Canadian CFOs on the Move - week ending February 25, 2011

Companies with CFOs on the move this week include: Argentum Silver Corp., Eaglewood Energy Inc., Panoro Minerals Ltd., Blue Note Mining Inc., Alacer Gold Corp., Compton Petroleum Corporation, Exile Resources Inc., Redstar Gold Corp., Softchoice Corporation, Otish Energy Inc., Mxi® Technologies, Belzberg Technologies, Inc., Canadian Imperial Venture Corp.

Argentum Silver Corp. (TSX-V: ASL) announced that following the closing of its Qualifying Transaction, it has announced that Simon Anderson has been appointed as Chief Financial Officer. Mr. Anderson is the Chief Financial Officer of Arco and is President of S2 Management Inc., a private Vancouver-based company providing financial consulting and corporate advice to private businesses and public companies listed in Canada and the United States. He has served as an officer and director of several companies and has experience in the process of public listing of private companies.

Eaglewood Energy Inc. (TSX-V: EWD) announced that Arlene Weatherdon has resigned as the Company's Chief Financial Officer. She has agreed to remain in a consulting role as long as her services are required. Diana Moes, Eaglewood's Controller, will become interim CFO, taking over many of Ms Weatherdon's duties.

Panoro Minerals Ltd. (TSX-VE: PML, BVLAC: PML, FRANKFURT: PZM) announced the appointment of David W. Huber as Chief Financial Officer, replacing Michael Kerfoot. Prior to joining Panoro, Mr. Huber spent over six years in the Cayman Islands providing CFO and Corporate Secretarial services for the reinsurance industry. He also spent over five years with KPMG in the Cayman Islands and PricewaterhouseCoopers in Edmonton, Alberta.

Blue Note Mining Inc. (TSX-V: BNT) announced the appointment of Daniel Bortoluzzi as Chief Financial Officer in replacement of Robert Therriault who has left the Company. Mr. Bortoluzzi has been the Company's corporate controller since October 2008 and has over fifteen years of experience working with private and public mining and manufacturing companies. Previously, Mr. Bortoluzzi has served as corporate controller of Campbell Resources, Zemex Corporation and Lorbec Metals, and was a manager at Samson Bélair Deloitte & Touche.

Alacer Gold Corp. (TSX: ASR) announced the appointment of Douglas Tobler as Chief Financial Officer. Prior to joining Alacer (formerly Anatolia Minerals) in 2004, Mr. Tobler was president and founder of Falcon Strategic Partners where he provided advisory services to a number of mining, oil & gas, distribution and technology companies.

Compton Petroleum Corporation (TSX: CMT) announced the departure of Leigh Cassidy, Vice President, Finance and Chief Financial Officer ('CFO'). Theresa Kosek, has been appointed to the position of Vice President, Finance and CFO upon Mr. Cassidy's departure. Ms. Kosek has over 16 years of experience in the petroleum industry in roles of increasing responsibility for finance and corporate matters. She has been with Compton for over 11 years and most recently served as Controller for the Corporation. Prior to this, Ms. Kosek was employed by Grant Thornton LLP, providing financial and valuation advice to a number of small to mid-sized petroleum clients. She also serves on the Board and is Treasurer of Lunchbox Theatre.

Exile Resources Inc. (TSX-V: ERI) announced that it has appointed Darren Moulds as the Company's new Chief Financial Officer. Mr. Moulds replaces Graham Warren who has resigned from the management team and will be leaving the Company to pursue other opportunities. Mr. Moulds has held previous management positions including Chief Financial Officer of Africa Oil Corp. and Financial Controller of Upstream Operations for Centurion Energy International Inc. (Dana Gas).

Redstar Gold Corp. (TSX-V: RGC) announced the appointment of Alec Peck as Chief Financial Officer. Mr. Peck takes over from Paddy Nicol, who has been with Redstar since 1995 serving as a director from 1999 and as its CFO since 2003. From 1986 until 1993, he was a partner in Toronto and then Vancouver with member offices of the international public accounting firm Horwath International. From 1993 until March, 2004, he was a vice-president in the corporate finance group of publicly listed full-service investment dealers, first with CM Oliver and then Canaccord Capital Corp., which acquired CM Oliver.

