Catherine Cato
**** ***** ****** ( Waterford, Michigan 48328 (
*****@*********.*** ( 248-***-****
http://www.linkedin.com/in/catherinecato
Skills Summary
. Liaison with controllers located globally. Countries supported are:
Australia, New Zealand, Singapore, Malaysia, UK, Ireland, Israel, France,
Italy Spain, Belgium, Germany, Poland, Netherlands, Mexico, Guatemala,
Costa Rico, El Salvador, Panama, Columbia, Peru, Chile, Brazil,
Argentina, and Canada.
. Financial analyses with USD conversion for: AUD, NZD,SGD, MYR, GBP, EUR,
ILS, PLN, MXN, GTQ, CRC, SVC, PAB, COP, PEN, CLP, BRL, ARS, CAD, CZK, and
HUF.
. Assessed, documented and combined corporate capital policy for Kmart
Holding Company and Sears & Roebuck, Inc as member of the transition team
for the corporate merger of Sears Holding Company.
. Supervision responsibilities have included as many as 7 direct and 27
indirect reports.
. Currently testing for both Six Sigma and PMP Certifications
. Advanced spreadsheet and financial modeling abilities. Proficient with
Microsoft Office System (including Excel, Word, PowerPoint, Visio,
Access, and Outlook), Hyperion Essbase, Oracle and PeopleSoft.
Education
Ph.D., Management Information Systems ( Kennedy-Western University (
1996, GPA: 3.71/4.0
MBA, Management ( Walsh College ( 1992, GPA: 3.72/4.0
BBA, Accounting and CIS ( Davenport University (formally Detroit
College of Business ( 1984
Professional Experience
RGIS INVENTORY SPECIALISTS 9/2006
to Present
#1 leader in inventory services with over 400 offices globally
Director of Finance
Weekly compiling of international rolling 13 week cash flow forecast for 25
countries with USD conversion of 21 currencies. Management of Fixed Assets
with monthly reconciliation of field equipment for all offices, identifying
unaccounted fixed asset transfers, lost/stolen equipment, and capital
expenditures to budget. Monthly reconciliation and cash transfer for $49M
escrow fund. Key Accomplishments:
. Developed equipment deployment tracker to ensure proper allocation of
field equipment across 360 US district offices.
. Created district office lease savings analysis that identifies savings
driven from aggressive lease renewals, relocation to reduce square
footage, rental rates, subleases, and terminated leases for all US,
Puerto Rico, and Canada offices.
. Developed matrix used for monthly reconciliation of all inter-company
loans for 25 countries.
. Developed AR DSO Aging Reporting by country, as well as AR Write Offs
with Recovery reporting to identify AR Recovery opportunities in each
country.
. Developed iExpense (corporate credit card expenditures) model for the US
and Canada. Initial analysis identified $878K (USD) and $465 (CAN) in
fraudulent transactions.
MAC LEASING, LLC 1/2006
to 8/2006
Specializing in industrial/manufacturing equipment with lease originations
of over $81 million in 2005
Chief Financial Officer
Responsible for budget process implementation, continual identifying of
cost controls and process improvements. Accountable for compiling monthly
financial reporting and presentation for the Board of Directors. Compute
and analyze fee income, interim rent, and maintain appropriate reserves in
cash flow. Constant communication with syndications group to achieve
acceptable margins, as well as continuous monitoring of end-of-lease
pricing. Key Accomplishments:
. Successfully resolved aging accounts receivable issues. Collected over
$250,000 of >90 Day aging in 1st quarter 2006.
. Developed lease vs. buy model for capital improvement projects and heavy
equipment acquisitions.
Catherine Cato
Professional Experience Continued
NES RENTALS
8/2005 to 12/2005
Rental of industrial and construction equipment
Financial Manager
Managed AR department for the Detroit Automotive Group, overseeing the
billing function as well as compliance of all billing practices including
EDI and customer proprietary electronic communication requirements.
Completed annual budget, compiled monthly financial statements for the
Midwest division, as well ensuring capitalization of all equipment repairs.
Coordinated and reconciled the physical inventories of PPE and rental
fleet. Worked with corporate fixed assets group to ensure all district
assets were properly identified and tagged. Key Accomplishments:
. Assure compliance with the Automotive SOP and ISO requirements.
Coordinate ISO audits as well as prepare all monthly control compliance
testing, provide training and disciplines with branch personnel to
resolve issues and to maintain proper internal controls.
. Computed all customer rebates and maintain appropriate reserves in the
General Ledger. Conducted analyses of re-rents, contract hauling and
working with operations to achieve acceptable margins. Continuous
monitoring of results, establishing and improving existing processes.
KMART CORPORATION
12/2000 to 8/2005
Mass merchandising company with over 1,479 retail outlets in the US, Puerto
Rico and Virgin Islands.
