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CFO Forum : Breakfast Roundtable

Look ahead

Deloitte's CFO Forum is a roundtable meeting for CFOs of Foreign companies in Japan to share their insight and network with their peers. Each session is held in small groups with a limited number of industries and topics.

December 2021 CFO Webinar

Journey from Hankos to eSignatures

Agenda: 

  • What is a digital contract?
  • The Japanese landscape: How is the government’s policy shifting?
  • The Japanese landscape: What are the benefits?
  • The Japanese landscape: Who can help?

Please refer to HERE to find details and materials.

 

August 2021 CFO Webinar

Advanced Analytics in Finance

Agenda:

  • Analytics in Finance Overview: Analytics is the practice of discovery and communication of meaningful patterns in data to drive business strategy and performance.
  • How a multinational beverage company leads to the solution.
  • Predictive Analytics for Cashflow Forecasting
  • Successful Use Cases for Advanced Analytics in Finance

Please refer to HERE to find details and materials.

April 2021 CFO Webinar

Enabling the Future of Work: Cloud Transformation

Agenda:

  • Our Perspective on the Future of Work: Re-Architecting Work, the Workplace, and Workforce
  • Stories from the Front: How Companies are Using Cloud to Enable the Future of Work
  • Why Now? Near-term Incentives for Starting the Journey Today

Please refer to HERE to find details and materials.

December 2020 CFO Webinar

Optimizing Customer Contact Centers (CCC) in the New Normal

CFO Webinar for CFOs and finance executives who are responsible for contact centers on December 18th, 2020

Agenda:

  • Contact center cost optimization
  • Advanced IT Solutions

Please refer to HERE to find details and materials.

September 2020 CFO Webinar

Japan Pharma: SG&A trends and the impact of COVID-19 on Commercial activities

CFO Webinar for Japanese Pharma CFOs / CPOs  was held on September 11th, 2020.

Agenda:

  • Our perspective on SG&A Trends and the impact of COVID-19
  • Powering Life Science through Digital Experience from Jim McCready, President, Adobe Japan

Please refer to HERE to find speakers and materials.

May 2020 CFO Webinar

Cost optimization strategies for CFOs

CFO Webinar "Cost optimization strategies for CFOs" was held on May 27th and 28th, 2020. It attracted approximately 50 participants and received high evaluation.

The main topics are as follows, which were presented with some case studies.

  • The impacts on global market by COVID-19
  • Main approaches to cost optimization
  • The framework of Indirect/Direct Cost
  • The Future of Work and Technology Cost Transformation

Please refer to HERE to find speakers and materials.

May 2019 CFO Roundtable

Life Sciences Industry Executive Breakfast Roundtable

The Deloitte Tohmatsu CFO Program held its fourth Life Sciences and Health Care Executive Breakfast Roundtable on 16th May. At the event, Christian Boettcher, Deloitte’s Life Sciences and Health Care specialist, warmly welcomed the client executives and Pankaj Arjunwadkar, International CFO Program’s Director, shared his cutting-edge insights about RCA implementation in finance. Data Scientist, Bronte Tomlin, presented her perspective on the importance of big data analysis to generate richer, more reliable insights for the finance function. To close, Oliver Will, Life Sciences and Health Care specialist, showcased updates to the SG&A benchmarking dashboard that benchmarks key SG&A expenditures for the pharmaceutical industry. Participating CFOs shared their insights on how utilizing a mixture of digital driven financial practices and carefully planned SG&A strategy can boost the performance of their enterprises.

(PDF, 3.4 MB)

March 2019 CFO Seminar

The CFO as a strategist-catalyst partner to the CEO

Deloitte’s CFO Program Japan hosted CFO Breakfast Roundtable, “The CFO as a strategist-catalyst partner to the CEO”, event on 1st March. At the event, Global CFO Program’s Managing Director, Dr. Ajit Kambil shared his insights gained through years of experience as a trusted advisor to CFOs. At the event, participating CFOs shared their insights regarding how CFOs can be the best partners of CEOs to generate strategic opportunities and capacity in their immediate context.

October 2018 CFO Roundtable

Business Partnering

Deloitte’s CFO Program Japan hosted CFO Breakfast Roundtable “Business Partnering” event on 4th October by Mr. Dhiraj Bhandary from Finance Transformation of Deloitte India. Participated CFOs across industries exchanged their opinion over challenges to actualize business partnering and also roles of finance organization in their company regarding corporate decision making process.

