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Join other finance and accounting colleagues and leaders at this unique virtual event designed to help address current benchmarks, best practices and current challenges facing the manufacturing industry today. This event will include presentations by experienced industry professionals, facilitated panels, and peer-to-peer networking opportunities with other manufacturing finance professionals to help deliver answers and solutions to some of the biggest questions and challenges in the industry. 

A zoom link will be provided to attendees before the event, and the entire event will be recorded and made available to all registrants regardless of live attendance. 

The Finance Forum Committee is hard at work creating the agenda for this event. Check back soon for updates! 

Agenda (All Times Are In EST):

Wednesday November 29th:

11:00AM - Best Practices for a Financially Strong Business
Scott Walton, Harbour Results, Inc

It is no secret that the manufacturing marketplace is challenging – especially for processors and moldmakers – and it is even more important today to ensure you are financially strong to improve your company’s flexibility. During this presentation, Harbour Results will provide insights on the current economic climate and its impact on manufacturing, report on data collected from your peers that looks at the financial health of the industry, and share implementable best practices for improving the financial health of your business.

12:00PM - Mergers & Acquisitions Panel Discussion 
Moderator: STOUT
Panelists: Troy Roberts, Tolerance Tool; Additional Panelists TBA

During this insightful panel discussion, attendees will hear three industry peers share their experiences of selling their businesses. This session will provide an opportunity to learn from those who have successfully navigated the complex path from business ownership to the next chapter, with real-life experiences of unexpected challenges, best practices and lessons learned. The panelists will share their experiences from effectively communicating their business story to potential buyers to managing a smooth transition for employees, customers and stakeholders.

1:00PM - Break

1:15PM - Automation Updates from a Finance Perspective - A Processor's Journey
Matt Fish, Vital Plastics 

Manufacturers have leaned into Automation to combat labor challenges over the past three years and have found themselves listening to success stories from the perspective of supervisors and plant managers. During this presentation, Vital Plastics President, Matt Fish, is going to walk attendees through an automation project that Vital Plastics attempted to complete and share the challenges they faced from a financial perspective. Attendees will walk away from this presentation with an implementable framework that can be referenced as others contemplate how automation could impact their bottom line.

2:00PM - Day 1 Ends

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Thursday November 30th: 

11:00AM - Year-End Tax Update: Policy and Planning
Mike Devereux, Wipfli

Tax law changes and opportunities can have a dramatic impact on the profitability of a business. Provisions of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act began to expire or take effect in tax years 2022 and 2023. Tax increases continue to threaten the manufacturing community; and at the same time, Congress has created new energy tax incentives through the Inflation Reduction Act. 

During this presentation, Devereux will provide a tax legislation and policy update, providing participants with insights from Capitol Hill and the impact their businesses. Specifically, during this session, we will:

• Review the latest developments in recent and pending tax legislation
• Discuss Congress' progress towards the R&D Section 174 research expensing fix
• Review year-end tax planning strategies that may reduce processors' 2023 tax liability

12:00PM - Best Practices: Elevating the Strategic Role of CFO
Matthew Murrill, Profile Plastics

What would you do with an extra hour in your day? During this presentation, Matt Murrill of Profile Plastics, will be sharing his journey to gaining time back in his day by automating backend finance functions such as accounts payable, accounts receivable, payroll, ERP updates and more. Murrill will provide attendees with the successeses and challenges he has faced in this process, as well as sharing exactly how he re-invested his time into the business and it's employees. 

1:00PM - Break 

1:15PM - Peer Networking

Attendees will have the chance to interact with their finance peer group during this session on topics and challenges that are unique to their job function. Please submit your questions for the group ahead of time through this form: https://app.smartsheet.com/b/form/5130a83e4ac54b669cd47266cf9e2edb

2:00PM - Day 2 Ends

Thank you to our sponsors!

Registration

Online registration is now closed.