To be successful, chief financial officers and treasurers need to be true leaders who invest in the professional development of their teams. That requires seeking out exceptional talent and helping those individuals grow their skillsets so that they can make the organization more resilient.
In this episode of AFP Conversations, Jim Kaitz, President and CEO of AFP, discusses professional development with Mark McGivney, Chief Financial Officer of Marsh and McLennan Companies. McGivney has held a number of senior financial management positions since joining the company in 2007. This interview covers the skills that finance professionals will need to continue to be competitive, as well as the short and long-term impact of COVID-19 on finance organizations.
Visit the Career Hub to learn more about how you can take the next step in your career.
If you’ve attended a career development session at an AFP Conference over the past few years, you’ve probably heard Nicole Meyer speak before. She is Founder and Managing Partner of The Meyer Partnership, a search and advisory firm for Global Financial Services. A former transaction banker, hiring manager and talent recruiter, Meyer created a search firm founded on the principle of bringing the world’s most successful banks and companies together with the very best and relevant candidates.
She’s speaking again this year at AFP 2020. In this episode of AFP Conversations, she discusses how financial professionals can interview in the current environment. This podcast is part of the new AFP Career Hub series. Visit the Career Hub to learn more about how you can take the next step in your career.
Over the past several months, financial professionals have experienced upheaval in their professional and personal lives. Many have been working from home, adapting their daily schedules to that environment. When you’re handling so many things at once, it can be difficult to manage your time properly.
In this podcast, AFP President and CEO Jim Kaitz discusses the importance of perfect timing with AFP 2020 keynote Daniel Pink. Pink is a New York Times Bestselling author, whose books have won multiple awards and have sold more than 3 million copies worldwide. His latest book, “When: The Scientific Secrets of Perfect Timing,” could be an instruction manual for how financial professionals can operate in today’s hectic, work-from-home environment. It delves into the science of timing, which can help us make better decisions and increase our productivity. Pink will be discussing some his findings at the AFP 2020 Virtual Experience in October.
Alphabet, Google's parent company, is a rapidly growing and dynamic business. To support this growth, Alphabet recognized the need to re-engineer its treasury function. Partnering with SAP, Alphabet launched Project Emerald—a state-of-the-art, non-custom solution that migrated treasury’s processes to the company’s SAP treasury workstation. The success of this in-house solution has paved the way for Alphabet to implement SAP as a single global ERP system for not just treasury, but all corporate functions. Project Emerald was such a success that Alphabet was named a finalist for the AFP 2020 Pinnacle Awards. The Awards, sponsored by MUFG, recognize excellence in treasury and finance. In this episode of AFP Conversations, John Clarke, Assistant Treasurer for Google, discusses Project Emerald.
This year the treasury and finance community gets to select the winner of the Pinnacle Awards, sponsored by MUFG. Our three finalists will be voted on and one Grand Prize Winner will be selected. That Grand Prize Winner will be announced during the AFP 2020 Virtual Experience.
To learn more about our other finalists and to vote for the Pinnacle Awards Grand Prize Winner, visit www.afp2020.org/pinnacle.
Drager is a leading manufacturer for medical and safety technology products, employing more than 15,000 people worldwide. The company generates revenues of around 2.8 billion Euros, 55% of it in foreign currencies. Drager's portfolio of foreign currencies requires reliable data processing in a highly automated, cost-effective and flexible manner. Until the end of 2019, FX exposures were computed in a highly manual and time-consuming, spreadsheet-based process.
To improve data availability and reliability, Drager automated data processing and the calculation of exposures. Additionally, Drager automated the exposure planning process and created a cost-efficient hedging portfolio. The project was so successful that Drager is one of the finalists for the AFP 2020 Pinnacle Award. In this episode of AFP Conversations, Frank Freitag, Controller of FX Risk Management for Drager, discusses his company's groundbreaking solution.
This year the treasury and finance community gets to select the winner of the Pinnacle Awards, sponsored by MUFG. Our three finalists will be voted on and one Grand Prize Winner will be selected. That Grand Prize Winner will be announced during the AFP 2020 Virtual Experience.
To learn more about our other finalists and to vote for the Pinnacle Awards Grand Prize Winner, visit www.afp2020.org/pinnacle.
By now, we all know about Peloton. It is the largest interactive fitness platform in the world, with a loyal community of more than 2 million members. Maybe you're a member yourself. But what you might not realize is how quickly Peloton exploded onto the fitness scene. And because of its meteoric rise, Peloton initially lacked a formalized treasury operation.