(PDF, 1.015MB)

May 2018 CFO Roundtable

Life Sciences Industry Executive Breakfast Roundtable

The Deloitte CFO Program held its third Life Sciences Industry Executive Breakfast Roundtable. Given that we had a large number of participants for this session as well as a number of new faces, we dedicated the first part of the session for networking.We then gave a quick overview of some of the key topics in the Japan pharma market, with a deep dive discussion into Digital Augmentation for Field Force/Commercial Operations and the key challenges/questions associated with this. Finally, BNP Paribas gave a brief presentation on Receivables Financing in Japan.

(PDF, 1.8MB)

March 2017 CFO Roundtable

Life Sciences Multinational companies private roundtable

The Deloitte CFO Program conducted its second Life Sciences Industry Executive Breakfast Roundtable. In this roundtable, Deloitte presented its view on how pharmaceuticals and wholesalers interact and discussed if some of the existing structures and practices can be changed. There were also a short catch up on the topics discussed in previous LSHC meeting.

 

(PDF, 735KB)

December 2016 CFO Roundtable

Life Sciences Industry Executive Breakfast Roundtable

The Deloitte CFO Program held its first Life Sciences Industry Executive Breakfast Roundtable. Deloitte facilitated a discussion on following topics:

  • Salesforce Excellence, Capability and Optimization
  •  Digital Strategy
  • Data Strategy and Analytics
  • Compliance Management
  • Wholesaler Management Optimization

This provided a unique opportunity to allow participants to share their views on the industry and key trends with their peers.

(PDF, 1.3 MB)

October 2016 CFO Roundtable

 FSI CFO Private Event - Doing more with less

The Deloitte CFO Program held our first exclusive “FSI Only” CFO Private event.

We facilitated a discussion based around the theme of “Doing more with less”, to allow participants to share their experiences, challenges and ideas amongst their peers. This made a unique opportunity for the participants to be a part of an sector focused group from both the buy and sell side of multinationals here in Tokyo.

(PDF, 7.3 MB)

September 2016 CFO Roundtable

Brexit – where will it leave you?

On June 23, the world was taken by surprise as British voters narrowly decided on leaving the European Union, thus commencing the so called “Brexit” process. This referendum has already had some impact on businesses not only in the UK, but also around the world, and of course significant consequences are expected when the leave conditions will be finalized over the next two years.

In our CFO Breakfast Roundtable, we provided an overview of the timeline for the Brexit and talk about the possible economic scenarios for Britain’s future interaction with the European Union and for the economy in a global and Japanese context. We provided insight from a recent survey conducted, as well as giving our view some of the practical implications for companies dealing with the UK, such as tax, legal and financial accounting.

June 2016 CFO Roundtable

Could your next employee be a robot?

Today many CFOs find that a large share of their resources are tied up on simple repeatable tasks that, although necessary, add little real value to the organization. But in recent years robotics automation technology has emerged, making it much easier to automate these tasks which then frees up resource capacity to focus on more complex and analytical work. Leading companies now operate virtual workforces, alongside their human counterparts, changing the organizational landscape and raising the efficiency and capability of their finance functions.

In this CFO Breakfast Roundtable, we discussed how Robotics can be utilized and provided Deloitte’s views on where Robotics is heading, how to get started with this exciting new technology and our experiences from our own implementation of robotics within Deloitte in Japan.

April 2016 CFO Roundtable

Can your finance team truly blossom?

CEOs and boards increasingly want CFOs to not only deliver a finance organization that gets the numbers right, but also partner with them in shaping the company’s strategy. Given the lack of consensus as to how this might look, how should CFOs orient themselves to supporting strategy?

In this CFO Roundtable participants discussed and shared ideas amongst their peers on how the Finance Business Partner role can best be executed through an interactive session, while consindering the challenges they face here in Japan.

(PDF, 1,081KB)

December 2015 CFO Roundtable

Local and Global Concerns

Deceleration of Chinese economy and indecisiveness of the Fed’s rate hike have continuously rocked the world economy and financial markets for the past few months. And this new time of uncertainty is likely to continue for the time being.

We went several tough questions such as how the Chinese economy will soft or hard-land on the new normal, how the Fed’s decision of rate hike could ripple through the global economy, and whether the second round of Abenomics and possible further loosening of BOJ’s monetary policy could change the current dismal mood of Japanese economy, based on our making stress scenarios.

