Nitesh Mukhi is the Finance Director at Presight AI, an AI analytics and big data analytics company in Abu Dhabi, with over two decades of experience across auditing, financial analysis, treasury, and FP&A roles at companies including Schlumberger, FedEx, and KPMG. Rohit Menon is a Regional Finance professional at Bioltec with more than 19 years of experience across multinational companies, focusing on finance transformation and developing FP&A capabilities. Sweta Jhalani is a Chartered Accountant and FP&A Manager based in India who transitioned from audit into FP&A, building experience in financial planning, analysis, and business partnering

Expect to Learn:

• How AI is transforming FP&A workflows

• Practical finance use cases for AI tools

• The importance of financial modelling and business partnering

• Why human judgment remains critical in AI adoption

• Building the skills needed for the future of finance

Eve Reiter is a global procurement leader and AI advocate with experience at Amazon, American Express, and State Street. Jurgen Lang is a Hamburg-based fractional CFO specializing in SaaS, sports, hospitality, and technology, with more than 15 years of finance experience. BukieFaforiji is an FP&A professional and creator of CFO Intel, an AI-powered platform that delivers transparent and auditable financial insights.

Expect to Learn:

• How AI is changing the day-to-day work of FP&A professionals.

• Why critical thinking and domain expertise matter more than ever in an AI-driven world.

• How finance leaders are using AI to automate workflows and build custom finance tools.

• What the AI Finance Club offers finance professionals looking to upskill.

• The opportunities,and risks, that AI creates for the future of finance careers.

Josette Ferrer is the Founder and Managing Director of Clairent Advisors, a valuation and business advisory firm specializing in business and intellectual property valuations. She also serves as President of the San Francisco Bay Area chapter of Financial Executives International (FEI) and is actively involved with organizations including How Women Lead, ProVisors, the American Society of Appraisers, and several executive leadership communities.

Expect to Learn:

• Why networking should start long before you need your next opportunity

• How to choose the right networking organizations for your career goals

• Simple strategies introverts can use to build meaningful professional relationships

• Why mentoring and networking naturally go hand in hand

Albert Lee is an FP&A leader, AI finance coach, and corporate trainer with over 13 years of experience helping finance teams embrace AI and automation. He has led FP&A functions across multinational organizations, including Merlin Entertainments and The Cookware Company, driving forecasting, profitability modeling, and process improvements across APAC. Today, Albert coaches CFOs and finance leaders through the AI Finance Club while delivering AI training for global organizations and professional finance communities.

Expect to Learn:

• Why AI should be your finance copilot

• How to build trusted AI workflows

• When to use AI vs. Power Query

• Best practices for secure AI adoption

• Key skills for the future of FP&A
  

Jack McCullough is the founder and president of the CFO Leadership Council, a professional community he built to empower senior financial executives through peer learning and collaboration. Over the course of his career, Jack has served as chief financial officer for twenty-six companies, leading not only finance but also business development, HR, and IT functions. 

Expect to Learn:

• Build FP&A teams with the three Cs: communication, curiosity, courage.

• Rare specialists can outperform broad generalists.

• Spot true critical specialists vs. those who just seem important.

• Find hidden influence by who people turn to in crises.

• Avoid promoting specialists away from their best work.

Alok Ajmera is the CEO of Prophix, a leading financial performance management platform helping CFO organizations modernize planning, budgeting, and forecasting. With over 22 years at Prophix, he has supported more than 3,000 finance teams globally in transforming how they close, consolidate, and plan. Alok has led the evolution of FP&A systems from spreadsheet-first to system-first, and now toward AI-enabled finance operations.

Expect to Learn:

• What makes FP&A a true force multiplier inside organizations

• How data stewardship, collaboration, and forecasting define great finance teams

• Why AI must stay deterministic when handling financial calculations

• The difference between probabilistic AI and structured finance systems

• How AI agents support FP&A without replacing financial control

Tim Stallkamp is a Senior Managing Director and the leader of Riveron’s Interim Management practice. He is a seasoned turnaround executive who provides interim management and turnaround management services to distressed and under-performing businesses. Tim has led turnarounds as interim chief executive officer (CEO), chief restructuring officer (CRO), chief transformation officer (CTO), and chief financial officer (CFO).

