Management Conference Speakers
Alex Theis is a speaker, consultant, author, and performance strategist who helps professionals and organizations surpass limits and drive meaningful growth.
With over 25 years of leadership experience, Alex has built and led high-performing teams across sales, marketing, and customer experience, generating more than $250 million in incremental revenue through innovative retention strategies and performance-focused initiatives. His work has consistently improved engagement, reduced turnover, and elevated team effectiveness.
Today, Alex works with corporate teams, finance professionals, and CPA organizations to develop the power skills that matter most in today’s workplace: emotional intelligence, mindset, leadership, communication, productivity, and resilience.
Blending real-world experience with a practical, engaging style, Alex challenges audiences to think differently, operate more intentionally, and take immediate action. His sessions are designed to go beyond ideas – equipping participants with tools, strategies, and perspective shifts they can apply right away.
Vanessa McNeal, named as a Top 10 Rising Speaker of 2026, Vanessa McNeal is a resilience and well-being expert with a Master's in Social Work — at the intersection of human performance, and trauma-informed leadership and neuroscience.
She speaks on burn-out, compassion as a competitive advantage, and the hidden survival patterns that shape how people lead, relate, and perform. Vanessa brings both the science and the lived experience of moving from survival mode into something sustainable. Her work has moved audiences and organizations nationwide.
Dr. Mike Kiefer is a professional speaker and author of seven books. He speaks on the topics of ethical leadership, team building, communication and lifestyle medicine. He has helped thousands of people and organizations lead with integrity, be more energized, healthy and effective! He consults with all types of organizations.
Dr. Mike earned his Ph.D. in advanced mindset psychology. His B.S and M.S. degrees are in genetic engineering.
Emily Klym, originally from Edgeley, ND, was drawn out west to attend college at Dickinson State University thanks to her annual family trips to Medora while growing up. Upon graduation, she remained in Dickinson having found full-time employment at Brady, Martz, and Associates, P.C. The ND CPA Society ultimately connected her back to Medora by way of Clarence Sitter when they worked together planning the 2018 CPA Convention in Medora. Emily started with the TRMF in 2018 serving as Controller before stepping into the Chief Financial Officer (CFO) role in 2022. She has served on the Board of Directors of the ND CPA Society since 2021 and is actively working on recruiting the next generation of CPAs through the Society’s NextGen Recruiting Committee. Emily was elected President of the ND CPA Society in September 2025.
Giving of her time and talents, Emily is an active community member. She is a catechism instructor and bookkeeper for St. John’s Ukrainian Catholic Church in Belfield, the Medora 4-H Club leader, and the Billings County representative for the Southwest REAP Board. In her limited free time, Emily enjoys traveling and spending time with husband Steve and their three children Carter, Hannah, and Conner (and dog Gracie!).
Dave Glennon is a Certified Public Accountant with extensive experience in public accounting, specializing in audits, reviews, and compilations of U.S. GAAP financial statements. He brings deep expertise in inventory and cost accounting, including labor and burden allocation methods, variance analysis, and related financial statement calculations. Dave also provides consulting services focused on internal control design, implementation, and compliance, including SarbanesâOxley Act requirements. His client experience spans publicly traded and privately held organizations, including private equityâbacked companies.
Dave earned a Bachelor of Arts in Accounting from Jamestown College in North Dakota. He is an active member of the North Dakota Society of Certified Public Accountants and the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants. His professional leadership includes serving as President of the North Dakota CPA Society, representing North Dakota on the AICPA Council, and serving as a former member of a local school board.
Sherre Sattler serves as Executive Director of the North Dakota CPA Society (NDCPAS). She works closely with the NDCPAS Board of Directors, oversees a small but mighty staff, and manages the day-to-day operations of the organization. She also leads the North Dakota CPA Society Foundation which awards scholarships to accounting students enrolled in eight area universities.
Sherre has been with the Society for over 30 years. She began her career in continuing education. Over the years she has worked with nearly all aspects of the organization including information management, finance, marketing, membership and advocacy. In addition, she also worked for the ND Board of Accountancy which shared staff with the Society until 2018. Sattler became Executive Director of the Society in November 2018.
Sherre holds a Bachelor of Business Administration degree from the University of North Dakota with majors in Marketing and Management and a minor in Communication. Recently she has chaired the AICPA and CPA/SEA Interchange Conference and served on the AICPA Rise 2040 Advisory Board.
