Last week I had the pleasure of attending Xerocon, and what an event it was. It was packed with exciting product announcements, inspiring keynote speakers, invaluable conversations with fellow accountants and bookkeepers, and a party that certainly lived up to the hype!
After two days of learning, these were my three biggest takeaways.
If there was one thing that stood out above everything else, it's that Xero isn't slowing down.
The platform has grown into far more than bookkeeping software. With an ever-expanding offering of apps, integrations and an ambitious product roadmap, it's clear that Xero is investing heavily in helping practices and businesses work smarter, not harder.
The announcements around AI were very exciting. Xero showcased “JAX”, its AI-powered financial assistant, which is designed to help users find information faster, answer questions in plain English and ultimately become a proactive assistant rather than just another chatbot. It feels like the beginning of a much more intelligent way of interacting with your accounting software.
Another standout was the evolution of the “Auto Bank Rec”, using AI to suggest and automate bank reconciliations with even greater accuracy. For something that accountants and bookkeepers spend so much time doing, innovations like this have the potential to save countless hours while reducing manual effort and improving confidence in the process.
Walking away from the event, it was impossible not to feel excited about where Xero is heading over the next few years.
Artificial intelligence was a recurring theme throughout the conference, but the message wasn't one of fear.
Instead, it was about opportunity.
The consensus was that AI isn't here to replace accountants and bookkeepers. It's here to remove the repetitive, time-consuming tasks that stop us from doing our best work. If technology can take care of data entry, reconciliation and routine admin, it gives us more time to become trusted advisers, build stronger client relationships and focus on those strategic conversations that add value to the work we already do.
The keynote speakers echoed this mindset in different ways. Louis Theroux spoke about curiosity and the importance of understanding people, while Dame Prue Leith reflected on embracing change and remaining creative throughout a long and successful career. Jill Scott's inspiring stories of teamwork, resilience and adapting to new challenges felt quite relevant in a profession that's evolving so quickly. It’s clear that we need to be open to change and keep learning.
The firms that lean into AI now will be the ones best placed to thrive in the future.
While the product announcements were impressive, one of the biggest attractions at Xerocon is the people.
Whether it was chatting with fellow accountants, meeting app partners or dancing at the party, there was a genuine sense of collaboration throughout the event. Everyone was there to learn from one another, and that's something that makes the Xero community so unique.
And then there was the Xerocon Party...
An evening full of great food, brilliant entertainment and plenty of dancing was the perfect way to round off the conference. Just when everyone thought the night couldn't get any better, Sophie Ellis-Bextor made a surprise appearance and had the whole room on its feet.
Xerocon left me feeling genuinely optimistic about the future of our profession and excited to implement new processes and technologies.
The software is becoming more powerful than ever, AI is creating opportunities rather than obstacles, and the community around Xero continues to be one of its greatest strengths.
Now the challenge is taking everything we learnt over those two days and putting it into practice.
All data and figures referred to in our news section are correct at the date of publishing and should not be relied upon as still current.
