Building a roadmap for future success

Treasury Practice

Building a roadmap for future success

Published: Nov 2024

At Treasury Today’s inaugural Future Treasury and Finance Leaders Forum, an illustrious group of award winners and industry leaders shared their success stories, discussed the evolving treasury skillset, and explored how treasurers can build a roadmap for their personal and professional development.

September 2024 saw Treasury Today’s inaugural Future Treasury and Finance Leaders Forum in Singapore. The event brought together an elite group of treasury practitioners, many of whom are past winners of the Adam Smith Awards Asia and Women in Treasury Within awards, together with partners from HSBC, Kyriba and MUFG.

Chris Emslie, Chair of the Association of Corporate Treasurers Singapore (ACTS) and Sophie Jackson, Publisher and Head of Strategic Content at Treasury Today

During the event, Sophie Jackson, Publisher & Head of Strategic Content at Treasury Today, and co-facilitator Chris Emslie, Chair of the Association of Corporate Treasurers Singapore (ACTS), invited attendees to share their experiences of participating in the awards programmes. This was followed by an insightful and lively discussion about evolving best practices in treasury, upskilling regional treasury teams and the steps that treasury practitioners can take to create a roadmap for their future development.

Evolution of the treasurer’s role

Attendees of the forum discussed how the role of the treasurer is evolving in APAC. A recurring theme was the trend for treasury teams to take on additional responsibilities outside of the traditional scope of treasury, such as tax, legal and accounting, and to play a greater role in supporting M&A activity.

“I’ve been in Singapore for 16 years, and worked with a lot of regional treasuries,” said Manoj S Bhatia, Managing Director, Global Head of Subsidiary Banking at MUFG, pointing out that a lot more treasurers are now getting involved in the areas of funding and investment alongside more conventional activities. “Corporate treasury is now giving the mandate to regional treasury to go and find a diverse investor base, so the whole corporate finance angle is becoming a much bigger part of the treasury conversation,” he observed.

At the same time, the changing economic and geopolitical landscape means that treasury resilience is becoming an increasingly important theme. “Treasurers are bringing this up in boardroom conversations and talking about what-if scenarios, and how they can make sure everything is fit for purpose,” said Jonathan Teh, Managing Director, Head of Global Banking Corporate Sales, HSBC Singapore, Regional Sales Head GB Multinationals, Asia Pacific, HSBC. Likewise, Teh noted that treasurers are increasingly stepping up to support business growth by taking on the role of strategic advisors to the business.

As this shift continues, technology has an important role to play in helping treasurers operate more strategically. Javier Tan, Enterprise Account Director at Kyriba, observed that technology can empower treasury and finance professionals by automating routine tasks, thereby enabling them to shift their focus from transactional duties to more strategic activities.

“Advanced analytics and real-time data provide deeper insights into liquidity, risk management, and cash forecasting, allowing treasurers to make informed decisions that drive business growth,” he explained. “With the integration of AI and machine learning, technology not only enhances accuracy but also helps identify patterns and trends that might otherwise go unnoticed.” This, in turn, positions treasury teams to be proactive in optimising financial performance.

Building the treasury skillset

Newer responsibilities may require additional skillsets, alongside the core skills required for traditional treasury activities. As Yian Ping Teo, Regional Treasurer, Shell Treasury Centre East (Pte) Ltd, observed: “Treasury professionals know FX and cash management very well, but when it comes to the more complex deal structuring, some don’t necessarily have that kind of skill set. With businesses becoming more complex and focusing on returns in more companies, we are seeing more complex deals that require different types of skill sets.”

The skills required will vary depending on the size of the company, its geographical footprint and its business model. “Whether your organisation is a startup looking into e-commerce, or a huge MNC focusing on geopolitical risk and cross-border transactions, different organisations require different types of skill to support them,” noted Angela Seah, Regional Treasury Director, Johnson & Johnson. “Having a varied finance background definitely helps – business conversations are not just about treasury, so whether you understand the business, finance or accounting, all of those experiences can help as well.”

For treasury teams in the region, there are different ways to approach the task of building in new skills. When seeking to enhance technology expertise, one option is to upskill the existing regional team – but as Amit Grover, Regional Director Treasury, Intercontinental (APAC + LATAM), GE Healthcare, explained, companies may also choose to recruit people with a specific technology background. “This, of course, requires more budget and headcount,” he noted. “So that’s always a challenge, and it’s difficult to substantiate what sort of benefit that brings, and how much cost reduction or efficiency one can achieve.”

