Executive Summary

Strategic Finance

Navigating the complexities of strategic finance can be daunting for many businesses, and this is where our consulting services steps in to make a real difference.

Companies often face challenges with financial visibility, leaving them without a clear picture of their financial health. This lack of insight can lead to poor decision-making and missed opportunities. Our service provides precise financial reporting that transforms uncertainty into clarity, empowering businesses to make informed decisions.

Cash flow management is another critical area where businesses struggle, and poor management can disrupt daily operations. By implementing tailored cash flow strategies, we help ensure that businesses maintain optimal liquidity, reducing stress and enhancing stability.

Inadequate financial planning and forecasting often leave companies unprepared for market changes and unable to capitalize on growth opportunities. Our approach to strategic finance involves crafting detailed financial plans that align with your business goals, equipping you with the foresight needed to navigate uncertainties confidently. High operational costs that erode profitability are another pain point, and we work to identify inefficiencies and recommend practical solutions that drive cost savings and enhance profit margins.

Risk management is essential yet often overlooked, leaving businesses exposed to unforeseen financial pitfalls. We can introduce robust internal controls and risk management processes that protect your business’s assets and strengthen financial health. Navigating compliance and regulatory demands can be overwhelming, with constant changes posing a significant challenge. Our service ensures your business stays compliant, reducing risks and alleviating the burden of navigating complex regulations.

Building trust with stakeholders requires accurate and transparent financial communication, but many businesses struggle with this, resulting in strained relationships. Let’s work on establishing reliable reporting practices that build confidence and trust among all stakeholders.

Aligning financial strategy with the broader business objectives is crucial, yet many companies find themselves misaligned, wasting valuable resources. We integrate financial planning with your strategic goals, ensuring every financial move supports your overall business direction.

Through our strategic financial consulting, we address these pain points head-on, delivering solutions that not only resolve immediate challenges but also set your business on a path of sustainable growth, operational excellence, and strategic clarity.

Let’s turn your financial complexity into a powerful, strategic asset that propels your business forward.

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Service Methodology

A structured and tailored methodology that combines strategic planning, in-depth analysis, and continuous improvement is imperative to ensure positive change for your organization!

This methodology addresses your company’s service objectives comprehensively, ensuring that financial operations are strategically aligned, compliant, cost-efficient, and well-prepared for future growth and challenges.

The process begins with a thorough review of the current position and business objectives. This involves detailed interviews with key stakeholders, analysis of financial and operational data, and a review of internal and external reports. This diagnostic review helps to establish a baseline understanding of the organization.
Next, benchmarking against industry standards is conducted to identify best practices and areas for improvement. A comprehensive framework is then designed to meet management requirements, developing appropriate financial strategies and process improvement methodologies.

Collaboration with your team is crucial to execute the strategy, ensuring alignment with overall business goals. This involves close cooperation with process owners to integrate changes into existing workflows. Key performance indicators (KPIs) are established, and performance is regularly reviewed against targets to make necessary adjustments.

A culture of continuous improvement is fostered with regular reviews and updates to management practices. Ongoing training is provided to staff on reporting standards and compliance requirements, ensuring that the organization remains agile and responsive to evolving challenges.

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Service Options

Companies can elect whether they just require Appleton Greene for advice and support with the Bronze Client Service, for research and performance analysis with the Silver Client Service, for facilitating departmental workshops with the Gold Client Service, or for complete process planning, development, implementation, management and review, with the Platinum Client Service. Ultimately, there is a service to suit every situation and every budget and clients can elect to either upgrade or downgrade from one service to another as and when required, providing complete flexibility in order to ensure that the right level of support is available over a sustainable period of time, enabling the organization to compensate for any prescriptive or emergent changes relating to: Customer Service; E-business; Finance; Globalization; Human Resources; Information Technology; Legal; Management; Marketing; or Production.

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Service Mission

Dedicated to empowering businesses with a comprehensive suite of financial solutions designed to drive sustainable growth, operational excellence, and strategic success!

This service is committed to crafting financial plans that not only align with your company’s financial goals but also position your business for ongoing prosperity. With a steadfast commitment to precision in financial reporting and compliance, the aim is to establish trust and reliability with all stakeholders.

Expertise in financial strategy and planning ensures that your business thrives through insights and robust plans that align with your long-term goals, building trust and credibility along the way. Unlock your company’s hidden value and enhance profitability through the identification of inefficiencies and the implementation of best practices tailored to your organization.

With a strong skill set in risk management and internal controls this will assist in safeguarding your assets and fortify your financial health by identifying potential risks and implementing robust control systems. Our unique service proposition is to be your trusted ally in transforming financial complexity into strategic clarity.

We are committed to enabling your business to achieve its goals by optimizing performance and unlocking its full potential, ensuring your business not only survives but thrives in today’s competitive landscape.

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Service Objectives

The following list represents the Key Service Objectives (KSO) for the Appleton Greene Strategic Finance service.

