the Chief Executive Officer of the North Carolina Association of Certified Public Accountants. In this role, he works with the Board of Directors in the development and implementation of the organization’s strategic direction. Prior to this role, Mark joined NCACPA in May 2016 as their Chief Operating Officer, where he oversaw communications, engagement, professional development, learning and innovation, finance and administration. Prior to joining NCACPA, Mark worked in public accounting with Dixon Hughes Goodman LLP for 10 years and as Chief Operating Officer for Fidelity Bank for three years. Mark has served on various boards including NCACPA’s Board of Directors and Executive Committee, Junior Achievement of Eastern North Carolina, the Triangle Land Conservancy as a board member and treasurer, as well as on both the Wake Technical Community College and North Carolina State University’s Poole College of Management’s Accounting Advisory Boards.

After spending over 30 years as managing director and senior economist at Wells Fargo’s Corporate and Investment Bank, Mark Vitner founded Piedmont Crescent Capital with offices in Charlotte and Raleigh. At his new firm, Mark provides analysis of the macro economy to clients located throughout the country and writes a series of reports on the US economy, local economies, small business, and residential and commercial real estate. He also provides economic content for CAVU Securities, writing their monthly newsletter, The CAVU Compass.

Deborah Grayson Riegel is a keynote speaker and consultant who teaches leadership communication for Wharton Business School and Columbia Business School. She is a regular contributor for Harvard Business Review, Inc., Psychology Today, Forbes, and Fast Company. The author of “Overcoming Overthinking: 36 Ways to Tame Anxiety for Work, School, and Life,” she consults and speaks for clients including Amazon, BlackRock, KraftHeinz, and The United States Army. Her work has been featured in worldwide media, including Bloomberg Businessweek, Oprah Magazine, and The New York Times.

Higgins Advisory, LLC was established with the mission of helping CPAs, CFOs and other financial professionals to successfully guide their firms and business organizations through a successful digital transformation. This transformation leverages the power of emerging technologies such as artificial intelligence, blockchain technology, data analytics, workflow automation and more.

As a seasoned entrepreneur, John Higgins, founder and CEO, has experience with local CPA firms and as well as serving as a technology advisory practice leader partner in a national CPA firm. John founded, managed and grew two separate accounting technology advisory firms, both of which were successfully acquired by larger organizations.

John shares his expertise as a nationally recognized thought leader, strategic advisor, and speaker on accounting technology through coaching and speaking engagements. His primary contribution is his passion for helping the profession move forward through the understanding and adoption of emerging technologies.

Bob Mims, CPA, is a financial consultant and VP Finance for promising enterprises. For 20 years, Robert has worked with numerous startup ventures and nonprofits in the roles of Strategic Planning, Business Modeling, Controller and CFO. His focus is understanding the fundamentals of profitability. Robert worked ten years as a Big Four a Senior Assurance Manager, earning National Instructor of the Year on three occasions. Robert has served on FASB Advisory committees and is based in Memphis, TN.

Higgins Advisory, LLC was established with the mission of helping CPAs, CFOs and other financial professionals to successfully guide their firms and business organizations through a successful digital transformation. This transformation leverages the power of emerging technologies such as artificial intelligence, blockchain technology, data analytics, workflow automation and more.

As a seasoned entrepreneur, John Higgins, founder and CEO, has experience with local CPA firms and as well as serving as a technology advisory practice leader partner in a national CPA firm. John founded, managed and grew two separate accounting technology advisory firms, both of which were successfully acquired by larger organizations.

John shares his expertise as a nationally recognized thought leader, strategic advisor, and speaker on accounting technology through coaching and speaking engagements. His primary contribution is his passion for helping the profession move forward through the understanding and adoption of emerging technologies.

Bob Mims, CPA, is a financial consultant and VP Finance for promising enterprises. For 20 years, Robert has worked with numerous startup ventures and nonprofits in the roles of Strategic Planning, Business Modeling, Controller and CFO. His focus is understanding the fundamentals of profitability. Robert worked ten years as a Big Four a Senior Assurance Manager, earning National Instructor of the Year on three occasions. Robert has served on FASB Advisory committees and is based in Memphis, TN.

