Kelly Battles is an accomplished board director and former CFO with over 25 years of leadership experience spanning technology, finance, and governance. She currently serves on the boards of Arista Networks, Genesys, Qumulo, and Hello Alpha, where she chairs multiple audit committees, and she is Chair of the Board of Directors at Sunlight Mountain Resort. Kelly previously held executive finance roles as CFO of Quora, Bracket Computing, and Host Analytics, and as Vice President of Finance at IronPort Systems (acquired by Cisco). Earlier in her career, she served in strategic and corporate development roles at HP and as a consultant with McKinsey & Company. A Princeton graduate, Kelly brings deep expertise in financial strategy, audit oversight, operational excellence, and board governance, with a focus on guiding high-growth technology companies through complex transitions and scaling phases.

In this episode of The Strategic CFO Podcast, Rav Mendiratta discusses how financial leaders can harness emerging AI tools to improve efficiency, accuracy, and strategic insight. Drawing from his dual background in technology and marketing, Rav explains how platforms such as bookkeeping.ai, Quadratic, Julius.ai, and Context.ai are reshaping bookkeeping, data analysis, and reporting for CFOs of both private and public companies. He provides practical examples of AI applications—from automating invoices and producing real-time dashboards to using Gamma for investor presentations and HeyGen for personalized video communications. Rav underscores both the potential and the risks: while AI enhances productivity and insight, CFOs must remain the “human in the loop,” ensuring data confidentiality and judgment-driven decision-making. His key message: AI is a powerful collaborator, not a replacement—treat it as your smartest analyst, and always stay in control of strategy and context.

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gauravmendiratta

In this Strategic CFO Podcast episode, host Jan Robertson talks withDaniel Beck, CFA,Financial Professional at Equitable Advisors and former U.S. Navy officer. From hedge fundmanagement to teaching behavioral finance, Beck reveals how behavioral biases shapedecisions, why annuities and risk management matter, and how executives can protectlong-term security. Listeners will learn why asset allocation to risk tolerance—not marketpredictions—is the key to investing success. Connect with Daniel Beck on LinkedIn:https://www.linkedin.com/in/danbeckusna99hbs2009/

In this episode of the Strategic CFO Podcast, host Jan Robertson interviews Jacob Prentis Wood, Partner at Capstan Tax Strategies, whose expertise lies in unlocking powerful federal tax incentives for small to mid-sized businesses. Speaking directly to financial executives at both public and private companies, Wood underscores the urgency of capturing value from R&D Tax Credits, Cost Segregation Studies, and the 179D Energy Deduction—particularly as legislative changes now require amortization of R&D costs. He highlights that many companies are unaware they qualify, especially startups and manufacturers doing iterative product development or energy-efficient construction. Wood provides compelling examples of helping clients reclaim hundreds of thousands of dollars annually, including a tech startup leveraging payroll tax offsets and a real estate firm maximizing depreciation through engineering-based analysis. He emphasizes strategic tax planning as a tool for improved cash flow, not just compliance, and stresses the importance of cross-functional collaboration between CFOs, CPAs, and specialty tax consultants. Financial leaders are advised to act early to avoid missed opportunities and mitigate the risk of leaving “free cash” on the table.

https://www.linkedin.com/in/jacob-wood-taxincentives/

Family Business Valuation: Avoid the Trap Is your family business planning a transition? Are you gifting shares after receiving an LOI? Could poor timing inflate your tax burden? 💼 Listen to the upcoming episode of the Strategic CFO Podcast. Petra Loer outlines how valuation timing can make or break estate and exit strategies. She explains why gifting or transferring shares before receiving outside indications of value—like a term sheet—is essential for protecting long-term outcomes.

