FEI Houston - CFO University Speakers 2026

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CFO University Speakers 2026

Reading: CFO as Chief Data Officer

Greg Derderian
Senior Vice President, CFO Advisory

Greg is a seasoned finance transformation and consulting leader with an extensive track record of helping CFOs modernize finance operating models, elevate decision-making, and embed technology and AI into the core of enterprise performance. As CFO Advisory Leader at RGP (Nasdaq: RGP)—recognized by Forbes as one of America’s Best Management Consulting Firms for four consecutive years—Greg leads the firm’s CFO Advisory services, a core growth engine within the Consulting business. His role marks a strategic investment in scaling RGP’s CFO Advisory practice, reinforcing the firm’s commitment to integrating Finance and Digital transformation under a unified leadership model.

RGP’s CFO Advisory practice spans finance transformation, ERP value realization, AI-ready finance, supply chain optimization, M&A integration, risk and compliance, tax and treasury, and enterprise project and change management. Greg is responsible for delivering repeatable, outcome-driven solutions across these interconnected priorities, providing CFOs and their C-suite partners with holistic, scalable support across the transformation lifecycle—from advisory through execution and ongoing operations.

Prior to joining RGP, Greg served as Senior Partner and Global CFO Transformation and Consulting Leader at Genpact, where he led a global practice focused on reimagining finance operations at enterprise scale. Before Genpact, he served as a Partner at EY, where he held senior leadership roles in finance management consulting, advising global enterprises on modernizing finance functions while maintaining operational rigor and regulatory compliance.

Widely recognized for balancing governance, efficiency, and strategic impact, Greg champions transformation that is not only visionary but also durable. His approach connects finance strategy, technology enablement, and operational execution—ensuring transformation creates lasting, measurable business value for clients navigating compressed M&A timelines, ERP modernization, AI enablement, data governance, and margin pressure simultaneously.

Jennifer Whalen
Senior Vice President, Chief Financial Officer
Bristow Group Inc

Jennifer Whalen is serving as Senior Vice President, Chief Financial Officer for the Bristow Group Inc. beginning June 2020. The CFO role is responsible for overseeing our Information Technology department, company accounting, decision support, financial reporting, internal audit, investor relations, strategy and M&A, and tax, and other financial functions of the Company.

Previously, she served as the Senior Vice President, Chief Financial Officer at Era Group Inc. since February 2018. Jennifer served as the Company’s Vice President and Chief Accounting Officer since August 2013 until her appointment as Vice President, Acting Chief Financial Officer in June 2017. Jennifer joined the company as Controller in April 2012. From August 2007 to March 2012, Jennifer served in several capacities at nLIGHT Photonics Corporation, a supplier of high-performance lasers, including Director of Accounting. Prior to these roles, Jennifer served as Manager of Accounting at InFocus Corporation for over two years. After serving in the U.S. military, Jennifer started her career in public accounting in the assurance practice group at PricewaterhouseCoopers for approximately five years. She received a B.S. in Accounting from Alabama A&M University and a master’s degree in accounting from the University of Southern California.

Arithmetic: Digital Transformation and Finance Automation

Nicole Sherwood
Senior Finance Director

American Bureau of Shipping Nicole Sherwood is a senior finance leader with more than 25 years of professional experience driving transformation, building scalable organizations, and improving enterprise performance. At ABS, she has led the development of first-of-their-kind finance capabilities that strengthened commercial discipline, improved service delivery, and enabled more efficient global operations. She currently leads commercial finance operations and is recognized for translating strategy into execution, building high-performing teams, and delivering measurable impact across growth, margin, and operational effectiveness.

Srinivas Venneti
Managing Director with Deloitte Consulting LLP

Srinivas Venneti is a Managing Director with Deloitte Consulting LLP and a senior finance transformation leader with 26 years of experience leading large, complex, global ERP transformations for many Fortune 500 companies. Srinivas advises CFOs and finance organizations on how to modernize the finance function through Cloud ERP, automation, and AI. With deep experience helping large, complex organizations navigate enterprise-wide change, Srinivas brings a practical perspective on how to build the right data, technology, and operating model foundation for scalable transformation. Srinivas helps finance leaders cut through the noise to understand where AI is delivering value today, where other automation tools are the better fit, and how to prioritize investments for measurable business impact. Srinivas is focused on helping organizations improve efficiency, strengthen decision-making, and drive lasting value from finance transformation.

