Experience

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  Consulting Practice

  • San Antonio, TX

  • Financial Consultant

    • Mar 2009 - Present
    • San Antonio, TX

    Consult as CFO for start-up companies that cannot afford a CFO yet. Set up accounting records, keep books, file tax returns, advise on raising funds and money management, ensure compliance with regulatory issues and suggest good governance practices.

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  Revolution Fuels, Inc.

  • Minneapolis, MN

  • Director

    • Dec 2013 - Apr 2016
    • Minneapolis, MN

    Start-up company turning oils and fats from food industry into biofuels.

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  Sellit Social Commerce, Inc.

  • Phoenix, AZ

  • Chairman of the Board

    • Jan 2010 - Dec 2015
    • Phoenix, AZ

    Sellit Social Commerce, Inc. was a software company that was established to provide internet storefronts to small on-line merchants, enable them to replicate their storefronts on social media websites, provide advertising for their stores and enable them to make changes to inventories and pricing in one place and have it replicated to all stores.

• 

  Athene USA (Formerly AmerUs Group Co. and Aviva USA )

  • Des Moines, Iowa

  • Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer

    • 2002 - 2006
    • Des Moines, Iowa

    Managed finance and treasury functions with responsibility for all accounting; management, external and SEC reporting; taxes; internal audit; treasury and capital management; investor relations; rating agency relationships and communications. Member of Boards of Directors of all subsidiaries, Senior Operating Team and IT Steering Committee. Chair of Reinsurance Steering Committee, Sarbanes-Oxley Steering Committee and IT Risk Assessment Steering Committee. Staffed audit committee and finance and strategy committee of the board.•Implemented Sarbanes-Oxley Section 404 on time and with no material weaknesses. Reduced cost in future years.•Implemented new general ledger system. Time to close books was reduced from 5 weeks to 2 weeks, allowing more time for analysis.•Designed new planning and forecasting process that created tighter plans and better knowledge of the drivers of the plans. Forecasting process created two forecasts per quarter:-immediately following close to ensure that earnings guidance was appropriate -2 to 3 weeks before quarter end to ensure that quarter was progressing as expected.•Performed complete talent assessment of Finance Department. Terminated 25% of the staff and then reorganized and upgraded talent within the department.•Executed capital transactions including $144 million three-year mandatory convertible, $185 million exchange of optional convertible equity-linked accretive notes due to a change in accounting for contingent interest, $300 million ten-year senior debt, $150 million perpetual preferred stock, remarketing of $144 million five-year senior debt, maturity of mandatory convertible forward purchase contract, call of perpetual preferred stock, renegotiation of credit facility increasing amount from $175 million to $400 million and lengthening tenure from two years to five years, share repurchases.•Successfully managed financial aspects of sale of company to Aviva plc for purchase price of $69 per share/$3.2 billion.

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  Fortis Financial Group (sold to Hartford Life Insurance Company)

  • Woodbury, MN

  • Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer

    • 1997 - 2001
    • Woodbury, MN

    Responsible for all daily accounting functions, management reporting and regulatory external reporting for the broker/dealer and advisory companies. Responsibilities also included planning functions, both strategic and operational planning as well as budgeting. Was also responsible for merger and acquisition work in support of long-term strategic plan. Implemented new strategic plan, created new operating planning process, championed value added as decision-making tool throughout organization, created strategic measures and balanced scorecard for all departments. Worked on divestiture of Fortis Financial Group for the parent, Fortis, Inc., with a final bid price of $1.312 billion. From 1997 to 2000, earnings grew 37%, assets under management grew 31%, variable annuity sales grew 47%, and variable universal life sales grew 18%.

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  Ameriprise (Formerly American Express Financial Advisors)

  • Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer

    • Oct 1995 - Nov 1997

    Managed finance function including all accounting transaction processing, management and external reporting, planning and budgeting, tax, treasury and audit functions. Provided leadership for staff of 450 through 8 direct reports. Member of Senior Leadership Team, Technology Steering Committee and Board of Directors, including all subsidiary boards.• Created “Center of Excellence” investment accounting function for owned and management assets of over $140 billion for all American Express subsidiaries, including daily pricing of mutual funds.• Sponsored project to select and install new investment accounting system (SunGard). Completed process reengineering plan to handle 80% of gaps without additional programming changes.• Led new corporate reengineering effort and met first year goal of saving $10 million. Was on target to achieve $50 million goal set for 1997, 1998 and 1999.

  • Vice President and Corporate Controller

    • May 1994 - Oct 1995

    Led Controllers Group of over 20 senior financial personnel and business unit controllers. Responsible for all internal and external reporting, accounts payable, fixed assets, inventory and benefits accounting.• Implemented general ledger, planning and budgeting system (PeopleSoft) that improved quality of analysis and reduced time spent on report preparation and data manipulation. Saved $2.7 million of operating costs and eliminated $280,000 in annual staff costs.

  • Vice President, Controller and Treasurer of IDS Life Insurance Company (subsidiary)

    • Sep 1991 - May 1994

    Managed entire finance function for 14th largest life insurance company in the US.• Implemented mark-to-market for securities (FAS #115) in cross-organizational effort.• Created plan to minimize the impact of accounting write-downs on interest-only securities by combining them with collateral (principal-only securities) in trusts to be accounted for as a single investment.• Managed $100 million guaranty fund assessments issue.

  • Chief Accounting Officer

    • Jul 1988 - Sep 1991

    Managed financial reporting, payroll, bank reconciliations, financial accounting systems support and finance and accounting trainee program.•Successfully petitioned SEC to allow accrual of dividends on mandatory redeemable preferred stock and influenced the Emerging Issues Task Force of the FASB to allow prospective rather than catch-up treatment of effect of prepayments on collateralized mortgage obligations.

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  St. Paul Companies (now St. Paul Travelers Companies Inc.)

  • Greater Minneapolis-St. Paul Area

  • Chief Financial Officer, John H. Crowther, Inc.

    • Aug 1982 - Dec 1987
    • Greater Minneapolis-St. Paul Area

    John H. Crowther, Inc. was $100 million insurance brokerage subsidiary.

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  Coopers & Lybrand (now PriceWaterhouseCoopers)

  • Minneapolis, MN

  • Audit Supervisor

    • Jun 1978 - Aug 1982
    • Minneapolis, MN