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August 9, 2016 By Samuel Dergel Leave a Comment

A CFO Success Story: Jim Burns, CFO of Accela

Jim Burns – CFO of Accela

The following is from an interview with Jim Burns. Jim became CFO of Accela in June 2016. Previously, Jim served as CFO of Silver Spring Networks, as announced in CFO Moves. This interview was edited for clarity.

Quick Takes from Jim Burns on…
Some key challenges to a rapidly growing software companyReally making sure that you integrate well and deliver on your promise. Progress shifting from more license based models to cloud based and recurring SaaS based models.

Older tech companies having a difficult time growing

There’s been such a shift to cloud, and to analytics, and to SaaS. New companies, those that are starting the kind of legacy free, are the ones where all the growth is coming from.

Advice to future CFOs

Get as broad a level of business and operational experience as you can. You get a totally different perspective looking through the lens of somebody in the business versus somebody in finance. I’m seeing more and more CFOs these days that didn’t come up through the public accounting ranks.

The new CEO/CFO relationship

It seems CEO increasingly wants to be able to spend their time externally making a name for the company with customers and wants a CFO that can make sure that everything, not just the numbers, come together, and that the business is operationally being optimized continuously too.

Building your career

Take chances to do jobs you’ve never done before. Your job isn’t just to run it, but to make it substantially better when you left the role versus when you started it. I shy away from jobs where everything is working perfectly when you go in, because there really is no other way but down.

Samuel: Congratulations on your move to Accela. How do you feel? What are you excited about?

Jim: Well, this is a company that I had to do a fair bit of digging into, to get familiar with it, before joining. And the more I learned about it the more excited I got. They’re really in a great place, and there’s not a lot of competitors. If you think about the enterprise software space, there are so many people trying to get in, and this company has been a market leader and it’s successful. Once you get into state/local governments business, it’s about as sticky as it gets. They just don’t churn very much. It really builds a nice client base, SaaS platform from civic engagement, they’ve been broadening their portfolios through both, organic development and quite a number of acquisitions, and I think it’s just a very exciting space to be. If you look through some of the comparatives they have in the public marketplace, they traded eight nine times sales multiples, because investors just appreciate how strong and sticky this business is. So that’s very attractive. Also the management team is great and the board is great, and everyone is very engaged and focused, and that’s a big deal for me too.

Samuel: At what point in time during the interview process did you decide that this is the place for me, this is where I want to go?

Jim: My initial interview with the CEO was very good and then I got even more excited talking to Mark Jung, who’s the chairman of the company. Mark has been around quite a number of opportunities and he’s been CEO of multiple places and on multiple boards. He really validated everything I hoped the opportunity would be, and then some. So it was fairly early on that I got excited that this might be a great thing.

Samuel: You’re in, and you’re trying to figure your way around this new organization. What do you see are the challenges ahead of you?

Jim: I think the markets are growing great, the company has been through a lot of change recently with quite a number of acquisitions. And that’s heavy lifting and the company is working through it. They made nine acquisitions over just a few years. So really making sure that we integrate that well and deliver on the promise, that we get them making great progress shifting from more license based models to cloud based and recurring SaaS based models. And that’s a wonderful thing to do when you’re private versus public. So just continuing the post that mix shift and in trying to get the EBIT margins where they can be for a company of this size.

Samuel: You’ve come from HP, the technology company that it was and still is a very large and successful business. And you’ve made a transition in both your previous opportunity and this opportunity to a much more entrepreneurial, high growth situation. Tell me about that. How was the experience, what have you learned?

