Aljaz Primec

CFO / BoD Slovenia & Croatia @ Publicis Groupe

About

Seasoned international finance and operations business leader with 15+ years of progressive experience in managing financial departments, overseeing revenue and cost savings improvements, building high-performing teams, advising startups, and developing, and implementing strategic plans. I speak several languages and have special expertise across sectors in the Adriatic and CEE regions. Recognized for demonstrating a natural aptitude for mobilizing efficiency and excellence from teams throughout business units, as well as for strategic vision and day-to-day project execution. Professional focal points include strategic planning/execution, cost savings generation, productivity improvement, operational restructuring, business development, process efficiency gains, contract negotiations, analytical problem-solving, team leadership, coaching/mentoring, vendor relations, and startup advising.

Country

City

Slovenia

Industry

Marketing & Advertising

Skill

Revenue Management, Strategic Financial Management, Financial Modeling, Contract Negotiation, Strategic Thinking, Financial Reporting, Team Development, Management, Leadership, Self-regulation, Compensation, Financial Planning, Strategic Partnerships, Communication, Pivot Tables, Critical Thinking, Annual Planning, Strategy, Marketing Strategy, Business Strategy

Experience

CFO / BoD Slovenia & Croatia

Publicis Groupe

2016-6 - Present · 10 yrs 4 mos

Ljubljana, Zagreb

• Supervise and mobilize high-quality performance from two teams while holding direct financial responsibility for Publicis Slovenia and Croatia. • Chart a successful course for planning and strategic development for two companies with 11 business units, including talent acquisition, investments in business development and M&A, in collaboration with the CEO. • Attained a 23.7% cost savings while enhancing performance by leading a cluster integration and creating a centralized financial unit to support both countries. • Bolster team performance and outcomes across business units, including finance, planning, negotiations, and strategic development, through coaching and mentoring high-potential employees. • Streamlined vendor list by establishing a centralized procurement and vendor management process, introducing bidding and initiating a preferred vendors list, resulting in a reduction of 50%. • Orchestrate operations across six other regional entities by partnering with the regional board on strategy development and implementation. • Ensure the effectiveness of financial systems and internal controls to ensure that they are fit for the purpose of protecting the business and its asset base. • Develop a diverse, flexible and agile workforce, including mechanisms for staff engagement, innovation and development.

CFO

Publicis Groupe

2013-6 - 2016-6 · 3 yrs 1 mo

Ljubljana

• Spearheaded finance and procurement of six operational units with annual sales of $19 million while overseeing and motivating excellence from seven direct reports. • Secured more than 20% savings in the creative department by generating a new strategy including merging units and convincing the regional board to approve the restructuring. • Reduced average price 11% and prolonged days of payables 67% by directing vendor negotiations, resulting in a significant improvement of cash flows. • Achieved 13.96% cost savings and boosted operating income 11.14% by planning and executing a restructuring and providing financial and legal support. • Drove efficiency within the financial department through training and re-design with a new structure featuring 17% fewer employees. • Enhanced forecasting accuracy by developing an improved forecasting model and coaching the team.