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Mayank Badhwar

Mayank Badhwar

About Mayank Badhwar

https://bwcfoworld.com/

Posts by Mayank Badhwar:

Mahendra Lodha

Mahendra Lodha, CFO, Bloomsbury, Unveils Strategies For Fostering Financial Resilience Amid Market Volatility

In an Interview with BW CFO World, Mahendra Lodha, CFO, Bloomsbury, shares Insights on the imperative of fostering financial resilience in today’s dynamic markets. In an illuminating interview with BW CFO World, Lodha shares expert strategies for navigating fluctuating conditions

In your opinion, what are some effective strategies for cultivating financial resilience in dynamic markets?

In my opinion, cultivating financial resilience in dynamic markets requires a multifaceted approach. Some of the effective strategies we can consider are:

Diversification of Investments across different asset classes such as stocks, bonds, real estate, and commodities to reduce overall risk as it helps cushion the impact of market volatility by ensuring that losses in one area can be offset by gains in another.

Building an Emergency Fund or safety-net to cover at least 6 months of living expenses. 

Practise Disciplined budgeting to control spending and have a regular habit of saving for both Short term needs & long term goals.

Assess and understand personal risk tolerance levels. Balance risk and return by selecting investment options that align with individual financial goals, time horizon, and risk appetite.

Continuous learning and adaptation, Seek professional advice & Maintain Long-Term perspective.

How do you define financial resilience, particularly in the context of dynamic markets?

Financial resilience can be defined as the ability of individuals, households, businesses or economies to withstand and adapt to various financial challenges, uncertainties and disruptions while maintaining stability and progressing towards financial goals, especially in the face of dynamic market conditions.  In dynamic markets It involves a combination of proactive risk management, prudent financial planning, adaptability and a long-term perspective to withstand uncertainties and fluctuations while pursuing financial well-being and prosperity.

 

As market conditions change, financial priorities can sometimes shift. How can individuals best identify and adapt their financial goals in a dynamic market?

Individuals can Identifying and adapt financial goals in a dynamic market through a thoughtful and systematic approach which will include:

Regular review of their financial situation, goals & Investment portfolio. It could be Annual but more frequent reviews may be necessary during periods of significant market volatility or life changes.

Evaluate your current financial standing, including income, expenses, debt levels, savings, and investment portfolio performance.

Reflect on your short-term and long-term financial goals in light of evolving market conditions, personal circumstances, and economic outlook.

Prioritise your financial goals based on their importance, urgency, and feasibility given the prevailing market conditions.

Reassess your risk tolerance and asset allocation strategy to ensure they remain appropriate for your financial goals, time horizon, and comfort level with market volatility.

Explore alternative investment strategies or financial products that may be better suited to current market conditions.

Strengthen your financial safety net by building or replenishing emergency funds to cover unexpected expenses or income disruptions resulting from market volatility or economic downturns

Consult with a financial advisor or planner to gain insights, receive personalised recommendations, and develop a tailored action plan based on your individual circumstances and objectives.

How do you approach scenario planning to assess the financial resilience of the company in the face of unexpected market disruptions?

Scenario planning is a valuable tool for assessing the financial resilience of a company in the face of unexpected market disruptions. Here’s an approach to conducting scenario planning:

Begin by identifying potential market disruptions that could impact your business.

Create a range of plausible scenarios based on the identified market disruptions. These scenarios should encompass different levels of severity, duration, and impact on your business operations, revenue streams, costs, and financial performance.  

Assess the potential financial impact of each scenario on key financial metrics such as revenue, profit margins, cash flow, liquidity, and solvency.

Identify and evaluate existing resilience measures and mitigation strategies that could help your company withstand or mitigate the impact of each scenario.

Conduct a gap analysis to identify any areas where your company’s resilience may be lacking or where additional measures may be needed to address vulnerabilities exposed by the scenarios.

Develop an action plan outlining specific steps and initiatives to enhance your company’s resilience in response to the identified scenarios.

Continuously monitor market conditions and reassess scenarios as new information becomes available. Regularly review and update your company’s resilience strategies and action plan to adapt to evolving market dynamics and emerging risks.

Conduct stress testing to simulate the impact of extreme scenarios or worst-case scenarios on your company’s financial health and resilience. This can help you identify potential vulnerabilities and develop contingency plans to mitigate risks.

How do you communicate the importance of financial resilience to other departments within the company and how do you ensure alignment across all functions?

Communicating the importance of financial resilience to other departments within the company is crucial for fostering a unified understanding and approach to managing financial risks and challenges. Here’s how to effectively communicate and ensure alignment across all functions:

Clearly articulate  the concept of financial resilience and why it is essential for the company’s overall success and sustainability.

Provide context by highlighting real-world examples of how financial resilience has benefited other companies or industries during times of crisis or market volatility.

 Customise your messaging to resonate with the specific priorities, challenges, and objectives of each department within the company.

 Conduct educational workshops, training sessions, or seminars to provide employees across all departments with a deeper understanding of financial resilience concepts, principles, and best practices. Offer practical guidance on how employees can contribute to enhancing financial resilience within their respective roles and functions.

Encourage cross-functional collaboration and dialogue on financial resilience initiatives by facilitating regular meetings, discussions, or working groups involving representatives from different departments.

Ensure alignment of departmental goals, KPIs, and incentives with the overarching goal of enhancing financial resilience.

Demonstrate leadership commitment to financial resilience by integrating it into the company’s strategic planning, decision-making processes, and resource allocation.  

Maintain open and transparent communication channels to keep employees informed about the company’s financial performance, resilience initiatives, and progress towards financial resilience goals. Provide regular updates, reports, and presentations to share insights, successes, challenges, and lessons learned across all functions.