Connect with Petra on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/petra-loer-979b7914 —Petra Loer, Managing Director, Andersen

In this episode of the Strategic CFO Podcast, Jan Robertson interviews James Vanreusel, Founder and CEO of Vanreusel Ventures, a seasoned finance leader with deep expertise in both for-profit and nonprofit sectors across global markets. James shares key insights drawn from two decades of experience, including his early Wall Street career, his CFO leadership launching microfinance banks in the South Pacific, and his current work advising U.S.-based companies with international operations. He highlights the importance of building financial infrastructure before fundraising, discusses due diligence and integration pitfalls in Cross-Border M&A, and warns of hidden risks like post-acquisition tax liabilities and unaccounted vendor invoices. James also dives into Post-Merger Integration Challenges, from cultural mismatches to 401(k) audit triggers, and explores the strategic use of Venture Debt Financing for startups struggling to raise equity in uncertain markets. Throughout the conversation, he emphasizes the value of strategic financial leadership—“above the waterline” thinking—as essential for growth, resilience, and C-suite readiness.

Key message: Strategic finance leadership is not just about managing numbers—it's about enabling sustainable growth across borders, balancing risk, and driving alignment from the boardroom to the front lines. https://www.linkedin.com/in/jamesvanreusel/

Bill Roeschlein, CFO of Tigo Energy, shares critical insights on M&A strategy and finance leadership in this FEI Silicon Valley Strategic CFO Podcast. Roeschlein emphasizes the importance of understanding your company's business model deeply to effectively communicate value to investors, and highlights key M&A strategies including "cleaning house" before sale processes and managing cross-border complexities with international acquirers like Merck KGaA and Atlas Copco. He addresses current challenges CFOs face including supply chain diversification from China, CFIUS regulatory scrutiny, and managing international subsidiaries under different accounting standards.

His career progression demonstrates the adaptability required in modern finance leadership, while emphasizing mentorship, curiosity, and passion as essential elements for aspiring financial executives.

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/roeschlein/

Are you a seasoned financial executive wondering how to break into corporate boardrooms? In this episode of the FEI Silicon Valley Strategic CFO Podcast, we sit down with Julie Castro-Abrams, founder of How Women Lead and managing partner of How Women Invest, who reveals why your finance background makes you board-ready right now—even if you don't think so. Castro-Abrams shares insider strategies that helped women from her own network secure their first public company board seats, including how to leverage your current role to gain boardroom exposure, why nonprofit boards are your secret weapon, and the specific relationship-building tactics that actually work. She tackles the biggest concerns holding financial leaders back—from time commitments to readiness anxiety—and delivers a wake-up call: while you're waiting for the "perfect moment," others are already claiming those coveted board positions. Tune in to discover the concrete steps that can transform your boardroom aspirations into reality.

LinkedIn  https://www.linkedin.com/in/julie-castro-abrams/. 

Timothy Swords, MBA, founder of Mindful Leadership Executive Coaching and a former CFO and business transformation executive, shares his unique approach to leadership in this podcast. He highlights how integrating mindfulness and executive coaching helps leaders—especially financial executives—develop self-awareness, emotional intelligence, and resilience, which are essential for navigating high-pressure environments. 

Timothy provides practical examples, such as coaching a biotech CFO who intimidated colleagues, helping him use mindfulness and emotional grounding to improve relationships and communication. He emphasizes values-based intentions and the need for leaders to bridge the gap between intentions and impact, addressing common risks like emotional reactivity and executive presence challenges. The key message: mindfulness enables financial executives to lead with clarity, purpose, and authenticity.

Guest’s LinkedIn Profile: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tswords/

Adrienne Dale is one of a select few professionals nationwide who deliver Fractional COO services, offering over 20 years of hands-on leadership in scaling and transforming small and mid-market B2B SaaS, service and content businesses. Known for her breadth of functional expertise—spanning operations, software development, enterprise tech integration, finance, and customer loyalty—Adrienne partners closely with CEOs to optimize execution while freeing them to focus on strategic vision. Her unique ability to decode and operationalize insights from complex data has earned her the reputation of a “Data Geek” who consistently uncovers game-changing opportunities hidden within company performance metrics.

As Principal of Pivotal LLC and former COO at high-growth firms, Adrienne drives results through data-driven strategy, scalable operations, and a focus on high-performance cultures.

LinkedIn:  https://www.linkedin.com/in/adriennedale/