Inside The Mentoring Round, Deanna Strable revisits some pivotal moments that reshaped Principal Financial Group’s strategic direction. A key decision was exiting certain underperforming businesses, a result of a comprehensive strategic review conducted in collaboration with the board. Strable emphasizes the importance of focusing on a combination of metrics rather than a singular financial figure, noting […]
1,034: From Earnings Growth to Long-Term Success: A CFO’s Strategic Shift | Deanna Strable, COO & president (CFO emerita), Principal Financial Group
When Deanna Strable was approached to take on the role of CFO at Principal Financial Group, she was taken by surprise. Having spent most of her 30-year career in leading business units rather than focusing on finance, Strable initially questioned whether she was the right fit for a position traditionally held by financial experts. “Ultimately,"…
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1,033: The “Buy and Build” Moment: Preserving Your Firm’s Entrepreneurial Spirit | Ben Averis, CFO, Yoto
Ben Averis’s journey toward becoming CFO of Yoto was shaped by many diverse experiences in finance, ranging from his early days at PwC in mergers and acquisitions (M&A) to leading roles in private equity–backed businesses. His exposure to the "buy and build" strategy during M&A transactions taught him the challenges of scaling businesses while at…
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The Mentoring Round | Scott Blackley, CFO, Oscar Health
Inside The Mentoring Round, CFO Scott Blackley emphasizes the transformative role of AI in healthcare, noting that Oscar Health continuously evolves AI capabilities to streamline operations, enhance customer experiences, and reduce costs. He underscores AI’s potential in automating tasks like call center operations and financial processes, allowing the finance team to focus on insights rather […]
1,032: From Bitcoin to AI: How Financial Strategy Can Drive a Company’s Evolution | Patrick Fleury, CFO, TeraWulf
It was during the first half of 2024 that press reports first surfaced to suggest that Bitcoin pioneer TeraWulf was seeking to make a bold strategic pivot into AI and high-power compute. Along the front lines of this move stood Patrick Fleury, TeraWulf’s action-oriented CFO, whose short tenure at the firm thus far has been…
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1,031: Unlocking Operational Scale in Health Insurance Through AI and Data | Scott Blackley, CFO, Oscar Health
When Scott Blackley was asked in kindergarten what he wanted to be when he grew up, his answer was surprisingly clear: "I want to be an auditor." This early ambition was no coincidence; his father was a partner at KPMG, and young Blackley grew up around the firm’s offices, imagining himself one day sitting at…
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The Mentoring Round | Don McGuire, CFO ADP
Inside The Mentoring Round, CFO Don McGuire explains how increasingly ADP’s finance professionals are discovering career opportunities outside traditional finance roles, bringing diverse skills back into finance. McGuire’ explains how his team is divided into two groups: BU CFOs, who work closely with business units (BUs) and focus on growth and business understanding, and corporate functions […]
1,030: Leveraging Global Expertise to Shape ADP’s Financial Future | Don McGuire, CFO, ADP
In 2021, ADP's HR leader reached out to Don McGuire, then the company’s globe-trotting EMEA president, to gauge his interest in stepping into the firm's CFO role. McGuire was surprised, inasmuch as it had been nearly two decades since he had veered off the traditional finance career track. During this interim, McGuire had taken on…
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1,029: A Unique Advantage: When CEO Experience Informs CFO Leadership | Matt Steinfort, CFO, DigitalOcean
While most CFOs climb the ranks through finance-related roles, Matt Steinfort's path ended up taking quite a significant detour—which saw him lead a company as CEO and then unexpectedly step into a CFO role at his next company. Steinfort’s transition from CEO to CFO occurred when he was approached by Dan Caruso, a longtime mentor and successful…
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1,028: Shaping Finance Operations to Support Global Growth | Clemente Cohen, CFO, PG Forsta
Clemente Cohen’s finance career began in the early 1990s inside the Munich offices of Silicon Graphics, approximately 6,500 miles from the Silicon Valley company’s headquarters and some 7,500 miles from his birthplace in Argentina. This transcontinental start marked the beginning of a career defined by global problem-solving, adaptability, and generous helpings of M&A experience. Cohen,…
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The Mentoring Round | Salman Khan, CFO, Marathon Digital Holdings
Inside The Mentoring Round, CFO Salman Khan highlights the transformative strategy at Marathon Digital, shifting from renting data centers to acquiring operational capacity, driven by his experience in the heavy industry and M&A. He emphasizes the importance of articulating decisions methodically, especially when data is incomplete. Khan also discusses the similarities and differences between Bitcoin […]
1,027: Strategic Finance in the Digital Asset Industry: Lessons From a Bitcoin-Mining Leader | Salman Khan, CFO, Marathon Digital Holdings
When Salman Khan arrived in Dubai from the U.S. in the early 2000s, he was already a seasoned auditor with PricewaterhouseCoopers, ready to narrow his focus to the oil and gas industry. If someone had told him then that he would one day be the CFO of the world’s largest bitcoin-mining company, he may have…
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