Bharat Agrawal

Bharat Agrawal, Director Finance, Diversey, Discusses Empowering Decision Making Through Advanced Financial Analytics

In an insightful interview with BW CFO World, Bharat Agrawal, Director Finance – South Asia, Diversey, discusses the transformative potential of advanced financial analytics in empowering strategic decision-making. From fostering a data-driven culture to leveraging emerging trends, Agrawal provides valuable insights for organisations seeking a competitive edge

In your experience, how can advanced financial analytics be most effectively leveraged to empower strategic decision-making within an organisation?

Advanced financial analytics is certainly a powerful tool for empowering strategic decision-making within an organisation in several ways starting from Data-Driven Insights based on historical financial data, current market trends and future projections. One can make use of techniques such as predictive modelling, machine learning, and data visualisation to get the best out of it.

Similarly in the current BANI world, we need to reassess our assumptions and do Scenario Analysis of different situations. We need to optimise our resources backed by the relevant insights. In the fragile global context where we are operating today, facilitating risk management is very critical too. At the same time our stakeholders want an ecosystem where we can effectively communicate complex financial information, fostering trust, transparency, and collaboration. By harnessing the power of financial analytics, organisations can gain a competitive edge, drive innovation and achieve sustainable growth in today’s dynamic business environment.

How would you approach fostering a data-driven culture within the finance team and how would you encourage collaboration with other departments to utilise financial analytics for better decision-making across the company?

This requires a strategic approach. It’s a mid to long term process where we change the fabric of the organisation by focusing on several key areas.

Start with the Leadership Support and Vision where the senior leadership fully supports and champions the adoption of a data-driven culture across the organisation. Training and Skill Development is an important element here. Define clear objectives and key performance indicators (KPIs) for fostering a data-driven culture. Foster a culture of collaboration and knowledge sharing within the finance team and with other departments across the organisation. Encourage cross-functional teams to work together on projects and initiatives that leverage financial analytics to solve business challenges and drive performance improvement. Invest in modern analytics platforms and software solutions that enable self-service analytics and empower users to explore data independently.

Promote Success Stories and best practices to inspire and motivate teams to embrace data-driven approaches. And foster a culture of continuous improvement by soliciting feedback on the effectiveness of data-driven initiatives and processes. Encourage open dialogue and collaboration to identify opportunities for optimization and refinement and iterate on strategies to drive continuous improvement over time.

What are your views on the role of technology and financial analytics tools in optimising financial processes and generating valuable insights?

The role of technology and financial analytics tools in optimising financial processes and generating valuable insights cannot be overstated. Here are some key views on their significance:

Technology, including artificial intelligence (AI), machine learning (ML) and robotic process automation (RPA), can automate repetitive tasks. Technology plays a crucial role in enhancing risk management processes. By implementing risk analytics tools, organisations can identify, assess and mitigate organisation wide risks more effectively. These tools enable real-time monitoring of key risk indicators, scenario analysis and stress testing, helping organisations to proactively manage risks and safeguard their overall health. With the increasing complexity of financial regulations and reporting requirements, technology can help organisations ensure compliance and regulatory adherence. Financial analytics tools can automate regulatory reporting, monitor compliance with accounting standards and provide audit trails, reducing the risk of non-compliance and associated penalties.

Financial analytics tools enable organisations to develop more accurate financial forecasts and scenario plans. Technology can help organisations identify cost-saving opportunities and optimise resource allocation. By analysing financial data and performance metrics, finance teams can identify inefficiencies, streamline processes, and make informed decisions to reduce costs and improve profitability.

How would you integrate advanced financial analytics with existing financial processes and reporting structures to ensure seamless information flow and efficient decision-making?

Integrating advanced financial analytics with existing financial processes and reporting structures requires careful planning, collaboration and alignment with organisational goals. 

Here are steps to ensure seamless information flow and efficient decision-making:

Start with assessing your current processes and systems, with this we will Identify our current standing, pain points and areas for improvement where advanced financial analytics can add value. With these now clearly defined objectives and requirements, there are many tools available in the market, evaluating and selecting tools that align with needs and requirements. Data Integration and Cleansing is a very important task after this, as data operated in silos can create inefficiencies. Finally, Put emphasis on collaboration to ensure a comprehensive outcome.

In your opinion, what are the emerging trends in financial analytics and how can companies leverage these trends to gain a competitive advantage?

Several emerging trends are shaping the way companies manage their operations and gain a competitive advantage. Here are some of the key trends and how companies can leverage them:

Big Data and Predictive Analytics: With the increasing volume, velocity, and variety of financial data, companies are leveraging big data and predictive analytics to gain deeper insights into financial performance, trends, and future outcomes. Similarly Artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) are revolutionising financial analytics by automating tasks, uncovering insights and improving decision-making processes. Data visualisation and interactive dashboards are transforming the way companies consume and interact with financial data. By presenting complex financial information in visual and intuitive formats, companies can enhance understanding, facilitate communication, and drive actionable insights. Cloud-based analytics solutions offer scalability, flexibility, and accessibility, allowing companies to analyse financial data and generate insights from anywhere, anytime. By leveraging cloud-based analytics platforms, companies can reduce infrastructure costs, accelerate deployment, and access advanced analytics capabilities without the need for significant upfront investments in hardware or software.

Blockchain and distributed ledger technology (DLT) are transforming financial analytics by providing transparent, secure, and immutable records of financial transactions. And finally, Integrated financial planning and analysis (FP&A) solutions are enabling companies to unify financial planning, budgeting, forecasting, and reporting processes into a single platform. 

By staying ahead of the curve and embracing technological advancements, companies can unlock new opportunities, optimise financial performance, and drive sustainable growth in an increasingly competitive marketplace.

