wff
23-24 MARCH 2023 | LONDON

World Finance Forum London

PREVIOUS AGENDA DAY ONE


Please note: the example agenda currently listed is from a previous summit, the 2023 agenda will be announced soon!

24/03/2022

8:30 am - 9:00 am

Registration & Breakfast

STAGE 1

24/03/2022

9:00 am - 9:30 am

Enabling Strategic & Operative Business Steering

Doris Grieshaber, MD & Global Head of Finance Ops, Allianz GI

The journey of AllianzGI’s Finance function to setup a robust data framework: data must become information and seen as an asset enabling strategic and operative business steering.

Speakers
STAGE 2

24/03/2022

9:00 am - 9:30 am

Hybrid Working

Rohan Hewavisenti, CFO, Amnesty International

Hybrid working is at the top of colleagues’ agenda in many organisations. This session will cover an ongoing case study into implementing hybrid working in an international organisation operating across 20 locations in five continents.  How can your organisation cover all the bases? Considerations will include the financial perspectives of cost base, capital expenditure taxation, payroll; people aspects such as career development, wellbeing, diversity, training and change management; workplace environment, and technology.

Speakers
STAGE 1

24/03/2022

9:30 am - 10:00 am

How to be hAPpy

Carl Thompson, Solutions Consultant, Coupa

Join this session to learn how to unlock the full potential of your Accounts Payable department and turn it into a strategic asset for your business. Many AP teams find they don’t have the time to innovate or improve processes, so what are the top 10 things they should be doing in order to be HAPPY? (or in other words…  How Accounts Payable Promotes Yield)

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Speakers
STAGE 2

24/03/2022

9:30 am - 10:00 am

Crypto Balance Sheet Considerations for Finance Leaders

Finance leaders may wonder what to weigh when they are considering holding crypto assets on their balance sheets, and when they should not. This session describes some of the key intricacies of the crypto ecosystem, and then presents a high-level overview of the main financial reporting requirements to take into account–from fair value to impairment.

Speakers
STAGE 1

24/03/2022

10:00 am - 10:30 am

The Transformation journey: from legacy to agile enterprises.

Bernd Stangl, CFO, Alcatel-Lucent Enterprise

Post carve-out, Alcatel-Lucent enterprise was struggling with over-complex financial tools, and rooted from legacy environments which did not comply with market needs. During a 1.5year transformation journey, the processes were setup with clear accountability and responsibility, as well as the systems were all put into a SaaS environment.

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Speakers
STAGE 2

24/03/2022

10:00 am - 10:30 am

Women in a Man’s world

Michelle Ryan, Finance Director, Ontic

In our ever-changing world of work we are asked to celebrate diversity, acknowledge uniqueness and make the best of the skills and talents individuals can offer.  With this is mind let’s look at why women can make a difference, redress the balance in male -dominated business/industries; and focus on getting the best players to join our teams.

Speakers

24/03/2022

10:30 am - 11:00 am

Morning Coffee Break

STAGE 1

24/03/2022

11:00 am - 11:30 am

The Need for Diverse Boards in Private Capital organisations

Amit Sinha, CFO, PE, Microsoft
James Bateman, Head of Mid-Market, PE, Microsoft

We’ll provide a view on the research which has been done into management teams with / without diversity and then run through why it is imperative for Private Capital organisations to look at diversity within their talent to help maximise business value.

Speakers
STAGE 2

24/03/2022

11:00 am - 11:30 am

The Power of good Mental Health at Work

Tim Schöler, CFO, Retail, Mercedes-Benz

This presentation will dig into a topic that has and is stigmatised in the work environment for years but needs more focus than ever to ensure the duty of care for your staff as well as the productivity of your team. It’s going to be an opportunity for everyone in the room to reflect on how they deal with the mental wellbeing needs of their staff as well as how much they make good mental health a priority for themselves for a more fulfilling life and higher productivity. To be a truly great leader you need empathy and an understanding of mental health.

Speakers
STAGE 1

24/03/2022

11:30 am - 12:00 pm

How CFOs Are Leading The Change To Digital Transformation

Marvin Fletcher Rogers, Sr Software Consultant, Sage

Finance leaders in the UK have been attuned to the benefits of digitalisation for years. Advances in automation, artificial intelligence and analytics have transformed the way the finance function operates. Finance teams are moving beyond being the ‘keepers of historical records’ to supporting more value-driven activities—including continuous close and automated, seamless production of key performance metrics and data analytics—to aid better company-wide understanding of the business.

Speakers
STAGE 2

24/03/2022

11:30 am - 12:00 pm

Preparing for the unknown, change is the only constant.

Filip Forceville, Sr Global Process Expert, Heineken
Thomas Popp-Madsen, Centre of Excellence for ERP Financials, SAP

A fireside chat with Filip Forceville, Senior Global Process Expert at Heineken & Thomas Pop-Madsen, Centre of Excellence for ERP Financials at SAP. Join Thomas and hear why change is the only constant and explore the Heineken finance transformation journey with Filip, discover how the leading beer business went from a disjointed way of working, to a model that consists of Continuous Accounting, process mining, data analytics, and continuous process improvements.