In this episode of AFP Conversations, we speak with Dana Laidhold, treasurer for Peloton. She discusses how she joined Peloton in 2018, in the midst of its transformation from a small fitness technology company to a global phenomenon. Laidhold was tasked with quickly building a treasury team that could support the Peloton's rapid growth. It was such a success that Peloton's treasury department is now a finalist for the AFP 2020 Pinnacle Award. The Pinnacle Awards, sponsored by MUFG, recognize excellence in treasury and finance. The grand prize will be announced at AFP 2020 in October.
This year the treasury and finance community gets to select the winner of the Pinnacle Awards. Our three finalists will be voted on and one Grand Prize Winner will be selected. That Grand Prize Winner will be announced during the AFP 2020 Virtual Experience.
To learn more about our other finalists and to vote for the Pinnacle Awards Grand Prize Winner, visit www.afp2020.org/pinnacle.
Treasury and finance professionals are in a unique position to influence the strategic direction of their organizations. As such, they need certain skills that allow them to influence key decision makers.
AFP 2020 host and spotlight speaker Mark Jeffries joins this episode of AFP Conversations to discuss the art of influencing. An author, communications expert and former Merrill Lynch stockbroker, Jeffries has become a trusted advisor and communications consultant to some of the world's largest and most successful corporations. He's published two books, and has just launched two highly innovative e-learning courses. At AFP 2020, he'll provide financial professionals with an instantly usable toolbox of communication and networking tools designed to help them become strategic influencers.
Register for AFP 2020 here.
The external market influences and risks that organizations must account for in their planning cycles have never been more chaotic. In this episode of AFP Conversations, AFP 2020 Certification Keynote Mona Sutphen discusses how financial sanctions and investment restrictions are a critical tool in U.S. policy.
Sutphen served as the White House Deputy Chief of Staff under President Barack Obama, and has also been a Managing Director for UBS AG. She has more than 20 years of experience advising Fortune 500 companies on the intersection of geopolitics, policy, and markets. In her upcoming conference session, Sutphen will explain how sanctions can directly and indirectly affect corporate treasury and finance.
For treasury and finance professionals, peak performance is no longer optional—it’s foundational. Studies of high performing organizations show that the secret to peak performance is “flow” – an optimal state of consciousness where we feel and perform our best.
In this special edition of AFP Conversations, AFP President and CEO Jim Kaitz discusses flow and peak performance with Steven Kotler, Executive Director of the Flow Research Collective. Kotler is a New York Times bestselling author, an award-winning journalist, and one of the world’s leading experts on high performance. His book “Stealing Fire” was a national bestseller and nominated for a Pulitzer Prize. His previous book, “The Rise of Superman,” was the first book in history to appear on the New York Times bestseller lists in the sports, science, psychology, and business categories simultaneously.
At the AFP 2020 Executive Institute, Kotler will discuss how treasury and finance professionals can harness flow and amplify performance. Using examples drawn from multiple blue-chip enterprises, as well as his own experience working with executives, he will cutting edge neuroscience into practical, applicable steps for organizational transformation.
Corporate treasury and finance professionals require a quick access to accurate data and the ability to draw insightful analysis to propel their organizations forward. As we navigate this current crisis, forecasting the future has only become more complex and uncertain. So how can we take what seems to be disparate information and reveal the deeper underlying connections?
In this special episode of AFP Conversations, AFP President and CEO Jim Kaitz speaks with Amy Webb, CEO and founder of The Future Today Institute, on how to spot those underlying connections and broader patterns. Webb is one of America's leading quantitative futurists, a professor of strategic foresight at the NYU Stern School of Business, and a bestselling, award-winning author. As the AFP 2020 Mindshift Keynote, she will discuss how treasury and finance professionals can harness futurist strategic tools to benefit their organizations.
The 2020 AFP Liquidity Survey was conducted in March 2020, just before the true impact of the coronavirus pandemic was felt in the United States. But even though respondents were surveyed before businesses began closing down, the results revealed cautious attitudes among treasury and finance professionals. In this episode of AFP Conversations, sponsored by Invesco, we discuss the survey results with Laurie Brignac, CIO of the Invesco Global Liquidity Fixed Income Group, and Justo Gonzalez, Invesco's Head of Global Liquidity Research.
