On this episode host Erik Zhou welcomes Barrett Daniels, the co-leader of US IPO services at Deloitte. Drawing from his two decades of expertise in guiding companies through the IPO journey, Barrett takes us on a deep exploration of the process – from the pivotal board decision to the exhilarating moment of ringing the bell at the stock exchange. And, he notes that in many ways, the real work actually begins once the IPO is over. Barrett also reviews the current IPO landscape and the evolving motivations behind companies opting to go public. He outlines some of the areas that he’d like to see improved in the IPO process and top considerations for companies as they look to get IPO ready (hint: it’s extremely important to have the right team in place!). He notes that organizational preparedness is of course crucial to a successful IPO - companies have to have accurate forecasting, good audit completion times, and controls in place. If you're curious about the dynamic world of IPOs or thinking about what the process should look like for your company, this episode is a must-listen.Key Quotes“You used to go public for that big check because you couldn’t really get it in the private markets. Nowadays, it is more of a discussion around prestige, providing additional comfort to customers, or liquidity to reward those people that have been with you all this time” “My focus is on things that are applicable in every IPO - getting your filings done, making sure you have the right KPIs, etc.” “You need to be able to show you can get an audit done by the time the public company would get the audit done” “I would like the IPO process to be faster. A lot of the IPO process is done with old school paper. I wouldn’t take audits away; that work needs to be done. But there may be other things we can do to speed up the process” “Once that decision has been made, you start putting the team together. The primary pieces of the puzzle early in the process are your accountants and lawyers. For lawyers, hire the partner, not the brand”  “Once the IPO is over, that’s when the real work begins in many ways, right?” Time Stamps(4:20) The chaos of IPOs(8:05) Supporting IPOs in Barrett’s way(11:15) Shifts in rationale for IPOs(18:02) Improving the IPO process(22:15) An overview of the IPO process(33:50) The intricacies of preparing for an IPO (42:25) The world is run on ExcelLinksConnect with BarrettVisit Deloitte Connect with ErikHow Brex helps companies get IPO ready

In this episode, host Eric Zhou welcomes Sean Soper, the Head of Financial Operations and Accounting at Alchemy, to shed light on the disruptive technologies shaping the trajectory of accounting and finance. Alchemy provides the leading blockchain development platform and as such, much of the conversation narrows in on the possible applications of blockchain in accounting. Sean begins the discussion highlighting his experience working across companies that have revolutionized whole industries with new technology. He notes that a large part of his success at these companies has been from remaining curious and developing deep industry knowledge that guides how he approaches his accounting processes and procedures. Sean then outlines his priorities in his current role at Alchemy, which include optimizing the financial close process, fine tuning reporting and analytics, and managing cash. The conversation quickly turns to the future of blockchain technology and its potential for revolutionizing accounting and finance. Sean and Erik discuss the state of the union for blockchain and web3, the possible accounting use cases for the technology, and regulatory considerations. The episode wraps with Sean’s point of view on the future of hybrid work models and the importance of community and collaboration in that, plus the funniest expense report he’s had hit his desk (hint: it was related to a very creative sales spiff). Key Quotes“My areas of focus are threefold. First, it's the financial close process and making sure that we're removing any manual processes so that we close sooner. Second is around reporting and analytics, so we can understand areas to save costs for the company. And then the last one is going to be around cash management.”“I think one of the crucial aspects about being a controller in the startup space is to be as much of a strategic partner as possible to your organization, to help them operationalize their goals.” “Blockchain is an exciting technology that provides a distributed and immutable ledger. Accountants absolutely love controls, they like to get supporting documentation that proves transactions actually occurred with dates and times. That's all feasible and possible on the blockchain in a way that can be tested publicly and verified publicly.” “It’s amazing that our process for debits and credits hasn't evolved since the 1400s, since Luca Paciolii, the grandfather of accounting. Yes, we've now got different systems and different ERPs. We've digitized a lot. We're no longer on actual ledgers. But ultimately the foundation still hasn't changed”Time Stamps(1:40) Sean’s career in emerging technologies(9:18) Managing the price risk in crypto (10:08) Blockchain and Web3 state of the union(11:567) Developing blockchain for the future(18:10) Blockchain’s future in accounting (22:57) Blockchain regulatory considerations(38:40) Sean’s first encounter with “DONKS”LinksConnect with SeanVisit AlchemyConnect with ErikCheck out Brex