Brett Wells
ERP & Technology Systems Transformation Leader

Brett Wells helps large organizations shape outcomes—not slides. With 27 years leading Oracle Cloud and SAP S/4HANA programs, hebuilds the governance, process, data, and AI layers that make ERP stick: program control towers, country activation kits, value tracking, and regression discipline. A frequent keynote speaker, Brett partners with executive sponsors to align strategy to execution and prove value early—improving reliability, compliance, and ROI across petrochemicals, energy, and financial services. Brett has led and or delivered over 31 multi-national ERP implementations.

Lead architect for front, middle, and back-office modernization across Oracle Cloud (ERP, SCM, MFG, OTC) and SAP S/4HANA (including SAP RISE and BTP).
Specializes in defining and delivering digital core strategies that unify operations, finance, customer experience, and supply chain for global enterprises.
Expert in embedding Artificial Intelligence (AI), Machine Learning (ML), and Robotic Process Automation (RPA) into enterprisesystems to drive intelligent operations.
Business architect across Oracle Cloud Infrastructure (OCI), AWS, Azure, and GCP, aligning multi-cloud strategies to business goals and regulatory frameworks.
PgMP-certified leader and former Accenture IPC Delivery Executive, with experience driving enterprise-wide programs across industries.
Expert in creating ROI-driven business cases and monetization frameworks for large-scale cloud and AI transformations.

Science: Reinventing FP&A: From Static Budgets to Dynamic Insights

Chris Delange
Senior Partner

NewVista Advisory Group Chris is a Senior Partner at NewVista Advisory Group with over 20 years of finance and accounting leadership experience. He has a proven track record in business transformation and a unique blend of expertise in finance, accounting, process improvement, cash forecasting, financial planning and analysis, and project management. Chris’s industry expertise spans the entire energy landscape (upstream, downstream, midstream, services, chemicals, and utilities) and includes exposure to technology and software companies.

Over the past decade, he has held senior finance leadership positions at Callon Petroleum and Carrizo Oil & Gas. Previously, Chris spent 10 years in professional services at EY, FTI, and Booz Allen, where he provided post-merger integration services, process improvement, internal control guidance, and support during financial distress and restructuring. Chris holds an MBA from the University of Chicago, a Masters of Accounting from the University of Virginia, and a bachelor’s degree in Economics from Brigham Young University. He is also a licensed CPA in Texas and California.

Talent Strategy: Building the Finance Team of the Future

Kristy Manteris
Managing Director and Leadership Advisor
The Siegfried Group

Kristy Manteris is a Managing Director and Leadership Advisor at The Siegfried Group, where she partners with financial executives across the Houston market to elevate leadership effectiveness and build high-performing finance organizations by delivering top accounting and finance talent alongside leadership advisory support. Since joining Siegfried in 2013, she has worked closely with clients on critical finance and accounting initiatives. She joined the firm’s leadership team in 2016 and now focuses on partnering with CFOs and finance leaders to help them execute on their highest priorities.

Prior to Siegfried, Kristy was a Manager in PwC’s assurance practice and served as the British Columbia representative on PwC Canada’s National Staff Counsel.

Outside of work, Kristy is actively involved in the Houston community and serves on several local committees. She is a proud mother of four daughters and enjoys coaching soccer, volunteering as room mom, and staying closely involved in her daughters’ activities. Kristy has traveled to all seven continents and has a goal of traveling more with her family as well as spending more time on the golf course to improve her game.

Janet Brady
South-Central Regional HR Director for Gensler

Janet Brady is the South-Central Regional HR Director for Gensler, based in Houston. She joined the global architecture and design firm in 2022 and brings more than 25 years of experience advising senior leaders in professional services and consulting environments.

Prior to Gensler, Janet spent two decades at Deloitte, where she partnered with business leaders to shape workforce strategies that supported growth, development, retention, and operational performance. Her experience spans talent acquisition and development, performance management, employee engagement, workforce planning, compensation strategy, and operational effectiveness.

