I have attended a few of Marcus Evans’ CFO Summits in the past and have found them valuable, so when I was invited to attend at the CFO Summit XXVIII at PGA National Resort in Palm Beach, FL, I knew I wanted to go.
These events bring together finance professional from many industries around the country for a multi-day conference focused on the latest trends in finance. While you are there, between presentations and dedicated networking time, you will have vendor meetings with companies that provide unique solutions to everyday business challenges.
PGA National in Palm Beach, Florida
Marcus Evans always picks ideal locations for their events. The resort is really large and the rooms were nice.
View from my room at PGA National
There are a few dining options location onsite, and the pool is pretty fantastic.
Pool area at PGA National
Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to take advantage of the tremendous golf course on-site… but then again, I’d probably go lose a dozen balls on a course of this level.
CFO Summit XXVIII Agenda
The agenda of the CFO Summits are always packed with a mixture of networking, “speed-dating” with vendors, and presentations by industry experts.
Here are the presentations that were made:
- Managing the Talent Gap – Winning Strategies for Finance Executives
- Maintaining a Competitive Edge: The Financial Restructuring at Bayer
- Corporate Strategy and Budgeting – Allocating Resources and Driving Growth
- Managing a Large Mobile Workforce: Challenges, Risks & Success Stories
- Let’s Go GLOBAL!!
- GE’s “FastWorks” Program: How to Operate with a Start-Up Mentality
- The Quest to Recruit, Secure and Retain the Right Skill Sets for Strategic Initiatives
- The US Economy Five Years After the Financial Crisis
- A Talk with Yahoo!’s CFO: Transformation of an Iconic Silicon Valley Internet Company
- Financial Change Management: Opening Happiness in 112 Years of History
- Embracing the Post Audit Function – There’s Money in the Grey Area
If you need CPE credit, many of the sessions qualify, which is great.
The highlight of the event is a presentation by a national figure, followed by a photo op for those who are interested (and willing to wait in line).
At this event, former Florida Governer Jeb Bush was the speaker. Regardless of your political affiliation, it is a unique opportunity to listen to a person of his stature speak and be able to get your picture taken with him.
Former Florida Governor Jeb Bush and me
Vendor Meetings
There was a lot of time to network with other attendees and the various vendors that were at the CFO Summit XXVIII. My goal when meeting with the vendors was to isolate those that would help us save money… and to learn about what other forecasting, budgeting, and reporting tools were available.
To help with savings in procurement, I met with people from:
I also met with a few companies that offered Finance solutions for budgeting, forecasting, and reporting:
Conclusion
This was a perfect opportunity to spend a few days at a nice resort, meeting new people, and discovering innovative solutions to advance our business. If you get the chance to attend a Marcus Evans’ event, I suggest you explore the opportunity fully.
The next Marcus Evans’ CFO Summit XXIX is being held at the Red Rock Resort & Spa in Las Vegas, NV in November 2014. I last attended this event at the Red Rock in 2009. The location is off the strip so you can focus on business, yet is short taxi ride away should you want to explore The Las Vegas Strip.
And the next Marcus Evans’ CFO Summit XXX will be held at the Eau Palm Beach Resort & Spa in Palm Beach, FL in May 2015. I have never been to this resort, so I am really looking forward to experiencing it… and hopefully I can extend the trip a day or two to relax and enjoy the resort.