In this engaging episode, we're joined by Tom Kelly, the Director of Product Marketing at NetSuite. The conversation starts with an overview of Tom’s career and his blending of experiences across finance, technology, and marketing at companies big and small. The theme throughout his experiences has been leading teams through technological leaps in search of greater process efficiency.The conversation then shifts to Tom’s priorities at NetSuite. His role encompasses product marketing, product management, and analyst relations - and all of it pulls from his past experiences as a finance leader and his deep understanding of the problems that NetSuite’s products need to solve. He shares how he has influenced the NetSuite roadmap to date, and his high level goals for the years to come given where he sees the ERP and broader finance ecosystem headed. AI and automation of course feature heavily as finance leaders look to reduce manual work and free up time for strategic thinking. This episode is jam packed with invaluable wisdom from Tom amassed over the years. Above all else, Tom passionately advocates for the embrace of technology by finance leaders, noting that they need to become “astute technologists”, especially if they are at companies with ambitious growth projections where scalability will be key. The episode closes with Tom’s favorite joke that highlights a truth around making sure finance teams and senior leadership have a shared language of success.  Key QuotesOn making choices related to your financial tech stack: “Be very careful about how you choose them and make sure that the interactions work well. You don’t want to have to worry about the connectivity”On setting up scalable processes: “You have to be honest with yourself. Yes you could just put something in a Google sheet and get it done in two seconds. But if you have growth projections, you should probably think upfront about how to build a process that is maybe run on a Google sheet right now, but could be baked into an ERP or procurement application in the future.” On the role of finance leaders: “The CFO needs to be a strategic business partner. Businesses want CFOs who can win the hearts and minds of others. They want CFOs who have got data analytics skills. They want CFOs who understand technology.”Time Stamps(1:46) Tom’s journey in finance (5:40) Helping companies embrace new tech(13:20) Tom’s role & priorities at NetSuite(27:55) NetSuite’s roadmap & how AI fits in(36:05) Finance leaders are fun too!LinksConnect with TomCheck out NetSuiteConnect with ErikCheck out Brex

Sowmya Ranganathan, OpenAI's Controller, shares insights on accounting during hypergrowth, the need for technical savviness, and building scalable processes. They discuss a tech-first approach to accounting, the impact of AI on accountants, and the future skill sets required. The podcast also explores automating revenue processes with AI and SQL, the applications and benefits of AI in accounting, and using Chat GPT for communication and writing business letters.

Angelina Hendraka, CAO at Redis, discusses her diverse experiences across industries. She shares insights on being an inclusive leader and making strategic spend decisions. The podcast also covers post-IPO success, SOX readiness, and a funny expense reporting story.

