Robotic Process Automation – the Do’s & Don’ts

29-03-2022 | Philip Costa Hibberd | treasuryXL | LinkedIn |

What are 3 key do’s and don’ts to keep in mind in your RPA journey? Find out in this article I wrote, which was originally published in the Summer Edition of the Zanders Magazine.

This article was originally published in the Summer Edition of the Zanders Magazine. Are you interested in knowing more about Process Automation in the realms of Finance, Treasury and Risk Management? Feel free to reach out to me on LinkedIn.

Original Source

Last year’s spring, we organized a ‘jargon-free’ breakfast session to explore what robotic process automation (RPA) is all about. We had a look under the hood of a complex, hard-working robot and shared experiences on how to make the journey of deploying a digital workforce as smooth as possible. Find a brief summary below, covering (briefly) what RPA is about, what are the 3 main stages of the RPA journey, and what are the key do’s and don’ts per each stage.

RPA

RPA stands for Robotic Process Automation and is software that performs rule-based work, interacting with systems, websites and applications in the same way a human would. It is a powerful tool that, when applied to the complex industries we work in, allows us to focus more on the valuable activities that make our jobs interesting and less on the boring and repetitive tasks that no one wants to do. You can think of it as macros on steroids.

3 Stages of the RPA Journey

You can find the key takeaways from the Breakfast Session, in the form of do’s and don’ts, summarized below for each of the following 3 stages of the RPA journey:

  • Proof-of-concept: very first stage, where you are focused on exploring the possibilities of RPA
  • Early implementation: the stage where you are focused on rolling out a few robots and automating a handful of processes that you still ‘know by name’
  • Growth: the stage where you are focused on rolling out and managing a full digital workforce and automating more processes than you can remember

The 3 Do’s and the 3 Don’ts

Proof-of-concept

✔Do: Have fun!

Did you enjoy playing with Lego when you were a child? Then you will probably enjoy tinkering with RPA. Just like with Lego, spend some time discovering all the different components that you have available and finding out all the different ways you can get them together to craft something useful and tailor-made to your needs. Did you like playing with Barbies better than Lego? That’s also great, don’t worry. Deploying RPA in your team will give you plenty of opportunities to put your role-playing experience to use. Understanding roles, responsibilities, objectives and requirements of a process and effectively communicating the benefit of automating via RPA are the pillars of a successful implementation.

❌ Don’t: Don’t forget to explore slightly more advanced components, such as queues, credential management tools, log management tools, robot orchestration and control rooms.

You don’t want to have to bulldoze and rebuild your shiny proof-of-concept automation in a later stage, just because you weren’t aware of these components. They will become critical once you have more than a few processes at hand.

To stay in the Lego metaphor: make sure to explore the features of the full Lego range and don’t just idle on the baby-friendly Lego Duplo.

Early Implementation

✔Do: Make sure processes and solutions are well documented.

I get it. You want to start building your bot as soon as possible. But make sure to first invest some time in drafting the following documents:

• A Process Design Document to capture at the very least the As-is process flow

• A Solution Design Document to capture how you intend to automate the process

You will be happy to have the former if (when?) you start having discussions on the scope of the work that the bot is expected to perform. It can prevent misunderstanding about what the process is all about and what the bot can do. You will be happy to have the latter if (when?) you have to do some maintenance on the bot that you are now developing. This blueprint will help you to quickly zoom in on the component that you need to tweak.

Good documentation will become even more important as your team grows. Imagine how much karma you will earn when someone in urgent need of fixing the bot finds and reads your clear blueprint!

❌ Don’t: Don’t automate sub-optimal processes.

Get everyone familiar with the concept of GIGO – Garbage In Garbage Out – and its less polite brother SISO. A bad manual process will become a terrible automated process, because robots can only act based on predefined rules. The rules can be as complex as you like but there can’t be any room for discretionary judgment. The untiring robots lack that.

Make it clear that a process needs to be streamlined and standardized before it can be a candidate for automation. If it’s not, someone will have to cross the jungle of “It has always been done this way”, which usually stands between a ‘Garbage Process’ and a ‘Good Process’. Who knows, it might turn out that many tasks and subtasks in the process weren’t needed after all.

Growth

✔Do: Set up a clear RPA Governance.

Once you hit the stage of growth, where your team is rolling out one bot after another, clearly defining the process of automating processes becomes even more important than clearly defining the process that you are automating.

Does the RPA team sit in IT or with the business? Who is responsible for what, in case of a malfunction? How are Audit, Compliance and Risk Management going to adjust policies to include the changes brought in by your new digital workforce?

❌ Don’t: Don’t forget Security.

While designing your RPA Governance framework, don’t forget the more practical side of Security.

