This year, we have a great line up of speakers at REST: Reno Education Seminar & Training. These REST speakers have proven their worth in their professional lives and want to share their knowledge with you. These biographies show that these REST speakers have worked hard for their success and gained extensive knowledge through their experiences.
REST Speaker: Michael Bosma, CPA –
Course info
Mike founded Keystone CPAs in January 2017 after a four-year stint with CliftonLarsonAllen as principal when the Bosma Group, PC joined the firm. He is the principal-in-charge of the Reno office. Mike has been in public accounting, specializing in taxation for more than 28 years. He is dedicated to assisting taxpayers attain higher levels of success through proactive tax planning and creative restructuring, as well as strategic business solutions.
REST Speaker: Lawrence A. Dodd, CPA (inactive) –
Course info
Larry Dodd is the founder of OpenPlaybook™, an organization created to provide leaders and those who aspire to lead with a better methodology to build more effective teams, develop people and drive positive change initiatives to success. The results are motivated teams of people who know what to do, how to do it and who drive organizations to the next level. Over 36 years Larry has served in the roles of Chief Financial Officer, Vice President-People Development, management consultant, and CliftonStrengths leadership coach/trainer and speaker. He has served organizations such as the San Francisco Giants, Meritage Homes, Signature Homes, Robert Half International and Arthur Andersen. His clients range from startups to mature established companies with revenues in excess of $1 billion and spans Major League Baseball, real estate development, health care, agriculture, auto racing, high technology, manufacturing and professional services. What links his diverse array of clients is that each has had a critical need to make a change in its business. OpenPlaybook™ methodology believes that successful leadership is driven by the successful understanding and implementation of three interrelated playbooks: The playbook you are given – how to find talent that others miss, the playbook that you develop – how to turn talent into strength that drives breakthrough results, and the playbook that you give away – why the right people will run through walls for you. In 2006, Larry was honored as one of the Institute of Management Accountants Regional Financial Executives of the Year and he is a Gallup-Certified CliftonStrengths Coach.
REST Speaker: Spencer Horn, CSP, CTPC –
Course info
Businesses internationally look to Spencer Horn as an enthusiastic, insightful source for counsel and advice on developing productive and focused corporate cultures. Spencer is able to draw upon his 31 years of executive experience to reenergize seasoned and emerging professionals and increase organizational effectiveness. He inspires change, to develop: A powerful culture, effective communication, high performing teams and engagement. Spencer is currently the president of Altium Leadership. He has previously been the CEO of a leadership development company and vice president of a NASDAQ company which developed IMAX theaters in tourist destinations. There he worked with major organizations such as IMAX Corp., National Geographic Television, Radio City Productions, Disney Films and more. His experience is valuable to business leaders and their teams as he shares insight and knowledge that can be immediately applied. His engaging and interactive style contributes to him being in high demand as a speaker, trainer, and coach. He is a co-author of the “Speakers on Life” anthology “The Power of the Platform” along with Jack Canfield, Les Brown, Brian Tracy and more. He holds a bachelor’s degree in political science and a master’s degree in economics from the University of Utah. He is a Certified Speaking Professional (CSP) with the National Speakers Association, a designation which less than 17% of speakers worldwide achieve. He is a Certified Team Performance Coach (CTPC) and facilitator through Team Coaching International and a Certified Professional Dynametric Programs trainer and administrator through PDP Global. Spencer has been married to his amazing wife, Jana, for more than 37 years. She is a partner and COO of Altium Leadership. Together they have five beautiful children and five grandchildren.
REST Speaker: Drummond Kahn, MS, CIA, CGFM, CGAP –
Course info
Drummond Kahn serves on the faculty of the International Institute and the Government Audit Training Institute of the Graduate School USA. He joined the auditing profession in 1990. His auditing roles included Chief of Audit Services for the Oregon Department of Transportation, Director of Audit Services for the City of Portland and State Audit Administrator for the Oregon Secretary of State Audits Division. Drummond began his career in the U.S. Government Accountability Office. He served as National President of the Association of Local Government Auditors (2012-13), received AGA’s Frank Greathouse Distinguished Leadership Award (2013) and chairs the Comptroller General’s Advisory Council on Government Auditing Standards (2015-2020). In 2014, the IIA’s American Center for Government Auditing recognized Drummond as one of the 15 Most Influential Professionals in Government Auditing. Drummond holds a master’s degree from the University of Oregon and a bachelor’s degree from Whitman College.