In this episode of "Controllers Classified," we’re joined by Daniel Hilli, Head of Business Control at Alstom. Alstom is a multinational company that builds and services trains and signaling systems. In fact, millions of people everyday are transported by Alstom trains and systems. Given the size of the company, this episode focuses on how to implement and manage financial processes across different regions and systems at scale. This includes dialogue around when to centralize vs. decentralize reporting and budgeting processes, how to find efficiencies through digitalization and tool consolidation, and the best way to build lines of communication across global teams. Daniel also does a deep dive into Alstom’s acquisition of Bombardier and the integration implications that followed - including how to bring together disparate teams and technology and how to gain a holistic financial picture of the business and its spend in a post-acquisition environment.  The conversation closes with how Daniel tackles long-term projects like ERP implementation - and general thoughts for how and when to leverage external solutions consultants for implementations. Key Quotes:On the strategic role of finance: “So when you try to put what the issue is in numbers and show that, but how do we generate margin by doing this? All of a sudden people take a minute, think about it. And then you have the tough discussion.”On acquisition integration: “So 40,000 people, plus 40,000 people integrating different systems, a bit different cultures trying to do a setup that works. And then we go into what kind of manual processes have we inserted along the way. And all of these things we're now trying to automate.”On finding efficiencies: “We have a lot of systems everywhere. And then the question is, how do you do some kind of amalgamation there? How do you now streamline this?On system ownership: “It's not automated at all. You go into a meeting and you ask ‘Who did this’ and ‘Why does it look like this?’ You don't want those kinds of discussions. You want the one person to own the whole flow. And then, at some point it becomes apparent where the problem is when the person gets the holistic view.”On ERP implementation: “Be a bit aggressive in the beginning because time flies. Time management is key. All of a sudden, the first year just went by and not much really happened, and then in the final three months, all of a sudden everything needs to happen at once.”Show Notes(1:15) -  Intro/journey to success(6:10) -  Interactions with departments at Alstom(9:25) - Structuring the finance department on a global scale(17:20) -  Major acquisitions and implementations (26:12) - Identifying the top needs during an ERP implementation(28:14) -  Controllers are fun too/close!LinksConnect with DanielVisit AlstomConnect with ErikCheck out Brex

Listen to Lindsey Oshita, CAO at Franklin Templeton, share her journey from small accounting firm to global corporate accounting. Learn about challenges faced during ERP integration, importance of chart of accounts, successful implementation of Workday, and the role of mentorship in career growth. The discussion covers team integration, finding humor in challenges, and the value of continuous learning.

In this episode of Controllers Classified, Brex’s CAO Erik Zhou dives deep into the evolution of accounting and finance with guest Ron Cook, the VP/Controller at Lightcast. Ron shares invaluable insights from his illustrious 30-year career on the past, present, and future states of accounting, on-the-job anecdotes (ever migrated ERPs in the middle of a pandemic?), and lessons learned along the way (“Leadership is an art. It’s not a science.”).Erik and Ron also explore the transformative impact of remote work culture on the accounting profession, delving into its challenges, benefits, and opportunities. The conversation pivots to AI and automation as Ron sheds light on where he thinks AI can have the most accounting impact — and what he thinks AI cannot do. He also shares his top skill for managing people and the one line on a job candidate’s resume that still stands out today.Key Quotes:“A long time ago someone told me that you're born with two ears and one mouth, [so] you should listen twice as much as you should talk. So I always listen to people, try to get to what they're seeing, read their body language, understand what they're doing, and just be compassionate. And I think that goes a long way in leadership.”“I think what people don't like is if you tell them this is what you have to do. When you're working on a big-scale ERP or a big project and you have months or years to go, giving people the option to be involved or how to be involved, I think people respect that. You've taken the time to talk to them, to say, ‘Hey, what is your opinion here?’”“Does [AI] do 80 or 90% of the work for you and help you be efficient? Yes. But does it require you to sit down and look and make sure that [the outputs are] all 100% accurate? I also say yes. So I think [AI success happens] in combination with a person with a brain that can look at it and say, this makes sense or not.”“I think integrity is something that will follow you the rest of your life. I think that not only in the accounting profession, but in life in general. Integrity and being honest and being open upfront will open a lot of doors and will make you successful.”“In any company, people [are] your best resource, and you need to learn to take care of people as the world adapts.”Time stamps: [01:35] Intro/Journey to Success[4:39] How Ron went from analog accounting to the digital world of accounting today[17:10] When to use AI and understanding its limitations for accounting[23:45 ] Advice and tips during large scale ERP implementations [31:03] Ron's craziest accounting debacleLinks:Visit LightcastConnect with RonConnect with ErikCheck out Brex

Controllers and accountants perform some of  the most critical and dynamic roles in business — and this podcast will share their inside stories and strategies. Join us as they divulge exclusive insights on the topics redefining the world of accounting and finance, from AI to digitization to globalization. Presented by Brex, an AI powered spend platform