Jim: That is a very interesting question. The HP that I left was very different than the HP that I joined back in the late 80s. Hewlett and Packard had set the company up and the very engineering culture to go after growth opportunities. They then realized that the real brilliant engineers did not want to work amongst thousands of other engineers, so they set the company up as a bunch of small to mid-size businesses that had all the resources they needed to either succeed or fail. Most businesses I worked with were anywhere between four to six hundred people-sized businesses. The HP I left had consolidated so much. The division I was in had a hundred and thirty thousand people. So when I went to Silver Spring it was kind of like going back to my original HP route. It was seven hundred people, 300 million dollars in revenue. And Accela is very much in the same boat. Honestly, I enjoyed the earlier days in HP better than the late days in HP, even though I had a much more senior level of responsibility. It’s the difference between flying, with a dashboard in the cockpit versus being able to see through like a crop duster and see through the windshield and know everything that’s going on. It’s just because of the scale of it. Most of the old tech companies are having a difficult time growing right now because there’s been such a shift to cloud, and to analytics, and to SaaS. And new companies, like Accela, the ones that are starting the kind of legacy free, are the ones where all the growth is coming from. And a being part of that growth story is very exciting.

Samuel: Now that you’re in the growth game, with nimble companies that are very different than the HP that you left. What preconceived notions fell by the wayside once you’ve made it into Silver Spring?

Jim: Honestly, there was a lot that I was able to bring from a process maturity standpoint from HP that Silver Spring needed to grow to. Companies go through different transitions. They go through a starter phase and then they go to a scaling phase and then they go to a more mature optimization phases. And then, unfortunately some of them start to go in decline after that. When I joined Silver Spring, it has just gone IPO six months before, so it kind of had a successful chapter one but it was really struggling with the growing pains of the company. And a lot of the entrepreneurial types that are drawn to startups really shun structure. They don’t want structure. And yet the lack of process and structure was really bootstrapping the company. So I think I came in at a good time when the company needed to put some more process and more discipline and some more rigor in terms of how the portfolio was planned and reviewed. How the businesses were run. Kind of getting the businesses do more of a sinus rhythm so that you could run more collaboratively cross functionally, etc. I consider myself a good chapter 2 guy, and I think Accela is in the same boat now. They’ve made a great name for themselves and now it’s just all about continuing to scale larger and do acquisitions and integrate them effectively and operate in multiple geographies and countries. It’s just a different way of working, but it’s what I like doing, it’s what attracted me to Silver Spring and what attracted me to Accela now.

Samuel: Now that you’re CFO and you’re on your way to another success, what advice do you have for those that are aiming to move into that senior role over the next coming year?

Jim: I think that getting as broad level of business and operational experience as you can. I spent nine years outside the finance function. In HP I was general manager of a couple of businesses. I ran multiple different operational supply chains and services and support and sales operations. You just get a totally different perspective looking through the lens of somebody in the business versus somebody in finance. I’m seeing more and more CFOs these days that didn’t necessarily cut their teeth and come up through the public accounting ranks. They’ve had a broader blend of operations. I think the CEO increasingly wants to be able to spend their time externally making a name for the company with customers and wants a CFO that can really make sure that everything, not just the numbers come together, but that the business is operationally being optimized continuously too.

Samuel: What do you feel has made you successful?

Jim: I think the combination of getting the mentors through my career that not only helped and coached me, but took chances on me to do jobs that I had never done before. Because I had kind of shown a track record before. I always believe your job isn’t just to run it, your job is to make it substantially better when you left the role versus when you started it. I took a lot of jobs where people told me to stay away, people who take those jobs get fired, kind of high complexity jobs, and those ended up being some of my more rewarding roles. Because when you go into something you really can make a name for yourself, it’s demonstratively better when you leave the role versus when you join the role. As long as the right elements are there for the role, there’s any number of roles. I sort of shy away from things where everything is working perfectly when you go into it because there really is no other way but down. This job at Accela has got all the things I want – relative to having a good fast growing market and good leadership position. But also a number of things internally that can use my experience and help to allow them to reach their goals a little quicker.

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A CFO Success Story is a feature of Samuel’s CFO Blog, where Samuel Dergel follows up on his book, Guide to CFO Success, speaking with CFOs featured in CFO Moves and CFO Moves Canada, Samuel’s popular and comprehensive weekly report on CFO Movement across the USA and Canada.

