December 2018

Canton IMA

STARK RAVINGS


The Newsletter of the IMA Canton Chapter

 December 2018

http://canton.imanet.org

 Jeff Walters, President
 Cullen Bahler, Editor

 In This Issue:

 This Month's Technical Sessions
 Strategic Finance
 Webinar Schedule
 Upcoming IMA Technical Sessions

 Connect with Us!

 Do you have info to share with our 
 chapter? Email it
 to: info@cantonima.org.

 Canton Chapter of IMA December Meeting
 Tuesday, December 18, 2018 | 5:00 - 7:30 pm
 
 Kozmo's Grille: 37 1st St SW, Massillon, OH 44647 (directions)

Registration deadline: Friday, December 14th, 5:00 pm

Please click here to register

 

 Pre-Dinner Technical Session
 (5:00 pm - 6:00 pm):
 Starting and Managing your Real 
 Estate Investment Portfolio

 Presented by Jesse Allison, CPA, RRS, 
 CNE

JesseAllison Jesse Allison is a 
 Realtor at Howard
 Hanna.  Jesse will
 bring unique
 knowledge and
 experience to your
 home search and
 understands the
 importance of finding
 your dream house within your budget.
 Jesse has experience in residential 
 construction and has also spent two
 years renovating his own century home
 with his wife. This gives Jesse an edge
 that sets him apart when it comes to
 offering advice on quality construction
 and home improvement tasks, which
 buyers of new and existing construction
 will find beneficial. Since he has also
 earned his CPA and has 7 years of
 accounting experience in corporate
 finance, Jesse believes in making every
 dollar count. As a CNE (Certified
 Negotiation Expert), Jesse will work to
 help you find the best home value and
 evaluate financing options to achieve
 your goals. He will work passionately
 and communicate regularly with you to
 meet all of your house hunting goals.

 Prior to joining Howard Hanna, Jesse
 was a Senior Financial Analyst for the
 J.M. Smucker Company. While there, he
 supported several of the brand 
 marketing teams with financial analysis 
 on new product launches and
 promotional opportunities.


 Jesse attended Ashland University where
 he received a Bachelor of Science in
 Business Administration.

 

 Post-Dinner Technical Session
 (6:30 pm - 7:30 pm):
 The Canton Health Department

 Presented by Gus Dria, Community
 Services Supervisor, Canton City
 Health Department

GusDria Gus Dria, Community
 Services Supervisor 
 for the Canton City 
 Health Department,
 attended Ashland
 University, graduating
 in 1998 with BS in
 Chemistry and
 Toxicology. Following
 graduation, Gus joined
 Total Source Analysis Inc. in Wellington,
 Ohio performing air emissions testing
 services as a Crew Chief/ Manager 
 Trainee.

 In 2000, Gus started his career at the
 Canton City Health Department as a
 Field Inspector in the Air Pollution
 Control Division, performing complaint
 investigations, emissions testing
 observations and facility inspections. In
 2005, he moved to the Environmental
 Health Division - Consumer Services
 Section performing inspections for the
 swimming pool, food service and school
 programs. In 2009, he moved to the 
 Community Services Section to solve
 public health nuisances within the
 neighborhoods. In 2013, he was
 promoted to Community Services
 Supervisor.

 Gus is Servsafe certified, holds his
 pesticide applicator license and is
 Hazmat 40 hour trained. He has been
 involved with preparedness training,
 drills and response throughout his
 tenure at the health department.

 Gus is a past district director of the Ohio
 Environmental Health Association and
 currently serves as their State Awards
 Chair and on the State Audit Committee
 and NE Planning Committee.

 Gus has been married to his wife, Hilary
 for 15 years and has been blessed with
 3 kids, Grace, Lillian and Bennett. He
 assists with their sporting and scouting
 activities. In his spare time, Gus enjoys
 gardening and working on the family 
 farm.

 

 Strategic Finance
 Preparing to Compete in the Digital Age

 By Raef Lawson, PH.D., CMA, CSCA, CFA, CPA, CAE

 Organizations are increasingly implementing data-driven cultures, and their success may depend on six key
 factors.

