Tag Archive for: corporate

The evolution of the market for corporate treasury solutions

| 16-4-2019 | by  Pieter de Kiewit |

A few years ago I wrote a blog about the relay in TMS market leadership and kept following the market as an interested bystander. Last years I saw an increase in parties that steer away from traditional solutions for corporate treasurers like banks, consultants and TMS houses. What I saw was the rise of firms like Cashforce (forecasting), TIS (bank independent payment platforms) and NWBM or Kantox (FX dealing). The result is a very diverse landscape of many solutions that cover various aspects of the treasury value chain. Even for experts it’s not easy to oversee what is happening.

Currently I observe the market entering the next phase in maturity. I expected firms like Google, Microsoft, Amazon or SAP to step in, acquire a number of smaller suppliers and start an integration. This is not (yet?) happening. What I see is an increase of cooperation between smaller firms. TIS and Cashforce organize sales meetings together. By now Cashforce has also started a partnership with the traditional bank BNP Paribas. TMS supplier Bellin works together with transaction platform 360T and today I saw that TIS enters a partnership with FX broker Ebury. Apart from this, the traditional bank ABN AMRO launches an Ebury competitor Franx and ING launches a TIS competitor Cobase. All exciting developments and I am not able to predict what will happen next.

What I do know is that it will not be easier for corporate treasurers to make decisions about their infrastructure and services. Modern solutions can offer a lot more and often at a better price level. But what is the best solution? And if you choose for one solution, do you automatically also choose for others? Does your supplier advise you about the best solution or the one where he can get the highest kick back fee? How hard will it be to say goodbye if you are not satisfied anymore?

So for you as a corporate treasurer, the world gets better and more complex. A number of the issues already existed in the past, but were not so obvious. Personally I love to see all new possibilities. I think, at the end of the day, you will have to put in the effort, read, listen and speak, then analyse and decide for yourself. The responsibilities that come with being a treasurer cannot be outsourced.

What do you see in this market? I would love to read or hear from you,

 

Pieter de Kiewit

 

 

Pieter de Kiewit

Owner of Treasurer Search

 

 

Spring Summit 2019 Treasury Management & Corporate Finance VU

| 28-3-2019 | Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam |

On Thursday evening, 11 April 2019, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam’s postgraduate  Treasury Management & Corporate Finance programme will host the annual Spring Summit. This year’s theme is the programme’s mission: training academic professionals.Vincent Almering of Interfoods and Peter de Vries of Energie Beheer Nederland (EBN) will talk about how the Treasury Management & Corporate Finance programme added value to their careers. They will also present results of the research they conducted during the programme: on hedging volatility in dairy markets and financial management at EBN, respectively.

Don’t miss this lecture! Mark your calender: 11 April 2019, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam.

Participation is free of charge.
Register here

We look forward to seeing you at the Summit!

LOCATION:

VU Amsterdam, Alma Hall, OZW Building, 10th floor, De Boelelaan 1109, Amsterdam

PROGRAM

16.45 hrs.Welcome

17.00 hrs. Introduction Herbert Rijken

17.30 hrs. Peter de Vries – Financial management at EBN

18.00 hrs.Vincent Almering – Hedging volatility in dairy markets

18.30 hrs. Epilogue Herbert Rijken

19.00 hrs. Drinks

REGISTER

You can register here

CONTACT

Myrthe Scholze
020-598 2171
[email protected]
VU/Treasury

 

Getting ready to launch the Treasurer Test!

| 07-08-2018 | by  Pieter de Kiewit | treasuryXL |

Roughly 60% or more of the hiring managers we work with does not have experience in corporate treasury. Less than 20% of people working in corporate treasury received extensive professional treasury education. The rest did not. How can we measure whether a candidate has the knowledge to be able to do the job? Currently this is done, also by us, by looking at their experience: screening CV’s, checking references, etcetera. I think there is room for more thorough measuring.