You wouldn’t want to allow anyone the temptation of circumventing the four-eyes principle you already have in place. For example, you must make sure it is still impossible for anyone to input a payment to themselves and have it released by the unaware robot accomplice.

Define as soon as possible how you are going to create, assign and manage the credentials that your bots will need to interact with your existing IT infrastructure. Particularly in the case of unattended bots, it would be best to create specific users for your digital colleagues, with clearly distinguishable usernames. You might even consider going as far as letting your robot change all its passwords to ones of its secret liking as soon as it gets in production.

 

 

Philip Costa Hibberd

 

 

 

 

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Survey says: Treasurers Want More Accurate Cash Forecasting

28-03-2022 | treasuryXL | Gtreasury | LinkedIn |

Modernization is quickly coming to cash forecasting. Corporate treasury teams are accelerating their embrace of new technology strategies and are refining existing methods to introduce greater automation, efficiency, and accuracy. The trend has undoubtedly been spurred by the pandemic, during which treasurers have sought greater access to data in order to optimize cash management – as best they could – during periods of relative uncertainty.

In the recently released Cash Forecasting & Visibility Survey undertaken by treasury analysis firm Strategic Treasurer, nearly 250 professionals from across the global treasury ecosystem weighed in on their current and future state of cash forecasting. The results paint a picture of an industry with an acute demand for faster forecasting and real-time global cash positioning, a growing appetite for emerging AI/ML technology, and plans for heavy spending to realize more rapid and accurate forecasting processes.

Source

The report is worth a read in full, but here are four of the biggest takeaways for treasurers:

1. Low-tech cash forecasting is still being widely used, but high-tech is the far more popular choice.

The vast majority of treasury teams still use traditional (and very manual) forecasting tools. Ninety-one percent of respondents report using Excel as one of their forecasting tools. In comparison, one-quarter have a treasury management system (TMS) in place, and 28% use ERP systems. Fifteen percent use financial reporting and analysis (FR&A) or budgeting tools to assist in their forecasts, and just 5% use a dedicated forecasting platform.

While Excel is the leading forecasting tool by usage, it clearly lags in making treasurers happy. Fifty-seven percent of those utilizing a TMS or ERP are satisfied with their tooling, while just 42% of Excel users say the same.

Variance analysis is another task requiring heavy manual effort from treasury teams. Fifty-seven percent of respondents say that their variance analysis activities are fully manual, and another 19% report significant manual activities. One-fifth of companies only avoid this manual effort by performing no variance analysis whatsoever. The remaining 5% of respondents utilize variance analysis that’s backed by fully-automated processes.

 

2. Cash forecasting is a major priority, receiving major investments.

Fifty-nine percent of treasurers believe that the importance of cash forecasting will increase in 2022, with 27% saying it will become significantly more important. At the same time, nearly half of respondents say they currently have an “extremely difficult” time generating forecasts.

 

 

As a result of this unfulfilled need, 35% of treasury and finance departments report plans for extremely heavy spending on technology for treasury systems and cash forecasting capabilities. Forty-one percent plan to focus significant spending on treasury systems in the next year, while 40% plan similarly significant spending on cash forecasting. Additionally, respondents reported heavy technology spending plans that specifically focus on bank account management (33%), reconciliation (28%), payments (28%), and cash reporting (27%).

 

3. AI/ML-powered cash forecasting will increase over 400% in the next two years. 

While just 6% of respondents currently use AI/ML technology to power cash forecasting, their reported plans indicate that within two years that number will reach 27%. Further out than two years, that jumps to 51%.

Respondents also indicate a similarly bright trajectory for regression analysis: 12% use it currently, projected usage will grow to 29% in two years, and 43% use or expect to use it in the future.

 

 

4. Forecasts peer further forward in time (and treasurers would forecast even more, given the time and tools).

Respondents report increasing the frequency of their cash forecasting: 55% now forecast either weekly or daily. Forecasts extend to a more distant time horizon as well, with a plurality of 39% of respondents now looking ahead six months or more, and another 35% forecasting between two and five months out.

Respondents also expressed a greater appetite for cash forecasting than what their current tools and time requirements can feed. If available, 64% of respondents would invest more time to improve the accuracy of their forecasting. Forty-six percent would use extra time to perform variance analysis. One-quarter would increase both the frequency and outlook of their forecasts.

 

The upshot: Treasurers are in hot pursuit of better cash forecasting capabilities.

The survey’s findings are beads strung along a common thread: treasury teams recognize and demand the benefits of more efficient and effective cash forecasting. With investments in TMS, ERP, AI/ML, regression analysis tools and more, many treasurers are already pursuing new strategies and spending what it takes to place the strategies and technologies they require at their command.