Janet helps leaders translate business priorities into practical people strategies that enable performance, strengthen retention, and support long-term growth. She works closely with executive teams to align talent decisions with financial and operational objectives, helping organizations grow while maintaining a strong focus on culture and engagement.

She holds the Senior Professional in Human Resources (SPHR) certification and is an active member of SHRM and HR Houston.

Darren Ercolani
Executive Vice President & Chief Financial Officer
Chevron Phillips Chemical

Darren Ercolani is executive vice president and chief financial officer. He assumed this position in 2022 and has executive oversight for the company’s finance and procurement functions. A proven leader with over three decades of business experience in multinational environments, he has lived and held executive positions in NA, Asia, and the Middle East.
Ercolani was the company’s senior vice president of business transformation. In this role, he was responsible for an enterprise-wide continuous improvement program and launched digital and cultural transformation efforts.

Ercolani began his career with Koch Industries before transitioning to Phillips Petroleum. He joined CPChem upon its formation in 2000 as a treasury associate. He has held several finance management and treasury functions at the domestic and international levels including general auditor, owner relations manager, Asia-region controller in Singapore, and CFO at Q-Chem, a Qatar-based joint venture between CPChem and QatarEnergy.

Ercolani has corporate board experience through his existing role, as a non-voting member of the CPChem board of directors and chair of the board audit committee. He represents CPChem’s interests on multiple petrochemical joint ventures in Saudi Arabia, where the partner is Saudi Industrial Investment Group. He is also a board member of Golden Triangle Polymers Company, a U.S.-based joint venture between CPChem and QatarEnergy.

Ercolani serves his community as he is a member of the board of directors for the Montgomery County Women’s Center, a domestic violence non-profit, and is a member of the Junior Achievement of Southeast Texas Board of Directors. He is also a member of the Dean’s Advisory Board for Wichita State University’s Barton School of Business.

Ercolani was born in Kansas and earned a bachelor’s degree in accounting from Wichita State University and an MBA from the University of St. Thomas.

Writing: Stock Exchanges and IPOs

Lee Anne Sexton
Managing Director

Donnelley Financial Solutions (DFIN

Lee Anne Sexton is a Managing Director at Donnelley Financial Solutions (DFIN) and a strategic advisor to executive leadership teams on IPO readiness, SEC reporting, corporate governance, capital raising, M&A transactions, and public company compliance. Throughout her 26-year career, Lee Anne has helped organizations navigate critical milestones, from fundraising and IPO preparation to life as a public company.

Lee Anne works closely with finance and legal leaders to align people, processes, and technology, helping companies navigate complex regulatory requirements, execute strategic transactions, and build scalable reporting and governance practices. She is known for translating complex reporting and compliance challenges into practical strategies that help companies prepare for growth, reduce risk, and operate effectively in the public markets.

Lee Anne is a graduate of Texas A&M University.

Ryan Tull
Piper Sandler

Ryan Tull joined the energy, power & infrastructure investment banking group at Piper Sandler in 2024 and leads the capital markets origination and public M&A for the group.

Tull has 30 years of experience in the energy industry, including 20 years as an investment banker. Prior to Piper Sandler, Tull was head of oilfield services and oilfield infrastructure at J.P. Morgan from 2019 to 2024 and worked for Credit Suisse from 2004 to 2019 where he was promoted to managing director and served as head of oilfield services.

Tull has extensive capital markets and advisory experience, raising more than $50 billion in debt financing, leading more than 20 IPOs as well as many other follow-on equity offerings and having completed approximately $40 billion in M&A deal volume.

Tull is a long-time Houstonian and grew up in New Mexico. He earned a bachelor’s degree in managerial studies and economics as well as a Masters of Business Administration degree, with honors, from Rice University.

Will Braeutigam

US Capital Markets Transactions Leader

Deloitte & Touche LLP

Will is the US Capital Markets Transactions Leader at Deloitte. In this role, he leads the firm's efforts related to companies seeking public capital or debt. He has extensive venture capital and private equity experience. His team has served hundreds of companies completing capital market transactions. The team focuses on helping companies meet their strategic goals and objectives in a dynamic market and ever-changing regulatory environment.

