Supply Chain Management

Nickolas Darin

**** *** ***** 248-***-**** 248-***-****

Rochester, MI 48306 *********@*******.***

SENIOR EXECUTIVE - FINANCE / GENERAL MANAGEMENT

Expertise: Value Creation... Financial Engineering... Operational

Leadership

Performance-driven leader offering rich career track record of delivering

significant improvements in profitability, performance, cash flow, and

working capital. Utilize keen analysis, insight, and team approach to drive

organizational improvements and best practice implementation. Recognized

for positively impacting organizations by utilizing superior interpersonal

skills and motivating staff to peak performance.

Proven areas of expertise:

( Strategic Planning & Organizational Leadership (

Finance/Accounting & Boardroom

( Budgeting & Cost Management ( Growth &

Expansion Strategies

( Mergers, Acquisitions & Divestments (

Profitability & Cost Analysis

( Process Design & Productivity Improvement ( IT Systems

& Technology Utilization

( Team Building & Performance Improvement ( Supply Chain

& Contract Negotiations

PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE

Interim Chief Financial Officer

2010 - 2011

Revstone Metavation & Casting Fairfield ( Southfield, MI

$132M entity of Revstone Industries offering casting, precision-machining,

and component assembly to a diverse group of markets.

Embraced leadership opportunity in highly leveraged organization

experiencing fast-paced, non-organic growth. Oversaw efforts related to

cash management, monthly reporting, annual planning, and banking

relationship management for machining and assembly plant, rubber plant, and

2 casting foundries. Provided Fiscal leadership overseeing $27M operating

budget. Direct report team comprised of 3 plant controllers and a senior

financial analyst.

. Identified unprofitable product-lines through leadership perspective

and focus into underperforming plants.

. Instilled financial discipline into cash flow management activities

while ensuring supply chain continuity by creating coordinated daily

cash flow forecasting process utilizing finance and purchasing team

contributions.

. Led successful financial integration of $45M foundry through

coordinated efforts with plant controller while achieving 60 day

banking milestones and covenant testing.

Chief Financial Officer

2006 - 2010

Decoratetoday.com - American Blinds & Wallpaper Factory, Inc. ( Livonia,

MI

$79M entity of Contrarian Capital Management, the largest direct marketer

of name brand, special order window treatments & wall coverings.

Recruited as senior leadership team member to create bottom line value

through driving operational improvement, revenue enhancement, and cost

reduction opportunities. Provided Fiscal and Operational leadership

overseeing $24M operating budget, 4 direct reports and 28 associates.

Leadership responsibilities expanded to include IT and H/R.

Key responsibilities involved financial planning, pricing, accounting, cash

management, payroll, technology, and human resources. Oversaw preparation

of annual budgets, monthly management reporting, and annual financial

statements. Instrumental in evaluating and reporting new business

opportunities and investment activities to board of directors. Guided

development of best practice policies and procedures, coordinated financial

audit with independent auditors, and developed and maintained relationships

with external banking, insurance, and tax personnel.

. Solidified stakeholder confidence, employee morale, and customer

satisfaction by recruiting high performance executive team for various

functional areas including finance, accounting, and project

management.

. Attained gross margin growth of 380 bps by conceptualizing and

designing strategic discounting programs, private label product lines,

and core mix business model methodology.

. Collaborated with CEO to steer acquisition due diligence and execute

TSA activity during integration.

. Served as catalyst during deployment of effective Canadian marketplace

penetration initiative.

. Attained multimillion-dollar operational cost savings of $7.9M through

comprehensive analysis of financials.

. Accelerated cash flow $330,000+ by renegotiating credit card

processing terms and bank fees with newly developed business partners.

. Cut operating costs 60% by attaining $720,000 per annum lease cost

savings as headquarters relocation lead.

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VP Finance, Technology & Supply Chain

2000 - 2006

J&L Industrial Supply ( Southfield, MI

$300M division of global market leader Kennametal and distributor of

metalworking products and supplies.

Recruited as member of turnaround executive team charged with restoring

double-digit EBIT to unprofitable division. Challenged to consolidate and

streamline disparate operations developed as result of 8 acquisitions.

Provided Fiscal, IT, and Supply Chain leadership overseeing $30M operating

budget, 5 direct reports and 80 associates across the US and UK.

Operational leadership responsibilities were expanded to include IT and

Supply Chain after successfully positioning the Financial organization.

Reorganized Finance and IT departments, placing high energy, technology

savvy, operational-minded A-players with strong commercial understanding in

key roles. Developed tactical and operational activities and plans to

support corporate strategic goals. Established and maintained key

performance indicators and continuous improvement processes for all aspects

of Finance, IT, and Purchasing. Developed high performance culture of

accountability centered on core values, metrics, and customer service.

Assumed leadership of key corporate initiatives, Cash Max, and Lean

Operations programs.

. Quickly stabilized a burning platform, built credibility, both

externally and internally, while establishing control over existing

business environment.