Is artificial intelligence the next must-have tool in FP&A’s planning toolkit? AI has the potential to enhance FP&A in four key areas: data cleansing, forecasting and prediction, categorization and scoring, and driver-based planning. That’s because unlike other programs, AI is able to gather information. And the more it does, the more it can think for itself, allowing for endless possibilities in the finance realm.
In this episode of AFP Conversations, sponsored by Santander, Dr. Liran Edelist, President of Jedox; Jamie Cousin, Manager of Financial Planning and Analysis for ServiceMaster; and Bryan Lapidus, FP&A, AFP’s Director of the FP&A Practice; discuss how FP&A is implementing these technologies.
Cash forecasting is a difficult task that every treasury department must deal with. Can artificial intelligence help? It has the potential to improve processes, save costs and enhance treasury’s decision-making for liquidity, working capital and currency exposure management. In the latest episode of AFP Conversations, sponsored by Santander, we look at how AI and Big Data are leading the path to powerful decision-support and automation of treasury. Discussing this complex topic are Nicolas Christiaen, CEO & Co-Founder of Cashforce and Ron Chakravarti, Managing Director, Treasury and Trade Solutions for Citi.
In this special edition of the AFP Conversations Podcast, Jim Kaitz, President and CEO of AFP, speaks with skateboarding legend Tony Hawk. Widely considered to be the greatest in his sport, Hawk started his own foundation, created a video game that inspired a generation, and is the most recognized action sport figure in the world. He'll be appearing at AFP 2021 as the Sunday Keynote speaker, where he'll discuss the importance of maintaining authenticity in your career and in life. In this interview, he provides a preview of his presentation.
AFP 2021 takes place Nov. 7-10 in Washington, DC. The early registration deadline is through June 25, 2021. To learn more about the event and to register, visit AFP2021.org.
In this special edition of AFP Conversations, members of the AFP 2020 Planning Task Force preview the agenda for the upcoming conference, which will take place in Las Vegas, from October 18-21.
First, Tracy Butler, CTP, CFO of Sound Transit, provides a preview of the FP&A track. Next, Ray Beasley, CTP, Senior Manager of Treasury for Best Buy, previews the Payments track. After that, Jenifer Herdin, CTP, Vice President of Corporate Treasury for PVH Corp. previews the Treasury Management Track. Last but not least, John Nielsen, CTP, Treasurer for Henniges Automotive, Inc., provides a look at the Capital Markets, Investments and Risk Management track.
For more information on AFP 2020 and to register, go to: AFP2020.org.
Upgrading technology to optimize processes, controls and reporting has become essential for treasury. What was once seen as optional has gradually become a requirement. Treasury management system (TMS) selection in particular can be a long and difficult process, but the end result typically makes it all worthwhile. In the latest episode of AFP Conversations, sponsored by Santander, Kjell Aansloekken, Director of International Treasury for MTD Products Inc., Kevin Huxoll, Manager of Global Treasury Operations for Levi Strauss, and Colin McAlpine, Principal of Treasury Strategies, discuss how improving technology has gone from a nice-to-have to a must-have for treasury.
Nacha has created new infrastructure and tools to improve key AP/AR processes and lower fraud risk. The association is looking to enhance the corporate experience in procure-to-pay and order-to-cash. In this episode of AFP Conversations, sponsored by Santander, we look at how Afinis’ standardized APIs and validated data can transform payment processes, with George Throckmorton Managing Director of Nacha. George Welcome to the podcast.
In this special edition of the AFP Conversations podcast, Jim Kaitz, president and CEO of AFP, discusses risk with General Chuck Jacoby, co-author of "Agility: How to Navigate the Unknown and Seize the Opportunity in a World of Disruption." General Jacoby brings over 36 years of experience leading military, government and international organizations. Prior to retiring, he served as the first Army officer to command North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) and the United States Northern Command. He now serves as Senior Vice Chairman of Tilman & Co., the Distinguished Chair of the Modern War Institute, West Point, NY, a member of the Board of Directors of Cornerstone Defense and a Senior Advisor for Stellar Solutions. In this interview, he discusses being an agile leader in challenging times.
This is the second part of a series on agility. The first part, which featured General Jacoby's co-author Leo Tilman, ran last week.