Will also has several leadership roles including serving on the firm’s mergers, acquisitions, and restructuring services executive committee, and leading the firm’s accounting advisory services offering."

Hillary Holmes

Co-Chair of Gibson Dunn’s Capital Markets Practice Group,
Co-Partner-in-Charge of the firm’s Houston office

Hillary Holmes serves as Co-Chair of Gibson Dunn’s Capital Markets Practice Group, Co-Partner-in-Charge of the firm’s Houston office, and a member of the firm’s Executive Committee. She is also a member of the Securities Regulation and Corporate Governance, Mergers & Acquisitions, and Energy & Infrastructure Practice Groups.

Hillary’s practice focuses on capital markets, where she advises issuers, underwriters, and investors on a broad range of equity and debt transactions, including IPOs, primary and secondary offerings, investment grade notes offerings, high-yield 144A bond offerings,PIPEs, ATMs, preferred stock placements, and tender offers. She guides companies of all sizes through transformative capital-raising transactions. Hillary also maintains a significant M&A and board advisory practice, counseling boards of directors, special committees, and management teams in connection with public and private M&A transactions, take-private deals, activism preparation and situations, internal investigations, fiduciary duties, and conflicts of interest. Her work regularly places her at the center of critical decisions and transactions where legal, financial, and strategic considerations converge.

In addition, Hillary serves as securities and governance counsel to public companies and pre-IPO businesses, advising on disclosure obligations, securities laws, SEC developments, regulatory compliance, and governance practices. She works closely within-house counsel and leadership teams to ensure best practices, navigate regulatory frameworks, manage risk, and leverage opportunities. Hillary has particular depth of experience in the energy industry. A further core component of Hillary’s practice is her expertise in Texas corporate law, including advising companies on redomestications to Texas and related legal and market
considerations.

Hillary is known for her sound judgment, technical excellence, commercial pragmatism, innovation, strong work ethic, and ability to execute in high-pressure, high-stakes situations. Clients consistently turn to her to lead their most important transactions and to provide clear, strategic counsel at important moments for their businesses.

Ryan Nagy

Regional Head of Capital Markets

Ryan advises high-growth private companies on the path to the public markets, bringing nearly 15 years of experience supporting public companies at every stage of their life cycle. His focus includes building trusted relationships with founders, C-suite executives, board members, and advisors - including bankers, legal counsel, auditors, VC/PE investors, and IR advisory firms.

Previously, Ryan served as Regional Co-Head of Listings for NYSE & NYSE Texas, acting as the primary point of contact for C-suite executives across the exchange’s listed company community. In that role, he deepened client relationships and counseled issuers on market structure, trading behavior, key topics affecting public companies, corporate governance changes, and investor relations best practices. Prior to NYSE, Ryan advised public companies in various roles at AlphaSense, S&P Global, and Nasdaq.

Physical Education: The Future of Finance: Evolving from CFO to CEO

Kathy Pattillo

Managing Partner

Boyden and Global Practice Leader for Financial Officers

Kathy Pattillo is a Managing Partner at Boyden and Global Practice Leader for Financial Officers. She brings over 20 years of executive search and consulting experience, with a strategic, big-picture perspective on how finance leaders evolve into enterprise leaders who drive transformation, growth, and long-term value.

Kathy focuses on recruiting C-suite executives and board leaders across industries including energy, industrial, EPC, healthcare, and private equity-backed companies. She works closely with clients to assess leadership teams, business strategy, and culture, placing executives who align with organizational goals and accelerate performance. Her experience spans public, private, and sponsor-backed environments, with deep expertise supporting CFOs and leadership teams through IPOs, M&A, operational improvement, and business transformation initiatives.

Kathy earned her Bachelor of Business Administration in Finance and Management from Texas Christian University and has completed advanced continuing education through the National Association of Corporate Directors. She is actively involved in board and advisory roles, including work with the Texas Hearing Institute, Moore & Shelton Co., Ltd, and industry organizations. Beyond the office, Kathy enjoys spending time with her family, boating, and staying engaged in the Houston business and philanthropic community.">

Robert Tabb
Chief Executive Officer
CoVolt Power

Robert L. Tabb is President and Chief Executive Officer of CoVolt Power, a leading provider of engineering, procurement and construction services for complex power infrastructure across the United States.