 The Digital Age is upon us, and it brings with it challenges and opportunities for businesses. Using advanced analytics,
 businesses are able to glean new insights from their data. The collection, assessment, interpretation, and use of data are
 enabling companies to create new business models and make existing ones more efficient. Most organizations now believe
 that enhancing their digital and analytical capabilities is critical to their continued success and survival. 

 Yet a forthcoming study by IMA® (Institute of Management Accountants) found that implementation of leading-edge
 analytics remains very much a work-in-progress for most organizations, with few having completely executed their goals in
 analytics techniques and technologies. Reasons for this include the wide variety of technologies that are being adopted, the
 varying stages of maturity of those technologies, and the benefits that can be realized by each technology, among others.

 BECOMING DATA-DRIVEN

digitalag There are four essential elements in establishing a data-driven organization. These 
 include data-savvy people, quality data, appropriate tools, and processes and
 incentives that support analytical decision making. IMA's study finds that
 organizations attempting to adopt leading-edge analytics often face challenges in 
 each of these dimensions. The result is an inability to effectively support
 managerial decision making through the use of analytical technologies.

 Much of the focus on implementation of advanced analytics has been on the
 tangible elements of a successful data-driven organization (people, data, and
 tools). Less attention has been paid to the fourth factor–organizational intent. Yet
 this last factor might be the most important of the four. An organization committed to the goal of being data-driven will work
 to develop the people, data, and tools needed to accomplish that objective.

 Becoming a data-driven organization requires creating structures, processes, and incentives to support analytical decision
 making. It requires the organization to resolve to be data-driven and define what it hopes to accomplish through the use of
 Big Data and analytics. The top leadership of the organization needs to describe how analytics will shape the business's
 performance.

 IDENTIFYING KEY FACTORS

 While many organizations are striving to implement a data-driven culture, success isn’t assured. Achieving this goal requires 
 that certain elements be present. Our study identifies six key factors for successfully establishing a data-driven ­organizational
 culture.

 This is an abstract. For the full article, please click here.

 IMA Webinars

 The IMA webinar program enhances your
 career by bringing you the latest thought
 leadership and developments in the
 profession. IMA conducts more than 50
 webinars every year at no cost to our
 members.

 Attending any live webinar qualifies for 1
 to 1.5 hours of NASBA CPE credit(s).
 Webinars may be replayed from the
 archives but these viewings do not earn
 credits. Advance registration is strongly
 recommended — The IMA webinars are
 extremely popular and fill up quickly.

 Best Practices for Building a Risk
 Assessment Framework in Finance
 Systems 
 Inside Talk
 December 05, 2018 
 01:00 PM - 02:00 PM

 The CMA Exam: Navigating Multiple
 Choice Questions

 Inside Talk
 December 11, 2018 
 10:00 AM - 11:00 AM

 Technology Trends Accountants,
 Controllers, and CFOs Need to
 Know
 Inside Talk
 December 12, 2018
 01:00 PM - 02:00 PM

 Preparing Your Business for Outside
 Investment
 Inside Talk
 December 17, 2018
 01:00 PM - 02:00 PM

 Embracing Change
 Leadership Academy
 January 08, 2019 
 01:00 PM - 02:30 PM

 Register for Any Webinar

 Join Us at IMA Technical Sessions

 2018-2019 tech sessions will be held at Kozmo's Grille with the exceptions noted
 below.

 Each meeting consists of two technical sessions, each of which is one hour in
 length. The first session begins at 5:00 pm and the second session begins at
 6:30 pm and dinner will take place between the sessions.

 The meeting dates are as follows:

  • December 18, 2018
  • January 15, 2019
  • February 19, 2019
  • March 19, 2019
  • April 16, 2019
  • May 21, 2019

 The cost for dinner is $30 for members/guests and $15 for students. Please look for
 invitation emails with registration information prior to each meeting.


 Schedule:

  • Social/Networking at 4:45 pm
  • Pre-Dinner Technical Session at 5:00 pm
  • Dinner at 6:00 pm
  • Post-Dinner Technical Session at 6:30 pm

© 2010-2018 Institute of Management Accountants - Canton Ohio Chapter # 155. All rights reserved.
info@cantonima.org

The mission of the Institute of Management Accountants (IMA) is to provide a forum for research, practice development, education,
knowledge sharing, and the advocacy of the highest ethical and best business practices in management accounting and finance.
Please join us as we promote this mission in the greater Canton, Ohio, area.