Speakers
STAGE 1

24/03/2022

12:00 pm - 12:30 pm

Weathering the Storm of ESG Data Complexity Management Through AI and FinTech

Martina Macpherson, Visiting Fellow, Henley Business School

AI- and FinTech-powered ESG screening and analysis solutions have become “strategic enablers” that can address some of the inherent ESG information biases and potentially even ESG rating divergences arising from corporate self-reporting, and annualised, backward looking reporting of information.

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Speakers
STAGE 2

24/03/2022

12:00 pm - 12:30 pm

Finance away from the spreadsheet

Rocco del Campo, CFO, UK & Nordics, Marcolin

Steering old business models towards fully utilising the CFO function and all it has to offer.

Enhancing visibility and control into changing business is one of the key factors for any successful organisation, but can be costly.
Focusing on strategic thinking and crisis management is a CFO new natural progression.

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Speakers
STAGE 1

24/03/2022

12:30 pm - 1:00 pm

How CFO’s are pulling the Next-generation tech lever to rapidly evolve their GBS organizations

Rash Hullait, VP Strategic Accounts, HighRadius
Julian Rubbino, Associate Partner, EY

Join one of the largest professional services networks in the world, EY, as they take us through a journey of how to rapidly evolve your GBS into true transformation engines. This is a must watch for any CFO, taking away valuable insights on how to successfully implement digital as a transformation driver and what this means for your order-to-cash function.

This session will dive into the “Nextwave GBS” and the 5 ways this is happening; 1. Digital GBS as a transformation engine, 2. Touchless end-to-end processes, 3. Customer centricity & experience, 4. Branding and talent management and 5. New ways of virtual and remote working.

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Speakers
STAGE 2

24/03/2022

12:30 pm - 1:00 pm

Everyone has a plan till they get punched in the face! Is Accounts Payable your punch?

Russell Jaques, Sales Manager, Medius

In this session, Medius’ AP expert Russell Jaques will be discussing the highs and lows of implementing an AP Automation Project. How to dodge the jabs, hooks, crosses, and uppercuts as you and your team try to battle or fight? your way through the hurdles that most businesses face.

From choosing a vendor, to navigating through scoping, integration, change management and go-live. Russell will talk about how to weave, roll, slip and block to make sure that you don’t get “punched in the face”.

Ian Brown-John FD at Loughton’s Contracts will be talking about how he has avoided jabs and hooks whilst implementing AP Automation in his business.

This is a session not to be missed!

Speakers

24/03/2022

1:00 pm - 2:00 pm

Lunch Break

STAGE 1

24/03/2022

2:00 pm - 2:30 pm

How to create capacity for accounting to focus on what matters the most

Simon Larkham, Domain Advisor, Finance & Risk, UK&I, SAP
Thomas Edwards, Senior Solutions Consultant, BlackLine

Learn how to build a rock-solid plan to make your finance transformation plan a reality in 2022. Find out where to unlock valuable accounting capacity, so you can spend more time on what matters.

Attend to understand:

  • Why traditional close processes continue to challenge accounting teams
  • Leading practices for optimizing and automating despite disruption
  • How technology improves accuracy, saves time and benefits everyone
Speakers
STAGE 2

24/03/2022

2:00 pm - 2:30 pm

How to Simplify Statutory Reporting through Automation, Scalability and Control

Pete Marzullo, VP Solutions, Workiva
Chris Beszant, Director, Multi-Entity Reporting, Workiva

Statutory financial reporting is the foundation of your global reporting and the risks associated with it are increasingly driven by public interest, as well as financial and non-financial regulations like the new mandates around European Single Electronic Format (ESEF) and the Task Force on Climate-Related Financial Disclosures (TCFD).

Organisations are currently spending hundreds of hours just getting the data ready, with virtually no time for value-added activities such as analysing the information for planning purposes. Furthermore, orgnaisations are evaluating the operating model that supports their business strategy and need adaptive technology that aligns to those strategic priorities. Discover how to solve the data challenge and make automated reporting business as usual for your company. This workshop will focus on evaluating quick wins for automation as well as defining and demystifying emerging technology.

More Information

Speakers
STAGE 1

24/03/2022

2:30 pm - 3:00 pm

Humans vs Machines Is Only For The Movies

Amy Sharma, Digital Transformation Principal, HighRadius

Touted as the future of Accounts Receivables, the Autonomous Receivables software is a combination of the world’s first AI-enabled Integrated receivables platform.

The digital assistant, Freeda, is set to fundamentally alter the way analysts work by putting order-to-cash on auto-pilot mode.

The Artificial Intelligence Engine and Freeda Virtual Assistant for Credit-to-Cash enables teams to leverage machine learning for accurate decision making, predict future outcomes and automate routine labour-intensive tasks.