Outside of her professional life, Sherre loves spending time at the lake and traveling with family and friends. She has two sons: Gunnar (26) and Garrin (22).
In MacKenzie’s employment practice, she advises employers on a variety of issues related to discrimination, harassment, and retaliation claims, employee relations, discipline, and termination, policy drafting and revisions, FLSA and wage-and-hour disputes, non-solicitation/non-compete agreements, and other federal and state employment issues involving past and present employees. She defends employers in both administrative and litigation proceedings. MacKenzie is a qualified neutral under Rule 114 of the Minnesota General Rules of Practice, and she provides neutral internal investigations.
As a litigator, MacKenzie is both a zealous trial lawyer and an enthusiastic appellate advocate. She represents clients in both federal and state courts.
Before joining the firm, MacKenzie served as a judicial clerk for the Honorable Ralph R. Erickson for the United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit and the Honorable Robert F. Rossiter, Jr. for the United States District Court for the District of Nebraska. She also served as a judicial extern for the Honorable John M. Gerrard for the United States District Court for the District of Nebraska. Today, MacKenzie uses her unique insight into federal courts to serve her clients.
MacKenzie graduated with High Distinction from the University of Nebraska College of Law and magna cum laude from the University of Jamestown with a degree in political science and a minor in history. In law school, MacKenzie served as the Executive Editor for the Nebraska Law Review and competed nationally for the National Moot Court Team. She was elected to the Order of the Coif and the Order of the Barristers in recognition of her achievements.
MacKenzie is originally from Mott, North Dakota, where her family farms. She loves basketball, the outdoors, and spending time with family, friends, and her husband, Ryan.
Sarah earned her Juris Doctorate from the University of North Dakota School of Law in 2025, graduating summa cum laude. She was elected to the Order of the Coif for academic excellence. During law school, Sarah served as the Managing Editor of the North Dakota Law Review and held multiple teaching assistant positions. Sarah gained invaluable practical experience during her time as a limited practice law student in the University of North Dakota’s Family Law Clinical Practicum, where she provided hundreds of hours of pro bono legal services and represented clients throughout all stages of the litigation process.
Prior to law school, Sarah obtained a Bachelor of Arts in English Literature from Concordia College in Moorhead, Minnesota. Following graduation, she worked as a Shelter Advocate, providing case management and advocacy services to individuals experiencing domestic violence, human trafficking, and chronic homelessness. This experience led Sarah to pursue a legal career.
Joe Morrissette was appointed Director of the North Dakota Office of Management and Budget in February 2018 by Governor Doug Burgum and served in that role for over five years. Joe was reappointed to that position by Governor Kelly Armstrong in December 2024.
Joe is a native of Bismarck and a graduate of the University of Mary, where he has received both undergraduate and graduate degrees. He has been a Certified Public Accountant in North Dakota since 1990.
Joe has over 30 years of experience working with the state budget, revenue forecast, and tax policy in various roles in ND state government.
Outside of his work in state government, Joe has served as an adjunct faculty in graduate accounting and finance for the University of Mary and from September 2022 through December 2024, served as a full-time faculty for governmental accounting and income tax.
Heather Ostrowski is a Senior Organizational Development Officer for Gate City Bank with over 25 years of experience in management, sales, speaking, writing and team/personal/professional development. She is a joyful connector of people, both to other people and to resources they may need, with a special focus on mental health resources. She serves as a public speaker to diverse audiences on a variety of topics and her passions include supporting her family, community, and team members.
She lives in Hawley, MN with her husband Jeremy, their son Adam and two labradoodles. Their other son Ethan is a student at the University of Minnesota. They love golf, being outside in the warm seasons and sweet treats!
Gian Paul is widely recognized for inspiring the New York Giants to their 2012 Super Bowl victory with the phrase “All In.” He has been featured on ESPN as well as had notable appearances on Fox News and CNN.
His inspirational talks have made him an internationally renowned speaker for NBA, NFL, English
Premiere League & Fortune 500 organizations.
Gian Paul Gonzalez was a former NCAA First Team All-American forward from Montclair State University scoring nearly 1.400 points in his 3 year career. He played in the NBA Summer League in 2007 and was offered professional basketball contracts, yet he turned them down in order to continue to work with at risk youth. He is the founder of Hope & Future, an organization dedicated to using athletics & physical fitness to share a message of hope and striving for excellence in inner-city public schools and juvenile jails.
