Financial Excellence With Game Changers, Presented By Sap

The buzz: “There’s no question over the last year this new wave of technologies has had an impact on CFO decision making …” (Sandy Cockrell, Deloitte). Collaborative Enterprise Planning: myth or reality? Cloud-based planning systems have made it easier to connect and align plans from all departments and business units across your organization. But questions loom large about how deep and detailed your Finance Office’s plans should go, given the shift towards more ERP-centric planning solutions with more granularity. How should Finance lead and direct Zero-Based Budgeting and Driver-Based Planning? Where do Machine Learning and Augmented Analytics fit into this new picture? The experts speak. Thiago Bala, Deloitte: “Do. Or do not. There is no try” (Yoda). Jeff Hattendorf, Macrospect: “Fortune befriends the bold” (Emily Dickinson). Pras Chatterjee, SAP: “I can’t promise I’ll try, but I’ll try to try” (Bart Simpson). JoIn us for Full Steam Ahead: Finance and Planning Together At Last.

The buzz: “Financial fraud isn't new, and the extent of the crime can vary significantly…Most cases have at least one person, but often a group of fraudsters…” (businessinsider.com). CFOs: It’s a fact. While digitalization speeds up business processes, it creates new opportunities for fraudsters to exploit gaps that can escape traditional detection methods. A typical organization incurs fraud-related losses equivalent to 5% of annual revenue. How can you ensure your corporate assets are protected against fraudulent activities and address threats before they happen? The experts speak. Manish Singh, Deloitte: “If you are working on something that you really care about, you don’t have to be pushed. The vision pulls you” (Steve Jobs). Steve Biskie, RSM: “If you cannot do great things, do small things in a great way” (Napoleon Hill). Tomás Kong, SAP: “A penny saved is a penny earned” (Benjamin Franklin). Join us for Fraud: How to Protect Your Organization from Threats?

The buzz: “Profitability is very important to us or we wouldn't be in this business” (Jeff Bezos). Attention CFOs: You may think you have a grasp of true profitability, but your insights may be incomplete. Yes, you have a good feel for gross margins and direct costs. But do you truly understand how your business consumes variable or overhead costs, how IT costs are consumed and charged, or which customer groups and product lines add the most or detract from your bottom line? The experts speak. Rob Kugel, Ventana Research: “Never ask for money spent, where the spender thinks it went. Nobody was ever meant, to remember or invent, what he did with every cent” (Robert Frost). Michael Rea, Tartan Solutions: “Our greatest glory is not in never failing, but in rising up every time we fail. (Ralph Waldo Emerson). Michel Haesendonckx, SAP: “The bicycle is a curious vehicle. Its passenger is its engine” (John Howard). Join us for Financial Hide and Seek: Uncovering Hidden Profit and Costs.

The buzz: “The prevailing theory today is that the data was stolen by a nation-state for spying purposes, not by criminals looking to cash in on stolen identities (Kate Fazzini, cnbc.com). Remember the 2017 Equifax data breach that affected millions of credit card users? Graeme Payne, Equifax SVP and CIO, was held responsible and fired. What does your C-Suite need to know about cybersecurity and its relationship to enterprise and cyber risk management? The experts speak. Graeme Payne, Cybersecurity4Executives: “If you make listening and observation your occupation you will gain much more than you can by talk” (Lord Baden-Powell). Manash Saha, Protivi: “You may say I'm a dreamer…”(John Lennon). Fiona Williams, Deloitte: “Clouds come floating into my life, no longer to carry rain or usher storm, but to add color to my sunset sky (R. Tagore). Anne Marie Colombo, SAP: “There are no secrets to success….” (Colin Powell). Join us for CyberRisk: Keeping Your CFO Awake At Night!

The buzz: “Contrary to popular imagination, the finance world of the future will not be manned by a robot army. It will, instead, comprise of a team of trusted advisors in the organization utilizing advanced tech (David Chase). Finance leaders now understand that intelligent applications like artificial intelligence, machine learning, the Internet of Things and predictive analytics can help them improve business processes. How? These apps create new levels of insight, prediction, and efficiencies to empower Finance to drive enterprise-wide growth and strategic initiatives, invent new business models and revenue streams, and serve as the business advisor to the enterprise. And every CFO wants that! The experts speak. Nilly Essaides, The Hackett Group: “There is no genius without a touch of madness (Aristotle). Jason White, SAP: “True humility is not thinking less of yourself; it is thinking of yourself less” (C.S. Lewis). Join us for What Makes Finance ‘Intelligent’?