February 4, 2014 By Samuel Dergel 4 Comments

The Sleepless CFO

Being Chief Financial Officer can be stressful. The responsibility that the CFO bears for the company they work for is not a 9 to 5 job. Most CFOs I have met and spoken with agree that the role takes up most of the hours they are awake, and even some of the hours they should be sleeping. Couple In Bed With Husband Suffering From Insomnia

So what keeps the CFO awake in 2014?

To find out, I reached out to my CFO Advisory Group. My CFO Advisors were instrumental in providing me with relevant and realistic input as I wrote my upcoming book. Guide to CFO Success: Leadership Strategies for Corporate Financial Professionals is published by Wiley & Sons, and will be available at all fine bookstores end of March 2014.

I recently asked my CFO Advisors what top their top 3 concerns that keep them awake at night. After reviewing their responses, here are the top 3 current issues that are keeping CFOs from getting a good night sleep.

#3 – Team

CFOs are worried about their team. Some CFOs are concerned about how to continue to grow and motivate their staff. Others are losing sleep worried about retaining the staff they need or dealing with the aftermath of unforeseen resignations. There are some CFOs who are unsure of how they will succeed in acquiring and developing the new talent they need to make their team even better.

Regardless of the type team based challenges facing the CFO, they know that they can only be successful if their team is strong enough to support them. When the finance team is not giving the CFO what she needs to succeed, this can cause anxiety and sleeplessness for even the most experienced CFO.

#2 – Growth

Growth can be an issue for many CFOs. Or, rather, the lack of growth is the real issue. Most for-profit companies define success as making more money, and for the Chief Money Counter, growth drives corporate financial success. It is the Key Performance Indicators of this growth that informs the CFO if the company will reach their targets or not.

When companies are continually growing their revenue and profit, all is good. Few companies though, do this regularly and consistently. Financial success for most organizations can only come when sales rise and profitability continues an upward trend. For the CFO, who knows they are king when the results are good, and the court jester when the results aren’t, losing sleep over growth is understandable indeed.

#1 – Cashflow

Cash is King. The ultimate responsibility of whether there is enough cash to do what needs to get done rests with the Chief Financial Officer (even when their team does the technical work). CFOs are concerned with cash from all sides, whether they are collections issues, access to capital and lending or how to make decisions about allocating cash in the most effective way.

Cash is, by far, the most common issue that is keeping my CFO Advisors awake at night. What is interesting about this response is that cash was a concern for most of my CFO Advisors, yet they all come from different industries and company sizes. It seems that cash issues are a challenge in most, if not all companies. While the type of cash challenges will certainly change based on the situation facing a company and its industry, most companies, and therefore most CFOs, are anxious and losing sleep over cash.

What is keeping you awake at night?

August 14, 2013 By Samuel Dergel 1 Comment

CFOs: IPOs are coming back. Are you ready?

Initial Public Offerings were hot commodities in the early and mid oh-oh’s. Most finance leadership reading this blog remember those days well, and some of you did very well financially because of it.

The recession that occurred towards the end of the last decade put a stop to that IPO train. Companies needing capital for growth had to look elsewhere, and many companies were unable to succeed because this driver of growth dried up. IPO (Initial Public Offering)

For the past few months I have been hearing the rumble of the oncoming IPO train. A number of CFOs I have spoken with in the past months have shared with me that they are being given the strategic responsibility to be ready for when the IPO market comes back. There is a feeling of cautious optimism that this catalyst for economic growth will soon be back.

How can a CFO prepare for the talent challenges to come?

One of the biggest challenges that an uptick in the IPO market will face is that there is a small pool of talented mid-level professionals with relevant and recent IPO experience. The amount of work needed to be IPO ready is significant. When the IPO dam breaks, many companies will be rushing to get their IPO done. If the talent challenges are not planned properly, companies will have to be more reliant on expensive external resources (think audit and law firm rates). Companies who properly plan for their talent needs in advance will be able to go public earlier, which could be very beneficial as well.