 

Meet our Expert | 8 questions for Peter Löbl-Brand, Corporate Treasurer and Lecturer

21-03-2022 | Peter Löbl-Brand | treasuryXL | LinkedIn |

 

We are happy to interview our newest treasuryXL expert, Peter Löbl-Brand.

Peter has been a corporate treasurer for over 10 years and is also a lecturer for multinational finance and risk management at the University of Applied Science in Wiener Neustadt, Austria.

Peter gathered insights while advising multi-national listed companies as well as local small and medium-sized companies.

He currently lives south of Vienna and is focusing on re-/structuring corporate treasury departments of SMEs.

Visit Peter’s LinkedIn profile to see an overview of his career and activities. But first…

We asked him 8 questions, let’s go!

INTERVIEW

 

1. How did your treasury journey start?

My treasury journey started about 10 years ago as a credit risk manager at RHI AG, now RHI Magnesita. After about 3 years of working in this position, I got the chance to take over the Treasury team as team leader.

2. What do you like about working in Treasury?

It’s a people’s business. Ensuring liquidity and therefore laying the foundation for the operative business of the corporate while having always a close relationship with your capital partner end strengthening their trust in the corporate feels like being one of the most important and highly valued links in the business.

3. What is your Treasury Expertise and what expertise gives you a boost of energy?

I started my career in the group treasury of a listed company. Stage by stage I developed myself into a full-scale treasury and commercial officer working for a bigger SME company right now. My focus is on small to medium sizes companies with a high need for commercial structuring and the need to set up treasury management from scratch. To build, entertain and lead by example is energizing myself to perform.

4. What has been the best experience in your treasury career until today?

Enabling business with partly sanctioned customers and countries.

5. What has been your biggest challenge in treasury?

Maintaining the tension and excitement after more than 10 years in corporate treasury.

6. What’s the most important lesson that you’ve learned as a treasurer?

Do not trust a soft commitment.

7. How have you seen the role of Corporate Treasury evolve over the years?

From my understanding, the corporate treasury is a business enabler. Especially when driving business internationally the corporate treasury is able to pilot business relationships to success. Based on that understanding Corporate Treasury is always seeking to find better instruments and the appropriate solution to close a deal.

8. What developments do you expect in corporate treasury in the near and further future?

I expect more and more solutions and instruments acting on the blockchain. Right now the industry is too much focusing on the blockchain as an enabler for cryptocurrency. Using the blockchain in international business will also solve the impossible trilemma as it makes business cheaper, adding quality and reducing costs for all parties.

 

Get in touch with Peter
Click here for his Expert Profile

 

Thanks for reading!

 

 

Kendra Keydeniers

Director Community & Partners, treasuryXL

 

 

 

 

Russia Ukraine Crisis Update

16-03-2022 | treasuryXL | ComplexCountries | LinkedIn |

Safety of employees and delivery of salary payments are the highest priorities of treasurers responsible for Russia and Ukraine who also shared their experiences approaches to sanctions compliance, local operations and FX hedging. This report is based on an emergency 90-minute peer call with participation from 15 major companies.

This report was compiled by Monie Lindsey. based on a Treasury Peer Call chaired by Damian Glendinning.

Source

Chair’s Overview

Today’s call was very somber. Two weeks ago (Report: Russia Treasury & Banking Update 21st Feb), members were looking at contingency plans, but the consensus was that most of what was happening was posturing, and that the worst would not happen. Today, there was no discussion of how long hostilities might last – most people agree that there is no easy or rapid solution in sight. Instead, the main priority of most participants is making sure their teams are safe, helping them leave Ukraine if they wish, and making sure salary payments get through in both countries. We all send our best wishes to the many people whose lives have been shattered by this conflict.

The actions and approaches were remarkably consistent across all the participants. Topics discussed and actions taken:

  • The main priority is the safety of the local teams. Nearly every participant has taken extra steps to make sure local staff have cash, including prepaying salaries by up to three months. This is being done in both Russia and Ukraine, as MNCs cannot be sure of being able to remit cash to Russia in the future.
  • Most participants have either exited, suspended, or slowed down their businesses in Russia. Those who are importing goods into Russia for sale locally are continuing business as long as inventories last, but they are not shipping new inventory into the country.
  • There were a few questions about the sanctions, but the general view is that these are clear. Even if a company wants to ship goods into Russia, it is proving very difficult to find logistics companies that are prepared to undertake the shipment.
  • Payments continue for the time being. In Ukraine, the banking system continues to function, and some participants have sent cash into the country to make sure salaries are paid. Paying cash out of Ukraine is no longer possible, but payments continue to be made out of Russia, even if they can be slowed down due to additional sanctions checks.
  • The main sanctions-related discussion was about the extent to which local payments within Russia can still be made using sanctioned banks. The general feeling was that this is allowed, though there was some confusion. Participants have received conflicting advice about whether there is an effective carve-out in the sanctions for salary payments.
  • Foreign banks are registered under local law in Russia, so they can, and do, continue to operate. As usual, some are providing better service than others.
  • One issue raised with sanctions is that they can cause issues for the local staff: it may be illegal under local law for them to apply the sanctions, or it can cause them personal issues. This is usually being monitored closely with HR and Legal.
  • Most companies are re-evaluating their hedging programs:
    • Hedging the rouble has become a lot more expensive, and there is unlikely to be much underlying business to hedge, so most programs will probably stop.
    • In many cases, it is proving difficult, or impossible, to roll existing hedges
    • For NDFs, the reference rate used for settlement is no longer being quoted *(see note below), so it will be necessary to negotiate with the banks about what alternative rate to use
    • No participant was concerned about forwards which require them to deliver roubles outside Russia. However, companies to whom this applies are advised to discuss this situation with their banks: if they find themselves unable to deliver the roubles on the due date, the situation can become messy and potentially expensive.
  • Some participants have bolstered local liquidity in Russia by taking out local bank loans, which continue to be available – though there is some nervousness about how long lines may be available. Many have sent in cash via intercompany loans to make sure salaries and taxes can be paid. Several participants have also bolstered the liquidity of their Ukrainian operations by sending in intercompany loans.
  • There was little discussion about how to continue making payments despite the sanctions. It was pointed out that, even if a bank is barred from SWIFT, payments can still be made using paper instructions – though delays may occur due to the need to implement new correspondent banking relationships and apply additional sanctioned party checks. In any case, the feeling is that sanctions will limit the amount of business giving rise to payments.
  • A couple of participants are being impacted by the removal of international credit cards: this impacts Russian staff currently outside the country on short-term assignments, and those receiving payment by credit card from inside Russia.

Bottom line: the main concern is the safety of local staff and making sure they have enough cash to survive. Business in Russia is basically on hold, but cash is still flowing where it is required, especially for salary payments. Participants are being very careful to adhere to the new sanctions.

Again, we all hope that the bloodshed will soon come to an end.

*Note: 10th March we have subsequently heard that the central bank is providing a daily fix against the USD at a rate that is lower than the market rate (105 – 115 compared to 130-140).

Would you like a full copy of this report?

Request a Copy, but please make a donation to the Save the Children Ukraine Humanitarian Appeal

Meet our Expert | 8 questions for Jermal McDaniel

14-03-2022 | Jermal McDaniel | treasuryXL | LinkedIn |

 

We are happy to interview treasuryXL expert, Jermal McDaniel.

Jermal is an accomplished Finance practitioner with over 16 years of Treasury operations and Finance experience.

Jermal is an innovative visionary who utilizes a “Think Tank” methodology to generate ideas and action plans designed to streamline and automate manual processes to facilitate department efficiency.

How did his career in Treasury start and what is his best experience working in Treasury?

We asked him 8 questions, let’s go!

INTERVIEW

 

1. How did your treasury journey start?

My Treasury journey started when my agency recruiting career ended in 2003. I did not set out to be a Treasurer, I kind of found myself in the Treasury field and I am blessed to still be a part of the Treasury Community.

2. What do you like about working in Treasury?

I love the sense of urgency, the attention to detail, and the camaraderie/synergy needed to be a successful Treasury department. I often tell my staff that Treasurers are not born, they are made, and if you are detail-oriented, can work well under pressure, and are timely and accurate, I can give you the rest of the tools to be successful.

3. What is your Treasury Expertise and what expertise gives you a boost of energy?

My Treasury experience is Mortgage-related. When studying for the CTP it gave me a lot of insight into FX transactions, Short Term liquidity investments, and optimal Debt vs Equity financing philosophies for Firms, but my expertise is in managing all aspects of Treasury including Banking relationships and building well run cross-functional Treasury Teams.

4. What has been the best experience in your treasury career until today?

My best experience has been seeing a few of my former employees take the knowledge and guidance that I have given them and parlay that into Sr. Manager and Director of Treasury roles.

5. What has been your biggest challenge in treasury?

Data mining, and consistently getting timely information reconciled and into a useful form for Senior leaders to use for decision making.

6. What’s the most important lesson that you’ve learned as a treasurer?

You cannot perform all of the Treasury functions on your own and if you do not have a cross-trained Treasury team, there will be a high probability that important transactions will fall through the cracks tarnishing the reputation of your team and the department.

7. How have you seen the role of Corporate Treasury evolve over the years?

I am excited to see that Firms are really beginning to value what a good Treasury department means to the Firm. As the stewards of the Cash, making sure that there are enough funds to satisfy all of the financial obligations is Paramount to the success and reputation of the Firm.