The buzz: “We not only possess the tools to take FP&A to new heights, but FP&A will have to soar for organizations to thrive in the 21st century.” (B. Kalish) The Intelligent Enterprise enables Finance to access data from all parts of the organization and to readily combine relevant financial data with operational data to make better decisions. How can the FP&A function become a leader, progressing from helping tomorrow’s decisions to helping drive today’s decisions? The experts speak. Bryan Lapidus, Association for Financial Professionals: “The future is already here – it’s just not very evenly distributed” (W.Gibson). Parminder Ghatahora, TruQua: “…The stiffest tree is most easily cracked, while the bamboo or willow survives by bending with the wind” (Bruce Lee). Pras Chatterjee, SAP: “On a team, it’s not the strength of the individual players, but it is the strength of the unit and how they all function together” (B.Belichick). Join us for Future of FP&A: Leading the Enterprise.

The buzz: “Death, taxes and childbirth! There's never any convenient time for any of them” (Gone with the Wind). What’s keeping CFOs up at night? In 80% of countries, federal tax authorities use electronic data extraction to perform tax audits. One in 4 countries requires taxpayers to submit tax data electronically. Our panel will discuss the urgent need for consistent, real-time tax information to enable Finance departments to respond and remain compliant with each new requirement. The experts speak. Mark Truchan, PwC: “If you can’t explain it simply, you don’t understand it well enough” (Einstein). Michael Bernard, Vertex: “If you drive a car, I'll tax the street, If you try to sit, I'll tax your seat…” (The Beatles). Lane Leskela, SAP: “When I’m not in my right mind, my left mind gets pretty crowded” (S. Wright), Kevin McCollom, SAP: “The only thing new in the world is the history you do not know” (H.S. Truman). Join us for Automating Finance Operations: Value-Added Tax Reporting.

The buzz: “CFOs are challenged with turning the numbers into something meaningful…to derive insights and deliver information to the rest of the organization (Chris Pass). What’s keeping CFOs awake at night? They need to oversee day-to-day operations amid changing market dynamics while guiding the business strategically to drive innovation and growth. How? Eliminate outdated IT limitations. Harness new technologies. Automate repetitive tasks. Manage risk and compliance. The goal: an intelligent finance organization. The experts speak. Melanie Noronha, The Economist Intelligence Unit: “Alone we can do so little; together we can do so much” (Helen Keller). Sam Parikh, Deloitte: “When you attack a problem as if it were solvable, even if you don’t know how to solve it, you’ll be shocked with what you come up with” (Peter Diamandis). Neil Krefsky, SAP: “The more things change, the more they stay the same.” (Alphonse Karr) Join us for Get Smart! The Intelligent Finance Organization.

The buzz: “There’s no question over the last year this new wave of technologies has had an impact on CFO decision making (Sandy Cockrell, Deloitte). Similar to personal New Year’s resolutions, businesses are kicking off 2019 with new goals including corporate responsibility and diversity. How to get there? Finance and risk executives can harness emerging technology tools – artificial intelligence, machine learning, predictive capabilities – to help determine the best course of action. The experts speak. Nilly Essaides, Hackett Group: “The less I understood of this farrago, the less I was in a position to judge of its importance” (Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde). Julien Delvat, TruQua: “May our philosophies keep pace with our technologies. May our compassion keep pace with our powers” (Dan Brown). David Williams, SAP: “Talent wins games, but teamwork and intelligence win championships” (Michael Jordan). Join us for Predictions 2019: Finance, Collaborative Planning, and Risk.

The buzz: “Surround yourself with the right team and ensure continuous communication with each other… provide leadership, but you also have to give your team authority and accountability (Barb Niland, Huntington Ingalls Industries). Enabling Finance organizations to be a more strategic partner to the business requires moving away from repetitive, error-prone manual tasks, and rearview. Simple solution: new technologies for managing real-time, continuous processes. Reality-check solution: a change management process and constant communication to support each Finance team member’s success. The experts speak. Julien Delvat, TruQua: “I'd change the world if I could change my mind” (Union, Black Eyed Peas). Prof. Dr. Kai Reinhardt, HTW Berlin: “’42,’ said Deep Thought, with infinite majesty and calm” (The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy). Peter T. Rasper, SAP: “Why does it always rain on me?” (Travis). Join us for Strategic Finance Magic Sauce: Change Management and Communication.