Satish Gundewar

From Data To Decisions: How CSB Bank CFO Satish Gundewar Uses Analytics For Smarter Banking

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In today’s data-driven world, financial institutions need sharp analytics to make informed decisions. In an Interview with BW CFO World, Satish Gundewar, CFO, CSB Bank, shares Insights on how advanced financial analytics are empowering smarter banking strategies

In your experience, how can advanced financial analytics be most effectively leveraged to empower strategic decision-making within an organisation?

Financial analytics is the process of collecting, analysing and interpreting data from financial sources to gain insights and make better business decisions. 

Organisations use data analytics to analyse vast amounts of data to identify trends, patterns and anomalies that can help them make informed decisions. It can be used for various purposes such as Financial Management, risk management, fraud detection, customer segmentation and marketing. With the help of financial data analytics, financial institutions can make better decisions, reduce risks and improve their overall performance. These days in any organisation, data is the most valuable asset.  Organisations are differentiated based on how they are able to capture the data, organise the data, analyse the data, how they are able to draw conclusions based on the data and then what actions are taken based on the inferences which are drawn post analysis of data.  

Banking and Financial services companies are largely data driven organisations. Day in and day out they deal with millions of data points relating to customer financial transactions. They also have a fiduciary responsibility to maintain customer data confidentiality. The data which is captured can be broadly categorised into customer specific data and Financial data. Let’s first talk about customer data. In the current digital age and with surging digital transactions especially UPI transactions/ Credit card transactions, companies can identify specific geographies where they can open branches catering to specific needs of the customers. They can target asset branches in places where they see good potential for advances of various types like mortgages, vehicle loans, agri loans, gold loans and so on. At the same time, they can identify locations where they need to have a presence to garner deposits and wealth management products. These companies can make use of the data to acquire new customers and offer them customised solutions based on their needs. Companies can also run customer acquisition campaigns as well as run campaigns for existing customers to increase the wallet share from these customers. These days Banks run campaigns only for a specific set of customers. These could be aimed at either activating these customers, or to deepen their relationships by cross selling various products or aimed at opening accounts of their family members. Data can also be used to make these customers digitally active so that physical branch centric transactions can be reduced. All this is possible if organisations make best use of Data Analytics.

How would you approach fostering a data-driven culture within the finance team and how would you encourage collaboration with other departments to utilise financial analytics for better decision-making across the company?

Finance functions wear multiple hats and are not just limited to publishing Financial results. Finance teams perform the Business partnering roles and act as enablers for the business teams to achieve their financial targets by providing them with cutting edge analysis. They are not only able to show the past performance, but also able to provide near accurate estimates of what are the likely forecasts. Any business vertical or a product has multiple key performance indicators. For eg – any advances (loans ) business would need to see what is the portfolio yield, applicable cost of funds and resultant spread.  What was the disbursement and what was the yield for the new disbursement, what was the level of attrition and the yield on the attrited book, what repricing’s have happened in the month, what is the relationship between the change in cost of funds and the portfolio yield, whether business is able to maintain its margins both in increasing interest rate scenario as well as falling interest rate scenario, what fees it is able to generate as a percentage of average assets, direct and indirect opex relating to business, credit costs for the products, Slippages as well as upgrades and its impact on the net interest margin, cross sell income so on and so forth.  Which customers are profitable for the bank by looking at the 360-degree customer view. How to upgrade or downgrade the customers based on their relationship value for the company.  What is the customer lifecycle and what kind of trends it is projecting. For deposit/liability customers, whether we are able to increase their relationship value over the years or only new customers are contributing to the growth in the portfolio.  All the above are just an example of what finance teams can contribute to the Business.  

Today with multiple tools available, finance teams are able to leverage on the data and come with valuable insights. They are able to guide the business teams to change product mix, make changes to the product construct, rationalise the incentive structure for their frontline staff, run customer centric campaigns and also measure the efficacy of these campaigns and analyse the cost vs benefits of running these campaigns. Finance team guides the businesses to make course corrections so that they are able to achieve their financial/ non-financial Goals.

What are your views on the role of technology and financial analytics tools in optimising financial processes and generating valuable insights?

Technology and Financial Analytics tools play an extremely important role in empowering the businesses, Management teams as well as the finance team to drive business decisions. These tools help management immensely in formulating the business strategy as well as in its execution. However, it is far more important to ensure that these technology tools are well implemented through a futuristic thought process and the right data is captured at the right granularity so that multiple customised analytics can be run on these data sets. These Analytic tools are data hungry hence technology teams play an important role to ensure that the right kind of data is made available, data is aggregated and organised at one place.   

Create a single source of truth by doing proper inter system reconciliations.  All this is possible by a well thought through system integrations. These are some of the very complex tasks and they determine how the organisation will function in future.

How would you integrate advanced financial analytics with existing financial processes and reporting structures to ensure seamless information flow and efficient decision-making?

As organisations evolve and grow bigger there is increasing need and demand on data and advanced financial analytics. With bigger balance sheets, smaller changes in a few basis points in any important financial parameter make bigger impacts on the outcomes and bottom-line. At this phase of the organisation, the ability of the teams to dig deeper into data at faster speeds, identify the root causes and take corrective actions is vital.   

Today is an era of data explosion.  Many of the existing financial processes are designed to provide regular updates to businesses and functions and they generally run into multiple pages. This makes the task of a decision maker difficult.  Many important messages get lost in these huge piles of numbers and ratios. It is very important these days for the finance teams to be very objective. Most of the finance team members feel that showing variances between different periods or between the plan and actuals, putting in a few ratios and key performance indicators will suffice.  