REST Speaker: Kenny Kang, CPA, CGMA, CFE – Course info
Kenny Kang is a Certified Public Accountant (CPA), Charted Global Management Accountant (CGMA), and Certified Fraud Examiner (CFE) with a wealth of experience in public accounting and industry. He specializes in forensic accounting / litigation support, fraud examinations, expert witness work, accounting services, and general business consulting. His expertise involves US Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP), US Generally Accepted Auditing Standards (GAAS) and fraud prevention & detection. Since 2007, Kenny has accumulated over 80 criminal, civil, and investigative cases. His experience includes accounting record analysis, business disputes involving accounting and financial matters, embezzlement, lapping scheme, financial statement fraud, damage analysis, welfare fraud, Ponzi scheme, lapping scheme, insurance fraud, kickback, skimming, payroll fraud, divorce consulting and tax evasion. Kenny provides fraud risk assessment and cybersecurity policy and procedure documentation, corporate governance, and review of accounting closing processes. He received a high recommendation from the law offices of the Los Angeles County Public Defender in 2009.
REST Speaker: Joanna Kardys-Stone, CPA, CFE – Course info
Joanna Kardys-Stone is an accounting professional and educator. Her professional experience includes public accounting (audit, tax, consulting) and internal audit, and she has taught accounting at the University of Nevada, Reno for the past four years. She holds the CPA and the CFE designations and is currently working on completing a Doctor of Business Administration degree. Her other professional involvement includes IMA, AICPA, NVCPA, American Accounting Association (AAA), and Accounting & Financial Women’s Alliance (AFWA), among others. A fierce supporter of the accounting profession and always driving students and others (and herself) to do more than seems achievable. Born in Poland, she loves pierogies, opts for walking instead of driving where possible, and loves traveling and road trips. When travel is not possible, she sticks to adventure in the kitchen (she never returns from travels without a new spice or herbs to try).
REST Speaker: Ryan D. Nelson, Esq., SPHR –
Course info
Ryan Nelson received his bachelor’s degree in Portuguese, with a minor in international relations from Brigham Young University. Ryan attended law school at the University of Florida in Gainesville. During law school, Ryan balanced his legal studies with his growing family and his legal work as an intern with the Office of the State Attorney and as a law clerk for a construction law litigation firm. After graduation, Ryan’s law practice encompassed a variety of areas, but one of his significant achievements was an appeal to the Colorado Court of Appeals and later to the Colorado Supreme Court. His work researching, drafting, and arguing before the courts impacted Colorado law and resulted in two published opinions. For nearly 11 years, Ryan worked for Employers Council providing employers with consultative legal advice, with a focus on strategic and practical solutions, in a variety of areas of employment law and human resources. The last four years Ryan was the Managing Director of Employer Council’s Utah office. In 2021, Ryan joined Avalon Healthcare Management as Corporate Counsel, Labor & Employment. Shortly thereafter, Ryan received a promotion to Vice President and began leading the Human Resources department. In September 2023, Ryan received another promotion to Senior Vice President, HR and Deputy General Counsel. Ryan is licensed to practice law in Utah, Colorado (inactive), and Florida (inactive), and holds his SPHR certification.
REST Speaker: Richard Seaman –
Course info
Richard Seaman retired from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) as Chief Learning Officer in 2011. He now operates Beacon Innovations. Among others, his team has assessed, coached, trained and evaluated BMW, Apple, SGE, Rio Tinto, FAA, U.S. Departments of Energy, Agriculture and Defense, various small and medium sized businesses, medical practices, university athletic departments and local governmental agencies.
REST Speaker: Jeanne Yamamura, Ph.D., MIM, CPA –
Course info
Jeanne Yamamura, licensed as a CPA in Nevada and California, provides training for diverse audiences throughout the United States and internationally. She is a professor of accounting emerita at the University of Nevada, Reno. Jeanne specializes in enabling employees and leaders of small governments and organizations to better understand the accounting numbers and internal controls needed to successfully manage their operations. She also provides training in professional ethics for CPAs and CMAs. Her background includes public and private accounting, academia – online and offline, CPA exam review, and consulting. She holds a doctoral degree in business administration from Washington State University-Pullman, a master’s degree in international management from Thunderbird School of Global Management, and a bachelor’s degree in business administration from California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo.