June 2017
cfomonthly When Every Day Is Casual Friday
Don’t expect your accountant to be sporting a tie or business suit. Workplace attire today is trending casual, even for historically more buttoned-up accounting and finance professions. A recent survey revealed that nearly three in four CFOs say their teams have a casual dress code, we find out more.
Plus: New Study on Future of Financial Industry / CFOs Remain Optimistic; Business Focus on Offense over Defence / Rising Fraud Costs Inhibit Corporate Finance Plans for Innovation, Growth
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Contents
Welcome to the June edition of CFO Monthly... Welcome to the June edition of CFO Monthly Magazine, which showcases the latest news and features about financial leaders from across the globe. Technology isn’t the only thing that’s changing. According to a recent survey, nearly three in four CFOs highlight how their teams’ workplace attire is trending casual. Within the next two years, almost 60% of corporate finance leaders expect to change fraud-fighting strategies research reveals. This is according to the latest report ‘Managing the Risk of Fraud: The View from Corporate Finance’, published by Vesta Corporation. Bringing over 30 years of experience as a healthcare CFO and finance leader, Duncan Gallagher has accepted an appointment to the Health Catalyst®’s board of directors, officially joining on May 12. I truly hope you enjoy reading this marvelous edition.
4. 6. 8. 10. 12. 14. 16. 18. 20. 21. 22. 24. 26.
New Study on Future of Financial Industry Madalena Announces Appointment of Permanent Chief Financial Officer automotive Mastermind Appoints Chief Financial Officer Boeing Expands CFO Smith’s Role Millennium Energy Corporation Appoints Chief Executive Officer BrainJocks Moving HQ to Alpharetta and Deepening Bench Strength Electric Guard Dog Named to SC Best Places to Work 2017 CFOs Remain Optimistic; Business Focus on Offense over Defence Meritize Names Chief Financial Officer Veritas Appoints Mark Dentinger as Chief Financial Officer Health Catalyst Appoints Visionary Healthcare CFO Duncan Gallagher When Every Day Is Casual Friday Rising Fraud Costs Inhibit Corporate Finance Plans for Innovation, Growth
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New Study on Future of Financial Industry In tandem with the celebration of its 225th anniversary, State Street Corporation announced on June 26 the publication of its latest study, A New Climate for Growth: Cultivating Asset Intelligence to Thrive.
A New Climate for Growth: Cultivating Asset Intelligence to Thrive outlines a new model for future growth that will allow industry participants to: 1) compete at scale; 2) align technology with ambition; and 3) cultivate the power of asset intelligence. According to the study, two-thirds (66%) of the 507 global asset managers and asset owners surveyed believe it is becoming more challenging to achieve growth in the current market environment. Interestingly, European respondents are more concerned about regulations governing liquidity risk, with 40% ranking it as one of their top three threats for growth; while 43% of North American respondents deem regulatory attention to investment fees as a top three risk; while in APAC, 41% of respondents ranked the political outlook of key markets as a top three threat for growth. However, only a minority of global respondents feel they have the right strategy, operating model and technology infrastructure in place to reach their full growth potential given these conditions. While digitisation remains a priority to address growth concerns, with the understanding that it has the potential to streamline operations, create efficiencies, and optimise performance and risk management; institutions are struggling to keep pace as the rate of change accelerates, with only 43% stating they are adapting technology quickly enough to support business growth needs.
Based on the research findings, State Street has outlined areas for institutions to prioritise within its new model for future growth: 1) Compete at scale a. Consolidating to compete on cost and capability b. Outsourcing to focus on differentiation c. Co-investing to access new opportunities 2) Align technology with ambition a. Acquiring to on-board innovation b. Integrating systems for a unified view of performance and risk c. Expanding distribution with mobile and robo 3) Cultivate the power of asset intelligence a. Marrying advanced digital intelligence with human experience and insights b.Building new employee skill sets c.Embedding a culture of doing things differently Jeff Conway, chief executive officer, EMEA at State Street said, “Over the past 225 years, our ability to change has remained constant. It’s what propelled us from a maritime bank to a leading financial services provider. We believe the financial industry is at of the beginning of a new, digital era. In a world where data is the new currency, assets backed by intelligence will change how institutions will deliver on their investment objectives and risk management needs.”