8. What developments do you expect in corporate treasury in the near and further future?

There is a big push to bring on more Fintech resources to help with recording and reconciling all of the day-to-day cash movements. Treasury Management Systems are helping to streamline cash forecasting and reconciling by becoming a “Single Source of Truth” where information can be accessed by all of the Stakeholders making everyone involved more self-sufficient.

 

Get in touch with Jermal
Click here for his Expert Profile

Thanks for reading!

 

 

Kendra Keydeniers

Director Community & Partners, treasuryXL

The FX-Files: Secret Treasury Alternatives to Global Bank Accounts

08-03-2022 | Ernie Humphrey | treasuryXL | LinkedIn |

When businesses engage suppliers across new cross-border frontiers, many assume that they need a separate bank account to make payments. Even the most seasoned treasury professionals assume they need foreign bank accounts or need to manage relationships with providers of foreign exchange currency services to make payments across international borders? Is there a better way?

I recently spoke on a webinar where we discussed the challenges of international accounts payable, and the value in investing in AP automation from supplier on-boarding to making international payments via one payment file which is funded in US dollars and affects payments to suppliers in multiple currencies.

The business case for investing in AP automation is multi-dimensional and compelling for companies of all sizes. International AP automation done right empowers top line growth by impacting productivity within and beyond the AP department and improving working capital by facilitating supplier relationships that allow companies to take more control of how and when they make payments. International AP automation also mitigates invoice processing costs which are inherently inefficient due to the number of people. processes, and systems involved in processing an invoice, let alone one denominated in a foreign currency.

Pain points for accounts payable, which are magnified by international accounts payable include the following:

  • Supplier On-Boarding– a supplier relationship starts with onboarding. This can make a great impression on a new supplier or be the beginning of ongoing friction with a supplier.
  • Supplier Communications– effective communication is key to effectively managing supplier relationships. Asymmetry of information (can your supplier see what your AP team can see), and a lack of visibility into supplier activity and conversations leads to unnecessary disputes and hours spent on the phone resolving issues (many of which are perceived rather than actual and could have been avoided)
  • Information Exchange– pushing paper back and forth, especially across borders, leads to inefficient communication and represents a significant inherent barrier to effective AP processing in terms of how long it takes and how much it costs to process invoices.
  • Invoice Processing Time– the more it takes to process an invoice the less opportunity to take and negotiate payment discounts. Efficient invoice processing enables financial agility in terms of controlling when suppliers are paid and improves working capital management
  • Payment Timing– time is money. The more control a company has over when they pay suppliers the better. More control of the cash conversion cycle should translate into a positive impact on the bottom line.
  • Tax, OFAC & FCPA Compliance– doing business across a new international border can create tax, legal and regulatory compliance exposures. A failure to manage these exposures effectively can do quite a bit of damage to the bottom line.
  • FX Risk Exposures– new liabilities in currencies other than the functional currency of your company either create new FX exposures or impact these exposures. A failure to effectively manage FX exposures show up in the “FX gain/loss” line of a company’s income statement.

The value proposition for investing in international accounts payable is evident in how many ways international AP done right impacts the bottom line:

  1. Mitigates invoice processing costs & the payment of duplicate invoices
  2. Mitigates time spent resolving supplier issues/disputes
  3. Allows discount opportunities to be captured
  4. Facilitates early payment program opportunities
  5. Impacts the productivity of employees processing invoices
  6. Mitigates payment processing costs
  7. Rebates from commercial card payments
  8. Improves working capital management
  9. Impacts the productivity of employees approving & affecting payments
  10. Mitigates FX Risk Exposures
  11. Mitigates the Cost & Complications of International Bank Relationships

 

If you want to learn more about how to leverage automation to manage international accounts payable, including how your company can affect international payments by funding one amount in USD, I invite you to experience the recording of The FX-Files: Secret Treasury Alternatives to Global Bank Accounts webinar.

 

 

Ernie Humphrey
Seasoned Treasury Expert
& CEO Treasury Webinars

Treasury Delta and Blokken Partnership

03-03-2022 | treasuryXL | Treasury Delta | LinkedIn | Treasury Delta, our Irish fintech partner, recently formed an alliance with Blokken, a Dubai-based fintech aggregator. This strategic partnership will bring further innovation and digital technology deployment to the corporate treasury ecosystem within the Middle East. Credits: Blokken Source

Read more

GTreasury Announces New Partnership with Infor to Streamline Digital Treasury Workflow and Data Integrations

02-03-2022 | treasuryXL | Gtreasury | LinkedIn |

The partnership is designed to help customers visualize, analyze, and act on their cash positions with automated data integration between GTreasury and Infor

CHICAGO, Ill. – March 2, 2022 – GTreasury, a treasury and risk management platform provider, today announced its partnership with Infor, a global leader in industry-focused business cloud software solutions. The deal enables GTreasury and Infor customers to benefit from new automation and data integration between GTreasury’s digital treasury platform and Infor’s powerful cloud-based ERP platform. The integrated workflow will help eliminate the challenges of relying on various siloed systems to accomplish business-critical treasury and accounting tasks.