However real financial analysis is to go behind these numbers and identify the “Why” behind all these numbers.  Showing “What” is always easier.  Finance teams need to be trained to have this kind of mind-set to go behind “why” rather than “What”.  Every month it is essential to identify only such a handful of indicators, go behind the “why” and have constructive discussions with the business heads. Many times these are some of the early indicators, which need immediate course correction before their impact actually blows out.  The ultimate benefit of investment into technology, Various analytical tools and data analytics is the ability of the organisation to arrive at conclusions based on cutting edge financial analytics and take appropriate and timely decisions. 

In your opinion, what are the emerging trends in financial analytics and how can companies leverage these trends to gain a competitive advantage?

According to me the following are the emerging trends in Financial Analytics space are:

Data Analytics

Reporting is faster and more easily accessible with recent digital tools. Technological advances are enabling companies to gain real-time access to data, thanks to advanced analytics. It’s nothing new for financial businesses to use data analytics to help get valuable insights, identify process improvements or help companies manage risk better. But now, companies can use artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) capabilities to enable enhanced data to support more advanced analytics and data visualisation tools to deliver insights in real time.

Predictive Analytics 

Predictive analytics is the use of statistical algorithms and machine learning techniques to predict future outcomes based on historical data. With the help of predictive analytics, organisations can forecast trends and patterns, identify risks and make informed decisions. Predictive analytics can be used for various purposes such as risk management, fraud detection, possible delinquencies and defaults and customer segmentation. As predictive analytics continues to evolve, its applications in financial data analytics will become even more significant.

Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning

Artificial intelligence and machine learning are transforming the financial industry by enabling organisations to analyse vast amounts of data quickly and accurately. With the help of AI and machine learning, organisations can automate their processes, reduce costs and improve their decision-making. AI and machine learning can be used for various purposes such as fraud detection, risk management and customer service. As AI and machine learning continue to evolve, their applications in financial data analytics will become even more significant.

Big Data and Cloud Computing

Big data refers to large and complex data sets that cannot be analysed using traditional data processing methods. With the help of big data analytics, organisations can gain valuable insights into their operations, customers and markets. Cloud computing is also transforming the financial industry by providing organisations with the computing power they need to process large amounts of data quickly and efficiently.

Tejas Mehta

Insights On Advanced Financial Analytics; Empowering Decisions By Tejas Mehta, VP, Mondelez India

In an Interview with BW CFO World with Tejas Mehta, VP Finance, Mondelez India, shares insights on empowering strategic decision-making and fostering a data-driven culture

In your experience, how can advanced financial analytics be most effectively leveraged to empower strategic decision-making within an organisation?

We are increasingly using advanced analytics to support decision-making, by making information available faster, generating alternate scenarios and discovering subtle trends. 

The areas that analytics is most effectively being applied in finance, is planning and forecasting, management reviews and resource optimisation. We’re also exploring its potential in risk management and sensitivity analysis. 

We see advanced analytics unlocking value at two ends of the spectrum, firstly, in improving the speed and accuracy for high-value decisions and secondly, in automating the low-value routine decisions.

For instance, our demand planning employs machine learning models with varying accuracy thresholds based on product value. Top 20 per cent products benefit from higher accuracy, supplemented by input from demand and finance planners, while bottom 20 per cent products rely on automated baselines with minimal manual intervention. 

How would you approach fostering a data-driven culture within the finance team and how would you encourage collaboration with other departments to utilise financial analytics for better decision-making across the company? 

Fostering a data driven culture will always be a continuous effort. Our focus has been on building four key pillars; leadership buy-in, data skills, data quality and collaboration. Senior management is encouraged to promote the use of data and reward data-driven behaviour.  Investments in data skills such as basic statistics, data analytics tools, user adoption and the right storytelling. Managing data quality and standardising data definitions, builds trust and reliability of the results. Collaboration with and between IT teams ensures smooth data integrations and access to necessary systems. 

Whereas complex analytical projects are still largely IT driven, the finance, supply chain users are slowly getting self-sufficient in building their desired models and dashboards. Today a good per cent of our users have working knowledge on different analytical tools. Some of them can even make their Power BI Dashboards. 

Few ways that have helped improve collaboration with other departments are, tailoring dashboards that speak their department’s language and benefits, creating cross-functional teams that can provide a more holistic view of the business, making access to finance data easily such as through self-service analytics, data and report catalogues. creating a data hub with strong governance and focus on leveraging it appropriately.

What are your views on the role of technology and financial analytics tools in optimising financial processes and generating valuable insights?

Advancements in technology have tremendously reduced barriers to execution, in terms of adoption, cost, speed and scalability. Advanced data management and visualisation have led to faster adoption and flexibility. Low code platforms have enabled self-service and citizen development. Cloud computing has made tools easily deployable and scalable. Interoperable systems have enabled sharing of data across systems, processes and departments. 

These have made analytical tools as pervasive as spreadsheets and presentations in the life of the analysts, if not replace them in their day-to-day work. 

How would you integrate advanced financial analytics with existing financial processes and reporting structures to ensure seamless information flow and efficient decision-making? 

A brief roadmap on how we try to integrate financial analytics to our processes is to start by mapping our existing financial processes, data sources, data flow and reports. Evaluate the quality and consistency of our data and systems. Describe what insights we want to gain. Look for a platform that seamlessly integrates with our existing financial systems and caters to our specific needs. Do not try to overhaul everything at once and allow for a smoother learning curve and adoption for the users. Regularly assess user needs and adapt the approach based on their feedback.

In your opinion, what are the emerging trends in financial analytics and how can companies leverage these trends to gain a competitive advantage? 

The financial analytics landscape is constantly evolving and I do not want to hazard any guess on a specific tool or technology. One can only try to learn and unlearn and keep evolving.