Softchoice Corporation (TSX: SO), announced the appointment of Bill Linton to Chairman of the Softchoice board. Mr. Linton is the Vice President, Finance and Chief Financial Officer of Rogers Communications Inc. Mr. Linton has held various executive level positions throughout his career. In addition to senior roles in finance at SHL Systemhouse Inc., Rogers Wireless and Rogers Cable, Mr. Linton managed the sale of Prior Data Services Inc., to X-wave Solutions while serving as Prior Data's Chairman and Chief Executive Officer.

Otish Energy Inc. (TSX-V: OEI) announced that Iqbal Boga has joined the Company, replacing Chris Hobbs as CFO and Director. He is currently the CFO, Secretary and a director of Taku Gold Corp. (TSX-V: TAK). Mr. Boga was a sole practitioner with I. J. Boga, Chartered Accountant from 1993 to August 2007. He has acted as a director, Chief Financial Officer and Corporate Secretary for various Exchange-listed companies. Mr. Boga was an officer and director of four capital pool companies, all of which have completed Qualifying Transactions.

Mxi® Technologies (www.mxi.com) announced the appointment of Scott Helmer to the role of Chief Financial Officer (CFO). Mr. Helmer brings over 15 years of experience to the role of CFO having previously held senior finance positions with both public and private technology companies in the communications and information security markets. Prior to joining Mxi, Mr. Helmer served as CFO of Galazar Networks and held senior finance roles with ActivCard, Alcatel, and Newbridge Networks.

Belzberg Technologies, Inc. (TSX: BLZ), following a definite agreement to merge itself with Frontline Technologies Corp. through an acquisition of Frontline by Belzberg. The combined entity, will operate under the Frontline brand name. David Evans of Belzberg will continue as VP Finance.

Canadian Imperial Venture Corp. (TSX-V: CQV, Frankfurt: DFM) announced the appointment of Tina Ricketts as Chief Financial Officer and Corporate Secretary for CIVC.

If you have news about CFOs on the move, or any comments on this feature, please email us.

Want to become a successful CFO? Quit your job...

I have always believed that when one has a career that they love, it will never seem like work. I have tried to live this principle throughout my career. It was a key driver for starting CFO2Grow. It is a key driver in pushing and continuing its growth and success.

One of the best things I love about my role is the trust people put in me. I get to be a repository of a lot of confidential information. People trust me with very important personal and corporate information that they won't share with many, if not another soul.

I'm grateful for that confidence. It allows me to do my job, and do it well.

Another thing that I love about what I do is that I get to follow businesses. What I enjoyed so much about the first few years of my career when I was an auditor at Ernst & Young was getting to see and learn from diverse businesses and understanding what made a successful business, as well as unsuccessful. Getting insights into profitability drivers and seeing economic activity in a microcosm was wonderful to observe. Seeing different management styles and ownership roles fascinated me. It still does today.

But as much as I have a job as Senior Partner and Practice Leader of our CFO Search practice, it's not my job. It's my passion. Well, one of my passions anyway.

I sometimes speak with senior finance executives who don't love their job. They don't because they haven't found anything in their career to be passionate about. Which is a shame.

I do however have the opportunity to connect with CFOs (present and future) who LOVE their job. They love their work so much, that if you ask them how many hours they put in last week, they would have to look at their agenda and start counting the hours.

I can tell within minutes of meeting a CFO whether they have a job or a passion. It's obvious. Truly successful CFOs don't have a job.

Want to become a successful CFO? Quit your job and find your passion.

You’ve been a CFO for a long time. What’s next?

As a CFO with many years of experience, you certainly have seen a lot in your career. If you are a CFO and have been working for over 30 years, the thought of ‘What’s next’ certainly enters into your thoughts, not to mention the thoughts of your family members. You’ve worked hard all your life and would like to slow down the pace a notch, but you don’t want to give up the challenges you need to feel the personal satisfaction that has driven you throughout your career.

Here are some options to consider:

Taking a CEO position: I can hear you say ‘I thought you said this would help me slow down the pace a notch? Becoming CEO would be more stressful, not less.’ What I am advocating for is for you to consider only those roles where being CEO would call on your talents and abilities, but have you manage a team of people to get the details done – your role would be the Quarterback. Think about it – Have you ever thought that the CEO you worked for had a less stressful job than you? Of course you have. Now it’s your turn. (Read from CFOZone: Prepping to become CEO: How CFOs can become CEO)

Become a Board Member: There is a high demand for people with your talent on Boards of Directors. According to Deloitte’s Corporate Governance Webcast: CFOs on Boards, a CFO can expect to spend 250 hours a year in time commitment to a Board of Directors. While this Webcast was more for a currently employed CFO sitting on the Board of Directors of another company, a lot of the advice still applies in this situation. Experienced CFOs with a few Board positions have the flexibility they want with the challenges they need, and the compensation is good too.

