Welcome to The 6 a.m. CFO, where finance chiefs share how they jump-start their days and engage with the tasks that are in front of them.
Today, Tipalti’s CFO, Dan Barzily, shares his morning routine.
Be sure to check out the entire 6 a.m. CFO series, and if you’d like to be featured in a future post, please email us here.
Tipalti
- Artificial intelligence-powered platform for finance operations
- Year founded: 2010
- Number of employees: 1,000+
- Revenue: Total payment volume $90B+, 6,500 customers globally
MORNING ROUTINE
Walk us through your normal workday morning routine. I get up early. Checking the news is part of the routine, but spending time with my family before our respective days start is also very important to me. As the CFO of a global company, part of my morning also involves checking Slack and email for urgent items coming in during the day. I am also trying to get in a morning run three times a week. It is important to balance physical with mental activity.
Tell us about a morning where things didn’t go according to plan, and how you adapted. Few mornings really go to plan. I spend time in our various offices, so pivoting my schedule so that I can maximize time with the local team or be available for calls with teams in other time zones is important. When I am home, having the ability to flex my morning to spend time with my family is also important.
How do you structure your first few hours after you log on at work? Work does not just take place during the typical work hours of a day. As a result, for me, the early part of the day is focused on alignment and connecting with my team leaders and executive partners on priorities and our “big rocks” as a business. Staying informed and talking with the leaders of the business is important for a good vantage point.
LEADERSHIP AND INSPIRATION
What is your favorite quote or mantra? My mantra is very simple but important for finance leaders today: “Know your business and market. Thoroughly understand the purpose of your company.”
Favorite leadership lesson: I learned through various roles that it is important to anticipate the impact of strategic decisions in real time. This lesson is helpful for finance teams today; we need to anticipate, not just react to decisions in real time, as true business partners.
The most influential/famous person you’ve ever met: I have a non-traditional answer. For me, it is my family, although I did not ‘meet’ them per se. You do, over time, get to know your family in new ways as you grow together. My family is very influential to me; they shape how I view the world. They motivate me. Famous people are influential, but family for me is the most important influence.
What was the last job you did at your company that fell outside your traditional scope of work? One role I held previously was owning the Q&A portion of our company's All Hands. I helped ensure we had questions collected from our employees and that we took the action to answer those questions. I mention this because even an activity like that is an opportunity to learn. Interacting across the business and hearing insights from all employees makes for an informed leader. Listening is key, especially in finance.
How do you manage work-induced stress? Stress management is important for executives. For me, it involves running, surfing and making time for family. You have to turn your brain off; you cannot be on your phone or in meetings all of the time. You have to switch off.
Favorite number: 1. It may seem odd, but when I talk with teams, I often share how everyone needs to take accountability for their work: knowing the business and growing their career. There is immense power in teams and working collaboratively, but it is also very important to be accountable as individuals.
What is your favorite phone app that is unrelated to work? News apps; I like to make sure that I read news from different sources and different countries.
What would be your dream job if you were not a CFO? I would be a chef.
