Optimizing your business processes

During this workshop, GrowCFO’s professional mentor Kevin Appleby hosts experienced CFO and finance author Jeremy Rudd to discuss how finance functions can optimize business processes. Finance functions play an important role in business process optimization. They can help by mapping out processes, standardizing them, and applying lean Six Sigma principles to them. In addition, they can help with automating processes and outsourcing activities. All these things can lead to improved efficiency and effectiveness across a business.

We discuss how finance teams can help to map out, simplify and standardize processes, both within their financial processes and across the wider business. We introduce the concept of Lean Six Sigma principles and provide insights into how finance can reduce waste across business processes. We discuss key principles regarding automation and outsourcing, including common examples of this within modern-day finance functions. We also cover how you can benefit from Optical Character Recognition, Robotic Process Automation, Digital Transformation and Artificial Intelligence.

Watch back on Demand:

What 100 CFOs Reveal About the Real Cost of AI Compute

September 10, 2026 No Comments

In this Cloud Capital and GrowCFO session, Eric Keating, Kevin Appleby and Colman Stephenson unpack new research from 100 CFOs on the real cost of AI compute. They show how AI and cloud infrastructure are reshaping the P&L, why AI‑native businesses are operating with lower gross margins, and how joint finance–engineering ownership, better cost classification and driver‑based modelling can restore visibility, predictability and control.

FreeNow Case Study: How to gain visibility and control over your AP process with Yooz AI

August 27, 2026 No Comments

This case study shows how FreeNow used Yooz AI to centralize AP across 10 countries in six months, cutting invoice cycles from weeks to days and reducing processing costs by up to 80%. It offers a practical roadmap for finance leaders seeking greater visibility, control, and scalability in their AP operations

Can Finance Teams Trust AI? How To Balance Innovation and Data Security

July 31, 2026 No Comments

Can finance teams really trust AI with sensitive financial data? In this session, leaders from AccountsIQ and GrowCFO explore how to harness AI for better insight and efficiency while putting the right controls, governance, and security in place.

How Leading Finance Teams Are Reducing Planning Cycles From Days to Seconds

June 11, 2026 No Comments

Join Nico Botes and Sunelle Botha from Montego Pet Nutrition, Eric Reyhle from Acterys, and Kevin Appleby from GrowCFO to discover how leading finance teams are cutting planning cycles from days to seconds. In this customer-led session, you’ll see how they replaced spreadsheet chaos with a single version of the truth, enabled real-time scenario modelling, and built AI-ready foundations for modern planning and forecasting using Microsoft Fabric, Power BI and Acterys.

AI Masterclass: Practical uses of Claude for finance leaders

April 29, 2026 No Comments

Finance leaders don’t need more AI theory – they need results. In this practical masterclass, Pac O’Shea and Kevin Appleby show how to use Claude as a hands-on finance assistant for P&L insights, sharper board packs, and fast scenario models. Walk away with prompts, templates, and repeatable workflows you can apply in your finance team immediately.

What It Takes to Scale Through Acquisition

April 15, 2026 No Comments

Scaling through acquisition can double the size of your business—but only if your finance systems, controls and culture keep up. In this session, Tim O’Reilly, Ed Mortimer and Kevin Appleby share how Guild Garage Group used Sage Intacct, a unified tech stack and disciplined capital allocation to grow from 0 to 28 partners and $300m in revenue, while staying in control of cash, risk and performance.