Later this year, State Street will also unveil a new benchmarking tool which will enable clients to benchmark themselves against the research findings and measure their preparedness for the future against their peers. (1) A New Climate for Growth: Cultivating Asset Intelligence to Thrive is based on a survey of more than 500 asset managers and asset owners globally, focused on these institutions’ priorities for growing their assets, businesses and improving their investment performance over 1-5 years. Based on this survey’s results it highlights key conclusions that outline the strategies and models necessary to achieve these growth aims. * AUM reflects approximately $33.30 billion (as of March 31, 2017) with respect to which State Street Global Advisors Funds Distributors, LLC (SSGA FD) serves as marketing agent; SSGA FD and State Street Global Advisors are affiliated. www.statestreet.com
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Madalena Announces Appointment of Permanent Chief Financial Officer
Madalena Energy Inc. is pleased to announce the appointment of Mr. Ezequiel Martinez Ariet as permanent Chief Financial Officer of the Company, effective as of July 1, 2017.
Mr. Martinez replaces Madalena Director Alejandro Augusto Penafiel, who assumed an Interim CFO role on May 31, 2017, following the transfer of executive management functions from Canada to Argentina. The Madalena board of directors would like to thank Mr. Alejandro Augusto Penafiel for his diligent work and assistance in facilitating the transition between management regimes. Mr. Martinez, who will leave his position as Administrative and Financial Manager at AESA in Argentina, will bring 15 years of financial, strategic and operational experience to Madalena. He will be based in Buenos Aires and will report directly to Madalena Chief Executive Officer, Jose David Penafiel.
Accounting, Administration, Tax and Finance with abundant experience in the geographical region. After acting as Head of Accounting at Argentinian energy giant YPF, he moved on to the position of CFO at Petrolera San Jose before leading the financial team as Administrative and Financial Manager at AESA – a subsidiary of YPF – with some 5,000 employees and a net income of around $460 million (USD). www.madalena-ventures.com
Mr. Penafiel commented, “Having had the privilege of working with Mr. Martinez on projects in the past, I am fully confident that his knowledge, expertise and experience will greatly enhance the management team at Madalena and offer invaluable leadership, both during this current period of reorganisation and beyond. His precise insight into the E&P market in Argentina makes him the perfect candidate for the position of CFO of Madalena.” An accountancy graduate from Salvador University with post-graduate diplomas from the Professional Council of Economic Sciences CABA (IFRS and ISAs), the IAE Business School (Business Management) and the Catholic University of Argentina (Finance), Mr. Martinez combines vast proficiency in www.cfo-monthly.com
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automotive Mastermind Appoints Chief Financial Officer automotiveMastermind®, the leading predictive analytics and marketing automation technology for dealerships and manufacturers, recently hired Eric Daniels as Chief Financial Officer (CFO). In this role, Daniels will build on a strong, scalable financial infrastructure that provides product development opportunities within the industry and company.
“Bringing in Eric is the right step toward building an executive team capable of making the right investment decisions and solidifying the responsible financial and legal systems of the company,” said Marco Schnabl, CEO and co-Founder of automotiveMastermind. “Innovation continues to be at the forefront of automotiveMastermind and these executive appointments will help the company grow in all aspects while supporting our current exponential growth.” Daniels brings 15 years of experience leading global finance teams of middle market private and public companies to his new role at automotiveMastermind. During his career, he has served businesses in various industries to improve operational efficiencies, provide financial transparency and generate key indicator reporting to help drive growth. Daniels has managed numerous acquisition integrations, financial system implementations and facilitated capital market transactions within the debt and equity markets, including I.P.Os. He most recently served as the CFO of National Response Corporation (NRC), a private equity owned environmental services company.