November 2015 CFO Roundtable

Making the Break: Selling and disposing non-core and under-performing assets in Japan

Economic uncertainty and disruption from market competitors are placing higher demands on Japanese corporates to be nimble and adaptable. Yet those with a diverse corporate portfolio, the result of years of acquisitions in domestic and foreign markets, may find it difficult to remain agile. Many may even have loss-making or under-performing business units draining resources. As a result, these corporates are increasingly using divestitures to scale back in certain sectors and bolster activity in others as they reassess their long-term business objectives.

Deloitte worked with MergerMarket to survey a select group of 60 market participants that had engaged in a recent divestiture and is now pleased to invite you to this roundtable to facilitate a discussion of the findings from the survey.

(PDF, 1,454KB)

June 2015 CFO Roundtable

What’s your risk appetite?

It is quite difficult to foresee the world, even a few months from now. As the new global economic epicenter is moving from the US to China, and also many leading economies are boldly examining QE against the slump caused by population onus, we are actually navigating true uncharted waters, or the great age of uncertainty.

In this environment, companies have started to build a risk management framework called the "Risk Appetite Framework (RAF)". Even though this idea was originally created in the 1990s, and, in the case of the financial industry, it is mainly the regulators who had first led the implementation of this framework, RAF is now rapidly taking global enterprises by storm. This is mainly because RAF is "forward-looking", "accountable", and thus effective as a tool for executing business strategies in a manner that is appealing to the shareholders.

At this CFO roundtable, we held an interactive discussion with the CFOs on the focus areas of the effective risk appetite framework in Japan as well in other major countries, which would be helpful for global enterprises in establishing a framework to assess risks associated with business opportunities.

March 2015 CFO Roundtable

BEPS: The New Tax and Transfer Pricing Environment – What you need to know

The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (“OECD”) is making significant progress in respect of its Base Erosion and Profit Shifting (“BEPS”) project. The BEPS Action Plan has a stated aim of increasing transparency through new documentation rules and “aligning tax with substance - ensuring that taxable profits cannot be artificially shifted, through the transfer of intangibles (e.g. patents or copyrights), risks or capital, away from countries where the value is created”.
As part of this initiative, the OECD has recently issued a number of discussion drafts and suggested changes to the transfer pricing guidance that may require multinational enterprises to reassess, and potentially change, their approach to tax planning and transfer pricing documentation.

(PDF, 326KB)

February/March 2015 CFO Roundtable

Emerging Trends in Shared Services - Informing your Shared Services and Outsourcing Journey for Japan

We recently completed our annual Deloitte Shared Services Survey, with responses gratefully received from some CFOs located here in Japan. The global survey itself is based on hundreds of companies, across all industries, geographies and sizes.

(PDF, 1.7MB)

October 2014 CFO Roundtable

Cyber Risks - What you don’t know can hurt you

Companies of all sizes face external and internal threats with motivation to defraud, embarrass or disrupt. Recently, there have been high-profile, head-line grabbing events from around the world showcasing the seriousness of these threats. Additionally, recent convictions have highlighted the risk of employees stealing proprietary information.

(PDF, 604KB)

September 2014 CFO Roundtable

Local and Global Concerns - The past 12 months has provided bulls and bears economic data to support their views. The only certainty is that risks and uncertainty continue

Questions are mounting about the potential success of Abenomics and Prime Minister Abe’s popularity, according to polls, is waning. In Europe, investors are cheering Spain’s progress, yet most observers recognize considerable headwinds with respect to the overall economy – regardless of the implications of the conflict in Ukraine. Finally, in the United States, several positive economic indicators continue to be overshadowed by the prospects of interest rate increases and continued asset purchase tapering.

(PDF, 340KB)

August 2014 CFO Roundtable

The Strategic CFO - Driving you and your finance team to optimal, strategic performance

The role of a CFO has moved far beyond that of a Chief Accounting Officer. CFOs are key influencers in boardroom decision making and they are expected to play an increasing role in setting the strategic direction of the overall enterprise. However, the time a CFO has is limited – and in order to spend more of their time on strategic activities, they need to trust that financial operations and financial risk are being managed effectively by their team. What does the role of a Strategic CFO look like? How can a CFO make the move to being a Strategic CFO? And what skills and talent in their Finance team can help them make the shift? 

(PDF, 1004KB)

June 2014 CFO Roundtable

Post-Merger Integration - Ensuring M&A delivers full value

In M&A transactions, a lack of adequate planning or poor execution of post-transaction activities can lead to a harsh landing with disappointing results. How to increase the odds that an M&A transaction delivers full value remains the major question. 

