Kristin Clark
Reflection Essay
There were two main events that reflected the most importance on my professional
development. These included the event networking, the dining etiquette and the sessions. I have
learned a lot from these events and everything was fun and exciting. Having attended the IMA Student
Leadership Conference last year, I think this one was a lot more enjoyable.
The various kinds of networking that took place throughout the conference enhanced my social
skills. During the many breaks, I got to meet most of the other Michigan students that attended the
conference. It’s important to be able to approach people and start a short conversation. Also, knowing
these people helps in the future when I have possibly to see everyone again during at another event.
Lisa Beaudoin was in attendance at the conference and connected with the Grand Valley students a
couple times. It was great because she works for IMA and remembers our faces and most of our names
from the time she spoke with us at Grand Valley. It’s important for the future because we are able to
have someone to contact about anything IMA and CMA related. I know I will be contacting her one day
because I will be taking the CMA.
As a group, we luckily met on of the camera men who took pictures throughout the entire
event. He remembered our faces so during certain events that took place he would make sure our
pictures were taken. The pictures that were taken were later put up on the IMA Facebook page. This is
just a great way to show how important it is to network and to not be afraid to speak to other people. It
was a great experience to know that our school was going to be represented through pictures through
IMA.
The luncheon that took place on Friday, November 15th was important to my dining etiquette.
This was a catered event that reflected dining in a business environment. The luncheon helped me learn
proper dining that I had not known about before especially in a business environment. I intend to use
my new knowledge of proper dining to other proper business related dining events. I really enjoyed all
the food they have served and it was a great experience I would enjoy to do again.
The very many sessions that took place throughout the entire conference enhanced my
knowledge greatly on the various topics. The session related to the CMA exam helped me fully
understand what the exam has to offer and what professions are out there to achieve with this
certification. I plan to maximize the experience by using the information provided to start getting ready
to take the CMA exam myself and the discount code that was offered as an incentive to get the process
started. This all makes me very excited to start studying the material and take the exam to get certified.
Another session I can really apply to my life is “The Power of Social Media for Your Job Search.” I
had really no idea what LinkedIn was until this session. Everything that was related to LinkedIn
enhanced my knowledge and it was real interesting subject. Soon after that session I signed up for a
LinkedIn myself to start connections with others. This is a social media site that is used for job searches
and networking is great to have especially in the job I plan to pursue.
These were two sessions I found most beneficial to my professional development but the other
sessions I had learned a lot too. Besides the various networking and the sessions that took place at the
event, I feel what is more important is that I got to know my peers at a more personal level. Because we
spent so much time together and got to know each other, I now consider them closer friends than I had
before. I can take these friendships and use them to what I had learned at the event. These are people I
can make connections with on LinkedIn and even study with for the CMA.
Overall, I learned a great amount of information that relates to my accounting career and I now
feel confident on my plans for the future. The relationships that I had made from this trip have made the
overall trip a better experience. My overall professional development has improved greatly from these
experiences and now I know more of what to expect in other business settings. This was a great trip, and
I was privileged to be able to go and have such an amazing experience with people I can call my friends.