“My previous experience has made me better able to identify a market leader and innovator like automotiveMastermind. The way the company utilises data and passes it on to our dealer partners adds value and ROI that pays for itself four times over,” Daniels said. “This kind of performance in the market will help us set the benchmark for how all automotive sales are transacted. The goal is to make the automotiveMastermind Behavior Prediction Score (BPS) become as synonymous as a FICO score.” automotiveMastermind’s proprietary technology distils thousands of data points, gathered from the dealer management system (DMS) and combines it with Big Data – social media profiles, financial records, product and consumer lifecycle information, sociodemographics and more – to accurately calculate when a customer is ready to buy and why.
automotiveMastermind also offers highly personalised marketing campaigns proven to increase the likelihood of a customer visiting a dealer. automotiveMastermind has a proven track record of transforming the dealership experience for consumers and revolutionising the way automotive dealerships and manufacturers, find, engage and earn longlasting customer relationships. For more information, visit automotivemastermind.com or follow them on Twitter @autoMastermind.
The data is then distilled down to a simple number, the Behavior Prediction Score® (BPS), a ranking from 0-100, that tells the dealer how close the customer is to purchase. In addition, automotiveMastermind delivers customer-specific talking points right to the salesperson’s desktop, helping them enhance customer engagement and ultimately leading to a more meaningful sale.
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Boeing Expands CFO Smith’s Role Boeing on June 28th announced an expansion of the enterprise responsibilities of Greg Smith, currently the company’s chief financial officer and executive vice president of corporate development & strategy.
Starting July 1, Smith, 51, will serve as chief financial officer and executive vice president of Enterprise Performance & Strategy, adding a range of duties focused on ensuring strong and consistent business performance, continued achievements in innovation and corporate functional excellence. “This is an evolution of Greg’s already substantial and impactful role within our company,” said Boeing Chairman, President and CEO Dennis Muilenburg. “In addition to being responsible for financial management, corporate development and overall company strategy, Greg will oversee and drive key cross-enterprise performance levers that are critical to achieving our growth and performance aspirations and to running our company better and more competitively every day.” Muilenburg added that the planned retirements later this year of Vice Chairman Ray Conner and Senior Vice President of Program Management, Integration & Development Programs Scott Fancher created a window to consolidate a range of performance-based enterprise efforts under Smith.
innovation, productivity and market-based affordability projects; and leadership of a new talent management system for identifying, developing and deploying general managers and program managers. Boeing is the world’s largest aerospace company and leading manufacturer of commercial airplanes and defense, space and security systems. In addition, Boeing supports airlines and U.S. and allied government customers in more than 150 countries. The company’s products and tailored services include commercial and military aircraft, satellites, weapons, electronic and defense systems, launch systems, advanced information and communication systems, and performance-based logistics and training. Boeing employs approximately 145,000 people across the United States and in more than 65 countries. Company revenues for 2016 were $94.6 billion. www.boeing.com
Among the responsibilities that will shift to Smith in the months ahead are oversight of the integration and execution of the company’s new three business unit strategy, which includes the July 1st launch of Boeing Global Services; acceleration of company-wide www.cfo-monthly.com
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Millennium Energy Corporation Appoints Chief Executive Officer Millennium Energy Corporation is pleased to announce the appointment of Alexander Lightman as Chief Executive Officer. Alexander Lightman has joined the board of the company as a director and has been appointed as Chief Executive Officer with immediate effect.
Michael Fuoco will step down as CEO but will be appointed Deputy Chairman and remain as the company CFO, a position he previously served in since 2014. The company’s Chairman Irving Aronson thanked Mr. Fuoco for his service as CEO. On the appointment of the new CEO Mr. Aronson said: “We are very fortunate to have secured the services of Alexander Lightman as Chief Executive Officer for Millennium Energy, with his extensive experience and his substantial industry contacts and knowledge built over many years as an entrepreneur. “Alexander Lightman will be a great credit to the company as CEO and, in my opinion, will add immense value for shareholders. He has the total support of the majority shareholders and the board as he refocuses the company on new technologies in the renewable energy sector with plans to focus on clean energy production from NH3 as a primary fuel source for numerous uses from fuel storage to powering automobiles and trucks.” Lightman said, “Millennium Energy now has an acquisition strategy that will enable us to do things the vast majority of governments and the majority of consumers would like industry to do: create a clean fuel that will run in existing cars, trucks, buses, ships, and aircraft. We will be able to do this from the cleanest sources, such as solar, as well as from the dirtiest sources, like tar sands, coal, and oil. “There is a big business debate about fossil fuels vs. renewables, as we saw when President Trump removed the US from the Paris Agreement. One estimate is that the cost of the transition to a world that is 80% fossil fuel powered to one that is 100% renewable energy powered is $100 trillion. “During my research to write national innovation plans for the US and Mexico, I became aware of a massive opportunity that no public company was