Financial Manager-Capital Planning and Analysis
Managed and evaluated all corporate capital projects and monthly reporting
expenditures. Capital projections by business unit to Treasury for monthly
cash flow projections and P&L impact. Worked with procurement to develop
an on-line ethical bidding process for new capital projects. Key
Accomplishments:
. Reconciliation of $200+ million annual capital expenditures, as well as
$10+ million monthly compiling of capital accruals. Worked with
corporate fixed assets group to ensure all assets were properly
identified and tagged as well as the capitalization of equipment repairs.
. Developed a new process to ensure proper accounting of capital projects
due reimbursements, i.e.: vendor funding, landlord reimbursements for
ADA/compliance remodels, energy saving reimbursements from state agencies
for lighting re-lamps. Saved an incremental $1.1 million of capital
funding in 2004.
. Investment analysis of all prior year projects. Performed gap analysis
of perceived benefits verses those received upon completion of project.
Cost analysis for any out of scope expenses that may have occurred within
the duration of the project.
. Developed methodology for prioritizing projects based on NPV and IRR to
maximize capital investment. Overall economic summary of expenditures
such as cost of carrying inventory, sales and depreciation of fixed
assets, as well as the break out of ongoing savings and expense for all
capital commitments.
Financial Manager-Corporate Reporting
Prepared monthly BOD financial presentation for the Treasurer, business
plan reviews, and other ad hoc financial presentations for senior level
managers. Key Accomplishments:
. Designed gross margin decomposition model, and built a comparative sales
matrix to adjust for store closings used with external financial
reporting.
. Assisted in the development of the 5 year strategic plan. Received
recognition for initialing weekly meetings with sales department to
provide enhanced intradepartmental communication resulting in a more
precise sales projection.
. Managed and initiated payments to vendors for $465 million of consigned
inventory through bankruptcy in compliance with court rulings to ensure
correct pre-petition payments to secured vendors. Weekly reconciliation
of consigned inventory for controller.
Senior Financial Analyst-Merchandise Finance
Designed and compiled weekly financial summary for senior level managers,
reporting budget variances for sales, margin, markon, markdowns, shrink,
discontinued inventory, layaway sales and working capital. Developed
operational matrix based on number of transactions and average market
basket of shoppers. In-depth MS Access cost analysis of merchandise sold
with allowances collected by vendors. Other analyses developed included
seasonal inventory performance and test real estate projects.
Catherine Cato
Professional Experience Continued
SAINT MARY'S COLLEGE
3/1998-3/2001
Saints Cyril & Methodius Seminary established in 1885
Adjunct Faculty
Instruct college students in the area of basic fundamentals of computer
concepts and common application software for the course CIS 100:
Introductory Concepts and Applications, and the continuation of proficiency
developed in basic computer fundamentals to advance skills in problem
solving with the course CIS 200: Advanced Applications. Responsible for
consulting and advising with students and other faculty, interviewing
perspective faculty members, formulating appropriate recommendations to
department chair. Key Accomplishment:
. Received letter of recognition from Academic Dean for scoring 95% in
response to student's evaluation of their instructor's excellence in
teaching.
PEPSI BOTTLING GROUP
8/1984 to 11/2000
Largest manufacturer, seller and distributor of Pepsi-Cola beverages
Pricing Analyst
Pricing analysis and management of $700+ million business unit entailing
six various price zones in the Midwest. Daily review of promotions, item
codes and invoice charge-backs. Successful rollout of two new prices zones
resulting in zero price overrides in HHC. Key Accomplishments:
. Analyzed and monitored pricing structures, inventory/package portfolio
voids, and promotional initiatives for 21 distribution warehouses and 3
production facilities with a daily average of over 500 SKU's.
. Part of implementation team responsible the rollout and training of an
automated settlement system with the introduction of both the Fujitsu and
Norand brand Hand-Held Computer, which increased profitability by 12% by
streamlining operations.
Business Reporting Analyst
. Constructed and executed decision support systems for the General Manager
and top-level management in sales forecasting for the State of Michigan
and Twin Cites in Minnesota surpassing over 80 million units annually.
Built competitive and benchmarking financial models to improve profit and
highlight opportunities for greater market share. Key Accomplishments:
. Conducted in-depth operation analyses including route tonnage and
headcount, product cost variables, determined margin contribution impact,
identified profit-producing products by package and flavor, as well as
constructing profit optimization/performance models based on current
marketing strategies.
. Developed comprehensive analyses to support Customer Representative staff
using statistical data compilations from IRI (Information Resources, Inc)
and Minuteman/Databank reporting systems to improve category strategies
and pricing for key customer accounts.
Other
. Member of National Association of Professional Women
. Notary Public for Oakland County, Michigan.
. Member of Therapy Dogs Inc. Working with my certified trained Jack
Russell Terrier providing smiles and joy to patients of various local
hospitals and nursing homes.
. Appointed Parks and Recreation Commissioner-City of Keego Harbor,
Michigan