Higgins Advisory, LLC was established with the mission of helping CPAs, CFOs and other financial professionals to successfully guide their firms and business organizations through a successful digital transformation. This transformation leverages the power of emerging technologies such as artificial intelligence, blockchain technology, data analytics, workflow automation and more.

As a seasoned entrepreneur, John Higgins, founder and CEO, has experience with local CPA firms and as well as serving as a technology advisory practice leader partner in a national CPA firm. John founded, managed and grew two separate accounting technology advisory firms, both of which were successfully acquired by larger organizations.

John shares his expertise as a nationally recognized thought leader, strategic advisor, and speaker on accounting technology through coaching and speaking engagements. His primary contribution is his passion for helping the profession move forward through the understanding and adoption of emerging technologies.

Jack Cathey is a Certified Public Accountant in North Carolina whose professional experience includes working as a senior auditor with KPMG in Charlotte, N.C. He has published articles in a number of professional and academic journals. Dr. Cathey speaks frequently to academic and professional groups on topics related to financial reporting and information systems. Dr. Cathey joined the Belk College faculty in 1988 and is currently serving as the program director for the MACC program. Dr. Cathey is an affiliate faculty member with the Doctorate in Business Administration program.

Tom is one of the most influential leaders in the Accounting Profession. He has been named the Second Most Influential Person in Accounting since 2011 by Accounting Today Magazine (His fifteenth year on the Top 100). He was also one of the first five thought leaders inducted into the Accounting Hall of Fame (2015) by CPA Practice Advisor.

Linked-in recruited Tom as one of their Top 100 Influencers and he was named to the Top 25 Influencers in Learning by HR Examiner. He is known for his prolific digital footprint and now has over 780,000 followers on Linked-in, Twitter and other social accounts.

Tom is on a mission to help CPAs, Finance and Accounting Professionals thrive in these times of exponential change. He firmly believes that what got us here, won’t get us there as the Profession faces unprecedented changes and opportunities.

Tom’s recognition and awards reflect his leadership in helping CPAs be more #FutureReady through his work at the Maryland Association of CPAs and the Business Learning Institute (BLI), a center for the development of leadership, strategic thinking, and collaboration skills for CPAs. BLI has a catalog of over 600 programs and 30 ‘top gun’ instructors who provide state of the art learning and curriculum for the Top 500 CPA Firms, Fortune 500 corporations, non-profits, State CPA Societies and even internationally.

He is a graduate of Loyola College (B.A. in Accounting) and has a Master’s in Finance (Real Estate) from Johns Hopkins University. He also obtained the Certified Information Technology Professional (CITP) certification and the Certified Global Management Accountant (CGMA) certification from the AICPA.

David (Dave) DeFreitas is a retired Group Chief Financial Officer at Caterpillar Inc. and former Chief Revenue Officer at TADA Cognitive Solutions. A CPA by training, Dave began his career with McGladrey & Pullen (now RSM) before joining Caterpillar, where he spent 32 years advancing through 18 leadership roles across finance, operations, strategy, and executive management. His extensive experience includes serving as Group CFO for Corporate Services, Divisional CFO for Aftermarket Parts, Controller for Caterpillar Financial Services Americas, Investment Director for Energy & Transportation, CEO/Managing Director for Telehandlers, and Chief of Staff to Caterpillar’s CFO. He also gained valuable international experience while working in the United Kingdom and later led revenue strategy for a supply chain software company following his retirement from Caterpillar.
Known for his collaborative leadership style and passion for mentoring future leaders, Dave has consistently helped organizations translate financial insights into strategic action. Beyond his corporate career, he has dedicated significant time to higher education and community service, serving in leadership roles with advisory boards at Bradley University and Indiana University, the AICPA Future of Finance Advisory Board, and numerous nonprofit organizations. Recognized for his volunteerism and community impact, Dave has also co-authored articles for professional finance and accounting publications and remains an active advocate for leadership development and the future of the accounting profession.