pursuing aggressively. The board and shareholders of Millennium Energy were the first in a public company who were ready, willing and able to seize this opportunity to acquire the technology and intellectual property to go after multiple trilliondollar markets. “I am honoured and grateful to be able to dedicate my life not only to increasing shareholder value, but also to show how to end the debate and move our civilisation to clean sustainable future based entirely on carbon- free fuels. A key aspect of the new Millennium Energy business model is that it won’t require us to throw away our existing 1.2 billion internal combustion engine cars and other parts of a transportation system that we’ve invested tens of trillions of dollars in to replace it with electric vehicles not every family or company can afford, and it won’t require us to stop using fossil fuels, just to stop using them in a way that pollutes. “Millennium Energy is going to change the world for the better, and we invite investors and partners to support our efforts and do well while doing good.” Lightman is a graduate of MIT Course I-A (Civil and Environmental Engineering Department) and attended graduate school at Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government. He worked for Mitchell Energy and Development (the pioneer of fracking) as roughneck (with multiple broken fingers) and as a drilling engineer. He has spoken widely for governments and corporations on the future of energy and transportation, the keynote speech for the NH3 Fuel Association in 2014, the first speech from a business perspective at a United Nations event (UNISPACE III) on commercial applications of space solar power, and keynote at the kick-off of US Dept. of Transportation research into what fuels the US would be using over the 50 years from 2010 to 2060.
He is an executive with 30 years of management and social innovation experience and 20 years of chairman and chief executive experience, an award-winning inventor with multiple US patents issued and Amazon- bestselling author of over two million published words, including the first book on 4G wireless, and over 150 articles in major publications. He has chaired and organised 17 international conferences with engineers, scientists, and government officials since 2002 with intention of achieving policy breakthroughs related to innovation. Lightman is a world-class innovator and recipient four global awards, including the first Economist magazine Readers’ Choice Award for « The Innovation that will Most Radically Change the World over the Decade 2010 to 2020 » (awarded Oct. 21, 2010, out of 4,000 initial suggestions and votes over five months from 200 countries, and from 32 judges) The recipient (post-humous) of the 2nd Reader’s Award (announced 10/21/2011) was Steve Jobs. Lightman was also the winner of the only SGI Internet 3D contest (both Entertainment and Grand Prize) out of 800 contestants, winner of global Avatar competition, one of ten “CEOs of the Future”, The Chief Executive magazine, 20th anniversary edition and one of ten “America’s most innovative educators”. www.millenniumenergycorp.com
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BrainJocks Moving HQ to Alpharetta and Deepening Bench Strength BrainJocks, a leading marketing technology company, on June 22nd announced strategic new hires and plans to move their U.S. headquarters to Alpharetta, GA, in the fall of 2017.
Both are part of an ongoing growth strategy which has led to the company’s doubling in size over the last three years and opening a European office. Sue Klumpp, CFO of BrainJocks, said, “Alpharetta was attractive for a number of reasons, but the talent we will be able to draw from was a big factor. Our growth strategy depends on our ability to continue to attract and retain top tech talent. Alpharetta is home to over 600 technology companies and is a natural fit for BrainJocks.” In the face of dramatic growth, BrainJocks has focused on retaining their veteran team while attracting and hiring top tech talent. The latest strategic hires include Ryan Clark, Director of Sales, and Diego Moretto, Senior Sitecore® Developer and Sitecore Most Valuable Professional (MVP).
Diego Moretto joins the development team as BrainJocks’ third Sitecore MVP. Diego’s extensive Sitecore ecosystem and .NET platform experience strengthens the breadth of BrainJocks’ development bench. Diego will also be a frequent contributor to Jocks to the Core, BrainJocks’ Sitecore blog.Lisa Hunter, Vice President of Sales and Marketing, said, “Diego and Ryan are already proving to be great assets to BrainJocks. Both are active leaders in the Sitecore community. In fact, Ryan co-founded Chicago’s Sitecore User Group, while Diego co-founded the Brazil chapter. Ryan brings tremendous industry experience to the table while Diego brings a technical skill set that is second to none. We are thrilled to welcome them to the BrainJocks team.”
