March 2023 Newsletter

FEI - St. Louis is the premier organization for the financial executives in the St. Louis area.

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Activator, Value Creator And Steward – What It means To Be A CFO In 2023

FEI Daily | 01/4/2023

by Wes Bricker

Finance leaders are front and center in communicating with external stakeholders—investors, customers and regulators—who are calling for more transparency around how the company is meeting its commitments. They manage all of this while continuing to provide decision-useful information to the board and CEO.

The CFO’s world is dynamic, constantly evolving in response to shifts in the company’s competitive market, economic pressures and the impact of new and more complex regulations. Many CFOs are now responsible for far more than a company’s finance function. They work across their enterprise to connect leaders responsible for the company’s climate and cyber risk management, human capital, supply chain, tax compliance and non-financial disclosures.

MARCH MEMBER SPOTLIGHT

The March Member Spotlight shines on Roger Wetter. Continue reading to learn what Roger, Corporate Controller for 8th Avenue Food & Provisions, values about his membership in FEI and discover why you can sometimes find him marching around town.

FEI – St. Louis isn’t the first chapter of the organization Roger’s joined. He credits a friend in Florida for first recommending FEI to him. Through FEI – Orlando, he found he enjoyed meeting others with common interests and appreciated what he learned from the programs. “When I moved to St Louis in 2011,” he continues, “I thought that FEI – St Louis would be a good way to learn about the area and the businesses here.”

The St. Louis chapter met his expectations. Through his involvement in FEI – St. Louis, Roger has “learned useful information from a variety of presentations such as the economic outlook for the next year or major capital projects happening in St. Louis or insights about Missouri politics.”

In his opinion, other finance leaders can benefit when they join FEI because it is a good investment of one’s time. In addition to informative and enjoyable presentations, the group has helped him expand his knowledge of the St. Louis business community. He feels his fellow members are a great resource for those in the finance community because “FEI provides contacts across various industries who are likely encountering some of the same issues you are dealing with in your work.”

Roger’s interest extends beyond his work in the business world. Members may be surprised to learn that in addition to his Master’s degree in Accounting, he holds an undergraduate degree in Music Education from Kansas State University. He maintains involvement in music by singing tenor in his church choir and playing trumpet in a drum and bugle corps that participates in parades and other performances.

Roger Wetter is just one member whose talents and skills make involvement in FEI – St. Louis a worthwhile investment for finance leaders in the St. Louis community. Be sure to attend upcoming meetings and events to enhance your career through programs and activities with your fellow associates in FEI – St. Louis.

Robert Half

Management Resources

The Great Resignation continues into 2023 as 517,000 jobs were added in January with unemployment falling to 3.4%. As firms continue to leverage lean teams and ask employees to cover peaks in workload or cover gaps in employment quits remain high. The employees are overworked and desire flexibility in work options. Additionally, filling many direct-hire positions takes 12-16 weeks on average, and those who have made bad hires are seeing 16 weeks to 4 months in lost productivity and employee morale.

We have an 8-step plan to future proof your workforce to retain and attract top talent. Please let me know when available to meet virtually for 30-45 minutes so I can share the 8-step plan to future-proof your workforce.