What We Learned
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Page 1 of 4 Buenos Aires summAry: APril 26, 2012 The LT CFO Forums are invitation-only events that offer CFOs, finance directors, treasurers and controllers from various industries in Latin America the opportunity to participate in high-level peer group discussions and to interact in a private setting. What We Learned 2012 Argentina economic Perspectives Key Points: and Forecast » Southern Europe still dealing with debt and stagnant growth speaker: » Commodity prices still strong, but initial signs of miguel Angel Broda, Founder & CEO, Estudio slowing demand from China Económico Financiero » Brazil expansion provides some support for Argentina Key Points: » Heavy government intervention in economic affairs CFo Workshop » Even the more extreme Latin leaders know ideology is irrelevant Pablo morales, Director, Global Financial Services » GDP growth expected at 2.0 percent and inflation Center, Nalco and ECOLAB above 25 percent Félix el idd, CEO, Datarisk Building the enterprise Value Key Points: of the Finance Function » Insource vs. outsource designs require focus on core competencies and scale speakers: » Shared services provide improved control of José manuel Vázquez, CFO, Sancor recurring expenses emilio Fortou, Head of LAC Multinational Program, Visa » Opportunities to leverage local resources for regional operations Key Points » Today’s CFO is effectively a deputy CEO Keynote Address: » Cost management through transparency and * Álvaro García, Director-Representative, automation CAF Argentina » Argentine CFOs have learned how to deal with tough issues event moderator: mark ludwig, CFO editor, Latin Trade, and Principal, Variant Advisors 2012 Global economic Perspectives and Forecast speaker: Kathryn rooney Vera, Director & Managing Partner, Macroeconomic Research, Bulltick Capital Markets series sponsor: regional: local: Page 2 of 4 A CFO’s role is a work in progress – new in the direct succession line to the position of CEO, challenges are emerging all the time, requiring Fiorillo said. today’s CFOs to have skills far beyond the old Economic guru Miguel Angel Broda warned forum number-crunching abilities. Having a strategic participants that doing business in Argentina is not outlook, being able to do long-term planning, fully for the faint of heart – after several years of strong understanding their markets opportunities and growth, the country is heading into dire straits. pitfalls, being effective team players and helping Heavy government intervention in economic affairs make decisions on key issues such as mergers and comes hand in hand with what he sees as GDP acquisitions or disinvestments are but some of the growth of only about 2.0 percent in 2013 and 2014 skills in demand. and rampant inflation as high as 30 percent. Yet, As if all this were not daunting enough, CFOs Broda remains optimistic for the long term. And he in Latin America, and in Argentina in particular, has one piece of advice for Argentine politicians: face the added difficulty of wearing all those hats Look within the region for examples of how to in an environment where governments can seize conduct business. major companies (as just happened with the recent “Other Latin nations know how to attract expropriation of Argentina’s oil producer YPF from investments. They know ideology is irrelevant,” Spain’s Repsol), where cost and prices can go Broda told the forum. Even dogmatic leaders such through the roof, and where legal security cannot be as Bolivia’s Evo Morales and Ecuador’s Rafael taken for granted. Correa “are aware that you are not supposed to fool “The role of today’s CFO is actually that of a around with macroeconomics,” Broda emphasized. deputy CEO,” José Manuel Vázquez, CFO at leading But not all is an uphill struggle. Visa can support Argentine dairy producer SanCor, told dozens CFOs and corporate travel managers to cut costs, of fellow corporate leaders who took part in an add transparency and automate, monitor and LT CFO Forum in Buenos Aires, summarizing a standardize expenses and transactions, said Luis consensus view. SanCor, a cooperative that in 2010 Emilio Fortou, the Latin America and Caribbean had US$1 billion in sales, accounts for 90 percent