The buzz: “One of the main cyber-risks is to think they don’t exist. The other is to try to treat all potential risks” (Stephane Nappo). The sharp rise in global cybersecurity threats could cost $2T by 2019, quadruple from 2015. Information security leaders should fear phishing and malware attacks on employees and customers, brand impersonation, and all information breaches. Is your company monitoring, detecting and countering threats to critical data and applications? The experts speak. Ted Keniston, Protiviti: “If you do the things you need to do when you need to do then, then someday you can do the things you want to do...” (John C. Maxwell). Kevin D. Heckel, Deloitte: “The pessimist sees difficulty in every opportunity. The optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty” (Winston Churchill). Michael Golz, SAP: “It isn't the mountains ahead to climb that wear you out; it's the pebble in your shoe” (1916). Join us for Cybersecurity Threats and Finance: Are You Protected?

The buzz: “The planning process – planning, budgeting, forecasting, and analysis – presents a formidable challenge to many companies, regardless of size or industry” (CFO.com). Modern business technology is enabling a holistic approach to planning for an entire organization: Collaborative Business Planning), considered a “Utopian dream”. Why? CBP enables Finance departments and Financial Planning and Analysis professionals to lead the planning process, but collaborate closely with all line of business planners. Is it really Utopia? The experts speak. Nilly Essaides, The Hackett Group: “In today’s economy, the most important resource is no longer labor, capital or land; it is knowledge” (Peter Drucker). Yuval Atsmon, Globality: “Comparison is the thief of joy” (Theodore Roosevelt). Pras Chatterjee, SAP: “The greatest accomplishment is not in never failing, but in rising again after you fail” (Vince Lombardi). Join us for Collaborative Business Planning: CFO Utopia?

The buzz: “Tax technology is emerging as one of the most important enablers of effective tax department design and delivery” (kpmg.com). What’s keeping your company’s Tax office awake at night? Global and US tax reform, transfer pricing regulation changes, reinvigorated tariff regimes, changes in VAT and GST regulatory reporting requirements – requiring deeper digital tax management proficiency than ever before. How to get a good night’s rest? The Tax office needs to catch-up on key technologies – machine learning and intelligent reporting tools – and fast. The experts speak. Chris Carlstead, Thomson Reuters: “The pace of change has never been this fast, yet it will never be this slow again” (Graeme Wood). Jan De Clercq, Deloitte: “The best way to predict the future is to create it” (Alan Kay). Nick Goffi, SAP: “Oh, ok. If we hire Cirque de Soleil as salaried employees, will that help us with year-end tax stuff?” (Michael Scott, The Office). Join us for Tax: The New MVP in Finance!

The buzz: “Financial shared services have come a long way since they started gaining popularity in the 1990s” (Jim Buchanan). Finance efficiencies and transparency are crucial for distributed enterprises today. How to design more intelligent Finance processes? Standardize processes throughout the organization, centralize at a few locations and build a foundation for new technologies. The experts speak. Arjun Krishnamurthy, Deloitte: “I think frugality drives innovation” (Jeff Bezos). Werner Zeitlberger, The Hackett Group: “If the rate of change on the outside of an institution exceeds the rate of change on the inside, the end is near” (Jack Welch). Oliver Schoenborn, SAP: “So now, less than five years later, you can go up on a steep hill in Las Vegas and look West…” (Hunter S. Thompson). Robin Bau, SAP: “Before we work on artificial intelligence, why don’t we do something about natural stupidity” (Steve Polyak). Join us for The Heart of Intelligent Finance: Share and Share Alike?

The buzz: “Finance in a digital world: It’s crunch time for CFOs!” (www2.deloitte.com). CFOs: As your organization begins finance transformation, what to do first? It depends on whom you ask. Your board says to cut headcount. Software vendors lead with technology. Advisory firms focus on processes. Reality check: Each leg of this “Golden Triangle” – People, Process, Technology – contributes to an effective transformation. The experts speak. David Dixon, TruQua: “If you can't describe what you are doing as a process, you don't know what you're doing” (W. E. Deming). Molly Boyle, BlackLine: “My job is not to be easy on people. My job is to take these great people we have and to push them and make them even better” (S. Jobs). Stephanie Hudson Miller, SAP: “The biggest risk is not taking any risk…In a world that’s changing really quickly, the only strategy that is guaranteed to fail is not taking risks” (M. Zuckerberg). Join us for The Golden Triangle: Digitally Transforming Finance.

