Twyla Verhelst, CPA

Don't you just love it when successful practitioners like Dawn W. Brolin, CPA, CFE share their tech stacks, and the reasons WHY they use each app to get more done, with less effort and frustration? Check out this article from SmartVault Corporation , in which Dawn shares her #StartingLineup of accounting apps. Which of her apps do YOU use, and why? https://lnkd.in/g8hTXspC

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Last night, I attended BetaKit's Town Hall on the state of innovation in Canada. It was an inspiring event that brought together Toronto's brightest minds to discuss how we can move forward. Every speaker resonated with me, but a key takeaway is the immense opportunity we have to showcase Canadian craftsmanship in building world-class products. We can also empower the next generation to follow suit. Here are the top points that struck a chord with me personally: 1. Tech Talent: Scale up your career in Canada and make monumental impact here. (Ivan Zhang of Cohere) 2. Canadian Government: Continued innovation is crucial for solving problems in outdated industries like healthcare and pharmacy. Don't stifle our ability to make a real difference in the everyday lives of Canadians. (✨Joella A. of MedEssist | Transforming Pharmacy with Technology and AI 🏥) 3. Top Tech Leaders of Canada:  Our arguments about stagnation hold weight across Canada. Let's focus on the most impactful solutions. Is capital gains tax the most effective approach to get buy in from the average Canadian? (Ali Asaria, formerly Transformer Labs, Tulip) 4. Industry Veterans: Our mentorship is invaluable, especially for young professionals entering the remote workforce post-pandemic. Make time to guide them. (Jocelyne Murphy of Socratica) 5. Canada: Our differentiator is our CRAFTSMANSHIP. We have excellent product builders. Let's keep building here. Let's keep learning here. Let's get better here. (Tobias Lütke of Shopify) Let's go 🚀 #CanadianTech #Innovation #BetaKit #TownHall

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Question for all the startups out there: How many impromptu C-suite meetings do you have a day? For us, I think 4 per day is on the low end. Rain Technologies Inc. is still very much in the stage where sh*t needs to get done, so we order lunch and get into the conference room - not to leave until we’ve reached a solution. It’s so refreshing to work this way compared to some other jobs I’ve had in the past. Everyday, I’m #grateful for this crazy job and this wonderful team. #growth #startup #lifestyle

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Nailed it! Elon Musk is saying the quiet part out loud here: “Spend less time in conference rooms and more time just trying to make your product as amazing as possible” - Elon Musk This is so simple yet so underrated. Let's take Shopify as an example. Back in January 2023, the e-commerce giant automatically canceled all recurring meetings with 3 or more people and urged employees to be very selective about adding meetings back. This eliminated 10,000 company events or the equivalent of more than 76,500 hours of meetings and has contributed to ~18% increase in finished projects in 2023 alone 😳 Innovation thrives outside of the boardroom and Zoom meetings. P.S. check out 🔔linas.substack.com🔔, it's the only newsletter you need for all things when Finance meets Technology. For founders, builders, and leaders.

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Is Shopify's Stock a Buy After its Recent Earnings? Shares of the cloud-based commerce platform, Shopify, are trading higher this morning following the company’s upbeat earnings results. Their strong performance was driven by growth in subscription solutions revenue, which rose from $444 million to $563 million year over year, thanks to more merchants signing up and the increase in pricing on its subscription plans. The company also enjoyed more fees from a metric called "gross payment volume," which measures the total value of orders processed through the payment platform. The increase in revenue helped the company surpass its net income expectations, reflecting significant growth from the same quarter last year when they reported a loss of $1.3 billion. This quarter’s net income came in at $170 million, or 13 cents a share, beating the 8-cent estimates but declining from last quarter’s 26 cents. Nonetheless, Shopify investors found the earnings report to be a positive signal, largely because of the company’s rosy outlook. The company expects its next quarter to grow by about 20-25% from last year, which isn’t magnificent, but it is notable considering the uncertain economic environment. Overall Numbers: Looking at Shopify’s fundamentals as a whole, the company’s current valuation of $85 billion is particularly high compared to its annual revenue of $7.19 billion (2023). Although Shopify’s performance and its ability to beat expectations are impressive, the company needs to continue boosting revenue significantly in the years to come in order to justify its valuation; otherwise, a correction might be due. Net income will also remain a big focus for investors, especially for a technology-based company like Shopify. Technology companies are often forgiven for posting negative net income in the early years of their life, but Shopify is now a seasoned name that should bring more consistency to satisfy investors.