Ryan Clark brings over 20 years of sales experience in the database and CMS technology space. He previously worked at Verndale, Ektron and CrownPeak CMS. Ryan’s experience in growing sales teams, developing deep partner relationships and generating revenue is core to BrainJocks’ strategic direction.
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Electric Guard Dog Named to SC Best Places to Work 2017 On June 20th, market leading electric security fence provider Electric Guard Dog announced they will making a third appearance the list of Best Places to Work in South Carolina.
This twelfth annual program was created by SC Biz News in partnership with the South Carolina Chamber of Commerce and Best Companies Group. Companies from across the state entered the two-part survey process to determine winners, including an employee survey to measure the employee experience. Best Companies Group managed the overall registration and survey process, analysed the data, and determined the final rankings. CFO Nathan Leaphart commented, “We’ve got a phenomenal staff, we are tremendously proud of them and grateful to them for this award. We work hard to ensure a ‘Pay It Forward’ company culture where everyone is respected, acknowledged, and promoted whenever possible. Our employees in turn pay that forward to our customers, providing the best customer and technical service in the industry. We owe this award to them, and thank them.”
The company was also recently awarded an ‘Open Company’ designation by Glassdoor for their efforts to reach out to employees and recruits alike. The ranked companies will be recognised at a reception and dinner, presented by Colonial Life, on August 3, 2017, and the rankings will be published in the August 2017 issue of SCBIZ magazine. For additional information, please visit www.electricguarddog.com For more information on the Best Places to Work in South Carolina program, visit www.BestPlacesToWorkSC.com
Electric Guard Dog has received a host of accolades in the past year, including Dealer of the Year for the security industry, two American Business Awards including a Gold Maverick of the Year for CEO Jack DeMao and a Bronze Company of the Year in Business Services.
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CFOs Remain Optimistic; Business Focus on Offense over Defence Deloitte’s CFO Signals survey for the second quarter (2Q 2017) reveals chief financial officers representing many of North America’s largest and most influential companies continue to be optimistic about the current and future states of major economic regions as well as their owncompany prospects.
Even as they voice growing concerns about political and policy uncertainty, geopolitical conflict and talent, their business focus on offense over defense for the next year hit a new survey high. 63% of surveyed CFOs say they are biased toward revenue growth, one of the highest levels in the survey’s history, and only 18% claim a bias toward cost reduction, for a survey-high net value of plus 4%. The bias toward investing cash over returning it to shareholders (62% versus 16%) hit another three-year high at a net plus 46%. With regard to major regional economies, surveyed CFOs’ assessments of the North American economy remain positive, with 65% saying current conditions are good and 58% expecting better conditions in a year. Current and future perceptions of Europe both hit four-year highs, with 17% of CFOs saying they are good and 30% expecting them to be better in a year. Finally, perceptions of China’s economy improved significantly, with 28% of CFOs saying current conditions are good and 32% expecting better conditions in a year. “Last quarter’s CFO Signals survey registered the sharpest uptick in sentiment in its seven-year history, and the global economy has continued to show strength since. As a result, CFOs continue to be strongly optimistic,” said Sandy Cockrell III, national managing partner of the U.S. CFO Program, Deloitte LLP. “However, our survey also picked up a growing concern from CFOs about political and policy uncertainty, as well as talent shortages, all figuring among their most worrisome risks.” All four business outlook metrics, tracked by this survey for 29 quarters, remain strong. Revenue growth expectations rose from 4.3% last quarter to 5.6%, above the prior two-year survey average. Earnings growth expectations rose to 8.7% from last quarter’s 7.3%, a two-year high. Capital investment