“From our perspective, we’ve seen one in two corporates involved in the transformation of their traditional business models into direct-to-consumer models. I’ve also had the opportunity to meet some treasury teams that include 40 to 50 people, and the way they are structured is as partnership ecosystems to support their businesses, particularly in new economy companies. A lot of co-creation work is happening.”

Jonathan Teh, Managing Director, Head of Global Banking Corporate Sales, HSBC Singapore, Regional Sales Head GB Multinationals, Asia Pacific, HSBC

Journeys to success

Many of the attendees had previously been recognised in Treasury Today’s award programmes over the last few years, and some had won multiple awards. To tap into this rich pool of expertise, Emslie asked a selection of past winners about their successful nominations and what winning an Adam Smith Award Asia or Within Award has meant to them, both professionally and personally.

Shoko Suzuki, Managing Director and CIO, UntroD Capital
Formerly Chief Transformation Officer Gro 24/7 (Unilever)

“Our project was to create a B2B e-commerce platform within Unilever to handle payments from very small retailers. So the treasury team project was almost half an IT project – we had to choose a vendor and choose the banks that could understand our problem.

“We expanded the search to talk to investment bank-type people who could understand the fintech part, and were used to dealing with e-commerce type clients, rather than MNC clients. We also had to talk to technology vendors who could train the IT team within the company and run the project. It was a very complex project, and we really appreciated the recognition in the Adam Smith Awards Asia – it made a difference to the team.”

Amit Grover, Regional Director Treasury, Intercontinental (APAC + LATAM), GE Healthcare

“I came to Singapore in 2017, and 2018 was the first time we won the award. Since then, we have been on a transformation journey that started with setting up a regional treasury centre in Singapore and building those regional treasury capabilities for the APAC region, which were limited prior to that. More recently, we’ve concluded a big transformation journey that involved splitting GE into three parts – GE Healthcare, GE Vernova and GE Aerospace – all of which are now standalone public companies. So, in the last seven years, there’s been no dearth of action.

“Treasury Today provides a platform to recognise some of the transformation work we’ve done over the years, and we have won various awards. From our perspective, it’s been about dealing with multiple internal and external stakeholders, thinking about and proposing a nomination, getting internal management buy-in, and then working with a banking partner to draft a write up. As there is so much competition in these awards, our objective has always been to put our best foot forward, and present the transformation work we’ve been doing.

“We try to ensure such recognitions are shared with the leadership and the broader team within the organisation, which helps to improve visibility for the treasury organisation and the good work the treasury team has been doing.”

Michael Weng, Experienced Treasurer

“Technology is a key part in helping automate things. However, you do need to do a certain amount of reengineering of your process as well. If you stick with your current practice, and you put a system in, it doesn’t work well.

“It’s important to share a lot with your key partners. There are certain flows that you will want to put into your treasury system. Are you going to use it on your own, or are you going to be integrated with the finance system? The most important thing is to work with the FP&A team to get the information you need.

“So there are quite a few areas where you need to work with different teams, not just your own team.

“You can have a treasury system that only has what you want, but on the corporate side there is a lot of business information that you need, alongside the information you can get from your banks.”

Lay Perk Toh, Group Treasurer and Head of Corporate Insurance, Kulicke & Soffa Pte Ltd

“Winning an award is the icing on the cake – it’s an extra boost to the team and to the organisation. In 2018, we were given Adam Smith Awards in three categories, followed by an award in 2022 for Best Investing Solution.

“My team was very happy to have their efforts recognised. But I also see it as an award for the entire organisation, and for the business partners we work with. Without our internal stakeholders and without our external banking partners, this award would not have been possible.

“Being recognised as Woman of the Year brought a real sense of fulfilment, and I always tell myself to give back to the extent that we can. I’m also trying to teach my son that nothing is too small when it comes to giving back to the community – every single step makes a difference.”

“As a global bank, the subsidiary banking business – which effectively works with multinationals outside of their home markets – is becoming increasingly important as a business strategy.

Over the last six years, we’ve been on a path of transformation, driven by our ability to bring the value that MUFG can offer to our multinationals’ subsidiaries across 18 markets in APAC.”

Manoj S Bhatia, Managing Director, Global Head of Subsidiary Banking, MUFG

Developing treasury careers and skillsets

The conversation turned to how treasurers can work to develop transferable skills and progress their careers.

