The Role Forward: A Strategic Finance Podcast Mosaic Tech

Episode Summary
No matter your industry, clean data results in well-informed decisions. By keeping your data clean and accurate, you save time from searching for answers and reconciliations and can spend more time diving into the “why” behind your numbers and making actionable insights. 

But for companies who experience hypergrowth or need to make a switch to a new source system, how do you effectively clean your company’s data? 


In this episode of The Role Forward podcast, our host Joe Michalowski welcomes Parker Gilbert, the CEO and co-founder of Numeric. They discuss the importance of data cleansing, why data cleaning is a timely but worthwhile process, and the benefits of a strong relationship between finance and accounting.


##


Guest-at-a-Glance
💡 Name: Parker Gilbert
💡 What he does: He's a Co-Founder and the CEO of Numeric, a SaaS company transforming accounting workflows to modernize the month-end close and other processes.
💡 Company: Numeric
💡 Noteworthy: Parker was the first finance hire at Hearth, a fintech company helping home improvement contractors grow and manage their business. Parker also met his fellow Numeric co-founders early in his career. 
💡 Where to find Parker: LinkedIn

Investors provide vital funds so that companies can achieve their next level of growth, whether it’s making the next important version of a product or a key hire that will unlock the company’s potential even further. 
But in a time of economic uncertainty, where we see layoffs, budget freezes, and falling tech industry stock prices, venture capital investors are putting the brakes on aggressive funding for early-stage growth companies. According to a Crunchbase report, in the last quarter of 2022, investments in startup companies in North America fell by 63% compared to the same period a year earlier.


In this episode of The Role Forward, Scott Stouffer, the CEO and founder of scaleMatters, gets into fundraising during a recession and why people are hesitant to invest in new companies. Scott and our host Joe Michalowski discuss what makes a company investible and what companies can do to become more efficient with their go-to-market motions.


##


Guest-at-a-Glance


💡 Name: Scott Stouffer
💡 What he does: Scott is the CEO and founder of scaleMatters.
💡 Company: scaleMatters 
💡 Noteworthy: Scott Stouffer is a serial tech entrepreneur, 5x CEO, and 3x founder. He took his first company (Visual Networks) public in 2001 and grew it to a peak market cap of $3 billion. Since 2011, Scott has focused on early and growth-stage tech companies, building quantitative data and process models that uncover waste, inefficiency, and friction in the customer acquisition function.
💡 Where to find Scott: LinkedIn 

Episode Summary
NetSuite implementation is a large, challenging project, as it includes many different phases and complex steps. But an experienced implementation partner can make all the difference. 


In this episode of The Role Forward podcast, our host Joe Michalowski welcomes Edwine Alphonse, a controller at Ramp. They talk about the biggest challenges with NetSuite implementation, tips for tackling some common issues, and the importance of cleaning your data before you start the process.


##


Guest-at-a-Glance

💡 Name: Edwine Alphonse
💡 What she does: She's a controller at Ramp.
💡 Company: Ramp
💡 Noteworthy: Edwine has a proven record in accounting and auditing. Before Ramp, she worked at several startups as director of accounting and financial controller. At Ramp, she's the first financial controller, where she's responsible for accounting, financial reporting, tax compliance, and other accounting processes.  
💡 Where to find Edwine: LinkedIn

The finance team is essential for any business — especially as the company grows. And while in recent years the role of the finance team has evolved from a stereotypical back-office scorekeeping function toward a forward-thinking strategic partner, the process of financial transformation and implementation within the business is complex — and sometimes, it can fail.
In this episode of The Role Forward, our host Joe Michalowski welcomes Chris Ortega, the CEO of Fresh FP&A, which provides fractional CFO and advisory services that support the strategies, tactics, and tools a business needs to transform and grow its finance function. Chris describes the Fresh FP&A approach, what it means to be fresh in finance, and how to become a strategic partner for department and executive leaders. Joe and Chris also discuss how to scale your finance team, improve the month-end close process, and finance trends to keep in mind for 2023. 


##

Guest-at-a-Glance


💡 Name: Chris Ortega
💡 What he does: Chris is the CEO of Fresh FP&A.
💡 Company: Fresh FP&A
💡 Noteworthy: Chris has over 17 years of experience in accounting, finance, FP&A, and fractional CFO leadership around finance transformation and scale for seed to enterprise companies. In 2022, Chris became the CEO of Fresh FP&A, which provides fractional CFO and advisory services for businesses that allow them to transform and scale their finance organization.
💡 Where to find Chris: LinkedIn

There's something special about a career in finance. Because you sit at the intersection of all data in the organization and collaborate with so many different functions, your job in finance can become the perfect stepping stone to a wide variety of career paths. But how do you maneuver your way from day one to where you want to take your career?
In this episode of The Role Forward podcast, our host Joe Michalowski welcomes Peter Nesbitt, an early-stage startup advisor, investor, and founder who previously rose through the ranks of finance to an executive seat. They talk about Peter's unique career path, tips for taking your own career to the next level, and why empowerment is a superpower.
##

Guest-at-a-Glance

💡 Name: Peter Nesbitt
💡 What he does: He's an early-stage startup advisor and investor.
💡 Company: N/A
💡 Noteworthy: Peter was a full-time COO at Teampay before becoming an independent community founder, angel investor, and operationally-focused executive.
💡 Where to find Peter: LinkedIn

Times are tough right now. World events have affected the macro environment, and a market downturn looms on the horizon as the Federal Reserve Board raises interest rates and the CPI continues to go up each month.

Companies have to be extra careful about their finances. That’s why it’s important for finance teams to feel enabled to embrace the spotlight and be a more strategic partner to the business.

This episode of The Role Forward podcast revisits Ramp’s Head of Finance and Capital Markets, Alex Song, and Mosaic Co-Founder and COO Joe Garafalo’s conversation on Ramp’s podcast, FinOps Today. Alex and Joe discuss Joe’s career journey and how it benefits prospects and customers, the key financial hires for a new company, and how to leverage software to get the deepest insights.
Learn More About Ramp’s podcast, FinOps Today .
Guest-at-a-Glance
💡 Name: Joe Garafalo
💡 What he does: He's the co-founder and COO of Mosaic.
💡 Company: Mosaic
💡 Noteworthy: Joe is Co-Founder and COO of Mosaic, a technology company building the first Strategic Finance Platform. Joe began his career in the Big 4 with KPMG. After completing his master’s degree at St. John’s University, he went on to hold multiple leadership positions in finance at Palantir, Axoni, and Barkbox.
💡 Where to find Joe: LinkedIn