The buzz: “Disruptive technologies…will be used in the office of the CFO to increase productivity, simplify processes, and support decision-making” (Thomas Zipperle). Attention CFOs: Your Finance department can become a “smart” steward to drive fiscal and operational decisions for your business. How? By using real-time data access, next generation visualization, AI, Machine Learning and other modern technologies. But to be truly “intelligent”, Finance must enable collaboration, not just discussion, to link plans across the business. The experts speak. Julien Delvat, TruQua: “I do not believe you can do today’s job with yesterday’s methods and be in business tomorrow” (Horatio Nelson Jackson). Thiagu Bala, Deloitte: “The first step toward change is awareness. The second step is acceptance” (Nathaniel Branden). Rob Jenkins, SAP: “We should seek the greatest value of our action” (Stephen Hawking). Join us for The Secret to Intelligent Finance Planning: Collaboration.

The buzz: “Working capital optimization is increasingly on boards’ radar as they look for opportunities to enhance shareholder value” (Rich Rorem). Responsibility for managing inventory, payables, receivables, and cash is spread unevenly across finance, operations, supply chain, marketing and sales, procurement. Your CFO needs to think holistically about working capital optimization across the full value chain to make it part of the organization’s daily operations. How? Automation and artificial intelligence enable the CFO to guide all operational units. The experts speak. Gerhard Urbasch, The Hackett Group: “I wish human beings were as transparent as a jellyfish so we could identify the source of their pains” (Wilhelm C. Röntgen). Denise McGuigan, Deloitte: “The best way to predict the future is to create it” (P. Drucker). Andy Baxter, SAP: “When you are finished changing, you’re finished” (Ben Franklin). Join us for Optimizing Working Capital: Cashing-In for Your Bottom Line.

The buzz: “Finance professionals are spending just 17% of their time on strategic activities, with a lack of automation serving as the culprit for much of this inefficiency (Henner Schliebs). As the role of Finance changes to strategic advisor to the business, it’s critical to increase day-to-day process efficiency. How? Re-imagine Finance with Intelligent ERP that uses machine learning, in-memory technology and simplified data structures. The experts speak. Nilly Essaides, The Hackett Group: “Change will not come if we wait for some other person or some other time. We are the ones we’ve been waiting for. We are the change that we seek” (Pres. Barack Obama). Prof. Dr. Karin Graeslund, RheinMain University of Applied Sciences: “The magic always results from the details” (Theodor Fontane). Matthias Haendly, SAP: “The best way to find out if you can trust somebody is to trust them” (Ernest Hemingway). Join us for Machine Learning and Finance: Process Automation to the Next Level.

The buzz: “We are all ‘data subjects’ and we live in a world where key aspects of our lives will be ever more determined by the data held about us…where that same data is more at risk and open to compromise than ever” (GDPR – The Good, the Bad and the Ugly”, Tripwire). GDPR takes effect on May 25, 2018, requiring organizations to safeguard the personal data they're handling of European Union citizens and residents – whether or not the company is operating on the continent. Non-compliance will incur steep fines. It's almost time. Need help? The experts speak. Jeff Sanchez, Protiviti: “Every single day, Every word you say, Every game you play, Every night you stay, I'll be watching you” (The Police). Nadine Mueller, EY: “All animals are equal, but some animals are more equal than others” (Animal Farm). Dr. Neil Patrick, SAP: “They're funny things, Accidents. You never have them till you're having them” (A.A. Milne). Join us for GDPR Is Coming: Coping Strategies to Get Ready.

The buzz: “As the CFO, you're the go-to source for accurate information about company performance—no excuses, no delays.” (Bright Talk webinar) Finance organizations have changed dramatically, shifting from looking backwards for financial statements, to helping define the company’s strategic direction via forward-looking insights. Oxford Economics found today’s successful CFOs collaborating with business counterparts on the operational side, and taking a greater role in identifying risks: financial, supply chain, marketing, talent management. How? State-of-the-art technology including machine learning. The experts speak. Brian Kalish, Kalish Consulting: “Truly successful decision-making relies on a balance between deliberate and instinctive thinking” (Malcolm X). Birgit Starmanns, SAP: “The human spirit must prevail over technology” (Albert Einstein). Kevin McCollom, SAP: “Test fast, fail fast, adjust fast” (Tom Peters). Join us for Finance Leadership: Ready to Be a Tech-Savvy CFO?