Another significant challenge to companies that are currently private is that the cost of being public is expensive. A CFO needs to ensure that they have the leadership and professionals on staff that can deliver the quantity and quality of timely and correct information necessary to be considered a well-run public company. CFOs bear the burden when their finance team is not able to deliver accordingly.

CFOs who have been mandated to prepare for an upcoming IPO by their board need to have a talent plan to ensure they can meet their needs for going public and staying public. This plan for talent acquisition, development and retention is necessary to balance the costs of going public and staying public.

This talent planning business will not be easy. But those that start planning now will be at an advantage.

CFOs, get ready. You could be in for a very bumpy ride on the IPO Express.

December 20, 2012 By Samuel Dergel 2 Comments

Top 12 Samuel’s CFO Blogs of 2012

2012 sure has been an interesting year.

And I’m looking forward to 2013! I’m looking forward to:

Working with my clients at Stanton Chase and providing them with excellent service and value in retained executive search.

Staying close to CFOs in my network, and continuing to add value to their businesses and careers.

Continuing my blogging, both here and at CFO Moves. I find it humbling that I have people that are not only interested in what I have to say, but have signed up to ensure they don’t miss any of it.

Working on my book for CFOs. Stay tuned!

It is customary as the year turns to a close to look back at the previous year.

Blogging is great, but sometimes people can miss out on some very valuable insights or content. So, to make sure you didn’t miss what other people thought was worth reading, I would like to share 12 of my most popular CFO Blogs in 2012.

12) Negotiating your CFO Employment Contract

11) 5 Steps to Building your Finance Dream Team (and 3 tips on how to get it done)

10) The Value of “Thank You”

9) 5 Reasons why Talent Development is a Challenge for CFOs

8) Road Map to Successful CFO Relationships

6) The First 90 Days of a New CFO

5) 1 key difference between your LinkedIn Profile and Resume

4) Dear CEO & Board: You can’t afford to hire the wrong CFO.

3) Investor Relations for the New CFO – 6 Steps for IR Success

2) 4 Reasons you should use an Executive Search Firm when hiring your CFO

And the most popular of Samuel’s CFO Blogs for 2012 is:

1) How a Recruiter sees a Candidate (You may not like the analogy)

If you like these blogs and want to ensure you don’t miss any of them, please click on the SIGN ME UP! button on the right.

Happy Holidays and all the best for an amazing 2013!

Samuel

May 24, 2012 By Samuel Dergel 2 Comments

Investor Relations for the New CFO – 6 Steps for IR Success

This Blog was written by David Calusdian, Executive Vice President and Partner at Sharon Merrill, a Boston-based investor relations strategic consultancy.

A special thank you to Dennis Walsh at Sharon Merrill for co-ordinating this valuable piece for CFOs on an important topic.

As the new CFO of a publicly held company, somewhere on your extensive “to do” list is implementing an effective investor relations program. Whether or not the IR function was a well-oiled machine when you arrived, or virtually non-existent, there are key areas you need to address immediately to ensure that you are effectively taking the IR reins. So here are six steps for success as you accept responsibility for the IR function.

1) Understand your shareholder base. Research the investment styles of your shareholders to determine why they may have bought shares– and what might cause them to sell. See what type of investor concentration you have in your shareholder base. Identifying whether your shareholders are weighted toward a growth, value or income investment style, for example, can offer insight as to what they are expecting the company to achieve near or long term. Also investigate whether there are known “activist” firms among your shareholders, and what catalysts usually cause them to initiate a proxy fight. Make it a priority to speak with your shareholders by phone as soon as possible, and then meet them in person within your first few quarters as CFO. Also consider an investor perception audit to understand the sentiments of your shareholder base — and identify any misperceptions about the company — to most effectively build your IR program.