With this partnership, the GTreasury platform will utilize an application programming interface (API) to connect data from Infor’s cloud financials ERP solution, Financials & Supply Management. This data includes bank statements, payments (accounts receivable and accounts payable, along with bank confirmations), Positive Pay automated fraud detection, and general ledger (GL) journal entries that encompass applicable treasury management system sub-ledger entries such as cash, financial instruments, treasury payments and settlements, and hedge accounting.

The integrated data visibility and automated command across applicable balances and transactions give GTreasury and Infor customers the ability to analyze and act on cash positions quickly and confidently. Customers can also access all of the treasury, finance, accounting, and risk management products available through the GTreasury platform.

“Infor continues to build on its well-earned reputation as a modern cloud ERP platform that enables a global and diverse customer base to leverage modern technologies,” said Terry Beadle, Global Head of Corporate Development at GTreasury. “As corporate treasurers and the office of the CFO accelerate digital transformation initiatives throughout their departments, Infor and GTreasury deliver an especially compelling cloud-based solution built to add new connectivity and capabilities. We are proud to partner with Infor and look forward to more organizations discovering the efficiency and performance gains that GTreasury’s complete digital treasury ecosystem delivers.”

“We believe the automation and synergy this partnership provides will enable customers to significantly streamline their treasury and accounting operations,” said Joe Simpson, Vice President of Product Management at Infor. “Organizations will have data visibility and workflow tools to help make business-critical decisions based on their cash positions. We’re excited to provide the transformative capabilities offered by this synergistic collaboration with GTreasury, a leader in providing modern digital treasury solutions to organizations around the world, and to see how customers utilize the benefits of our powerful technologies in tandem.”

About GTreasury

GTreasury is committed to connecting treasury and digital finance operations by providing a world-class SaaS treasury and risk management system and integrated ecosystem where cash, debt, investments and exposures are seamlessly managed within the office of the CFO. GTreasury delivers intelligent insights, while connecting financial value chains and extending workflows to third-party systems, exchanges, portals and services. Headquartered in Chicago, with locations serving EMEA (London) and APAC (Sydney and Manila), GTreasury’s global community includes more than 800 customers and 30+ industries reaching 160+ countries worldwide. Visit GTreasury.com

About Infor

Infor is a global leader in business cloud software specialized by industry. We develop complete solutions for our focus industries, including industrial manufacturing, distribution, healthcare, food & beverage, automotive, aerospace & defense, and high tech. Infor’s mission-critical enterprise applications and services are designed to deliver sustainable operational advantages with security and faster time to value. We are obsessed with delivering successful business outcomes for customers. More than 65,000 organizations in 175+ countries rely on Infor’s 17,000 employees to help achieve their business goals. As a Koch company, our financial strength, ownership structure, and long-term view empower us to foster enduring, mutually beneficial relationships with our customers. Visit www.infor.com.

 

Trade Finance & rethinking digitalisation (Dutch Item)

02-03-2022 | Ger van Rosmalen | treasuryXL | LinkedIn |

 

Ruim 30 jaar geleden mocht ik in een panel vertellen over Bolero. Bolero staat voor “Bill of Lading electronically” in die tijd nog een toekomstdroom. Toen werd er al gesproken over digitalisering van handelsdocumenten. Nu, ruim 30 jaar later komt er eindelijk beweging in.

Al geruime tijd zijn er regels van de Internationale Kamer van Koophandel om die digitaliseringsslag wereldwijd te begeleiden[1]. Er zijn al diverse innovatieve en vooruitstrevende bedrijven die digitalisering hebben omarmd door initiatieven en oplossingen op het gebied van elektronische handtekeningen, digitale “originele” documenten en volledig digitale Letters of Credit. Tegelijkertijd zijn banken en bedrijfsleven echter vaak nog afwachtend als het gaat om het loslaten van papieren documenten. En dat is jammer. De afgelopen jaren laten soms namelijk ook zien dat “papieren” handelsdocumenten kunnen zorgen voor vertragingen, extra kosten en daarmee ontevreden klanten.

Fouten ontstaan bijvoorbeeld door vanuit andere systemen handmatig informatie over te typen op papieren documenten. Dan is een vergissing bij het overtypen van bijv. 100 containernummers snel gemaakt, met alle gevolgen van dien.