of Region representative of Visa’s Global Commercial Argentina’s dairy exports. Expansion Team. “The Visa card is just one element Deloitte managing partner Claudio Fiorillo agreed. in our integral solutions,” he added. “In the past, CFOs used to be accountants who made When company officials use a corporate card to their entire careers in one single company. No make business payments and transactions or while more,” he stressed. Today, leadership, teamwork, on the road, that information is automatically fed big-picture thinking and an ability to adapt quickly to into the company’s enterprise resource planning changing scenarios are a must, he said. (ERP) system and other cost-monitoring tools, giving Accordingly, at Deloitte – which provides audit, CFOs more elements, time and leeway to focus on tax, consulting and financial advisory services to strategic thinking. corporations – they are redefining the CFOs’ role. Another way to cut costs and increase processes To the traditional administrator and operator skills, efficiency is through shared services, said Pablo new aptitudes must be added, including those Morales, Global Financial Services Center Director of strategist and of “catalyst” or “evangelizer,” at Nalco, which recently merged into Ecolab to developing the ability to convert others to his or her create an $11 billion turnover, 40,000-employee cause. Proficiency in those areas is putting CFOs company that has become the global leader in Page 3 of 4 water, hygiene and energy technologies and operation – particularly if, like him, one comes from services. a much larger setup, such as IBM. From his office in Buenos Aires, Morales heads “At smaller companies, you have to personally a 125-strong team that works in conjunction with define your role day by day, and you take a much the company headquarters in St. Paul, Minn., and closer view of the business you’re in,” Patalano regional leaderships to provide back-office financial said. In the case of Yahoo! Argentina, the focus is on LT CFO Events and supply-chain services to dozens of centers supporting the sales drive. “Our goal is to achieve For further information spread in Ecolab’s four regions. strong commercial growth,” he said. about this event series, As a result, since its implementation in 2004, Deloitte’s Fiorillo sees a silver lining around or to participate on the company has been saving millions of dollars in the hardships of doing business in Argentina – by a panel or in the audience, recurring expenses because of labor cost arbitrage tackling crisis after crisis, CFOs working in the please contact: and increased specialization and scale, along with country can hone their managerial skills and Mark Ludwig, other improvements and indirect benefits, Morales improve their problem-solving capabilities. “They Contributing Editor said. learn how to deal with tough issues in the region,” [email protected] Yahoo! Argentina’s Gabriel Patalano shared with Fiorillo told forum participants. colleagues from larger operations the experience of what it is like to be the finance manager of a small – David Haskel series sponsor: regional: local: Page 4 of 4 Miguel Angel Broda, Founder Jose Manuel Vazquez, Raul Francos, CFO, Pablo Morales, Director Global Financial Services, & CEO, Estudio Broda & Asoc. CFO, SanCor Aeropuertos Argentina 2000 Nalco, an Ecolab Company Claudio Fiorillo, Socio Director Financial Services Industry, Deloitte & Co. SRL; Felix El Idd, CEO, Datarisk Global; Emilio Fortou, Head of LAC Multinational Program, Visa; Alvaro Garcia, Director - Representative CAF Argentina; Kathryn Rooney Vera, Director & Managing Partner, Miguel Angel Broda, Founder & CEO, Estudio Broda & Asoc; Mark Ludwig, LT CFO, Contributing Editor, Macroeconomic Research, Bulltick Capital Markets Latin Trade Group; Rosemary Winters, Chief Executive, Latin Trade Group The role of the CFO is being redefined and now in the direct succession line to the position of CEO TITUCIONAL Y PUBLICITARIA Y TITUCIONAL S Claudio Fiorillo, Socio Director Financial Services Industry, N I Pedro Arnt, CFO, MercadoLibre Argentina Deloitte & Co. SRL; Ademir Santos, CFO, Philips Argentina Dario Bursztein, CFO, XEROX ÍA ÍA F TUDIO 2UO , FOTOGRA , 2UO TUDIO Es IENTO, IENTO, M MARCELO SAR MARCELO.