growth expectations fell to 9% this quarter from last quarter’s 10.5%, but still sit at their second-highest level in five years. Domestic hiring expectations held steady quarter-over-quarter at 2.1%. Net optimism declined from last quarter’s survey-high at plus 50 to plus 44 percentage points — the second-highest level in four years — with nearly 55% of CFOs expressing rising optimism and 11% citing declining optimism. “The positive investment outlook expressed by the CFOs is welcome, particularly since low productivity is one of the biggest economic issues facing the U.S. economy,” said Patricia Buckley, managing director, economic policy and analysis, Deloitte Services LP. Almost seven years ago, CFOs were asked how they stay informed, and this quarter CFOs again answered questions about where they find information on macroeconomics, geopolitics, policy, financial markets, industry trends and management trends. Highlights of CFO responses include: CFOs appear to be spending considerably more time staying abreast of global economic and policy developments than they used to, and also seem to be relying substantially on their own research. Notably, less than 25% say they have an on-staff economist. Major global news outlets are still CFOs’ primary sources of broad-based information, but there appears to be a rising reliance on subject matter specialists for deeper, industry-specific insight — especially consortia, professional services firms, bank analysts, and individual thought leaders. The channels by which CFOs consume daily news — including websites, newsletters, TV and printed dailies — appear highly varied, and preferences appear to be significantly different by age. Device use also varies by age, but laptops were still the top device overall. Although social media use was indeed highest among younger CFOs, the age-related
differences were not particularly strong. “CFOs have been citing volatility in the business environment as a growing challenge for several years now, and this quarter’s findings seem to show they are spending considerable effort staying abreast of what’s happening — across a very broad range of areas,” said Greg Dickinson, managing director, Deloitte LLP, who leads the North American CFO Signals survey. “Some appear to get significant help from internal and external resources who focus on particular areas, but it also appears they are doing a lot of research on their own.” A copy of Deloitte’s second-quarter 2017 CFO Signals report can be downloaded at: www.deloitte.com/us/ cfosignals2017Q2.
Methodology Each quarter, CFO Signals tracks the thinking and actions of CFOs representing many of North America’s largest and most influential organisations. This report summarises CFOs’ opinions in four areas: business environment; company priorities and expectations; finance priorities; and CFOs’ personal priorities. The Deloitte CFO Signals survey for the second quarter of 2017 was conducted during the two-week period opening May 8 and ending May 19, 2017. A total of 132 CFOs responded during this time. 80% of respondents are from public companies, and 82% are from companies with more than $1 billion in annual revenue. For more information, please see the report. For more information about Deloitte’s CFO Signals, or to inquire about participating in the survey, please contact NACFOSurvey@deloitte.com. www.deloitte.com/us
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Meritize Names Chief Financial Officer
Meritize, an educational lender that leverages individual academic data to enhance credit evaluation and expand student lending, on June 12th announced the appointment of Phillip Stegner as Chief Financial Officer.
A seasoned financial services leader with broad expertise spanning consumer and corporate financial markets, credit risk management, quantitative analytics and public policy, Stegner offers a wealth of experience in his role as Meritize CFO. He has deep knowledge of financial modelling and structuring as well as expertise in credit and credit markets that will be crucial to building a solid financial strategy and infrastructure. Prior to joining Meritize, Stegner worked with Capital One where he led a team of business analysts and at J.P. Morgan in its investment bank division. He also served as senior economic analyst and special assistant to the president of the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas. “As we expand the Meritize student lending platform and innovate to tap new growth potential, Phillip will be a critical player in our strategic planning and entrepreneurial approach to our business,” said Chris Keaveney, CEO, Meritize. “He’ll leverage his considerable experience to create a foundational funding strategy and keep us focused on the bottom line as we pursue the significant potential that exists with our unique student lending model,” said Keaveney. Stegner graduated magna cum laude from Rice University with a Bachelor of Arts in economics, political science and policy studies. He has a Master of Public Policy degree from George Washington University and a Master of Business Administration from Stanford University. For more information visit www.meritize.com
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Veritas Appoints Mark Dentinger as Chief Financial Officer Veritas Technologies on June 15 announced that Mark P. Dentinger has joined the company as executive vice president and chief financial officer (CFO) effective June 26, reporting to Veritas CEO Bill Coleman.