More Information

Speakers
STAGE 2

24/03/2022

2:30 pm - 3:00 pm

Leading Culture Change to Increase Business Agility

Jonathan Smare, Partner, Business & Finance Transformation, Digital Works Group

The global crisis has dramatically highlighted the importance of business agility. Business leaders clearly recognise their organisations need to be able to be agile and future proof them against volatile economic conditions, aggressive digital disruptors and ever-changing customer expectations.

Business leaders in every function want to understand how to lead culture change to be more customer centric, how to implement new ways of working and how technology can enable their business strategy.

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Speakers

3:00 pm - 3:30 pm

Afternoon Coffee Break

STAGE 1

24/03/2022

3:30 pm - 4:00 pm

Automation is not enough. How innovation, data and collaborative intelligence are disrupting order-to-cash

David Payne, Head of Order to Cash, EMEA, RS Components

The journey from tactical to strategic Order-to-Cash starts with optimizing data, technology and operations. In this session, global industrial supplier, RS Components will discuss their digital transformation and how O2C became a data-driven strategic advantage. Learn how to create a forward-looking cash culture, unlock customer value and empower teams by harnessing AI and collaborative intelligence.

Speakers
STAGE 2

24/03/2022

3:30 pm - 4:30 pm

Mastering Effective Business Partnering

Martin Hayes, CFO, Portugal, Heineken
Michelle Ryan, Finance Director, Ontic
Johan Olsson, CFO, UK, Volvo

Our speakers reflect on the importance of Business Partnering to the finance function. How to get a seat at the table in the decision making process and how to build effective communication across the wider organisation.

Speakers
STAGE 1

24/03/2022

4:00 pm - 4:30 pm

Digitalization in Finance

Ugur Seker, CFO, Yorglass

Digitalization is the core of all future scenarios, and finance functions should take their parts to maintain sustainability.

In seven months, at our seven plants, we have implemented a new generation of smart solutions with our ERP transformation, and we are getting effective results. The importance of big data is always underlined. Supporting production with robots will take place, while finance is placed in the palms of artificial intelligence and virtual employees. Everything now consists of binary codes and integrated systems. We can call it ‘the world of tomorrow’ and the keyword in the world of tomorrow is ‘digitalized finance.’

Speakers
STAGE 2

24/03/2022

3:30 pm - 4:30 pm

Mastering Effective Business Partnering (continued)

Martin Hayes, CFO, Portugal, Heineken
Michelle Ryan, Finance Director, Ontic
Johan Olsson, CFO, UK, Volvo

Our speakers reflect on the importance of Business Partnering to the finance function. How to get a seat at the table in the decision making process and how to build effective communication across the wider organisation.

Speakers
STAGE 1

24/03/2022

4:30 pm - 5:00 pm

Transformation in Private Capital

Amit Sinha, Chief Technology Officer, Private Equity, Microsoft
James Bateman, Head of Mid-Market Private Equity, Microsoft

Covid and lockdowns have accelerated digital transformation across all industries, with many organisations pivoting their strategy towards digitising customer offerings and internal services. The organisations and investors who make up the world of private capital have similarly realised the urgency of prioritising digital technology within their value teams and portfolio investments.

In this talk, Microsoft UK’s Private Equity CTO and the Head of Mid-Market Private Equity will walk through the macro trends being seen across industries and their relation to Private Capital industry trends, the technology enabling these transformations, and the short term and longer term business value that can be achieved from digital transformation.

During the talk, case studies will be used to provide a practical perspective of how participants could benefit from similar transformations.

Speakers
STAGE 2

24/03/2022

4:30 pm - 5:00 pm

Changing Your Auditor: A Blind Date

Tatiana Doncaster, Finance Director, British Rowing

Ever felt that an audit tender is akin to a blind date, with both sides trying to assess each other from behind the screen? Yep, me too.

Changing your auditor can sometimes feel like a business engagement between two parties, who have not previously met and are basing their opinion on the introduction from a mutual acquaintance.

As change is sometimes an inevitable side-product of finance transformation it is important to lay the foundations for a strong relationship based on trust and mutual respect.

More Information

Speakers

24/03/2022

5:00 pm - 6:30 pm

Happy Hour - Networking Drinks 🍷

 

 

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Great leaders of organizations run after problems, make their footprint bigger than their foot, and always strive to find the truth — because you have to get to the truth to be excellent.

CFO, Twitter

The primary mandate of the CFO is to be the guardian of shareholder value for the company. Traditionally, this was about managing risk, but today CFOs are expected to balance risk and opportunity. It's become quite a quite multi-dimensional role.

CFO, D&B

Operating a global business in a fast-changing world, you have to be grounded real-time in the external environment, have complete transparency, be fact-based and working with a great, collaborative team.

CFO, Ford

With an increasingly integrated world economy, be prepared to respond to higher levels of both risk and opportunity. A strong balance sheet is a tremendous asset when managing though periods of volatility.

CFO, Chevron

From an M&A standpoint, the returns on a spreadsheet are interesting, but it is far more important to be comfortable with the people running the business.

CFO, Krogers

Look at what your organization needs and don't be afraid to take chances, but balance risk with success, only increasing the former when the latter goals are being met.

CFO, Booking.com
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