In this episode, host Adam Boutros sits down with Jean McClellan, PwC Canada’s People and Transformation Leader. During their discussion, Jean offers insights into the evolving skills required by finance, including upskilling tips to retain and attract top finance talent. Jean also shares her perspectives on the future of hybrid work, as well as tangible recommendations for prioritizing well-being in a virtual work environment.
 

00:00- Adam’s introduction to Finance in 15 and guest Jean McClellan

01:33- Jean shares her thoughts on the recent Canadian CFO insights report and the importance of remaining agile in this rapidly changing environment

02:48- Jean discusses successful upskilling practices she’s seen clients implement and the role of the CFO in upskilling

07:28- Jean shares her perspective on the concept of a hybrid work environment

10:58- Jeans offers tips for prioritizing well-being in a virtual work environment

12:25- Jean outlines the top three areas companies should be focusing on in response to workforce challenges

14:14- Adam shares his closing thoughts and conclusions

In this episode, host Adam Boutros sits down with Sarah Marsh, partner at PwC Canada, ESG & reporting and Arlind Sulaj, a director with PwC Canada’s finance transformation practice. They discuss why ESG reporting has become imperative for finance teams and CFOs, how companies can modernize their finance functions and get 'data ready' for ESG reporting with the insights needed to execute on their strategy, and much more.

00:00- Adam’s introduction to Finance in 15 and guests Sarah Marsh and Arlind Sulaj

01:50- Sarah explains the growing intersection between financial performance and sustainability

03:07- Sarah discusses the future of ESG reporting

04:32- Arlind discusses ESG reporting from the perspective of the CFO role

06:01- Sarah explains how CFOs can know which ESG reporting framework is right for their organization

07:19- Sarah explains the roadmap for ESG reporting beyond the first report

09:07- Sarah discusses the type of data companies are reporting on currently

10:08- Arlind explains current trends in data reporting overall

12:14- Sarah explains the role of comp in communicating a company’s ESG priorities

13:21- Arlind discusses new developments in reporting automation

15:01- Sarah discusses current trends in data collection and reporting

17:14- Arlind shares his recommended approach for building robust reporting models

19:00- Sarah offers tips for companies developing their ESG data strategies

19:49- Arlind offers tips for companies developing their ESG data strategies

20:22- Adam shares his closing thoughts and conclusions

In the last episode of 2021, host Adam Boutros sits down with the CFO of PwC Canada, Alaina Tennison, on the Finance in 15 podcast. During the episode, Alaina provides listeners with an overview of her CFO role at PwC, her playbook for leadership, and the future of the finance function. In advance of the release of PwC’s CFO Insights this coming January 2022, Alaina shares her perspectives for CFOs, emphasizing the importance of staying in close communication with finance teams, importance of data and analytics, how ESG is entering the CFO mandate and valuing people above all else. 

Show Notes: 

• 00:00- Adam’s introduction to Finance in 15 and Alaina Tennison
• 01:13- Alaina provides an overview of her role as CFO
• 03:30- Alaina discusses the challenges she and her team have navigated during the pandemic
• 04:57- Alaina discusses her leadership strategy and tips for staying in close contact with her team
• 06:15- Alaina outlines the changes that have occurred within her team during the pandemic
• 08:33- Alaina discusses the increase in productivity she’s seen within her team
• 10:32- Alaina discusses ESG data and reporting
• 14:06- Alaina shares her top tips for finance leaders
• 16:08- Adam shares his closing thoughts and conclusions

To kick off season two of Finance in 15, host Adam Boutros sits down with PwC Partner Marino Fremis and Helen Brand, the chief executive of the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA), the global body for professional accountants. During the episode, Marino and Helen share their perspectives on some of the findings from the 2021 CFO survey conducted by the ACCA and PwC. They also share their insights about the importance of ESG investing moving forward, and what we can expect to see in the future with regards to the typical finance function and CFO role.

00:00- Adam’s introduction to Finance in 15 and Marino Fremis

01:51- Helen introduces herself and her role at the ACCA

03:05- Helen discusses the work she has been doing with CFOs in particular

05:04- Helen discusses some of the findings from the 2021 CFO survey

06:42- Marino shares his take on the survey findings

10:02- Helen discusses the role of ESGs in the future of finance

13:05- Helen shares her perspective on the future of the finance function and how she sees the CFO role evolving overtime

16:15- Helen and Marino share their final key takeaways from the survey

17:27- Adam’s closing thoughts and conclusions

The results are in, and Canadians have elected a Liberal minority government. The election campaign featured vigorous debate about several issues that Canadian chief financial officers and business executives will want to pay attention to, especially when it comes to tax policy changes as the government looks to manage rising debt obligations.

In a special episode of our Finance in 15 podcast, Dean Landry, PwC Canada’s National Tax Leader, and Finance in 15 host Adam Boutros discuss the issues that matter most to executives like Canadian CFOs and the key impacts of policy changes on businesses. They also explore how businesses can prepare for what comes next and the importance of trust and collaboration among the government and business leaders. 