Expect to Learn:

• Why private equity is driving demand for interim finance leaders

• What makes a strong interim FP&A and finance professional

• Why broad, cross-industry experience matters more than narrow expertise

• How interim leaders create value from day one

• The importance of clear scope and alignment in engagements

Nicholas Moen is a CMA and finance leader at Section, where he reinvents finance through AI, helping organizations build AI-powered workflows at scale. Based in Franklin, Pennsylvania, Nicholas specializes in leveraging AI to streamline FP&A processes, automate workflows, and empower finance teams to focus on strategic decision-making.


Expect to Learn:

• How AI frees FP&A teams from manual work

• Automating reports, spreadsheets, and workflows

• Training and empowering teams on AI tools

• Key FP&A skills: business partnering, listening, and data understanding

Robert Blanding is the Chief Financial Officer at Fall Creek, a global leader in the Ag-Tech sector. He brings extensive experience in finance and operations from 18 years at Intel and leadership roles across industrial manufacturing, technology, and ag-tech companies. Robert combines strategic financial leadership with a focus on innovation, long-term business growth, and developing high-performing teams.

Expect to Learn:

• What great FP&A looks like and the importance of business acumen

• How to develop strong partnerships between FP&A and accounting

• Strategies for building high-performing, empowered finance teams

• Navigating systems, processes, and technology challenges in FP&A

David Dors is a finance transformation consultant and AI educator specializing in helping finance teams adopt Claude, AI agents, and workflow automation. After beginning his career in banking and FP&A, David shifted his focus to helping finance professionals use AI to improve reporting, analysis, forecasting, and decision-making. Through workshops, training programs, and content creation, he teaches finance teams how to build AI-powered systems that save time and allow analysts to focus on higher-value strategic work.

Expect to Learn:

• How AI is changing the future of FP&A

• Practical ways to automate reporting and recurring finance tasks

• The difference between Claude Chat, Claude Code, and AI agents

• Why finance professionals should think of AI as a digital teammate

• Key skills FP&A professionals need in an AI-driven world

Tim is the CFO of the Savannah Bananas, a wildly innovative and entertaining baseball organization. With experience in public accounting, higher education, and consulting, Tim brings a unique perspective on financial management, teaching, and operational strategy. He has also authored a book for creatives and non-finance professionals on strategic financial management, helping others understand how to transform ideas into sustainable business ventures.

Expect to Learn:

• How FP&A functions in an unconventional sports and entertainment organization

• Budgeting and financial planning across multiple teams and events

• Managing risk, contracts, and operational logistics for traveling events

• Lessons on aligning finance with organizational growth and fan engagement

• How innovative business models and creativity intersect with FP&A

Derek Baker is the Head of Strategic Finance at Circle, a growth-stage SaaS company focused on building an all-in-one platform for online communities. He has built the Strategic Finance function from the ground up, covering areas like pricing, sales compensation, investor due diligence, and AI-powered financial reporting. Prior to Circle, Derek co-founded The FP&A Hub with Paul Barnhurst and Liran Edelist to support finance professionals. His career spans FP&A roles across SaaS, marketplace, and biotech startups. 

Expect to Learn:

• How AI is transforming financial reporting and analysis in FP&A.

• The role of business partnering in aligning FP&A with strategic decisions.

• Derek's transition from spreadsheets to AI-driven financial models.

• How FP&A evolves as companies scale.

Gabrielle Dolan is a global expert in strategic storytelling and communication, having worked with leaders from companies like Amazon, EY, Uber, and the Obama Foundation. With over 20 years of experience in leadership roles and storytelling, Gabrielle is the bestselling author of eight books, including her latest Story Intelligence: The Craft of Authentic Storytelling Made Smarter with AI. She is also the co-host of the podcast Keeping It Real with Jack and Ral, which ranks in Spotify's top 3% most shared podcasts. 