To pick a few emerging trends that we think helps are:

ML / AI

The ability to analyse massive datasets (big data) is revolutionising finance. AI / ML algorithms can synthesise this data to uncover hidden patterns, predict future trends, and automate tasks. AI / ML can be used to manage risks, personalise products and services, or optimise operations.

Real-time Scenario Analysis 

Financial analysis is shifting from historical data to real-time insights. This allows for quicker adjustments and more proactive decision-making. Scenario Analysis can be used to test different strategies, mitigate potential risks, and respond to market fluctuations.

Cross-functional or Integrated Analytics

Breaking down data silos and integrating financial data with other departments’ data (supply chain, sales, marketing) creates a more holistic view of the business. Resource allocation and collaboration can be improved across departments. For example, customer segments with higher profitability can be calculated combining sales and financial data.

Karun Gupta

Karun Gupta, Head Of Finance, Salesforce India, Shares Insights On Strategic Financial Leadership For Sustainable Growth

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In an Interview with BW CFO World, Karun Gupta, Head of Finance, Salesforce India, delves into the intersection of financial acumen and sustainable growth, offering invaluable perspectives on capital evaluation, scenario planning, cost optimisation and fostering a culture of responsibility

Can you elaborate your process for evaluating capital expenditures or acquisitions through a lens of both financial return and long-term sustainability?

There are three key criteria categories that are important for businesses while evaluating capital expenditures, specifically acquisitions. First is around clarity on Time to value. Acquisitions need to be aligned to core business strategy, help businesses make solutions more holistic and should be aligned to the customer’s needs. This way a company can add value much faster to the bottom line. Secondly, prioritise non-dilutive forms of consideration like cash or debt vs say equity.   Third one is that Asset needs to be at an appropriate valuation. With the aim to be financially prudent businesses should assess the value basis strategic fitment and right valuation without underestimating the value of the asset.

How do you incorporate scenario planning, including potential economic downturns or environmental challenges, into your financial forecasting and risk management strategies?

Businesses today leverage data and technology to incorporate various scenarios into forecasting and risk mitigation strategies. Actionable insights with for instance Tableau dashboards, drive learnings from internal and external information through tools like Machine learning and then run predictive models using Salesforce Einstein AI technologies. It’s also important to have a feedback mechanism to gather inputs across the organisation in an agile manner and incorporate it into scenario planning. Monitoring the progress on a regular basis and making reprioritisation or resource re allocation decisions as needed is critical to ensure businesses stay on the right path towards sustainable business growth.

Balancing cost efficiency with investment for growth is crucial. Tell us about a time you led a cost optimisation initiative that freed up resources for strategic growth areas. How did you ensure this initiative did not stifle innovation or core operations?

One of the key priorities for CFOs today is to balance out between short term performance and long term sustainable growth. Hence, we need to keep evaluating our resource allocation portfolio and make quick decisions to re prioritise resources as needed to drive high impact outcomes in the best interest of long term growth. Automation and standardisation helps strengthen the core operations while also allowing some headroom for long term strategic initiatives.

A head of finance plays a key role in shaping a company’s culture. Describe how you would foster a culture of financial responsibility and environmental/social awareness within the finance department and across the organisation?

Role of CFO has evolved into more of a co-pilot along with the CEO in driving long term sustainable success of the organisation. Hence, CFOs play a bigger role in shaping the culture of the organisation. While I firmly believe in empowering the business to ensure agility and speed in execution but at the same time need to have right metrics and scorecards. From ESG perspective, our commitment as a company on net zero requires us to collaborate with right partners who demonstrate similar values, ensure compliance with ESG regulations while creating a mass movement and awareness on this very critical topic.

A sustainable business prioritises its people. Can you elaborate on how you would integrate talent management metrics, such as employee retention or training investment, into your overall financial planning for long-term growth?

People are the most important asset of any organisation and are the key differentiators responsible for long term competitive advantage. Our focus has always been on creating an equitable, fair and safe environment for our employees where they can bring their best self to work and be most productive. Therefore investments in areas like real estate, promoting D&I initiatives, employee engagement activities are core to our planning. Learning and development of our people is a key priority for us and we are investing to ensure we provide right content, programs and moreover the environment to create a learning culture.

Sanjay Bakulchandra Upadhyay (1)

Strategies For Financial Resilience; Insights From Deepak Group CFO, Sanjay Bakulchandra Upadhyay

In an Interview with BW CFO World, delve into essential insights with Sanjay Bakulchandra Upadhyay, CFO, Deepak Group, on cultivating financial resilience in dynamic markets. Explore effective strategies, the definition of financial resilience, adapting financial goals, scenario planning and fostering alignment across departments for sustained success in today’s ever-evolving business environment

In your opinion, what are some effective strategies for cultivating financial resilience in dynamic markets?

In the last few years, we have seen many events which included Pandemics, wars between countries, geopolitical risks, supply chain issues and the closure of some financial institutions which has impacted the financial performance across the globe. One lesson that recent years have taught is that businesses of all sizes must be prepared for anything and having financial resilience is one of the major contributors to financial wellbeing.

If we talk about strategies, according to me, cultivating resilience requires strategic agility by identifying potential market disruptions, competitive threats. There always has to be a plan in place for alternatives.

Secondly, It’s not just about mitigating risks, it’s also about identifying and seizing opportunities. Strategic expansion across the value chain through disciplined investment has contributed resilience to our organisation and helped sustain financial performance.

Rigorous approach to cost management through supply chain efficiency and logistics management, backward integration, recycling as well as maximising asset utilisation for enhancing return on investment has contributed in optimising the financial performance.

Lastly, for the unknown and ever-changing business landscape one must have the ability to respond and adapt quickly.