(PDF, 460KB)

April 2014 CFO Roundtable

Mergers & Acquisitions: Deal or no deal - successfully executing M&A transactions in Japan

Most executives go into an M&A deal confident they’ll be successful. But research tells a different story. About half of all acquisitions, mergers and divestitures deteriorate—rather than build—shareholder value. But that does not have to be the case. From strategy development to selecting the right target. From conducting thorough due diligence to closing the deal. Throughout the integration process or even through a divestiture, proper planning and execution can help ensure that intended results are achieved. 

(PDF, 820KB)

March 2014 CFO Roundtable

Revenue Recognition – The new Revenue Standard is finally upon us, but was it worth the wait?

Revenue is the life blood of organizations and capturing transactions in a way that makes sense for the business while getting an accounting answer that reflects the economics of the underlying event and complies with the new rules can be challenging. In your role as CFO it is important to balance these sometimes conflicting objectives. We will illustrate the possible implications of such a balancing act using the example of a German software company that has already performed advanced analysis from a preparer and a software developer perspective. 

(PDF, 600KB)

November/December 2013 CFO Roundtable

Countdown commenced – Is your business prepared for the consumption tax hike?

Prime Minister Abe recently confirmed that the first step toward doubling the consumption tax rate will take place as planned on 1 April 2014. The rate hike is a source of both tax risk and tax opportunity, and Deloitte is pleased to invite you to this roundtable discussion of some of the practical matters facing consumption taxpayers as they seek to successfully navigate the changes. 

(PDF, 820KB)

September 2013 CFO Roundtable

Global Economic Stresses – What are the risks on the horizon and how could they affect the Japanese markets and your organization?

There are signs of GDP growth in Europe but such is not consistent from country to country, U.S. growth remains tepid, and emerging markets face slower growth. Meanwhile, global financial markets have faced considerable volatility of late, owing to prospective changes in U.S. monetary policy, Abe’s “3 arrows” in Japan, and instability in China’s banking system. 

(PDF, 320KB)

August 2013 CFO Roundtable

Managing CFO Transitions

The track to global CFO is a career path that requires a great deal of focus on time, talent and relationships. If you look at the short list of candidates for the next global CFO role, many of your divisional or regional CFO peers will be among them. Are your leadership skills, professional competencies and business acumen enough for the next step? What relationships will help you get the top job – and what does it take to get the job done? 

(PDF, 490KB)

July 2013 CFO Roundtable

Save to Grow – How to grow under cost constraints and in an uncertain business environment?

Results from Deloitte’s recent cost survey suggest that businesses today are just as committed to cost reduction as they were in the depths of the global recession. What is different now is that many companies are using cost reduction as a way to drive growth and not just as a survival technique or as a means to avoid insolvency. But here in Japan trends are less obvious, with the overarching question “Is Abenomics the starting point for real growth or just a bush fire that will be over before fall?” yet to be answered 

(PDF, 640KB)

April 2013 CFO Roundtable

Value Reporting – Revenue Recognition Update

Revenue is the life blood of organizations. Any change in how revenue is recognized and accounted for impacts not only financial reporting and the manner in which financial results are presented but also how performance is assessed in the form of key performance indicators (KPIs). The sensible course is to holistically think through what else may be affected – systems that may have to be changed, accounting policies adapted, debt covenants reviewed and customer contracts that may need to be modified. Management may also want to consider if there are any further implications for the timing of the recognition and settlement of tax liabilities. 

(PDF, 1.2MB)

March 2013 CFO Roundtable

Changing the Focus – Finance Business Partnering

Business demands more from Finance and Finance has more to offer, so why do Finance functions find it so hard to move out of the shadows of the back office?
A lean and responsive back office has historically been the first priority, but now there is a great demand from the business for Finance to drive business performance. This new set of expectations requires CFOs to turn their attention towards Finance Business Partnering. 

(PDF, 470KB)

March 2013 CFO Roundtable

Changing the Focus – Finance Business Partnering

Business demands more from Finance and Finance has more to offer, so why do Finance functions find it so hard to move out of the shadows of the back office?
A lean and responsive back office has historically been the first priority, but now there is a great demand from the business for Finance to drive business performance. This new set of expectations requires CFOs to turn their attention towards Finance Business Partnering. 

(PDF, 470KB)
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