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Complicated finances should NOT overshadow the dream of running a business. Our mission is to make business finances easier, more intuitive, and more accessible for merchants on Shopify. Incredibly proud of the work of so many Shopifolk who are working every day to make this happen. shopify.com/finance

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Do you ever look back and appreciate what your team has done? We're at our company offsite this week in Canada, and I pulled a few slides to share what our Marketing team has accomplished since our last offsite. I was 🤯 with how much we've done. Here are a few highlights: 🚀 Product launches 20+, and it doesn't include fixes and small upgrades 🖥 Website 3 versions of our homepage in this period + rebranded our entire site. 📂 Templates SEO-optimized our 400+ templates, including those made by our community, so they get more traffic, sell more templates, and make more money. 👩‍💻 Experts 5,000+ freelancers and agencies use Glide to deliver custom software to clients. Our program keeps getting bigger and better! 👩‍🏫 Education 1,300+ have completed at least one of our 3 Glide Certifications. Spoiler: we have a new AI certification going live next week! ✍ Content Our blog, The Column, is often praised for content quality. It's a must-read if you want to roll out software successfully at your company. 📹 Video Last year, we decided to double down on video, and it paid off. Our YouTube channel is the best in the industry, and we're coming for LinkedIn video now. 🎉 Events 30+ virtual events for businesses, freelancers, and partners. We always get 4.5+ out of 5 in all our events! I'm in awe of my team every day, and I make sure they know it. PS: If you want to learn about any of these specific initiatives, just comment, and I'll write a more detailed post about them.

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Save time. Reduce chance of errors. Introduce a process everyone loves. That's the dream scenario any time we partner with people and finance leaders on comp planning, and working with Michelle and Sarah at Hopper has been just that over the last couple years. We were able to sit down and chat with them about the progress we've made together, and it was super rewarding to reflect on the results: ▶ Cut comp cycle prep time by ~90%, from weeks to just hours. ▶ Sped up the review approval process with improved access to data and collaboration. ▶ Saved hours of work for both the HR and finance teams. ▶ Ensured a highly repeatable process for future cycles. Read Hopper's story here 🐇 https://lnkd.in/g23FjRWf

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Next year, Lightspeed Commerce will exit its teenage years and turn 20. What does that maturity mean? For me, it’s all about shifting from simply a growth mindset to one of profitability. I sat down with Gus Papageorgiou, our Head of Investor Relations and host of the Inside Lightspeed podcast, to discuss this cultural shift, where we’re heading, and how my role as CEO will guide this moving forward. When Lightspeed first started, we were all about seizing opportunities — whether it was moving to the cloud early on, expanding into new markets, or launching payments. These bold moves have driven us to where we are today. Now, as we approach this new chapter, we're putting an emphasis on: - Doubling down on areas where we can truly excel and deliver the most value to our customers. - Making profitability our new North Star and ensuring that every move strengthens our foundation. - Staying true to our core mission: helping SMBs thrive. But now, we’re doing it with a sharper focus on long-term success. Had a great time reflecting on Lightspeed’s past, as well as discussing our vision for the future. Check out the full podcast here: https://lnkd.in/gF3vG-Qn

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This is a really cool moment for Novel... We're being spotlighted on the Shopify App Store—chosen as the Shopify Staff Pick! Very thankful to the Shopify Apps Team for showcasing our product. Seeing the impact we've brought to Shopify brands resonate within the platform is extremely rewarding. If this spotlight is the first time you're stumbling upon Novel, here's a quick overview of what we do: Novel creates branded Wallet Passes for Shopify brands that live in the consumer's Apple or Google Wallet. Owning a branded Wallet Pass aims to boost your retention strategy. We've seen results near 12X customer engagement and 10X referral revenue for brands using Wallet Passes. This is accomplished through: ➝ Seamless conversational referrals facilitated by QR code scanning and SMS.  ➝ Native push notifications that are automatically opted into by customers upon installation.  ➝ Location-based push notifications that target customers near retail locations, relevant situations, or competitors.  ➝ A new home for loyalty and tiered rewards, with various integrations so you can use existing programs seamlessly We work with Liquid Death, SwimOutlet.com, and Cometeer, just to name a few, and have many more amazing partnerships to announce soon. If you have any questions about our product or what we do, drop them below or shoot me a DM!

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Couldn't have said it better myself. Aaron, thanks a lot for the kind words and please keep that feedback coming! Is there anyone else who would like to join Aaron in testing Bankfeed? We're offering a 30-day free trial to let you explore with no strings attached: https://lnkd.in/dSdh8mS7 Message me if you have any questions 💬 #FreeTrial #BusinessCentral #ProblemSolved #OpenBanking

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Feeling lost in the AI marketing noise? Join this session with Mikhiel Tareen, Conrad J. Millen and I as we break down how to scale outbound efforts with AI tools. I'll share my own ups and downs, including what I messed up and what worked as we made AI work for outbound. If you're looking for honest, practical insights, sign up and let's figure this out together.

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I seem to have a lot of conversations touting the benefits of working at a startup. It happened again at lunch yesterday. And at a product meetup the week before. Why do I love working at a company with a few dozen people? Because decisions happen fast. Because it's nearly impossible to have siloed information. Because I know everybody's name, despite my famous - or infamous - inability to remember names or faces most of the time. And because we can truly push to test and learn quickly, and tolerate failure more easily, in order to learn some more. My experience with larger companies and organizations of all kinds is that they desperately want to believe they are nimble and entrepreneurial. They want to move at the "speed of a startup". But they don't, or possibly can't, change their internal structures and processes to make it real. So there's still a lengthy approval process for any test of any size. Teams can come or go without warning. And information silos abound, so much so that networking across different units within a company becomes one of the most important keys to influence and getting your job done. Of course there are exceptions to the above. An actively engaged and empowered leader in the right role can make a lot of enterprise barriers magically disappear. And there are plenty of pain points to startup life as well - enough to fill a whole series of future posts! But for someone as impatient as I am to get things done, I'm pretty grateful to have found my way back to startup life. With thanks to the many who have participated in my progress to get here and the venting about the speed to get things done in orgs of all sizes! Prabhakar Bhogaraju Brian Vieaux Henry Cason Chris Hockley Chaochao Zuo, CFA Rajesh Nerlikar Ndy Ogar Angela Christman