How do you define financial resilience, particularly in the context of dynamic markets?

Building resilience requires a tremendous amount of energy, time, effort, persistence, discipline and flexibility as disruptions can arrive from any direction.

In the ever-evolving business realm, effective decision-making and the ability to make informed choices stands as a cornerstone of success. While framing the decision, a meticulously structured approach should be followed with flexibility, speed and collaboration.

Once the decision is made, it’s imperative to not only set your strategies in motion but also monitor their progress and adjust as needed.

I would define financial resilience as allowing business the flexibility required in the dynamic scenarios to change the course or pivot without affecting the Financial levers.

As market conditions change, financial priorities can sometimes shift. How can individuals best identify and adapt their financial goals in a dynamic market?

Within the complex and ever-evolving finance domain, adopting resilience measures is not a strategic choice but an essential one.

We have to remain agile, nimble, responsive and continuously seek innovative ways to provide value while seizing opportunities from fast changing industry trends. One must keep multiple options to overcome volatile situations.

One has to stay informed about the best industry practices and trends and regularly monitor the revenue generation strategies by proactively managing risks and leveraging them to drive sustained high growth.

How do you approach scenario planning to assess the financial resilience of the company in the face of unexpected market disruptions?

Building and applying scenario plans helps the company remain flexible, resilient. Even if the exact scenario isn’t likely to occur, running models can reveal valuable insights.

We develop scenarios (optimistic, pessimistic, baseline) by actively monitoring market trends, competitor moves and customer behaviour along with challenges and opportunities that may arise and assess their impact on key performance indicators (KPIs). We also break goals into various milestones to keep better control on results.

This enables us to adapt quickly to changing circumstances and gain a competitive edge.

How do you communicate the importance of financial resilience to other departments within the company and how do you ensure alignment across all functions?

We promote an inclusive and collaborative work environment where individuals across departments and hierarchies are encouraged to share their ideas, expertise and perspectives. Things become easier to explain and digest if they can be converted into numbers, which we do most of the time.

This collaborative approach promotes the ability to stand steadfast in the face of a complex, dynamic, challenging and ever evolving environment, innovation, fosters creativity and accelerates the implementation of new ideas and technologies.

Sameer Madan

Sustainable Growth: How Agilent’s Finance Director Makes Numbers Work For The Future

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In an Interview with BW CFO World, Sameer Madan, Director, Finance, Agilent, shares invaluable insights on integrating sustainability, risk management, cost optimisation, cultural fostering and talent management for enduring growth

Can you elaborate your process for evaluating capital expenditures or acquisitions through a lens of both financial return and long-term sustainability?

As the society and eco system evolves, current sustainability related trends are rendering traditional corporate finance techniques used for capex decisions are at risk of being irrelevant. Capex decisions have a strategic role to play in the long-term viability and competitive position of companies, given their generally long lifespan. But the world around those assets is changing. Businesses are increasingly exposed to a variety of political, social, environmental and regulatory factors that can both create risk and opportunity. Traditional corporate finance techniques are increasingly insufficient, and new ways are evolving to capture and analyse the greater information needs of business to make effective capex decisions. An extended cost benefit analysis approach that keeps each of the four capitals: economic, human, natural and social capital separate, and measures each in a distinct non-monetary unit. NPV is then calculated using a consistent discount rate across the capitals. A better approach is Net Present Sustainable Value (NPSV) which links the use of social and environmental resources back to a corporate’s sustainability strategy and targets by extending the opportunity cost principle to both financial and non-financial resources. This method requires a defined minimum rate of return for all relevant resources, based on the company’s targets

How do you incorporate scenario planning, including potential economic downturns or environmental challenges, into your financial forecasting and risk management strategies? 

The modern-day CFOs key role is to predict the future and in today’s interlinked world where the old rules of economics are being rewritten. With newer business models emerging faster than ever before, old ones are getting obsolete at an alarming pace. One needs to integrate upstream and downstream impacts and its risk assessment into strategic-planning processes and define actionable strategies to both protect the business and take advantage of emerging opportunities. Develop a pipeline of geopolitical risk management talent by rotating personnel with strong leadership potential through countries, establishing a more permanent team experienced in working through the inevitable disruption. Create a system for collecting, processing, and disseminating risk signals with a variety of time horizons or purposes across the organisation, supplemented by input from external agencies and advisors.

 Balancing cost efficiency with investment for growth is crucial. Tell us about a time you led a cost optimisation initiative that freed up resources for strategic growth areas. How did you ensure this initiative did not stifle innovation or core operations? 

In the fast-paced world of new age businesses, achieving scalability is often a top priority. As companies grow, they need to handle increased demand, expand their user base, and accommodate higher transaction volumes. However, this growth comes with a critical challenge: managing costs effectively. Balancing scalability and cost efficiency is a delicate dance that requires strategic planning, thoughtful execution, and continuous monitoring. Successful companies treat costs as investments. Some costs are good, and some are bad. One necessarily doesn’t need to work to reduce costs; instead, it tries to weed out poor investments while keeping the good ones—day in and day out, during both booms and busts. “You must study the process over and over.” The mantra is “Waste nothing.” Many companies, in contrast, take a one-off approach to cost cutting and do it reactively when it’s the only obvious option for reaching profit targets. Unfortunately, in their hurry to eliminate things that seem discretionary, they often sacrifice some of their most important investments. We should follow a “process shredder approach” and eliminate, simplify or automate every possible step of our day-to-day operations.

A CFO plays a key role in shaping a company’s culture. Describe how you would foster a culture of financial responsibility and environmental/social awareness within the finance department and across the organisation?

