EP 016 - The CannaTech CFO with David Yan, CFO at Treez

In this conversation, David Yan, CFO of Trees, shares his journey from KPMG to the corporate finance side and eventually to the cannabis industry. He discusses his experience at various companies and the challenges and opportunities he encountered along the way. David also provides insights into the state regulations in the cannabis industry and the funding landscape for companies in this space. He participates in a quick-fire game where he compares different metrics of Trees, Wrike, and Rike. Further, David discusses the evolution of the role of the CFO and the characteristics of a modern CFO. He emphasizes the importance of being forward-thinking and acting as the nexus point between a company's strategy, capital investment, operations, and people. David also explores how advanced technology and data analytics have transformed the finance function, and he shares insights on fostering a culture of innovation and accountability within a team. He provides advice for new CFOs on their first 100 days and offers guidance for young professionals aspiring to become CFOs. --- Takeaways

• Transitioning from a traditional finance role to corporate finance can provide a broader perspective and operating experience.
• The cannabis industry is highly regulated at the state level, which presents unique challenges and opportunities for companies operating in this space.
• Investor sentiment towards the cannabis industry has evolved over time, with traditional investors now showing interest and conducting due diligence.
• Metrics such as gross profit, payback, average revenue per customer, LTV to CAC, and churn can vary across companies depending on their business models and target markets. The role of the CFO has evolved to be more forward-thinking and strategic, acting as the nexus point between a company's strategy, capital investment, operations, and people.
• Advanced technology and data analytics have transformed the finance function, enabling CFOs to gain insights and make informed decisions.
• Fostering a culture of innovation and accountability within a team requires investing in people's development, encouraging problem-solving, and aligning decisions with the company's overall business objectives.
• In the first 100 days as a CFO, it is important to understand the business, build relationships with colleagues, prioritize key issues, and communicate a roadmap for the finance function.
• Young professionals aspiring to become CFOs should focus on developing a solid grounding in finance fundamentals, understanding the company's strategy, and how it operationally meets its goals.

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Quotes

“My main interest area was really just understanding all the different challenges companies were going through.”

“If you ultimately want to influence the strategy of business and you want to influence the outcomes of the company then going to have to get into the operations, you going to have to understand the strategy, you have to go down into the model, you have to go down into how you actually affect change and decision making into the company.”

“Putting yourself outside of your comfort zone as many times as you can in the first five years of your career is tremendously valuable.”

“(Understand) how much trust you can put in people and what your role is in making sure that your team succeeds.”

“(Definition of Modern CFO) to really being the nexus point between the company strategy, it’s capital investments, as well as operations, and people.”

“Ultimately, the role of the CFO is making sure the company can see around the corner in all aspects.”

“Once the capital is gone, it doesn’t come back.”

“I think of it as a pyramid in that at the very bottom layer, you have to have the finance operations. If you don't have that, you're not going to have the accounting. If you don't have the accounting, you're not going to have data integrity. And if you don't have data integrity, you're not going to be able to do financial planning. And if you don't have the financial planning, and then above the financial planning is analytics and insights. So, you really have to create a team and navigate systems and data that can meet the maturity of your business.”

“It's not about raw data. It's about insights. So, you have to start with what insights you need to run the business one year forward or a little bit more, again depending on your scale, and work backward into what systems, what processes, and what team structure would best help you get to that state.”

“You want to understand as quickly as you can, what you can do to help the company see around the corner.”

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Where to find David Yan:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/david-yan-b597b11/

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Where to find Treez:

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