Routes into treasury

Attendees spoke about the different career paths that can lead into treasury, and the different routes open to existing treasury professionals as their careers progress. One attendee noted that it can be difficult for people to move out of treasury, maybe because they love treasury too much and don’t want to leave, but sometimes because other parts of the business might not see how they can add value. As such, it is important to have conversations with younger team members and rotate them out if appropriate to support their career aspirations.

Likewise, treasury teams often include people who want to be deep treasury specialists in areas such as FX and cash management – these are valuable roles, and it is important to support people who want to become specialists. But other people may be more flexible in their approach to treasury, including people who have joined treasury from a general finance role.

As Teo observed, “As long as your team size allows, having that diversity in background and competences can help to bring richer solutions to the table. We all need to have a more open mind about the kind of people we accept in a team, rather than going through a checklist and saying that if you don’t have treasury experience, you’re out.”

She added that while it is possible for people to join a treasury team without specific treasury experience, “ideally you should have some finance knowledge and accounting knowledge. It may be easier to teach someone about treasury fundamentals, but it’s more difficult to teach someone how to read and interpret a balance sheet.”

Developing interpersonal and technical skills

When it comes to building the treasury skillset, Teo highlighted the importance of developing effective interpersonal skills. “Good communication skills are helpful when you need to be able to explain to your CFO why you want to invest in a treasury IT system, without going through the technical jargon, and be able to support your business case,” she commented. “Likewise, you need to explain to your business stakeholders why they can’t do certain things, rather than just holding up the treasury policy.”

Tan, meanwhile, said it is critical for treasurers to build a technology-focused skillset. “As finance operations become increasingly digital, treasurers who understand how to leverage new tools and platforms will be able to contribute more strategically to their organisations,” he noted. “This knowledge equips them to manage everything from automation of processes to data-driven decision-making, ensuring they remain agile and effective in a competitive marketplace.” In essence, added Tan, “embracing technology not only future-proofs their role, but enhances their ability to deliver tangible value.”

“Twenty years ago, if you asked me what kind of people are suitable to be in the treasury team, it’s a person who likes cash. But today the skill set is very different. In AbbVie we have our own IT people because we do a lot of Power BI, doing reports and generating information from HANA systems. The skill set has changed.

Today, I would say we are looking for people who are willing to learn. I agree that you need a bit of a finance background, because otherwise you’re basically just coming in blind, but you need someone who can learn. I have people in my team who I turned into IT guys and who can talk about MT940 and XML. I asked them to do a global IT project, and today they are my go-to people – they know exactly what’s going on, and pretty much set up the interfaces with the banks.”

Cindy Lee, Regional Treasurer, Asia, Director, JAPAC Treasury COE, AbbVie Pte

“When you interact with people, it’s important to understand their journey and their goals. When I started, there was no concept of mentor/mentee, so along the way I picked up whatever I could from each of my leaders, but there was less introspection. I think having a mentor can help you look inside and see what are your strengths, what are your acquired strengths, and what are the other areas you can focus on.”

Shilpa Narula, Director of FX, Derivatives & Investments, GE Vernova

“Where technological innovation is concerned, we’re particularly looking at the possibilities of artificial intelligence, powered by APIs as well.

This is where we are already seeing corporate treasurers being very creative, and in the future I think we will see a lot more of the different things that treasuries can do with this technology.”

Chin Shiang Tan, Senior Director, APAC Pre Sales, Kyriba

Navigating conversations with different business functions

Finally, attendees discussed the importance of learning to communicate effectively with people in different functions of the business, and how this approach can help treasury professionals advance their own careers and position themselves as strategic leaders.

Some valuable points were raised during the discussion, including the importance of considering the stakeholder’s priorities and point of view, and anticipating what their concerns might be about a particular topic. Other advice included:

Consider speaking to different stakeholders individually in order to gain their buy-in ahead of a group call.
Think about the story you are trying to tell and how you can position this in a way that will gain support from senior management.
Consider how your own KPIs might align with what the stakeholder is looking to achieve and with the overall KPIs of the business.
If your CFO has recently joined the company, they are likely to be busy learning about the business, so be clear about what you need and how they can help you – don’t present them with a 30-page PowerPoint in the first instance.
Put in the time needed to prepare for important discussions, rehearse your messages and anticipate the types of questions that might arise.
Gain feedback and be open to changing your style if needed so that you can continue to nurture important relationships.

Last but not least, it is also important for different functions across the business to speak a common language. One attendee described an initiative her business had taken to carry out a series of educational sessions on different finance topics such as FX in order to facilitate more effective conversations.

As the event drew to a close, attendees were left inspired and invigorated with ideas about how to further their career goals and build a roadmap for their personal growth.

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