After talking with many experts the idea of the Treasurer Test arose. We created a group of enthusiasts and started building. The core of the group consists of:

  • academic treasury experts of VU University (Vrije Universiteit) Amsterdam, responsible for the Register Treasurer Program, and The University of Applied Science (Hogeschool) Utrecht, organizer of the Minor Treasury Management;
  • assessment psychologists with a degree in test development;
  • IT experts using software and methodologies also used by dozens of international universities who can build an on-line assessment environment;
  • treasuryXL, their and our network of corporate treasurers as well as professional bodies.

Within a month we will start with the first test of a new and I think exciting measurement tool. It combines measurement of treasury knowledge & skills with a Big 5 personality test. The results of the treasury part of the test are presented both with absolute scores, as well as with a peer group comparison. Peer groups are formed upon experience: up to two years, three to eight and over nine. The results of the personality test are compared with a general population as well as the treasury population who already did the test. This way we can make statements like “he didn’t answer a lot of questions correctly on the topic cash management but others with less than 2 years’ experience score even worse” or “she is an introvert in comparison to general population but in comparison to other treasurers she is quite extroverted”.

We are close to asking the first peer group to do the test and expect a larger scale introduction around October 2018. treasuryXL will be the home of the Treasurer Test. I am quite excited about this project and think it can all help us in making career / recruitment decisions, choose proper education and shape treasury teams. There is a lot more to tell about the project, I will keep you updated and am available for questions or input.

On behalf of Team Treasurer Test,

Pieter de Kiewit

 

 

Pieter de Kiewit
Owner Treasurer Search

 

 

Best read articles of all time – This is why corporate treasury is great – The laymen introduction to corporate treasury

| 26-06-2018 | by Pieter de Kiewit |

My father was a civil engineer and would have liked one of his kids to follow in his footsteps. Regretfully for him we all went in different directions, me landing an engineering degree of the wrong type. What I did like to learn from my first business management professor was about creating bridges between various functional areas. That is what I have been doing as a recruiter for almost 25 years, the last 8 solely in corporate treasury. Why treasury?

All organisations, even the small ones, can benefit from good treasury. Only the bigger ones hired permanent experts. The main three areas, perhaps oversimplified, they focus on are:

  1. Money logistics: opening and closing bank accounts, doing (bulk) payments, forecast money coming in and going out;
  2. Managing (treasury) risk: understand and manage the implications of interest or currency fluctuations. If your manufacturing costs are in Euro and you sell in Dollars and the price of the Dollar drops, what to do? What to do if you have excess cash on your current account;
  3. Funding: where do you get your money for new or current business? Bank loans, equity, mortgage, leasing?

This does not sound sexy, does it? But do understand that during the crisis treasurers found solutions for companies how to survive. They found funding to pay salaries, helped sales finding creative funding solutions to make complex transactions achievable, helped prevent companies going belly-up due to currency exposures, forced banks to offer better solutions at a more acceptable price.

Treasurers manage huge amounts of money and operate very close to the CFO. They are involved in mergers & acquisitions, reorganisations and international expansion. They act in small numbers but have huge impact if they would stop doing their work. And the job type evolves continuously. Creating new treasury bridges to traditional job types like accounting, tax, sales helps all doing a better job. The academic world is showing increasing interest. In the Netherlands the post graduate education at the Vrije Universiteit is becoming more prominent in the treasury community. Corporate treasury is very dynamic!

What I love doing is helping CFO’s, HR, internal recruitment and senior treasury managers with their staffing questions. What qualifications and personality type matches best with your current and future business situation. If you only hire one treasurer per year, what do you need to know to choose the best candidate? I hope now you can understand my passion for creating bridges in treasury and recruitment.

I look forward to your thoughts to the above and further contact,

Pieter de Kiewit
[email protected] / +31 6 1111 9783

Pieter de Kiewit

 

 

Pieter de Kiewit
Owner Treasurer Search