Kevin Tangen

As a member of the Executive Team, I oversee all financial activities of the organization and forecast for future business growth, partnering with fellow ELT members to create and execute the strategic plan for the organization.

I led the strategic direction and oversight of all Finance, Accounting, Legal, Human Resources and Data Security functions for a Series A stage, private equity backed, healthcare focused B2B software as a service (SaaS) company. I was also responsible for delivering tools that enabled our sales teams to quantify ROI to prospects through evidence based metrics resulting in 100% year over year growth. In coordination with the rest of our executive leadership team, I was involved in setting short-term and long-term strategies, team goals and the company's core values based on our shared focus to drive patient teams to actually work together through software that they can't live without.

In this consulting role I had the opportunity to work with more than a dozen Private Equity and other institutionally backed companies across numerous industries and stages (pre-revenue to $100M+). I served at a VP and Fractional CFO level on several engagements supporting M&A, fundraising and strategy development. My background in Fortune 500 companies also allowed me to quickly professionalize finance and accounting capabilities across all clients to build readiness for scalable growth and compliance with accounting standards such as ASC 606 and 842.

As part of the leadership team for the Culinary Equipment and Supplies Division, I oversaw all finance and accounting functions of this $500M business, supporting Sales, Category Management, Operations, Capital and Opex through insightful analytics and strategic recommendations. In this role, I continually challenged the status quo to drive real, sustainable change while navigating the challenges of the COVID pandemic.

In this role I have overhauled complex financial models to gain efficiency in the creation of reporting and improved the accuracy of forecasts. By moving the focus of my position to analysis and away from routine production duties, I have been able to help my leaders gain a better understanding of the driving factors involved as well as increased insight to risks and opportunities.

As part of the finance team that supported category merchants, I produced reporting that could be used to make decisions. Through advanced analytical techniques, I was able to quickly identify financial impacts of test initiatives, allowing leaders and cross-functional partners to choose the best course of action. These were decisions that drove improvements in revenue and gross profit. This reporting also impacted vendor relationships positively through higher engagement and increased investment support. Reason for Leaving: My spouse accepted a great opportunity to advance her career at Best Buy and I agreed to step aside in order to avoid any potential conflicts of interest.

In this position I performed the Financial Planning & Analysis function for Medicaid Complex Care Products within the Community & State business segment. One of the projects I enjoyed most during this time was the creation of a standardized view of each state plan's clinical staffing model. This project required understanding the intricacies of varying state plans and influencing key stakeholders to buy into my design. Through this, I was able to provide a view that finance and operations leadership could quickly dissect and compare. It was also incorporated into our bidding process for new business. Reason for Leaving: Decided to accept an offer to be part of turn around efforts at Best Buy.

An area I consider to be of differentiation between others and myself is my interest and ability to see the big picture of how a business operates. My time at Buca presented a great opportunity to develop this further. I was able to partner with Human Resources, Marketing and Operations on many occasions which improved my understanding of the interplay among the various functions. Reason for Leaving: Office was relocated by parent company to a location out of state.

I am a firm believer that any opportunity to learn has the potential to be a valuable experience. While this position was not something I chose and was not on the career path I was seeking, the lessons I learned about myself stay with me today. I found that I was adept at building relationships and was comfortable working directly with executive level leadership. I also picked up some project management skills and interesting facts about pandemics. Reason for Leaving: Closure of the Edina, MN headquarters location.

This role was a great way to start my career in corporate finance. My leader wanted me to learn the entire business platform through exposure to each area of finance. Approximately half of my duties got me grounded in the accounting function. The remainder of my capacity was used on projects with the brand, sales, demand planning and plant operations finance teams. A few examples include sku rationalization, aging inventory management and a system conversion to SAP.

My experience at Forum influenced my view that my role in finance is to support the business by providing great customer service to my internal business partners. This focus is the driving force behind my ability to forge relationships and reverse any negative perceptions of the finance function in an organization. I strive to build those strategic partnerships to keep finance front of mind when making decisions. Reason for Leaving: Returned to Drake University to pursue my accounting degree and refocus my career path to the track I had originally intended, corporate finance.

March 2017 - Residency week case competition group stage winner May 2018 - Residency week case competition winner