Category

FP&A

Cash & Working CapitalFP&A
June 1, 2023

Visualize, Itemize, Prioritize: Growing Through Cost Reduction

FP&A at one company supports self-funded strategic investments by “relocating” expenses to growth projects. In this challenging economic environment, many companies are cutting costs. However, depending on how they are executed, budget-tightening efforts can backfire by sabotaging top-line growth. At one NeuGroup member company determined to avoid that, leadership adopted a unique mindset. Instead of making arbitrary or across-the-board cost cuts, it is reassigning or “relocating” expenses to free up funds for growth projects. In 2021, the corporate set ambitious…
Justin Jones
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FP&ANeuGroup News
May 18, 2023

NeuGroup for Heads of FP&A 2023 H1 Meeting Takeaways

A huge thank you to the FP&A team at General Mills for hosting the May 16-17th meeting of NeuGroup for Heads of FP&A at their Minneapolis headquarters. Thank you to all the peer group members who joined us for dinner and a day full of fascinating discussions, as well as NeuGroup’s very own Andrew Podolsky, Nilly Essaides, and Courtney Royer for making this an exciting and successful event. The #1 topic arising from the session on our projects and priorities was how to transition from a pure P&L focus to building a cash culture, as margins tighten across industries. The challenge for many members is instilling cash…
dgarcia
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FP&ATechnology
May 4, 2023

Model Partners: FP&A Helps the Business Plan Through Modeling

In tough times, FP&A is transitioning to a forward-looking stance to support smart business choices. Inflation, anemic growth, market volatility and belt-tightening are top of mind for FP&A leaders. In a recent survey of NeuGroup for Heads of FP&A, members revealed they are putting great emphasis on collaborating with the business. Specifically, they are using modeling and scenario planning to help operational leadership make informed decisions on how to plan for a difficult environment by reducing costs and/or grabbing potential growth…
Justin Jones
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FP&ANeuGroup ViewpointTechnology
April 13, 2023

The Challenge of Building Agility Into Finance

How finance organizations can become more resilient amid disruption and demands to accommodate rapid changes in the business landscape.By Nilly Essaides Change, of course, is not new. But its speed and velocity have grown exponentially since the start of the pandemic. And its relentlessness is pressuring finance departments to speed up the delivery of data-driven decision-making support to the C-Suite and business leaders. An uncertain economic environment, a cloudy outlook for interest rates and inexorable technological innovation present CFOs and…
Justin Jones
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Diversity & InclusionFP&AThe NeuGroup Insights Interview
March 2, 2023

A Finance Leader Balances Work, Family and Helping Other Women

In two video clips, General Mills’ Emily Backstrom shares her experience juggling work and family and describes General Mills’ Women Across Finance program. March is Women’s History Month and NeuGroup is recognizing the achievements, challenges and experiences of successful women in finance. Below you’ll find two video clips with insights from Emily Backstrom, vice president for corporate finance at General Mills. She has worked at the company for more than two decades; today, she oversees enterprise FP&A, financial capabilities and systems,…
Justin Jones
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FP&ATechnologyThe NeuGroup Insights Interview
January 26, 2023

ChatGPT, AI and the Future of Finance: An FP&A Leader’s Vision

Baxter International FP&A head Aaron Bloomer shares insights on how FP&A can lead finance into the digital future. The buzz surrounding the OpenAI tool ChatGPT has highlighted the power of artificial intelligence and the potential for AI to bring the future of finance forward—in ways that will further disrupt and transform finance organizations. That’s the jumping-off point for a lively Strategic Finance Lab podcast conversation between NeuGroup’s Justin Jones and Baxter International vice president of FP&A Aaron Bloomer about AI, advanced analytics and the leading role finance…
Justin Jones
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FP&ATechnology
January 5, 2023

Outside In: FP&A’s Role in Leading Finance Transformation

After completing finance transformation initiatives at two companies, one NeuGroup member shares keys to success. Accelerating the finance function’s digital transformation is one of the leading priorities for NeuGroup members heading into 2023, as many corporates seek to overhaul outdated, tactical finance organizations and embrace a more strategic, forward-thinking mindset. But where do you start? For Aaron Bloomer, vice president of global FP&A at Baxter International, the answer was simple: FP&A. “I’m a huge advocate of outside-in thinking,” Mr. Bloomer…
Justin Jones
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Cash & Working CapitalFP&AThe NeuGroup Insights Interview
November 10, 2022

Fresh Takes: Cash Flow, Spending Discipline, Profits and People

Timely insights on liquidity and how finance can add value to the business from Chris Ortega of Fresh FP&A. “Profits are a dream but cash is a reality.” That’s among the timely, on-target insights aimed at CFOs, treasurers and other finance executives in this episode of NeuGroup’s Strategic Finance Lab podcast, which you can hear by hitting the play button below or heading to Apple or Spotify. It’s delivered by Chris Ortega, the CEO of Fresh FP&A, a consultancy focused on finance…
Justin Jones
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FP&ASenior ExecutiveThe NeuGroup Insights Interview
October 6, 2022

FP&A’s Role in Making Finance an Indispensable Business Partner

General Mills CFO Kofi Bruce’s vision of FP&A and finance: NeuGroup’s Strategic Finance Lab podcast, episode 8. In a world with growing volatility, uncertainty, complexity and ambiguity, also known as VUCA, so grows the importance of finance organizations that can accurately see what’s coming down the pipeline, understand how that will impact the company and how to adjust. And the skills FP&A brings to the table are critical to succeeding in that mission. In the latest Strategic Finance Lab podcast episode,…
Justin Jones
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Cash & Working CapitalFP&AThe NeuGroup Insights Interview
September 22, 2022

Keys to Cash Flow Sustainability: Fresh FP&A’s Chris Ortega

An expert’s take on why managing cash burn and liquidity today is more critical than ever for finance organizations. In a video clip you can watch by clicking here or hitting the play button below, recognized FP&A authority and influencer Chris Ortega shares valuable insights on why treasurers, leaders of FP&A and CFOs managing risk in this time of economic and market volatility need to be “laser-focused” on building paths to cash flow sustainability and optimization. Mr. Ortega today is leveraging his extensive background…
Justin Jones
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