In his role as Veritas’ CFO, Dentinger will lead the company’s global finance organisation with responsibility for accounting, financial planning and analysis, in addition to corporate tax, treasury, purchasing and investor relations. “Mark brings with him a deep understanding of the software industry and will be a tremendous asset to Veritas with more than two decades of experience across finance, strategy and operations,” said Bill Coleman, CEO of Veritas. “In this role, he will ensure Veritas deploys industry-leading financial processes that position Veritas for long-term growth as we continue to help organisations across the globe migrate and manage data across multi-clouds, while extracting new business value.” Dentinger was most recently vice president and CFO of InvenSense, and previously served as executive vice president and CFO of KLATencor Corporation. He also served as CFO at BEA Systems, Inc. Additionally, he served in various financial management positions at the former Compaq Computer Corporation. Mark holds an MBA in finance from the University of California at Berkeley and a bachelor’s degree in economics from St. Mary’s College in Moraga, Calif. Learn more at www.veritas.com or follow us on Twitter at @veritastechllc.
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Health Catalyst Appoints Visionary Healthcare CFO Duncan Gallagher Health Catalyst®, a leader in healthcare data analytics, decision support and outcomes improvement, announced on June 15 that Duncan Gallagher has accepted an appointment to the company’s board of directors, and officially joined it on May 12.
Gallagher brings over 30 years of experience as a healthcare CFO and finance leader, including his most recent role as Executive Vice President, Chief Administrative Officer and CFO of Allina Health, a $4 billion not-forprofit health system based in Minneapolis. Allina Health’s more than 90 clinics, 12 hospitals and related healthcare services provide care for nearly 1 million people across Minnesota and western Wisconsin. In his seven years as CFO at Allina Health, Gallagher was instrumental in establishing the health system as a national leader in shifting the healthcare payment model from fee-for-service to one based on value and care quality. In the process, Allina demonstrated that the shift not only is better for patients, but can be financially viable for health care systems. “I am thrilled to be joining the board of Health Catalyst, a company that I regard as a trendsetter in enabling the shift to a more sustainable, effective and affordable healthcare system,” said Gallagher. “In my time at Allina, we made significant progress with care outcomes improvement and cost savings thanks in part to our unique relationship with Health Catalyst. I look forward to working with the company’s leaders to share that experience and help other health systems execute on the historic opportunity to transform healthcare.” Allina Health signed a landmark $108 million 10-year shared-risk agreement with Health
Catalyst in 2015, creating a national model for the use of data in improving quality and lowering the cost of patient care. Gallagher played a central role in pioneering the outsourcing of Allina’s entire analytics department to Health Catalyst while tying the company’s profit from the agreement to its delivery of measurable cost savings. “We are thrilled that Duncan accepted our invitation to join the board,” said Dan Burton, Chief Executive Officer of Health Catalyst. “He is one of the most capable, forward thinking CFOs in healthcare today, and he shares our view that values—trustworthiness, integrity, fairness, reliability, predictability and stewardship—are more critical than technical knowledge. We are honoured that he has agreed to share his experience and insights by participating on our board of directors.”
includes the following members in addition to Gallagher and Burton: board Chairman Fraser Bullock, Co-Founder and Senior Advisor at Sorenson Capital; Michael Dixon, a partner in Sequoia Capital; Promod Haque, Senior Managing Partner of Norwest Venture Partners; Todd Cozzens, Managing Director of Leerink Capital; John A. Kane, former Chief Financial Officer of IDX Systems (now GE Healthcare); Anita Pramoda, CEO and founder of Owned Outcomes and Dr. Penny Wheeler, President and CEO of Allina Health. www.healthcatalyst.com
Before Allina Health, Gallagher spent 10 years as Executive Vice President and Chief Operating/Financial Officer with Des Moinesbased UnityPoint Health, a $4.1 billion notfor-profit healthcare system which owns 21 hospitals and manages several others under contract. Before that, Gallagher was a partner at Big Four accounting firm KPMG. His educational background includes an undergraduate degree from the University of South Dakota, and Master of Business Administration from the University of Minnesota’s Carlson School of Management. The Health Catalyst board of directors now www.cfo-monthly.com
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When Every Day Is Casual Friday
Nearly three in four CFOs say their teams have a casual dress code, a survey reveals.
Don’t expect your accountant to be sporting a tie or business suit. Workplace attire today is trending casual, even for historically more buttoned-up accounting and finance professions. In a recent survey by recruitment firm Robert Half Finance & Accounting, 74 % of CFOs said their accounting and finance departments have a somewhat or very casual dress code. Nearly one-quarter (23 %) said business attire guidelines have relaxed over the last five years, compared to 16 % who reported a more formal dress environment. CFOs were asked, “How would you describe the dress code for your accounting and finance employees?” Their responses:
Relaxing dress codes aren’t an excuse for employees and job seekers to wear whatever they want to work or an interview. Robert Half offers tips for dressing appropriately in today’s business environment: Look to the next rung. What does your boss — and your boss’s boss — wear? Take inspiration from upper management’s style and formality.
