FENG FORUM
Wednesday, December 12, 2018 The Lodge of Des Peres
"Using Psychology to Improve Business Valuations"
Featuring Psychological Associates
Thomas D. Brooks, Ph.D.

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Date: Wednesday, December 12, 2018

Time:
7:30 - 8:00 a.m. - Networking & Complimentary Continental Breakfast
8:00 - 9:00 a.m. - Presentation

Location:
The Lodge of Des Peres
1050 Des Peres Road
Des Peres, Missouri 63131

http://www.desperesmo.org/index.aspx?nid=77

RSVP:
This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Reservation deadline is December 12, 2018

Presentation:

What field can help you evaluate talent pre-merger? Assess strengths and weaknesses of your leadership team? Improve valuation by insuring that you have capable backups ready in the event of key position departures and retirements? Enhance hiring outcomes? Thomas Brooks, Executive Vice President at Psychological Associates, is a Ph.D. I/O psychologist and an MBA. He will explain and give of examples of how he has helped organizations drive value over the past 18 years.

Speaker:

Thomas D. Brooks, Ph.D.
President, Retail Division
Executive Vice President, Client Services
Psychological Associates

 

 

Tom is a High-Performance Practice Leader who works with middle- and senior- level management as a coach and facilitator. Having both an MBA and a doctorate in psychology gives Tom a unique appreciation for and understanding of the needs of business clients.

Tom provides assessment services to corporations across the United States for selection, promotion, succession planning, and developmental purposes. That includes assessing individuals at all levels of organizations, including top-level executives. He also provides executive coaching and career evaluations to assist clients in their professional development.

Tom’s extensive background in psychological assessment has been instrumental in training others how to administer and score a wide variety of instruments.

 

 

Thursday, September 27, 2018 The Lodge of Des Peres
"The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act + Sales Tax Update"
Featuring UHY Advisors
Pat Stark and Paul Truber

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Date: Thursday, September 27, 2018

Time:
7:30 - 8:00 a.m. - Networking & Complimentary Continental Breakfast
8:00 - 9:00 a.m. - Presentation

Location:
The Lodge of Des Peres
1050 Des Peres Road
Des Peres, Missouri 63131

http://www.desperesmo.org/index.aspx?nid=77

RSVP:
This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Reservation deadline is September 26, 2018

Presentation:

The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act is a real game changer for both businesses and individuals. Most all aspects of this Act take effect in 2018. What have you done to make sure that you are taking advantage of this new law? Also, changes are coming for sales taxes. Are you ready? Register now to make sure that you have a seat for this update. UHY's Pat Stark and Paul Truber will be sharing valuable tax related tips and information that will impact you this year.

TOPICS INCLUDE:

  • C-Corporation vs S-Corporation
  • Tax planning for Businesses
  • Tax planning tips for individuals
  • Supreme Court Decision on Sales Tax - Planning

 

Speakers:

Pat Stark:
 
Pat is a Managing Director with UHY Advisors in St. Louis. He has spent over 30 years consulting with companies on their tax, accounting and financial options. During this time, he has counseled numerous top executives and has gained tremendous insight in many areas including: structuring financial and tax issues for corporations; structuring acquisitions and reorganizations; and employee stock transactions. He is a CPA, graduate of Millikin University and received his MBA from Indiana University.
  
Paul Truber:
    
Paul is a Managing Director with more than 25 years' experience in public accounting providing tax and consulting services. Paul has cultivated a reputation with his clients as a common sense business advisor and tax planning advocate. He is very accessible and is a great resource for his clients and colleagues. His core technical strengths include federal and state tax planning and compliance, business transactions, and estate planning. Paul is a member of UHY's Manufacturing & Distribution Industry Team and the Estate Planning Team.

 

Wednesday, June 13, 2018 The Lodge of Des Peres
"A Panel Discussion with Four Top CFO’s/Administrators in St. Louis"

Panelists include:

Judy Abrams-Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer for the Gateway Region YMCA.
Ken Homza –President/Fractional Chief Financial Officer, Homza Consulting, Inc.
Steve Rasche- Executive vice president and chief financial officer of Spire, Inc.
Steve Wideman- President of Wideman Management Group.