. Recognized for leading 2 restructuring programs creating $15M of

annualized benefits from $14M spend. Included closing 22 satellite

locations producing census reduction of 295, SKU reductions valued at

$3M, and consolidation of 6 distribution centers.

. Integrated 2 acquired businesses ($18M sales), realigned 1 business

under sister business unit ($128M sales), participated in divesting 2

businesses ($67M sales), and closed German operations ($4M sales).

. Reduced operating expenses 21%, or $13M, in 2 years through census

reductions, rightsizing, and targeted cost reduction programs.

. Delivered a 36% ($25M) decrease in primary working capital. Reductions

driven as a result of aggressive management of inventory without

sacrificing fill rate, payables management that resulted in extending

DSP by 22 days, and receivables and cash application management that

contributed to a 90% hit rate.

. Led accounts receivable securitization efforts that delivered a $17M

increase in free operating cash flow a full quarter earlier than

expected.

. Realigned IT reporting hierarchy to strengthen departmental identity,

renew focus, and create a performance driven team. Allocated more

applications development resources to accelerate results on high-

impact projects.

Cadillac Plastic ( TROY, MI

1994 - 2000

$430M division of M.A. Hanna, a premier polymer supplier and the world's

largest distributor of engineered plastic shapes and custom fabricated

solutions operating through 117 locations in 15 countries.

Elevated through a series of increasingly responsible financial leadership

positions based on consistently exceeding goals and targets. Valued as a

key member in global financial organization.

Divisional Controller (1998 - 2000)

Led staff of 7 direct reports and 33 Finance and Accounting associates

throughout 15 countries in Finance, General Ledger, A/P, A/R, Sales,

Credit, Payroll, Asset and Tax Departments.

. Centralized financial reporting through US - Canada, Australia,

France, UK, and Netherland offices.

. Reorganized and staffed Finance Departments around Oracle ERP to

leverage integrated technology.

. Reduced month-end close by 50% or 3 days driven by reengineered processes

and integrated ERP system.

. Centralized Accounts Payable and eliminated 56 processing centers

resulting in savings of $1.2M.

. Consolidated vendor and supplier base 81% from 11,000 to 2,000.

. Reduced budgeting cycle time by 30% (4 weeks) using Hyperion end-user

application processing tools.

. Improved working capital by reducing DSO 5 days to 48 days by

centralizing the credit function, optimizing lock box application

processes, and outsourcing the billing function.

. Key contributor to change in go-to-market and distribution strategy

through strategic analytics.

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Finance Manager (1997 -1998)

Managed staff of 10 Finance and Accounting associates responsible for

planning, coordination, preparation, reporting and analysis of domestic and

international consolidated financial statements.

. Streamlined management reporting to provide critical decision-making

information at customer and business unit levels resulting in better

pricing, increased gross margins, and optimized inventory mix.

. Managed due diligence process for 2 acquisitions and completed a net

asset deal for a single line of business.

. Directed cash forecasting and analysis for both corporate reporting

and banking relationships.

. Shortened strategic planning horizon to 3 years and optimized capital

appropriation process.

. Enhanced annual budgeting and forecasting process to include metric

reporting and industry benchmarking

. Served as Operations Manager for 14 fabrication/distribution

locations, reviewing procedures, processes, internal control, and

inventory management during Oracle ERP rollout.

. Managed Payroll and Compensation for 900-employee domestic

organization.

Project Leader (1996 -1997)

Led team of 6 Finance and Accounting associates during software conversion

from legacy mainframe software to Oracle ERP client server software.

. Served as management change agent during ERP implementation and

managed successful platform cutover.

. Interfaced with business managers to model and redesign existing

business processes.

. Implemented financial transaction processing modules.

. Coordinated training programs for all functional departments.

Senior Financial Analyst (1994 - 1996)

Responsible for strategic business planning, budgeting, forecasting, and

profitability analysis.

. Developed and implemented multidimensional Activity-Based Costing

models used to analyze profitability by product line, customer and

market throughout North America.

. Developed and implemented interactive what-if models assessing

profitability and new market penetration.

. Analyzed international equity subsidiary transactions, exchange rates,

and translations.

. Served as financial and accounting interface to parent company.

Financial Analyst - Credit Finance (1992 - 1994)

Household International ( Farmington Hills, MI

Accounting Analyst - Plans & Controls (1988 - 1992)

Unisys ( Detroit, MI

Financial Analyst - Financial Statements (1987 - 1988)

United Technologies Automotive ( Dearborn, MI

EDUCATION / DESIGNATION

Post Graduate Studies, Business Administration ( Kennedy-Western

University (2005)

Executive Development in Key Disciplines

M.S., Administration & Organizations ( Central Michigan University (1996)

Graduated with Honors

Certified Management Accountant ( Institute of Management Accountants

(1991)

Earned C.M.A. Designation

B.B.A., Professional Accounting ( University of Michigan-Dearborn (1987)

Graduated with Distinction

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