AFP Conversations

Nacha has created new infrastructure and tools to improve key AP/AR processes and lower fraud risk. The association is looking to enhance the corporate experience in procure-to-pay and order-to-cash. In this episode of AFP Conversations, sponsored by Santander, we look at how Afinis' standardized APIs and validated data can transform payment processes, with George Throckmorton Managing Director of Nacha. George Welcome to the podcast.

In this special edition of the AFP Conversations podcast, Jim Kaitz, president and CEO of AFP, discusses risk with General Chuck Jacoby, co-author of "Agility: How to Navigate the Unknown and Seize the Opportunity in a World of Disruption." General Jacoby brings over 36 years of experience leading military, government and international organizations. Prior to retiring, he served as the first Army officer to command North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) and the United States Northern Command. He now serves as Senior Vice Chairman of Tilman & Co., the Distinguished Chair of the Modern War Institute, West Point, NY, a member of the Board of Directors of Cornerstone Defense and a Senior Advisor for Stellar Solutions. In this interview, he discusses being an agile leader in challenging times.

This is the second part of a series on agility. The first part, which featured General Jacoby's co-author Leo Tilman, ran last week.

In this special edition of the AFP Conversations podcast, Jim Kaitz, president and CEO of AFP, discusses risk with Leo Tilman, co-author of "Agility: How to Navigate the Unknown and Seize the Opportunity in a World of Disruption." A leading expert on strategy, risk, finance and a long-time advisor to major companies, institutional investors, and governments, Tilman helped shape the modern concept of risk intelligence and, in collaboration with the U.S. government, created innovative models for public/private partnerships. In this interview, he shares his insights on being agile in today's environment.

Everyone is talking about faster and real-time payments. But for corporate treasury departments in the United States, it hasn't really caught on yet except for some, very specific use cases. Corporate treasury professionals typically aren't the ones to jump at investing in some flashy new technology. On the other hand, there is a question of whether the U.S. is going to catch up to other nations.

In this episode of AFP Conversations, we discuss real-time, what it has to offer, and what its limitations are, with Kim Ford, Executive Director of the U.S. Faster Payments Council. The Faster Payments Council was established to allow Americans to pay anyone safely and securely, anywhere, at any time and with near-immediate funds availability.

For more insights, download the AFP Payments Guide, Electronic and Real-Time Payments in Practice, underwritten by MUFG Union Bank.

Successful politicians have mastered the art of crafting and communicating a desired perception of themselves. Following their model, financial professionals can also carefully craft how they want to be perceived by their peers, their superiors and their employees.

In this episode of AFP Conversations, sponsored by Santander, Chad Parsons, Senior Vice President and Corporate Treasury and Deposit Services Leader for Renasant Bank, explains how financial professionals can cultivate the perception and the reputation they really want.

In a repurchase agreement, or repo, one party sells an asset to another party and agrees to repurchase the asset at the same price, plus a premium in the future. The first party gets a much-needed funding and the second party gets to make a little extra money. The repo market is vital to the entire financial system. So when the repo markets fall into trouble, the impact can be massive. That was the fear in September 2019, when quite a bit of cash was pulled out of repos while securities were still coming in. Overnight repo rates increased, as did the Federal Funds Rate.

The Fed ultimately stepped in to stabilize things, but questions remain. Will this keep happening? If so, how often can the Fed bail the repo market out? And how might this impact corporate treasury and finance professionals? In this episode of AFP Conversations, sponsored by Invesco, Laurie Brignac, CIO and Head of Global Liquidity at Invesco, and Marques Mercier, Head of Government and Municipal Funds, Invesco Fixed Income, will help us answer these questions and more.

In this episode of AFP Conversations, Tom Hunt, CTP, AFP's Director of Treasury Services, speaks with Drew Wolff, CFO of International and Channel Development and former Treasurer of Starbucks, about his career. Wolff, a graduate of the United States Naval Academy, explains how Elbert Hubbard's famous essay, "A Message to Garcia," Matters relates to the treasury and finance profession.

Financial professionals, what is the next step in your career? Find out with the AFP Career Pathing Tool, exclusively available to AFP members. You'll learn the skills, experience and abilities you need to reach the next level in the treasury and finance profession. Learn more about this tool and AFP Membership at dynamic.afponline.org/benefits.

There's often a tendency in FP&A to focus too much on the budgeting, forecasting and planning process, without taking a good hard look at how the overall organizational strategy, people and technology play into the equation. At AFP 2019, a panel discussion looked at how to improve upon that.

In this episode of AFP Conversations, sponsored by Santander, Sarah Moriarty, Associate Director of Financial Management for Harvard University, and Kirby Lunger, former partner with Performance Architects, discuss what it truly takes for FP&A teams to succeed at forecasting and budgeting, and how can they avoid pitfalls along the way.

For more insights on budgeting and forecasting, don't miss FinNext 2020, March 17-19, in New Orleans, where FP&A professionals meet to create what's next. Register for the event here.

As waves of new technology are being integrated into finance, the FP&A function has a chance to seize the moment and move from a cost center to a service center. But simply adopting new tools is not enough; successfully navigating change requires developing a new mindset that creates value by clearly communicating the meaning of business data.

At FinNext 2020, finance and leadership expert Amy Vetter, CEO of The B3 Method Institute and Drishtiq Yoga, will show FP&A professionals how they can embrace innovation, allowing them to become strategic partners and develop collaborative and lasting relationships with customers. A corporate board member, author, and host of the podcast, "Breaking Beliefs," Vetter shares her insights in this episode of AFP Conversations.

Register for FinNext 2020 before February 14 and save!

This episode of AFP Conversations, sponsored by MUFG, looks at liquidity management, and where it needs to go. What are some of the key considerations for managing current liquidity structures? Olu Adebiyi, Managing Director, Head of Transaction Banking Liquidity for MUFG; Glisson Inguito, Cash Management Manager and Head of Treasury/Cash Management for Konica Minolta; and Amanda Schreiber, Head of Treasury for ICU Medical; answer that question and more.