00:00- Adam’s introduction to Finance in 15

00:51- Dean shares his key takeaways from the election

02:29- Dean offers his tips for how finance teams can prepare for the future and be
proactive

04:26- Dean shares his thoughts on the key policy proposals in the election platform that
businesses need to pay attention to

07:02- Dean outlines how finance teams can measure success in the face of uncertainty
and ambiguity, and the importance of being proactive with your tax function

08:49- Adam shares his advice for how teams can be more proactive

09:27- Dean discusses the importance of integrating the tax and finance functions

10:40- Dean shares his thoughts on the impacts the election will have on tax from a
global perspective

11:43- Dean shares his final thoughts on the issue, underscoring the importance of
building trust and collaboration among government and corporations

12:31- Adam’s closing thoughts and conclusions
 

In the final episode of the first season, host Adam Boutros reviews some of the highlights from the Finance in 15 podcast so far. The episode reviews key takeaways and insights from episodes one through six, including concepts like the 3Ps of finance: people, process and performance, the process pillar and the ultimate goal of transformation in finance. Featuring snippets from guests Samir Bishara, Lee-Anne Kovacs, Kevin Ng, Marino Fremis, Marilyn Wang, Sebastien Doyon, Michelle Bourgeois and Alaina Tennison, the final episode provides a recap of the best learnings and nuggets of wisdom from the season. Be sure to tune into season two this fall for new episodes exploring emerging topics like ESG, developing the workforce of the future and cybersecurity.

00:00- Adam’s introduction to Finance in 15

00:21- Adam discusses how listeners have responded to the season

00:52- Adam discusses what will be happening in today’s episode- exploring key points from previous episodes and guests

01:27- Samir Bishara discussing the finance transformation journey

02:06- Adam reviews the three Ps of finance transformation and introduces the next clip from episode 3 with Lee-Anne Kovacs

2:56- Lee-Anne talks about the “People” aspect of finance transformation

04:06- Adam introduced the next clip with Kevin Ng

04:56- Kevin reviews the savings and efficiencies for automating tax processes

06:24- Adam introduces the next clip with Marilyn Wang

06:58- Marilyn reviews points about how to start improving data capabilities

08:33- Adam introduced the next clip with Alaina Tennison 

09:05 Alaina speaks about her experiences with significant finance transformation

10:20- Adam’s closing thoughts and conclusions

According to PwC’s Finance Effectiveness Benchmarking report, leading organizations take less than three days to close. They also have fewer errors for first-time processing of journal entries, and they spend an average of three times more effort on reporting and analytics for improved business performance. For many finance companies, accelerating the close is an ongoing challenge. In this episode, host Adam Boutros sits down with Jill Satre, a partner in Risk Assurance Services at PwC Canada and Marino Fremis, Finance Transformation Lead at PwC Canada, to explore the compliance processes that can slow down the close and opportunities for improvement to ultimately deliver more value to the business. We offer tips for speeding up the process without compromising on quality, and why accelerating the close is such a crucial opportunity for finance companies. 

00:12- Adam introduces the theme of today's episode: accelerating the close

00:34- Adam introduces today's guests: Jill and Marino

00:48- Jill and Marino provide background on what they do at PwC

02:15- Marino dives into the meaning of "accelerating the close" and what it means to him

03:22- Jill explores the role of compliance in the close process

04:47- Marino discusses opportunities that usually have the biggest impact

06:17- Jill and Marino discuss how companies can get deeper insights for running their businesses by reimagining their compliance processes.

08:10- Marino offers his take on where companies should start with accelerating the close

09:34- Jill and Marino discuss strategies for working with organizations that help them through change management

11:29- Jill shares her final thoughts on accelerating the close

12:11- Adam's closing reflections

PwC’s Finance in 15 podcast series offers finance executives and business leaders insight into the pivotal ways finance can increase strategic value for their organizations. In this episode, our specialists discuss the last of the 3 Ps of finance transformation: performance. As finance teams struggle to produce data fast enough to help the business make key decisions, performance is an essential component of the transformation journey today. During the episode, National Future of Finance Leader at PwC Canada Adam Boutros sits down with Marilyn Wang, a Partner in PwC Canada’s One Analytics group and Sébastien Doyon, who leads the company’s Quebec finance transformation practice. They discuss trends around performance in finance and the tools leaders need to get started on the performance stage of their journey.

00:12 Adam introduces today's episode- part two our the discussion on performance in finance transformation

00:27 Adam introduces today’s guests: Marilyn and Sebastien

00:47 Sebastien and Marilyn discuss some of the key trends around performance and finance

04:35 Marilyn and Sebastien explores how organizations can get started on the their journey of finding the right tools, solutions and technologies for their finance transformation journey

07:33 Adam’s reflection on the interview