On an exponential power sum

Abstract

Using combinatorial techniques, we derive a recurrence identity that expresses an exponential power sum with negative powers in terms of another exponential power sum with positive powers. Consequently, we derive a formula for the power sum of the first $k$ natural numbers when the power is odd, which when used in combination with Faulhaber's formula for computing power sums helps us to retrieve the Bernoulli numbers in certain cases.