Date: Wednesday, June 13, 2018

Time:
7:30 - 8:00 a.m. - Networking & Complimentary Continental Breakfast
8:00 - 9:00 a.m. - Presentation

Location:
The Lodge of Des Peres
1050 Des Peres Road
Des Peres, Missouri 63131

http://www.desperesmo.org/index.aspx?nid=77

RSVP:
This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Reservation deadline is June 12th, 2018

Presentation:

QUESTIONS & TOPICS FOR DISCUSSION

  • What keeps you up at night?
  • What are the major issues you are dealing with on a day to day basis?
  • How is the rising cost of medical care impacting your health care offerings and the cost you push down to your employees?
  • Other Employee Benefits?  New benefits being offered?
  • How are your banking and other financing arrangements changing (online banking, forms of payment, access to debt, etc.)?
  • What steps are you taking to retain key talent in the current job market?
  • What has been the impact of Tax reform on you day to day operations?
  • How are you dealing with the multi-generational work force and has that caused any new issues for you to deal with?
  • What changes have you made in light of the recent cybersecurity issues/breeches (i.e., ransomware, phishing, etc.)?
  • What steps are being taken to create a more modern work environment such as the advent of mobile devices, new software, telecommuting, etc.)?
  • What steps are being taken to advance your risk management strategy such as new insurance coverages, development of commmittees or new positions, etc.?
  • Rebranding issues?

We will cover as many of these topics as time allows.


Presenters:

MODERATOR BIO

David F. French

Dave is the Director of Finance of Armstrong Teasdale LLP, the fourth largest law firm in St. Louis.  In this capacity he is responsible for all accounting, tax, financial reporting and analysis and treasury functions.

Dave has over 30 years of financial management, accounting and leadership experience in public accounting, private company and public company positions primarily in manufacturing, industrial and retail sectors.

Dave is a certified public accountant with both his bachelor’s and master’s degrees in Accountancy from the University of Missouri – Columbia.

Dave is a Board Member of the FENG St. Louis.
 
PANELISTS BIO

Judy Abrams

Judy is a financial executive with experience in public companies, private companies and large non-profit organizations.  She is currently Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer for the Gateway Region YMCA, an association that includes 24 branches of the Y in Missouri and Illinois and two overnight camp properties in the Ozarks.

Judy has an MBA in finance and has lived and worked in St. Louis for over 30 years.  She led corporate planning and acquisitions for The Earthgrains Company and then internal investment strategy for Sara Lee Bakery after they acquired Earthgrains.  This followed 14 years in specialty retailing with Edison Brothers Stores, a public company where she was a divisional CFO in young men's apparel and later Corporate Controller. More recently she was Chief Financial Officer for one of St. Louis' largest woman-owned businesses, and served for 7 years as COO/CFO for the Jewish Federation of St. Louis.

Judy serves on several non-profit boards and finance committees in St. Louis, including the Subdistrict Commission for the Missouri History Museum, the Capital Planning Committee for the Ladue School District, and Planned Giving for the Jewish Federation.

Judy is married to Richard Abrams, an attorney in private practice in Clayton, Missouri, and they have two children -- Abigail who is a reporter at Time Magazine and Gordon who is an engineering student at University of Tulsa.
 

Ken Homza

Ken has been providing high impact Fractional CFO services since 2003. Ken brings 20 plus years of experience across finance, marketing and strategic roles to the companies he serves.

His experience spans positions with large, billion dollar corporations, mid-range companies and start-up ventures in technology, manufacturing, distribution, advertising, financial services, retail and service delivery organizations including Unisys Corporation, LensCrafters, WorkNet Communications and a $40 million privately held home furnishings retailer.