2) Review (or create) a disclosure policy. A comprehensive disclosure policy guides a company’s communications with the investment community. Make sure that as the new CFO, you are comfortable with the disclosure philosophies outlined in the document. For example, maybe it is time to revisit the company’s guidance policy or disclosure committee processes. Ensure that the corporate spokespeople listed in the disclosure policy are still appropriate. Make certain that you understand all of the communications channels at your company. For example, is the company tweeting, hosting its own Facebook page or maintaining a corporate blog? You want to know every disclosure outlet that may be supplying investors with information directly from the company.

3) Develop your IR Plan. Conducting investor relations without a plan is akin to venturing out on a journey without a destination or a compass. The first step is to determine your plan’s goals, which should directly correlate to the company’s IR needs (e.g., a more diverse shareholder base, greater sell-side coverage or even enhanced credibility). Then, to achieve those goals, develop a strategy that takes into consideration your company’s messaging, investor targeting and outreach.

In scheduling your investor meeting calendar for the year, determine which covering investment bank would be most appropriate to introduce you to investors in a particular geography. Then layer in a couple company-sponsored roadshows where you can introduce the company to potential new sell-side analysts as well as additional targeted investors. Dovetail your roadshow schedule with your conference calendar. Determine which conferences would be the most effective for you to attend, and then proactively solicit invitations.

4) Develop investor positioning. At the foundation of your IR plan should be the company’s IR message, and the mortar that holds it all together is an investment thesis that aligns with your long-term business model. The key messages within all of your communications to the investment community should answer the question, “Why should investors buy the company’s stock?” Develop an investment thesis that is specific, financially focused and conveys the company’s value drivers. Stay away from general statements like “strong management team” and “positioned for growth.” Instead, highlight more concrete factors such as market share potential, end market growth, margin enhancement opportunities, and your ability to reinvest cash for value creation.

5) Establish or review the IR website. Your company’s IR website is one of the most important destinations for investors seeking information. Without consistent oversight, it can oftentimes become outdated or contain inaccuracies. Make sure that your site has all of the features and content investors have come to expect on IR sites, such as “push” notifications, robust Frequently asked Questions, investor presentations and a quarterly results tab complete with conference call transcripts. Some companies also are now complementing their IR website with social media tools, like Twitter and SlideShare, to broaden their communications.

6) Establish a news release pipeline. Investors buy stocks on information. So it’s important to have a regular stream of news about your company to build awareness, enhance credibility and create buying opportunities for potential shareholders. There is no “right answer” as to how often you should issue releases, but a substantive (i.e., not fluffy) release every few weeks usually keeps companies on investors’ radar screens. If you have an IR, PR or marketing professional in the organization, discuss the news release strategy with them and how it ties into your corporate goals. If you are on your own in this endeavor, meet with key operations people to determine which upcoming corporate milestones would be newsworthy. Remember, if the primary audience for the news release is the investment community, make sure it is written with them in mind. In other words, tone down the technical mumbo jumbo and marketing superlatives and explain how the announcement fits in with the company’s strategy for increasing shareholder value.

A public company’s valuation is dependent upon its financial performance as well as the communication of those results to investors through good investor relations. As the CFO, it’s your responsibility to make sure that the IR program is well executed. By completing these six steps, you should have a solid foundation in place from which to build an effective IR program for your new company.

Sharon Merrill assists corporate clients across the U.S. and internationally in planning and executing critical communications that resonate with stakeholders and deliver desired results in virtually any situation an enterprise may confront. The firm serves private and public companies primarily in the life sciences, technology and industrial sectors. Practice areas include investor relations, crisis communications, transaction communications, reputation and issues management, and presentation and media training. The Sharon Merrill team has earned wide recognition for corporate communications thought leadership, as well as dozens of industry awards. To learn more about Sharon Merrill, please visit the company’s website at www.InvestorRelations.com, or its thought leadership blog at http://blog.investorrelations.com/.

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