December-January 2010

Cover Story

• The Party Gets Started in Brazil

Multinational corporations are increasingly attracted to Brazil, which has surmounted political instability and hyperinflation to become one of the hottest emerging market economies.

• Increasing Mid-Market Visibility

Smaller companies, including National Financial Partners, Carlile Transportation and Columbia Sportswear, are turning to technology to drive efficiency and improve cash flow.

• CFOs to Watch: Ready for Opportunity

Emerging as winners after the financial crisis, three CFOs—Ford Motor’s Lewis Booth, Platinum Equity’s Mary Ann Sigler and Merck’s Peter Kellogg—aim to thrive in the new normal.

Features

• Taking on New Dimensions
  Tomorrow’s treasurers will need a global outlook, a strategic mind-set, an analytical approach, broader shoulders, a team spirit and agile technology that can increase visibility and control.

• Fear of Diving into Outsourcing
  While recession-induced cost-cutting has moved some companies to offload non-core functions, many hesitate to take the plunge on long-term deals.

• Expect Anything But Smooth Sailing
  Three leading economists look at why the recovery may be slow to take off.

• Juicing Receivables
  Receivables securitization not only survived the financial crisis but thrived as funding sources dried up and companies looked to accelerate cash collection.

• Debt Strategy Dilemma
  Treasurers weigh whether to renew credit facilities at high rates now or risk getting crowded out later.

Surveys

• Outlook Brighter; Purse Strings Tighter
  Treasury & Risk's 2010 Middle Market Survey

• Ups and Downs and New Regs
  Treasury & Risk's 2010 Financial Risk Management Survey

• Gaining in Stature, Feeling the Strain
  Treasury & Risk's 2010 Strategic Treasury Survey

• Confidence Still Slow to Return
  Treasury & Risk's 2010 Economic Survey

For Your Information (FYI)

Washington Update

• Uncle Sam's Long Reach
  U.S. taxes on overseas units are key concern for executives

News Briefs

• Nasdaq Expands Paid Research Initiative
  In an effort to fill the void in analyst coverage for midsize companies, Nasdaq OMX is expanding an arrangement with Morningstar to allow companies listed on the exchange to obtain analyst coverage.

• Contingent Commissions Make a Comeback
  Risk managers criticize agreement

• Companies Paying Suppliers More Quickly
  A survey by Aberdeen Group shows that while best-performing companies are trying to get customers to pay more quickly, they are also paying their own bills more promptly.

• Liddell Signs On at GM
  Microsoft's CFO Jumps Ship to Join Automaker

• Asset Losses Push Companies To Focus on Pension Funding
  The market meltdown has sponsors of retirement plans rethinking their investment strategies.

• Health Costs Set to Rise Faster
  Survey points to pick-up in healthcare premium increases.

Q&A

• Insuring Executives Overseas
  Companies may need to augment their global directors and officers liability coverage with country-specific D&O policies.

• Living With Volatility
  As the euro wobbles, companies need hedging strategies to manage foreign exchange risk and protect profits.

Departments

Governance & Accounting

• Tax Prep Snooping
  Textron aims to appeal a decision easing IRS access to tax work papers, which the agency could use to spot illegal tax shelters.

• Avoiding Pay Pitfalls
  The SEC pushes companies to analyze whether their compensation plans actually promote behavior that creates risk.

• Overseas Tax Watch
  The Obama administration’s proposed changes in international tax regulations could send some corporate headquarters packing.

Retirement & Benefits

• Reshaping Primary Care
  Pilot projects suggest boosting the family doctor’s role in getting medical providers to work together cuts costs.

• Real Retiree Health Promise
  Coca-Cola is breaking new ground by using a captive insurance company and a trust to finance post-retirement health benefits.

• Mind the Income Stream
  The Obama Administration wants to encourage 401(k) participants to use annuities, but workers show little interest.

Risk Management

• Snail's Pace on ERM
  As middle market companies struggled through the recession, developing enterprise risk management systems got sidelined.

• Domestic Reinsurance
  New York State plans to revive its insurance exchange, but some question whether the additional capacity is needed.

• Expanding Risk Oversight
  More companies look at setting up special risk committees on their corporate boards to watch enterprise risk management.

Tools & Technology

• Catching Data Degradation
  New product from IBM aims to sample data and identify problems in companies' information supply chains.

• Digging for FX Positions
  The latest release from FiREapps has the flexibility to interface with any accounting system to search for foreign exchange exposures.

• XBRL Tags Pile Up
  The mandate to tag the details in financial statement footnotes could mean a lot of work for big companies this year.

Treasury Management

• Ready, Set, EBam
  Processes must be automated for companies to achieve great efficiencies when SWIFT's connectivity for bank account administration launches.

• New Game of No TAG
  As banks opt out of unlimited FDIC protection on corporate accounts, treasurers scramble to find safe havens for cash.

• On-the-Go Treasury
  Workstation providers are rolling out applications that let users access functionality via their mobile devices.

Careers

Profile

• Full Agenda Ahead For RIMS Prez
  RIMS’ nearly 10,000 members represent more than 3,500 business, charitable and government entities globally. It has 81 chapters in the U.S., Canada, Mexico and Japan.

People on the Move

• Careers
  Matthew Foehr; Greg Smith; Frank Dellaquila; David Reith; John Gebo; Peter Hancock; Julie Connors; Krystyna Lack; Scott Ullem; Steven Wood; Jeffrey Harris; J. Scott Di Valerio

• Careers
  David Denton; Peter Klein; Jay Rasulo; Edward Fitzpatrick; Robert Falzon; John Fleurant; Susan Carter

• Careers
  Ruth Porat; Ronald Dissinger; Robert Woods; Catherine Neel; Juan Figuereo; Thomas Mangas; Doran Schwartz; Steven Bensinger; Kenneth Luk; Ronald Pasek; Dennis Norman; Carey Hendrickson

Opinion

Editor's Desk

• Getting Past Future Tense
  As the wait continues for an economic rebound, North American companies are less optimistic than those overseas.

• New Year, New Reality
  Gearing Up for 2010

• Emerging Risks
  So many emerging risks, so real time.