Dress for your day. Some companies now give employees the flexibility to choose attire based on their responsibilities (e.g., visiting clients versus doing desk work). If you’re unclear of your organisation’s guidelines, consult the employee handbook or human resources department. Consider keeping a jacket in your office should your day unexpectedly change.
Set yourself up for success by dressing for the job you want. Keep it tidy. Even if you can wear jeans and T-shirts to work, ensure they’re clean and wrinkle-free.
McDonald offered a few additional tips: “For employees, if you’re not sure what’s appropriate to wear for a particular situation, talk to your manager. For job seekers preparing for interviews, tap your network or check out the employers’ social media activity for insights on the company’s corporate culture. If you’re still uncertain of what to wear, err on the formal side.”
Don’t forget the details. A dress code encompasses an employee’s total appearance. Pay as much attention to your accessories and grooming as you do your clothing.
Very formal (suit and tie)
4%
Somewhat formal (dress slacks or skirt with button-down shirt)
21%
Somewhat casual (khakis and polo shirt or sweater)
61%
Very casual (jeans and T-shirt)
13% 99%
“Workplaces are evolving and so are office attire trends,” said Robert Half senior executive director Paul McDonald. “Employees often prefer more relaxed attire, and having a casual dress code can be an enticement when recruiting finance and accounting professionals.”
Play it safe when meeting with hiring managers. Don’t risk making a poor first impression with clothes that are too casual. Women should wear a blazer or businessappropriate dress and closed-toe shoes with a low heel. Men fare best in a suit or jacket and tie.
The survey was developed by Robert Half Finance & Accounting and conducted by an independent research firm. It is based on telephone interviews with more than 2,200 CFOs from a stratified random sample of companies in more than 20 of the largest U.S. metropolitan areas. For more information, visit roberthalf.com/ finance. For finance and accounting career and management advice, visit their blog at roberthalf.com/finance/blog.
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CFO Monthly June 2017
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Rising Fraud Costs Inhibit Corporate Finance Plans for Innovation, Growth Nearly 60% of corporate finance leaders expect to change fraud-fighting strategies in next two years’ research reveals.
Today’s senior finance executives are battling record levels of fraud, in turn narrowing corporate focus and limiting resources that could otherwise be devoted to innovation, planning, budgeting and compliance. That’s according to ‘Managing the Risk of Fraud: The View from Corporate Finance,’ a new report published today by Vesta Corporation, a global leader in integrated risk and payment solutions, and CFO Research. The organisations surveyed 155 U.S. senior finance executives to assess their experience with and expectations for fighting fraud, which have only intensified in recent years. 62% of respondents (including 55% of respondents with a CFO title) had seen both the number and dollar amount of credit card chargebacks increase since the introduction of EMV chip cards. Furthermore, 64% of those surveyed (including 62% of CFO-titled respondents) measured increases in both the number and dollar amount of credit card chargebacks specifically related to “card not present” (CNP) transactions since the introduction of EMV chip cards.
or services or even caused business model changes. Perhaps more challenging, 43% (or 36% of CFOs) reported fraud risk interfering with corporate budget allocation or revenue projections. As such, 56% anticipate their fraud detection and assessment strategies to change in the next two years. “Unfortunately, fraud risks are distracting merchants from focusing on what they do best: innovating and satisfying customers to boost revenue and grow their businesses,” added Byrnes. Visitors can download a copy of the ‘Managing the Risk of Fraud: The View from Corporate Finance’ eBook for free. www.trustvesta.com
“As merchants, have upgraded in-store payment security measures, fraudsters have flocked to CNP channels—online, mobile and elsewhere—with stolen payment credentials and seriously harmed merchants’ growth potential,” explained Vesta chief marketing officer Tom Byrnes. 43% of corporate finance executives (or 33% of CFOs) confirmed that fraud risk has interfered with corporate efforts to develop new products www.cfo-monthly.com
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