Retained Learnings – Details, episodes & analysis

Join Ruslan, Co-Founder of Float, and Eleni Kasimos, Director of Finance at LumiQ, as they explore the evolving role of Finance as a strategic partner rather than the role of "Finance police." They also share valuable insights and advice for Finance professionals transitioning from larger organizations and conventional roles to becoming key contributors in a startup environment.

In this episode of Retained Learnings, Float CEO Rob Khazzam interviews Aman Samra, the Vice President of Finance at Spellbook, a company pioneering the use of assistive AI for lawyers. Aman shares his career journey, which began in large accounting firms where he built a solid foundation in financial statements, tax, and distributions. With the rise of the tech industry, he transitioned to a fintech role at an early-stage startup in the US, where he gained valuable insights into how companies scale and grow. His excitement about the innovations at Spellbook, brought him to his current position. In this episode, Aman discusses navigating a career in startups, what he considers the key considerations when joining a team, and the transformative impact of AI on finance roles.You can check out Aman’s show, The Generation Hustle Podcast, wherever you listen: In this episode of Retained Learnings, Float CEO Rob Khazzam interviews Aman Samra, the Vice President of Finance at Spellbook, a company pioneering the use of assistive AI for lawyers. Aman shares his career journey, which began in large accounting firms where he built a solid foundation in financial statements, tax, and distributions. With the rise of the tech industry, he transitioned to a fintech role at an early-stage startup in the US, where he gained valuable insights into how companies scale and grow. His excitement about the innovations at Spellbook, brought him to his current position. In this episode, Aman discusses navigating a career in startups, what he considers the key considerations when joining a team, and the transformative impact of AI on finance roles.You can check out Aman’s show, The Generation Hustle Podcast, wherever you listen: The Generation Hustle Podcast on Apple Podcasts

Not all pathways to the CFO chair are identical and there is no step-by-step guide to get there. And in the case of Paritosh Gupta, his first role as a CFO was thrust upon him when he admittedly didn’t even want the job. His experience was probably more uncommon than most CFOs but this gave him a unique perspective and helped him learn important lessons along the way. When he moved from a CFO position in the mining industry to a CFO position in a tech company, there was an entirely different set of lessons he had to learn. Learn how experience in different industries and positions can make you a stronger CFO, and how the path to this role can take many different forms.

Learn more about Felix Health by visiting https://www.felixforyou.ca/ .

This podcast episode was produced by Quill.

Building a new finance team is a balancing act between hiring for the future and hiring for today, especially if you’re at a fast growing company. Knowing which roles to fill first and where to find talent isn’t easy if you haven’t done it before. In this episode of Retained Learnings, Rhianna Brancato, VP of Finance at Properly joins host Rob Khazzam to share advice on team structure, where to find your next hire, how technology can help supplement your team and some of the do-overs she would make if she could go through it all over again.

Learn more about Properly by visiting properly.ca .

This podcast episode was produced by Quill.

When the economy starts shifting towards a recession, the VC ecosystem can also shift, moving the goal posts for early stage startups trying to secure funding. In this episode of Retained Learnings, Matt Golden, the founder and managing partner of Golden Ventures joins host Rob Khazzam to share advice for staying capitalized and how to successfully pursue financing during a market downturn.

Learn more about Golden Ventures by visiting golden.ventures .

This podcast episode was produced by Quill.

Matt Petrow, CFO at Coconut Software recently led his team through a $28 million Series B financing round in 2021. He joins host Rob Khazzam to share how his team planned and successfully executed raising the new capital. Matt offers some advice for other finance leaders that may be considering a Series B raise in the future.

Learn more about Coconut Software by visiting www.coconutsoftware.com.

This podcast episode was produced by Quill.

Whether you’re implementing a zero-based budgeting model for the first time or raising a Series B, there’s a good chance someone has been in your shoes before. Listening to their stories just might help you turn these milestones into career-defining opportunities. What if you could hear from Canadian finance leaders about how they overcame one of these challenges in their own unique way?

Listen in as Rob Khazzam, the founder and CEO of Float speaks with Canada’s most respected and accomplished finance and business names to bring you some of the lessons they’ve collected during their careers.

Retained Learnings is coming to your favourite podcast app this September.

In this episode, Andrew Dale interviews Josh Zweig about his career journey from a Big Four accounting firm to founding his online accounting business, LiveCA. Zweig reflects on his disillusionment with the monotonous nature of auditing in a large organization, which ultimately led him on an entrepreneurial journey and the evolution of his vision from a lifestyle business to creating a flexible work environment for others.

From Bootstrapped to VC Backed with Christopher Chan, Head of Finance, Knak

Learn how Tyler Vasselin moved into the CFO role at fast-growing Calgary tech company Showpass, where he has been instrumental in scaling the company's finance operations from its early stages to a more structured department capable of supporting rapid business growth.

Tyler's insights into navigating career transitions, the strategic building of finance functions in startups, and the effective use of technology in finance painted a comprehensive picture of the challenges and strategies that define successful financial leadership in dynamic business environments.