The CFO has a large role to play in building a company’s vision and strategy — especially in times of economic uncertainty. That means stepping into roles that may not traditionally call for a “numbers person,” such as promoting a strong company culture. A CFO has a bird’s eye view of whatever is happening within the company as well as outside and is uniquely positioned to drive change and encourage the organisation to take calculated risks. Having a balanced scorecard for every department makes sure that one educates, aligns and empowers your employees, managers, and leaders. A CFO needs to foster a Learning (learn, unlearn and relearn) environment, set clear expectations, recognize and reward financial responsibility and foster collaboration and transparency

A sustainable business prioritises its people. Can you elaborate on how you would integrate talent management metrics, such as employee retention or training investment, into your overall financial planning for long-term growth?

Developing talent is business’s most important task-Peter Drucker. The allocation of financial capital has long been recognized as a critical driver of an organisation’s performance. The value of managing and allocating human capital (not human resources), however, is less widely known. But many surveys now confirm the positive effects of talent management on business outcomes and point that organisations with effective talent-management programs have a better chance than other companies of outperforming competitors and are likelier to outpace their peers’ returns to shareholders. While there is no one-size-fits-all approach to the effective management of human capital, Getting the best people into the most important roles does not happen by chance; it requires a disciplined look at where the organisation really creates value and how top talent contributes. Define the value agenda, Identify, and clarify critical roles, deploy “right skilling” and then operationalize and mobilise. To retain good talent is to recognize retention starts with recruiting and identify candidates who’ll stay the course i.e., who share your outlook. One needs to do C&B benchmarking, bake in the costs and be competitive with compensation packages.

Aron Bloomer

Exact Sciences Appoints Aaron Bloomer As Chief Financial Officer

Exact Sciences, known for its cancer screening and diagnostic tests, appoints Aaron Bloomer as its Chief Financial Officer (CFO), effective from May 15, 2024 onwards

Initially, Bloomer will join as Executive Vice President of Finance, seamlessly transitioning into the CFO position within 30 days. He will succeed Jeff Elliott, who will take on the role of special advisor to the CEO.

Bloomer has more than 15 years of experience in finance and accounting, holding key positions at Baxter International and 3M. At Baxter, he focused on financial planning and analysis, while at 3M, he held roles including Senior VP of FP&A and CFO for divisions in China and Tokyo, driving improved financial outcomes and strategic growth.

Mukti Hariharan

Leading The Financial Frontier: Mukti Hariharan, CFO, Lenskart, Explores Innovations In Financial Leadership

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In an exclusive interview with BW CFO World, Mukti Hariharan, CFO, Lenskart, delves into the challenges and opportunities of pioneering financial innovation. From risk mitigation strategies to fostering a culture of change, Hariharan shares invaluable insights into navigating the evolving landscape of finance leadership

What are the biggest challenges and potential risks associated with financial innovation? How can leaders mitigate these risks while promoting progress?

Typically, any financial innovation requires working with systems that are used in day to day running and hence the implementations need to be right first time with limited margin of error.  Due to high stakes, scalability and robustness of systems and innovations is an imperative. Keeping pace with the evolving regulatory environment and cybersecurity challenges is also critical for financial innovations. There could be unforeseen operational challenges that might lead to system outages and other execution risks.  Anticipating and managing these risks while adopting financial innovations is an extremely important part of the jobs of finance leaders. 

Collaboration, transparency and continuous monitoring are key to ensuring that financial innovation delivers meaningful benefits while minimising potential downsides.

What are the most significant trends you see shaping the future of financial innovation?

Digital transformation of financial systems and processes is a multiyear trend that is really shaping the evolution of new finance organisations.  This would help elevate the role of finance functions across organisations and would improve the speed and accuracy of delivery of regular tasks. (Artificial Intelligence) AI and Machine Learning (ML) and their implications for financial systems is also a promising trend.  There is significant development work that needs to be done for this trend to scale.  This could potentially simplify recurring repeat activities and reconciliations and could bring a lot of speed to financial reporting and performance management.

What core principles should guide financial innovation to ensure it benefits society as a whole?

Democratisation of information, Simplification and ease of use, Data privacy and security and Sustainability should be the guiding principles of financial innovation.  Financial innovation should be guided by core principles that prioritise the well-being of society as a whole, promote financial inclusion and contribute to sustainable economic growth.

How can leaders within the financial sector foster a culture of innovation and embrace these emerging trends?

Finance leaders have an important role to play in setting a compelling vision, defining right objectives, aligning adequate resources and carrying the organisation to embrace financial innovations judiciously. They also need to foster a culture of collaboration within cross functional teams to support the organisation’s digital agenda. They need to realise the need for driving simplification and efficiency in their organisation and the role technological innovations can play in meaningfully moving the needle.

Can you share an example of a time when you successfully led your team or organisation through a significant change or adaptation in response to market dynamics?

In the midst of the global pandemic, I was leading the treasury function of a reputed organisation that was navigating unprecedented market volatility. While we were blessed with a strong liquidity position, we recognised the urgent need to respond to rapidly changing dynamics in the broader retail-distributor ecosystem. As liquidity began to dry up within our ecosystem, I spearheaded proactive efforts to collaborate closely with our banking partners to implement a series of strategic measures. These initiatives included scaling up distributor financing, retailer finance and supplier finance programs, all aimed at effectively managing our liquidity needs while mitigating risk exposure for our organisation.

By leveraging these tailored financial solutions, we were able to foster resilience and stability within our ecosystem. Importantly, these initiatives were received positively by our partners, helping to strengthen relationships and build trust during a time of uncertainty, while contributing to top line growth. 

Overall, this experience underscores the importance of agile leadership, strategic foresight and collaborative partnerships in successfully navigating through times of significant change and disruption.