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Big news from Shopify today!  The launch of Shopify Finance marks a new era in simplifying business finances. By bringing all our financial tools together, we're enabling entrepreneurs to focus on what they do best—growing their businesses. Proud to support this innovative step forward.

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Yesterday, Shopify announced an exciting new partnership with YouTube, enabling seamless shopping directly within videos and live streams. This collaboration allows brands to tap into YouTube creators' engaged audiences, enhancing authenticity and driving sales with a frictionless shopping experience. They’re calling it "shop while you watch." Shopify is making a smart move here by leaning into a few key trends: 1. Video content is more powerful than ever. 2. Content creators on YouTube (and other social platforms) have an increasingly significant influence on purchasing decisions. While I love that Shopify is directly challenging TikTok Shop head-on, I do see some limitations with shoppable videos from creators: - Creators often don't own the products they promote. When a product is gifted, it’s harder for shoppers to relate, as the endorsement may not feel as genuine as a real customer’s experience. - Partnering with creators can be costly. I always advise brands that their best creators are often their existing customers. They have smartphones capable of producing high-quality content and frequently share polished versions of their experiences on social media. Collecting content from satisfied customers and showcasing it on your website remains one of the most effective ways to build authenticity and trust. Moast is a great tool for achieving that.

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What % of revenue does partnerships deliver today? What do you want it to be? Is there a gap? I'd say most likely... That's the hopes and dreams that partnerships can deliver a quick firehose of customers... However... Which partners are contributing towards it currently? Why would they do more, now and ahead to close YOUR gap? Do they have capacity, capabilities and motivations to do more? If not... Do you need to recruit more partners? How many? Why would they spend their time and efforts towards you? If they haven't worked with you before, you're an interruption to their people, processes and focus which drives forward their revenue.. So what's your partner value proposition? It needs to be MUCH better than their current partners and easy to onboard, implement and manage How many customers would they need to add for you? Lots of questions and things to consider, which is why you need a robust partner strategy BEFORE wasting time and efforts. Don't be one of those companies that say *we tried partnerships, it didn't work* That's what we help solve at Hockey Stick Advisory Like Tom Willis from Lawpath. Be like Tom. Reach out if you'd like to go faster with and through partners. https://lnkd.in/gDfrpB7y #partnerships #growth #ecosystems Scott Cooper Chris Tsiknas

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August is here, it is important for businesses and individuals to get everything in order when it comes to taxes, financial planning, and books. That's why partnering with the experts at MASCPA can make all the difference! At MASCPA, our team of certified public accountants (CPAs) are here to guide you through the complexities of tax preparation, financial management, and business optimization. Whether you're an individual with a complicated tax situation or a small business owner looking to streamline your operations, we have the knowledge and tools to help you conquer your August goals. From tax planning and preparation to outsourced bookkeeping and QuickBooks setup, MASCPA provides the personalized, top-notch services you need to get ahead. We'll work closely with you to understand your unique financial challenges and develop customized solutions that save you time, reduce stress, and maximize your profits. Experience the MASCPA difference this August and take control of your financial future! Have a great month ahead. #MASCPAServices #TaxPlanning #BusinessOptimization #QuickBooks #FinancialManagement #AugustGoals

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Against all odds they were smashing it. Seriously. Everything was stacked against this team I once worked with. 😣 Badly configured back-office systems 🫣 A “digital front end” that was little more than an online version of the paper application form (with about as much integration) 😖 And, manual workaround upon manual process (upon manual blooming-everything) to deal with This team should have been doing a really bad job of serving their clients. But they weren’t. Because the people in that team were amazing. Now obviously we sorted things out and they had a much better time of it. BUT this very extreme example really bought home to me how much your people are the backbone of a business. You can have the worst systems & shoddy processes but people can make it work*. And, if you have the best systems & snazzy processes – they’re still nothing without the people using them. That’s why we’re Ops First, Digital Second, People Always. *They absolutely shouldn’t have to though. Lets fix it 🙌 #changemanagement #peoplecentric #businessleadership

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I have a confession... I love Shopify's new free theme Trade. That's counterintuitive right? My company makes premium themes for Shopify that cost money. Trade is my competition, but I keep coming back to it. Sure, it's missing some stuff. The nav isn't the best, it's not got all the sexy animations or cart features of other themes but it knows who it wants to be. It is a B2B theme. Arguably, the first purpose built B2B theme. The native quantity rules? Elegant. The built in quick order form for product variants? Effortless. It is clear that Shopify is pushing hard into this segment and it is laying down the gauntlet. Competition is good, thank you Shopify.

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