Expect to Learn:

• Why storytelling is essential for influencing decisions in finance and business.

• The impact of authenticity and vulnerability in leadership communication.

• How AI can enhance storytelling without losing its human touch.

• Practical tips for finance professionals on how to use stories in presentations.

Michael Gould is a technology entrepreneur and software engineer with over 40 years of experience in financial planning and modeling systems. After studying Mathematics and Computation at the University of Oxford, Michael co-created Adaytum, a leading business planning platform, and later founded Anaplan, a globally successful enterprise planning platform that became a British tech unicorn. Today, he is the founder of Kaleidoscope, focusing on rethinking financial modeling for modern teams and continuing to pioneer innovations that drive better decision-making in business. .

Expect to Learn:

• The challenges and complexities of modern financial modeling

• How Kaleidoscope is helping businesses move beyond spreadsheets

• Michael's journey from IBM to Anaplan and now Kaleidoscope

• The importance of understanding business processes in financial modeling

• How AI is impacting the financial modeling landscape

In this episode of FP&A Unlocked, Paul Barnhurst speaks with Glenn Snyder about the current state of FP&A, focusing on career growth, hiring challenges, and how the role continues to evolve. Glenn shares his perspective on why networking matters more than ever in today’s job market, how professionals can stand out without relying only on certifications, and what it really takes to move up in FP&A. They also discuss the shift toward strategic partnership, the importance of understanding business drivers, and how leadership and empathy shape long-term success

Expect to Learn:

• Why networking is the most effective way to find opportunities

• How to stand out in a competitive job market

• The shift of FP&A from reporting to strategic partnership

• Why understanding business drivers is critical in FP&A

Carolina Lago is the founder of Tactic Financial, where she helps FP&A professionals integrate AI into their workflows through hands-on training and practical tools. With over 20 years of experience in financial planning, analysis, and modeling across multiple industries and continents, she brings a unique perspective on how technology can amplify (not replace) the work of finance teams.

Expect to Learn:

• The evolving role of FP&A as a bridge between strategy and operations

• How AI can reduce manual tasks and enhance strategic thinking

• The importance of understanding workflows and processes in FP&A 

• Carolina's approach to using AI as a "thinking partner" to amplify human skills

Bryan McGowan is the founder of Alpyne and a CFO with a rare mix of finance and technical skill. After spending a decade leading finance in tech, he launched Alpyne in 2021 to solve a problem he had lived himself: great CFOs were spending too much time on manual work and not enough time on strategic thinking. 

Expect to Learn:

• What great FP&A looks like in practice

• Why accounting fundamentals still matter

• How coding and data knowledge help finance professionals

• Why Bryan built Alpyne to solve his own CFO workflow problems

• How AI can help save time in finance roles

In this special solo episode of FP&A Unlocked, Paul Barnhurst celebrates reaching 100 episodes of the podcast while also reflecting on his broader journey of hosting over 200 FP&A episodes across multiple shows. He shares lessons from his experience in FP&A, career growth, and learning AI, along with what actually matters in the field today. He also shares his thoughts on AI and how it’s changing finance workflows, explaining why building repeatable processes matters more than just prompting. He also previews upcoming conversations with professionals already using AI in their day-to-day work.

Expect to Learn:

• What helps FP&A professionals grow beyond technical skills

• Why career paths are rarely linear

• How to approach networking in a more effective way

• Why AI is more about processes than prompts

• How AI can help save time in finance roles

Josh LaSov is an FP&A and data professional with experience in consulting, ERP implementations, and analytics. He has implemented NetSuite and FP&A tools across many companies and previously co-founded Satori Reporting, a BI platform for NetSuite users that was later acquired by private equity. He is now the founder of Causi AI, where he focuses on building AI agents to help finance teams automate analysis, processes, and forecasting.

Expect to Learn:

• What makes FP&A professionals stand out today

• Why combining financial and operational data is critical

• How BI tools expand the role of FP&A

• How AI is improving analysis, forecasting, and workflows