In this special edition of the AFP Conversations podcast, Jim Kaitz, president and CEO of AFP, discusses risk with Leo Tilman, co-author of "Agility: How to Navigate the Unknown and Seize the Opportunity in a World of Disruption." A leading expert on strategy, risk, finance and a long-time advisor to major companies, institutional investors, and governments, Tilman helped shape the modern concept of risk intelligence and, in collaboration with the U.S. government, created innovative models for public/private partnerships. In this interview, he shares his insights on being agile in today’s environment.
Everyone is talking about faster and real-time payments. But for corporate treasury departments in the United States, it hasn’t really caught on yet except for some, very specific use cases. Corporate treasury professionals typically aren’t the ones to jump at investing in some flashy new technology. On the other hand, there is a question of whether the U.S. is going to catch up to other nations.
In this episode of AFP Conversations, we discuss real-time, what it has to offer, and what its limitations are, with Kim Ford, Executive Director of the U.S. Faster Payments Council. The Faster Payments Council was established to allow Americans to pay anyone safely and securely, anywhere, at any time and with near-immediate funds availability.
For more insights, download the AFP Payments Guide, Electronic and Real-Time Payments in Practice, underwritten by MUFG Union Bank.
Successful politicians have mastered the art of crafting and communicating a desired perception of themselves. Following their model, financial professionals can also carefully craft how they want to be perceived by their peers, their superiors and their employees.
In this episode of AFP Conversations, sponsored by Santander, Chad Parsons, Senior Vice President and Corporate Treasury and Deposit Services Leader for Renasant Bank, explains how financial professionals can cultivate the perception and the reputation they really want.
In a repurchase agreement, or repo, one party sells an asset to another party and agrees to repurchase the asset at the same price, plus a premium in the future. The first party gets a much-needed funding and the second party gets to make a little extra money. The repo market is vital to the entire financial system. So when the repo markets fall into trouble, the impact can be massive. That was the fear in September 2019, when quite a bit of cash was pulled out of repos while securities were still coming in. Overnight repo rates increased, as did the Federal Funds Rate.
The Fed ultimately stepped in to stabilize things, but questions remain. Will this keep happening? If so, how often can the Fed bail the repo market out? And how might this impact corporate treasury and finance professionals? In this episode of AFP Conversations, sponsored by Invesco, Laurie Brignac, CIO and Head of Global Liquidity at Invesco, and Marques Mercier, Head of Government and Municipal Funds, Invesco Fixed Income, will help us answer these questions and more.
In this episode of AFP Conversations, Tom Hunt, CTP, AFP's Director of Treasury Services, speaks with Drew Wolff, CFO of International and Channel Development and former Treasurer of Starbucks, about his career. Wolff, a graduate of the United States Naval Academy, explains how Elbert Hubbard's famous essay, "A Message to Garcia," Matters relates to the treasury and finance profession.
Financial professionals, what is the next step in your career? Find out with the AFP Career Pathing Tool, exclusively available to AFP members. You’ll learn the skills, experience and abilities you need to reach the next level in the treasury and finance profession. Learn more about this tool and AFP Membership at dynamic.afponline.org/benefits.
There’s often a tendency in FP&A to focus too much on the budgeting, forecasting and planning process, without taking a good hard look at how the overall organizational strategy, people and technology play into the equation. At AFP 2019, a panel discussion looked at how to improve upon that.
In this episode of AFP Conversations, sponsored by Santander, Sarah Moriarty, Associate Director of Financial Management for Harvard University, and Kirby Lunger, former partner with Performance Architects, discuss what it truly takes for FP&A teams to succeed at forecasting and budgeting, and how can they avoid pitfalls along the way.
For more insights on budgeting and forecasting, don't miss FinNext 2020, March 17-19, in New Orleans, where FP&A professionals meet to create what's next. Register for the event here.
As waves of new technology are being integrated into finance, the FP&A function has a chance to seize the moment and move from a cost center to a service center. But simply adopting new tools is not enough; successfully navigating change requires developing a new mindset that creates value by clearly communicating the meaning of business data.
At FinNext 2020, finance and leadership expert Amy Vetter, CEO of The B3 Method Institute and Drishtiq Yoga, will show FP&A professionals how they can embrace innovation, allowing them to become strategic partners and develop collaborative and lasting relationships with customers. A corporate board member, author, and host of the podcast, "Breaking Beliefs," Vetter shares her insights in this episode of AFP Conversations.
Register for FinNext 2020 before February 14 and save!