Voordelen van digitalisering zijn dan ook:

  • Sneller (geen oponthoud zoals bij traditionele “papier-route”)
  • Voordeliger (minder afhandelingskosten)
  • Grotere kans foutloze uitvoering
  • Duurzamer dan papier

Hoe komt het dan, dat we toch vaak blijven vasthouden aan die “papierwinkel”? Dat komt onder meer door de vestigingsplaatsen van contractpartners en hun banken. Een voorbeeld: In sommige landen, vooral de “emerging markets”, zijn papieren handelsdocumenten nog vereist. Lokale wetgeving verhindert voorlopig de stap naar verdere digitalisering. Maar een groot deel van de wereld staat wel open voor digitalisering van Trade Finance. Bij een aanzienlijk deel van uw trade transacties zijn dus voordelen te behalen. Dus wat weerhoudt ons nog?

Op een bepaalde manier lijkt ons brein ingesteld op beperkingen, bedreigingen en beren op de weg. Eigenlijk niet echt vruchtbaar want het maakt ons voorzichtig, argwanend en sceptisch bij nieuwe ontwikkelingen. We voelen ons vertrouwd in onze bekende omgeving en dat maakt dat we eerder kijken naar problemen dan kansen en oplossingen. Dat vergt  “omdenken”[2]. Omdenken is een andere basishouding namelijk denken in kansen, nieuwe mogelijkheden en oplossingen. Het zorgt voor innovatie, vernieuwing en creativiteit. Dat is geen kwestie van een knop omzetten maar met nieuwe ogen kijken en met elkaar in gesprek gaan. Met elkaar open staan voor vernieuwing en enthousiasme om nieuwe mogelijkheden te gaan toepassen.

De poort tot digitalisering staat open. Begin eens met een rustig ritje op deze digitale snelweg met een beperkt aantal klanten of landen. Ik nodig u uit om te gaan ontdekken wat digitalisering u te bieden heeft en ga het gesprek graag met u aan over digitalisering. Ook blijven wij u ondersteunen bij de traditionele Letters of Credit daar waar de papieren handelsdocumenten nog wel even een rol blijven spelen. Bel (0613377921) of mail ([email protected]) voor een vrijblijvend gesprek.

 

Ger van Rosmalen

Trade Finance Specialist

 

 




[1] Supplement to the Uniform Customs and Practice for Documentary Credits for Electronic Presentation (e-UCP), Uniform Rules for Collections Supplement for Electronic Presentation (e-URC), Universal Rules for Bank Payment Obligations (URBPO) en Uniform Rules for Digital Trade Transactions (URDTT)

[2] De grondlegger van het omdenken Berthold Gunster heeft hierover een aantal inspirerende boeken geschreven.

Meet our Expert | 8 questions for Patrick Kunz, the Passionate Treasurer

01-03-2022 | Patrick Kunz | treasuryXL | LinkedIn |

 

We are happy to interview treasuryXL expert, Patrick Kunz.

With Patrick’s impressive career within the World of Treasury, you can really say that he lives and breathes Treasury.

Patrick is performance driven. He is an open minded, outgoing, rational person who is comfortable communicating and convincing on all levels of management.

Patrick is owner of Pecunia Treasury & Finance with several independent treasury and finance consultants and founder of treasuryabonnement.nl. Furthermore he owns an online FX trading and payment platform with a connection to a big FX broker.

Patrick has worked with both international corporates from all fields of business as well as national non-profit organisations.

We recommend to visit Patrick’s LinkedIn profile to see his stunning career and activities. But first….

We asked him 8 questions, let’s go!

INTERVIEW

 


1. How did your treasury journey start?

During my study at Maastricht University I knew I wanted to work in the “world of finance” and more specifically trading or investment banking. In my 3rd year of university I got the opportunity to work as an intern for a Swiss Investment bank in Zurich which was a great first experience into wealth management and client exposure with high net worth clients. It also showed me that the client comes first, even though the client was not always right. This made me wonder if it was more fun on “the other side” at the buy side. It slightly frustrated me that a bank would not always provide the best solution.

 

After graduation I left on a trip around the world backpacking for 1,5 years. Enjoying ultimate freedom and fun before starting a career. When I came back to the Netherlands I applied for treasury roles at multinationals and landed my first job as cash & treasury manager at the German multinational Metro Group (the wholesaler, not the Dutch free newspaper). This was the start of my treasury career which until now I would never leave.

 

2. What do you like about working in Treasury?

It’s the core of a company. In the end its all about the money. Independent on what products you are selling and how you are selling them. Cash in vs Cash out. Without cash a company has a problem. Cash is king and profit is an opinion so in my opinion managing cash is very important and therefore fun. The more complex the more fun. Managing a multinational company with hundreds of bank accounts in different currencies around the global; finding the optimal treasury setup and solutions is great fun. Lastly, treasury teams are smaller compared to accounting or controlling, which make the lines shorter and the team tighter.