1. Financial Strategy and Planning
   This service focuses on developing a robust financial strategy that aligns with your company’s long-term vision. It includes creating comprehensive financial plans that outline the path to achieving your business goals, ensuring sustainable growth and success. This will help clients align their financial resources with business goals, optimize their capital structure, and make informed investment decisions to drive growth.
2. Financial Reporting and Compliance
   Ensuring accuracy and transparency in financial reporting is crucial. This objective covers the preparation of detailed financial statements and reports that building trust and credibility among stakeholders, assisting clients in enhancing their financial reporting processes, ensuring compliance with regulatory requirements, and improving transparency for stakeholders.
3. Cost Management and Efficiency Optimization
   This area is dedicated to identifying areas where costs can be reduced without compromising quality. It involves analysing current expenditures, streamlining processes, and implementing best practices to enhance operational efficiency and profitability.
4. Mergers and Acquisitions (M&A) Advisory
   From conducting thorough due diligence to advising on post-merger integration, this service aims to ensure smooth transitions and strategic growth through acquisitions, supporting clients in making informed M&A decisions, maximizing transaction value, and ensuring smooth post-merger integration.
5. Risk Management and Internal Controls
   The focus here is on safeguarding your company’s assets and financial health. It includes assessing potential risks, designing and implementing internal control systems, and developing strategies to manage and mitigate those risks effectively.

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Testimonials

InterCorp UAE

“I had the pleasure of working closely with Ms. Bjelanovic during her tenure as the Chief Financial Officer at Intercorp. Her strategic mindset and keen financial acumen were instrumental in steering our company through complex financial challenges. Joanne’s ability to analyse data, identify key insights, and make informed decisions greatly contributed to the overall success of our financial operations.

What truly sets Joanne apart is her unwavering commitment to excellence and her knack for fostering a collaborative and results-driven work environment. Her leadership style is characterized by a rare blend of decisiveness and empathy, making her not only an effective leader but also a trusted mentor to her team.
Beyond her professional capabilities, Ms. Bjelanovic is a genuinely kind and supportive individual. In addition to her technical skills, Joanne’s interpersonal skills are commendable. She consistently demonstrated effective communication and relationship-building abilities, both internally with colleagues and externally with stakeholders.

Her professionalism, expertise, and dedication make her an invaluable asset to any organization fortunate enough to have her on board.”

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Santra

“I had the pleasure of working closely with Ms. Bjelanovic as my invaluable CFO advisor, and I cannot recommend her highly enough. She is a strategic visionary with an exceptional ability to navigate complex financial landscapes and provide insightful guidance.

Her deep understanding of financial strategy has been instrumental in shaping our company’s success.

Her dedication to building a solid and internationally recognized finance and accounting structure has been a game-changer for our startup. Ms. Bjelanovic brought a wealth of knowledge and experience to the table, ensuring that our financial operations not only met but exceeded industry standards.”

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Rexel Australia

“I had the privilege of working with Ms. Bjelanovic during a challenging period when Rexel was integrating the back office of a number of acquired companies, each previously having its own support functions. Ms. Bjelanovic demonstrated great pragmatism and successfully forged through with what had to be done to create s single back office supporting a significant business. Post integration Ms. Bjelanovic could be relied upon for exceptional financial advice which assisted myself and my team to take the business forward to great results. I highly recommend Ms. Bjelanovic as a capable financial partner who will passionately work alongside you to achieve great results.”

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FitnGlam

“As an integral member of our executive and senior team during our tenure at FitnGlam, Ms. Bjelanovic has consistently demonstrated exceptional financial stewardship and strategic foresight. Ms. Bjelanovic possesses a remarkable depth of financial acumen, evidenced by her ability to navigate complex financial landscapes with precision and insight.

As a senior leader, she fosters a culture of collaboration and accountability not just within her team but towards everyone. She inspires excellence and innovation, empowering her colleagues to excel in their roles and contribute meaningfully to our collective success. Ms. Bjelanovic effective communication skills and ability to translate complex financial insights into actionable strategies have earned her the respect and admiration of both peers and stakeholders alike.

Although Finance department was not my minion however along with my other peers in FitnGlam and especially with such a great leader like Ms. Bjelanovic I enjoyed working on financial functions as she uplifted my knowledge with great perspectives.

I wholeheartedly recommend Ms. Bjelanovic for any organization seeking strategic CFO services who can navigate complexity, drive growth, and deliver sustainable value.”

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D2A

“Joanne was a key player in managing Rexel South-East Asia through an extraordinarily difficult period, resulting in a sale to private equity (D2A). Ms. Bjelanovic demonstrated great professionalism throughout the period, managing a complex set of critical strategic as well as operational issues in a very compressed time scale. With her drive, dedication and personality Ms. Bjelanovic is a great asset to any organization!”

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More detailed achievements, references and testimonials are confidentially available to clients upon request.

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Industries

This service is primarily available to the following industry sectors:

Hypermarkets & Supermarkets

This sector is characterized by intense competition and a constant push for innovation, and the rise of e-commerce and digitalization has significantly impacted traditional brick-and-mortar supermarkets, forcing many to adopt online shopping platforms and enhance their delivery services. This was accelerated by the COVID-19 pandemic which saw consumers increasingly prefer contactless shopping options. Additionally, there is a growing demand for healthier, organic, and locally sourced products, prompting supermarkets to focus on sustainability. Price sensitivity remains high among consumers, leading to aggressive pricing strategies and promotions.

Advancements in artificial intelligence and data analytics will enable supermarkets to offer personalized shopping experiences, optimize supply chain management, and improve inventory accuracy. The trend towards sustainability will continue to grow, with supermarkets adopting more eco-friendly practices and increasing their range of sustainable products. Furthermore, the expansion of online grocery shopping will only continue, and only Supermarkets that can adapt to these technological changes, meet consumer demands for sustainability, and maintain competitive pricing will thrive in the evolving market.

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