Gaurav Malik

Aligning Financial Decisions With Sustainability Goals: Insights’ From Gaurav Malik, CFO, Experion

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In an Interview with BW CFO World, Gaurav Malik, CFO, Experion, shares invaluable strategies on aligning financial decisions with long-term sustainability goals with his expertise in evaluating investments, scenario planning, cost optimisation and fostering a culture of responsibility

Can you elaborate your process for evaluating capital expenditures or acquisitions through a lens of both financial return and long-term sustainability?

Assessment of capital expenditure or acquisitions involves a framework where we evaluate various financial metrics such as IRR, NPV, ROI and Margins of new transactions with our existing minimum set benchmarks. In addition to the financial metrics, the focus is also on environmental impact and enhancing social initiatives. All our projects consider the environmental impact, social dynamics and governance frameworks. For instance, investments in energy efficient products and technologies, extensive green areas, conscious water consumption and recycling waste takes the centre stage during our development process.

Organisation’s risk management framework and strategies helps us create mitigates to weather the market uncertainties, regulatory changes and competitive landscape. Our commitment extends beyond profit maximisation as it encapsulates a mandate to create positive impact for our shareholders, stakeholders, social community and the environment. With this approach, we endeavour to achieve financial returns with sustainable growth.

Once acquisitions are complete, we have processes to monitor the performance of our investments against predefined metrics including sustainability goals. We adjust strategies as needed to optimise the outcomes. Also, lessons learned from past investments are incorporated into future investment decisions to continuously improve the organisation’s approach to evaluating capital expenditures and acquisitions from both financial and sustainability perspectives.

How do you incorporate scenario planning, including potential economic downturns or environmental challenges, into your financial forecasting and risk management strategies?

Scenario planning begins with identifying the key drivers affecting the business which includes the economic indicators, market trends, customer preferences, interest rates, environmental and regulatory changes and competitive landscape. Once the drivers are identified, the uncertainties around these are evaluated like economic downturns, interest rate cycle, geopolitical risks etc. Based on the drivers and the uncertainties around it, various scenarios are developed encompassing a range of possible outcomes. These outcomes or scenarios are a combination of drivers and uncertainties around it.

With the help of financial models, sensitivity analysis and stress test scenarios, impact of various outcomes are determined which may affect the revenue, profitability, cash flow and other financial metrics of the Company. The insights from the sensitivity analysis and stress scenarios are used to adjust the financial forecast and develop a risk mitigation strategy which prepares the organisation to better manage uncertainties, adapt to the changing market conditions and improve decision making.

Balancing cost efficiency with investment for growth is crucial. Tell us about a time you led a cost optimisation initiative that freed up resources for strategic growth areas. How did you ensure this initiative did not stifle innovation or core operations?

One of the initiatives I undertook in my previous company was Centralised Procurement. As owners of several real estate properties in India across various cities and states, a significant amount of procurement of goods and services was conducted from local vendors for each property. Multiple teams were involved in procurement management at each location. We conducted an analysis of the number of vendors involved and created a framework where procurement was centralised at one location within one team. The centralised procurement team then began rationalising the number of vendors under contract and identified top vendors for each product or service.

This was complemented by the implementation of a technology tool that provided better visibility and control over the contracts awarded to vendors. This initiative faced reservations regarding flexibility and agility in placing orders and completing tasks. However, contrary to concerns, this initiative brought in streamlined processes, eliminating duplicate efforts and reducing administrative overheads. By consolidating procurement, the company leveraged economies of scale to negotiate better deals with vendors. Bulk purchasing allowed for special discounts, thereby reducing overall procurement costs. Centralised procurement also improved relationships with vendors since we now maintained fewer but more substantial relations.

A CFO plays a key role in shaping a company’s culture. Describe how you would foster a culture of financial responsibility and environmental/social awareness within the finance department and across the organisation?

Leadership, ownership, communication and trust within an organisation and people is key to fostering a culture of financial responsibility and environmental/social awareness. A CFO should lead by example and demonstrate leadership by serving as a role model for other employees in the organisation. The decisions made by the CFO should prioritise long term sustainability and prudence on unnecessary expenses especially the ones that lead to wastage of resources. A CFO should make decisions that take care of both economic and environmental sustainability.

Secondly, an entrepreneurial mindset is required in the organisation towards initiatives that reduce unnecessary expenses and prioritise socially responsible investments. Cultivating an entrepreneurial mindset encourages employees to approach challenges with creativity, identify cost saving opportunities, support community engagements and contribute towards organisation’s sustainability goals.

Thirdly, clear expectations need to be set within the finance department and across the organisation so everyone within the organisation understands their role and responsibility. Additionally, it might involve establishing key performance indicators (KPIs) to track progress towards these goals and holding employees accountable for their contributions to the organisation’s overall sustainability efforts. A combination of all above would lead to tangible benefits like improved financial performance, enhanced brand reputation and greater employee satisfaction.

A sustainable business prioritises its people. Can you elaborate on how you would integrate talent management metrics, such as employee retention or training investment, into your overall financial planning for long-term growth?

Integrating talent management metrics into financial planning isn’t just about numbers, it’s about nurturing the heart of your organisation: your people. Human capital is the driving force behind creativity, innovation, productivity and ultimately, business success. By aligning talent management goals with strategic business objectives, you ensure that investments in employee retention and training directly contribute to long-term growth and competitiveness.

Measuring the ROI of talent management initiatives is key to understand and track the impact of initiatives. Metrics such as employee retention, employee satisfaction, employee engagement and productivity can demonstrate to the management the human health of the organisation. To conclude, Talent management is about fostering a culture where employees feel valued, supported and empowered to excel. By prioritising talent management, you create an environment of continuous learning, development and innovation—a place where people thrive and businesses flourish.

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