 

3. What is your Treasury Expertise and what expertise gives you a boost of energy?

I started in cash management and FX trading which are great basic skills for every treasurer. My first company also had very short treasury lines and I quickly was involved in global treasury solutions, financing solutions and group companies corporate finance. When I moved on to my second role as group treasurer of a regional housing association, I also got exposure to interest rate derivatives and guarantee management. Afterwards when I started my own consultancy and interim management company 8 years ago I got to do the full spectrum of treasury. So without arrogance I can say in treasury I have done it all. The last years I am doing a lot of TMS/Payment hub implementations, which I enjoy doing. After finishing an implementation it is nice to look back and compare the old way of treasury processes and the new and see how it improved after a couple of months. Very rewarding.

 

4. What has been your best experience in your treasury career until today?

Building a treasury from scratch is most rewarding and fun to do. 2 years ago I got the opportunity to build the treasury role at the Dutch born AEX company Takeaway.com. There were treasury processes in place but scattered in different departments. Also some of them were sub-optimal. My role was to bring them together and optimize them. Besides increasing the reporting and importance of treasury to management this also brought significant cash savings on bank and FX costs. A couple of months into the rule, the merger/acquisition of Just Eat was approved and the integration with the existing treasury team in London could start, making the team suddenly 400% bigger. After 5 months my work was far from finished but it was time to hand it over to the existing/new team. Looking back what was done in this short time this was one of my greatest experiences in treasury. And a great company to work for.

 

5. What has been your biggest challenge in treasury?

Nowadays: Opening a company bank account in a short timeframe without difficult KYC questions, especially for companies with difficult or complex structures. I was with a client last year, a scale-up, that moved fast in several countries in Europe. Treasury processes needed to be implemented from scratch in each country while operations was much further ahead but legal and treasury still needed to start. Working with this fixed go live we had to make sure we could receive payments from day 1 onward. In one country we were actually live on day -1 with no room for error. Stressful but successful.

As a consultant I sometimes face tight deadlines or difficult projects that need to be delivered but are dependent on other stakeholders. That is not always easy but this gives me energy to make it happen.

 

6. What’s the most important lesson that you’ve learned as a treasurer?

You can go fast on your own but you go far together. Sounds cliché but it is especially true in treasury as the treasury department is dependent on data from other departments to make it function. You cannot run risk analysis if you have no exposure data. Same for FX. Doing cash flow forecasting? You need data from procurement, AR and FP&A.

Also visibility and transparency is key. Even the other financial departments accounting and controlling sometimes see treasury as this special people that they have no idea what they are exactly doing. Make sure they understand (and vice versa) what each department does and how you can work together and what data can be shared. Also to avoid duplicating work. So leave the ivory tower and go out there and collaborate.

 

7. How have you seen the role of Corporate Treasury evolve over the years?

The speed and amount of information has increased and is increasing. Also the complexity of treasury departments. Luckily also the solutions available to manage them has improved. Next to swift solutions we now see advanced TMS solutions or payment hubs that can be implemented within a couple of months giving you full visibility. A treasurer nowadays needs some tech skills to be able to understand the information to implement the TMS or hub. Because the tool will be only be as good as it is being used; garbage in is garbage out. During the many implementations that I have done I have learned a lot about technical connections (sFTP, h2h, API), information exchange formats, XML file types, swift messages etc. This knowledge now helps me a lot in implementations and supporting the IT department determining the information needs and sources.

 

8. What developments do you expect in corporate treasury in the near and further future?

Instant payments are a big thing in treasury which is cool but will not necessarily bring much added value to the treasury. Instant information processing is more important especially in e-commerce. Clients expects instant service. If they pay online they expect to get the service or goods asap. Treasury can help with this by connecting their PSP’s or bank information to their systems. Not necessarily linking the payment to an invoice which is an accounting reconciliation process. More importantly linking the positive acknowledgment (the customers has paid) to the sales. Customers start demanding this more and more and treasury has to adapt to this instant world. This means more automation.

Clients also demand more payment options, some of them are not available at banks. This means that treasurers will have to move away from the traditional model of banking partners for cash management but to a more hybrid model of cash at bank, cash in transit at PSP’s, virtual credit cards, wallets etc. Maybe even crypto or CBDC deposits/balances. This will all add to the complexity of the cash and risk management.

 

Isn’t treasury the best department to be in? 😊 I already get excited saying this.

 

Get in touch with Patrick
Click here for his Expert Profile

 

Join Patrick and experts from Kyriba and Deloitte at the Panel Discussion: How Can Treasurers Overcome Today’s Security Challenges?

When? March 9
Start: 4.00 pm CET

Register here

Thanks for reading!

 

 

Kendra Keydeniers

Director Community & Partners, treasuryXL