For new businesses, he applies his critical thinking to the issues faced during the start-up phase. For more mature businesses, he helps them better understand their financial results through key performance metrics and helps the executive team agree upon actions to improve profitability

A recognized business leader, Ken is a staunch advocate of the importance of financial modeling and key metric measurement to the growth and development of the company regardless of size. In addition to his daily responsibilities, Ken applies that commitment in the academic world as a sought after and frequent guest lecturer on the subject at various colleges in the St. Louis area including the MBA program at Washington University.

He has served as Vice President Public Relations and Communications for the St. Louis Chapter of Financial Executives International and as a Board Member for the St. Louis Chapter of the Financial Executives Networking Group.

MBA from Carnegie Mellon Tepper School of Business in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Homza continually improves his own knowledge and is a graduate of “IPO Bootcamp” offered by Deutsche Bank.
 

Steve Rasche
 
Steve is the executive vice president and chief financial officer of Spire, Inc. He joined Spire in 2009 and is responsible for directing all accounting and tax, financial reporting and analysis, treasury, investor relations, IT and Customer Service functions. Steve has been instrumental in the fourfold growth of the Company over the last five years, including acquisitions totaling nearly $3 billion.

 
Before joining Spire, Steve gained nearly 30 years of financial management and executive leadership experience at TLC Vision Corporation, a diversified eye care services company, where he held the position of chief financial officer. Prior to TLC Vision, he was a senior vice president and chief financial officer of Public Safety Equipment, Inc., a global manufacturer and marketer of warning, speed detection and in-car video systems.
 
A certified public accountant, Steve received his master’s in finance and marketing from the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University and his bachelor’s in accountancy from the University of Missouri-Columbia. Steve was named “CFO of the Year” by the St. Louis Business Journal in 2014. He is actively involved in the St. Louis community, including leadership roles in several not-for-profit and professional organizations such as American Gas Association (past Finance Committee Chair), St. Louis Equity Fund (Audit Committee Chair), Fair St. Louis, Boy Scouts of Greater St. Louis, Crosby MBA Advisory Board (U of Missouri), Westminster Christian Academy and the Association for Corporate Growth.

 
Steve Wideman

Steve is the President of Wideman Management Group and is a CPA by background, but has spent the past 30+ years as an Owner / CEO / COO and CFO. He currently works with business owners providing executive leadership, decision making, and management on a contract basis. Acting as an “Integrator”, he works directly with the owner, management team and staff as an integral, hands-on member of the leadership team to create and implement systems and processes required to position the company for growth.

He has been especially successful facilitating the strategic planning process and then working through the implementation of the plan, which has resulted in two of his clients being acquired at favorable

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Wednesday, March 28, 2018 The Lodge of Des Peres
"An Economic Update"
Presented by Kevin L. Kliesen, Business Economist and Research Officer at the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis
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Presentation:

Please join us for an Economic Update presented by a Senior Economic Research Professional from the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis. The speaker will give us his insight and a current update of the economy as viewed by the Federal Reserve Bank. This should be an interesting presentation considering the current movements in the Commodity and Stock Markets as well as the general economic market condition.

Presenter:
 
Kevin L. Kliesen is a Business Economist and Research Officer at the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis.  In his position as a business economist, he analyzes current U.S. macroeconomic and financial market developments and trends for the Bank president and staff economists prior to each Federal Open Market Committee meeting. Another important aspect of this position involves speaking to the general public and professional groups about U.S. and Eighth District economic developments. He has written and published extensively and was instrumental in the development of the St. Louis Fed’s Financial Stress Index, the St. Louis Fed’s Price Pressures Measure, and the St. Louis Fed’s Economic News Index. In addition to his responsibilities at the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis, he taught part-time for the Department of Economics at Washington University from 2006 to 2013. Professionally, he is a member of the American Economic Association, the National Association for Business Economics (NABE) and the Association of Christian Economists. In 2011 he was named a Fellow of the national NABE organization, which is the association's highest honor it bestows on its members. In October 2015, he was designated as a Certified Business Economist by the NABE.