Finance, The New Alchemists of Value Creation
Have you ever read the story of Rumpelstiltskin? You know the one where under threat of death a young woman is forced to seek help to turn something fairly common like straw is into gold.
Hurdles Finance Professionals Can Overcome to Deliver More Value
There are two types of accounting and finance professionals, those that ensure the appropriate controls and compliance are in place so that the numbers are accurate and consistent – let’s call this preserving value, and then there are those who are coming out from behind their desks, engaging with the business on meaningful problems, solving them, being a trusted sparring partner and financial mentor – let’s call this creating and capturing more value.So what’s stopping us from being both?
WEBINETTE: Help Them Grow or Watch Them Go
In today’s business environment, talent is the major differentiator. And developing and retaining that talent is one of the most significant drivers of employee engagement… which in turn is the key to critical business outcomes like revenue, profitability, innovation, productivity, customer loyalty, quality, and cycle time.
Due Diligence Is Just Around The… Oh Wait, It’s Already Here. Be Prepared.
Consider these two scenarios:
Scenario A: A seller and buyer are really excited to move a sale along. Some information is shared, a letter of intent is signed, and then the buyer along with their lenders, lawyers and other advisors start asking for more detailed information – this is the confirmatory “due diligence” process.
As the seller starts pulling data together, they discover that a lot is actually outdated or even missing. Maybe some customer or supplier contracts have expired, quarterly tax filings have been missed, no one knows when the software was last upgraded, the employee handbook is outdated and so on.
How Do You Build Holding Ponds? - Finance Leaders Respond
There are a number of holding ponds behind our home that channel the water from our neighborhood to a small creek that eventually flows into the Columbia River. The system made me think about how we build “holding ponds” in our businesses to regulate the flow of work and prevent the damage “flooding” can do to our business. AFT activities are full of deluges; preparing the forecast, refinancing our bank loan, preparing the annual plan, closing the books followed by preparing the Board Pack, tax reporting, issuing payroll, managing the annual audit and the list goes on.