Those that can, work. Those that can’t, Consult? If you are getting ready to slow down a bit, it might be a good time to hang up a shingle and call yourself a Consultant. The word Consultant has been used by many professionals in between jobs as a euphemism for their lack of employment. But this does not have to be the case. We have seen (and helped) many Senior Finance Executives in between opportunities find contractual roles that allow them to keep busy, earn good pay, and have a level of flexibility they have never had. Making a career move to Consulting has been a good move for many experienced CFOs.

Help build a Start up: With all the experience you have, wouldn’t it be great to be involved with creating a real business out of an idea? There are many entrepreneurs, young and not so young, that have a great idea, are fabulous at the technical, the marketing, or both, but have little understanding as to what the mechanics of finance and administration are. They need help with financing the company, managing cash flow and all the other good things necessary to make a great idea or great product into a great company. Combining your strengths with amazing ideas and talent could be the best thing that ever happened to you in your career. Isn’t it time to have some fun?

While you may like these ideas as options, your next Question is: “So how do I find these opportunities?” The same way you find other opportunities – network and build your personal brand while adding value to those around you. Consider which option would suit you best and let people know what you are looking for.

Spring Cleaning!

I apologize to my fans (Hi Mom!) for not sharing my thoughts over the past few weeks. I was too busy Spring Cleaning.

I didn't think you'd believe me.

However, Spring Cleaning is a great concept. For some, this is just theoretical.

With spring in the air, I recommend you clean these two important things.

1) Clean up your Personal Work Space.

Whether you have a cubicle, desk, or a corner office (which I hope to have one day soon), organizing those papers by either filing or recycling will do you a world of good, and reduce that feeling of "I'm Overwhelmed".

Try it. You'll like it.

But if your boss sees all that space around you and thinks you have room for more projects, please don't shoot the messenger.

2) Clean up your Work Team.

If you are working in any supervisory capacity, it's time to look at the team that reports to you and say "Are these the best people to work with me and help me deliver for what I am responsible for?". If you cannot say "Yes" without delay, it's a good time to think about what your team should look like, and go out and find them.

Spring is a time that many employees are considering change, and you could be their next new long-term employer.

Follow my advice, and not only will your work area be less cluttered, you'll have time to enjoy the weather outside.

Accounting for Overtime

From the beginning of time in Accounting, Overtime has been a requirement.

This weekend, KPMG advertised in major newspapers across Canada to inform their current and ex employees that they are offering them additional compensation for their Overtime. They are not doing this out of the goodness of their heart, but as a response to a class action suit launched by one of their former employees in 2007. (I'm curious as to how long it will take the other Big 4 in Canada to make the same offer.)

KPMG is being reactive rather than proactive, and I’m sure this will be a topic for discussion when it comes time to recruit staff, whether out of university or experienced staff, not only for KPMG, but all accounting firms, especially the Big 4.

Accounting firms have always had a reputation for requiring Overtime. Prospective Accounting graduates wanting to work at an accounting firm have always been aware of this requirement. So what’s changed?

It seems that Generation Y is not so interested in working too hard. And who could blame them? They don’t need to. Especially in Accounting, accountants with a few years of experience are in demand, and if they don’t like the conditions of their employer, they can find greener pastures elsewhere.

Accounting is a time sensitive business. Deadlines are always around the corner, and for work to get done in accounting, both at firms and at companies, overtime will be required. How companies manage the overtime they require their staff to work is how they will be rated by their employees, both current and prospective.

As I mentioned in a previous blog, Progressive companies are compensating their staff for the overtime worked, either in cash or in time off. For Generation Y employees, giving them flexibility will be helpful in keeping them motivated and retained.

BlackBerry: Blessing or Curse?

Last week, I was one of the millions of BlackBerry users that spent a few hours cursing their BlackBerry because it wasn’t receiving emails. Once I found out that it was RIM’s fault, I was one of millions cursing RIM for the service outage (yet again).

And that got me thinking.

For all of us that rely on this device to keep us connected, is our BlackBerry a blessing or a curse?


Let’s count our Blessings…

• Our Blackberry lets us know what’s going on. In today’s age, immediate information is a key for success. With the correct information in our hands sooner, we are able to make better decisions quicker.
• We are in the office when we’re out of the office. We don’t have to be tied down to a desk to get ‘work’ done. We can be at lunch, waiting for an appointment, be getting dressed in the morning or walking around our company, and be constantly aware of what is going on. We can even be at the beach half way around the world, and still be ‘working’.
• Our calendar (when synced with our desktop) allows us to always know what our schedule is, who we are meeting, where and when.
• I particularly enjoy the Instant messaging application between BlackBerry’s. It has taken the concept of IM and turned it truly anywhere.

Now for the Curses…

• We always know what’s going on. Wouldn’t it be nice to take a break sometime?
• We are always in the office. Wouldn’t it be nice to spend time with other people (especially the people we love) and give them our full attention, showing them that they are important? Wouldn’t it be nice to take a real vacation?
• We always have the day planned. An unplanned day once in a while wouldn’t be so terrible. It would give us time to think.
• Personally, IM’ing while in the bathroom isn’t much better than taking a phone call while in there.
  

What’s the solution?

The BlackBerry is a great tool, although it’s not nicknamed the CrackBerry for nothing. It can be very addictive. As a user, you have the power to make it helpful, and not have it take over your life.

Some employers have instituted rules regarding BlackBerry usage off hours to take into account Work Life Balance issues. See here for a recent article in the news.

While I agree with the idea that BlackBerry usage should not intrude on personal time, creating rules for employees may be a bit much.

A few years ago I went to a remote cottage with my children, and one of the great ideas behind this vacation was that there was no cell phone coverage. This way I wouldn’t be able to check messages and it would force me to relax. As I was exploring the area near the cottage, I was on top of a rocky ledge overlooking the lake, and my BlackBerry started buzzing. I spent the next few days standing at the top of that ledge with my BlackBerry held high, looking like I was the Statue of Liberty.

Since then I’m a bit better with my BlackBerry. I’m turning the vibrate option off more often, and turning it off completely more often too. Being at my child’s birthday party or having dinner with my wife does not need me checking my emails every 2 minutes.

In the end, you are in charge of how you spend your time. A BlackBerry can give you more control of your time, and can be a useful tool to allow you to achieve better Work Life Balance. But if you find that the device is changing the balance to more Work and less Life, it’s time to turn it off more often.

Work Life Balance - No thanks, we're accountants

Work Life Balance is a significant issue today for all companies. Work Life Balance allows for increased retention and morale, and is an important sales pitch for hiring new recruits, especially Generation Y employees.

Can Work Life Balance be a reality in Financial Reporting Groups’ of companies?

Here are some issues going against Work Life Balance in Financial Reporting Groups’:

1) Month end. Quarter end. Year end.

Employees within a Financial Reporting Group face these deadlines and can basically forget vacations, weekend plans and family time. How can you have Work Life Balance in a Financial Reporting Group where you have these recurring deadlines?

2) Managers with old school training.

Many managers just assume that Work Life Balance is not an option within a Financial Reporting Group. They assume this because they were trained this way, just as their managers before them. Being a workaholic was a requirement for success in Financial Reporting Groups’ or in accounting firm (in many cases it still is). "Work smarter, not harder" is not a concept accepted by many FR professionals.

So what is the solution?

Hiring enough people to get the job done would be an appropriate solution. This is not a priority in many finance groups for many reasons. One reason is that Finance is not looked at as a value add group - it is managed as a cost group. (This topic specifically will be the subject of another blog).

Progressive companies are realizing that Work Life Balance is an issue that needs to be addressed. We are seeing companies that have implemented an overtime compensation policy in their Finance Group. This is an excellent tool to measure the real cost of deadline oriented work. Progressive Finance Managers measure the overtime as a way of compensating staff with flextime or additional vacation during off-peak periods. It is also an effective measure which allows for the necessity for hiring BEFORE your staff gets fed up and leaves you.

While Work Life Balance in a Financial Reporting Group may be difficult to achieve, for companies that care about their employees, it is possible. Where would you prefer to work?