Robert became Chief Executive Officer in 2024 after joining the company as Chief Financial Officer in 2021. He has helped shape CoVolt’s evolution into an integrated power infrastructure platform serving renewable generation, grid infrastructure, industrial power and data centers. His leadership is centered on disciplined growth, operational excellence and building trusted, long-term partnerships with customers navigating increasingly complex power and infrastructure needs.

Before joining CoVolt, Robert served as Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of Orion Group Holdings, where he played a central role in a significant financial and operational transformation. During his tenure, the company strengthened its balance sheet, improved financial discipline and established a more resilient operating foundation. Earlier in his career, Robert held leadership and finance roles at Mattress Firm and MXenergy, developing broad experience across corporate strategy, operations, financial planning and analysis, capital markets, valuation, and mergers and acquisitions.

A Houston native, Robert holds a Bachelor of Business Administration in Finance from Texas Southern University and an MBA from the University of Houston. He has also completed executive education in strategy and leadership at Harvard Business School.

Rebekah Le

independent board member and Audit Committee chair

Signal Energy

Rebekah Le is an independent board member and Audit Committee chair for Signal Energy, where she has served since 2021. She brings a governance-level perspective on how finance leaders evolve into broader enterprise leadership roles.

Rebekah serves as Chief Strategy & Financial Officer for Legacy Community Health, one of the nation's largest federally qualified health centers, where she leads finance and strategy to support sustainable growth and organizational scale. She is also a member of the Advisory Board for The Woman's Hospital of Texas. Rebekah's experience spans healthcare, nonprofit, global, client-service, and privately held environments, and she has previously held board roles with both Legacy and The Women's Resource.

Rebekah is a Certified Public Accountant, a CoachRice Certified Coach, and earned her Bachelor of Business Administration in Accounting from University of Houston (Main Campus). Beyond the office, she enjoys traveling with her family, exploring new adventures, and reading.

Fine Arts: Strategic M&A: Creating Value Beyond the Deal

Danny Boyer
Sr. Vice President, Global M&A Practice Leader

Successful M&A professional with 20 years of experience, building and leading cross-functional advisory teams, partnering with corporate and private equity clients to drive value creation through complex transformations and transactions across the lifecycle, spanning strategy, diligence, and execution. As Global Head of M&A, he leads RGP’s M&A offering across the full transaction lifecycle, from financial and operational due diligence through Day 1 readiness, integration, separation, and long-term post-close optimization. His leadership reinforces RGP’s differentiated model: aligning finance, technology, operations, and data under a single, accountable framework to ensure strategy translates into measurable execution.

Danny has partnered with client executives to shape and lead 100+ transactions and related transformation efforts ranging in size from $300M asset deals to $35B+ global integrations and separations. Selected experience includes:

$7B Parallel Integrations –Shaped and led multiple acquisitions doubling size of business, and established post-close transformation roadmap, business case, operating model and supported implementation.
$1.3B Carve-out Strategy and Stand-up –Shaped, sold and led PE backed stand-up of new business working directly with CEO and PEboard to set strategy, stand-up new business processes, systems, and design/recruit/onboard organization.
$10B Integration, Performance Improvement, & Separation –Shaped and led multiple programs over 7 years building business (multiple acquisitions), driving cost reduction during downturn, and eventual exit through parallel divestitures.
$4B Integration and International Business Stand-up –Shaped and led mobilization and execution of $4B integration across 20+ workstreams and multiple additional asset deals. Advised on international expansion strategy and stand-up of international business in Mexico (first among peers). Developed M&A playbook for future transactions.
$30B Global Separation –Led separation across 34 workstreams. Set strategy, roadmap, plans, designed operating model/organization, analyzed costs/dis-synergies, and managed separation execution in preparation for IPO.
Enterprise Performance Improvement –Architected and led multiple lean-based operations improvement assessments, identified and developed plans to achieve >$300M in margin and >$500M in working capital benefit, across 4 continents.

M. Steven Bender
Senior Advisor to the President and Chief Executive Officer

Mr. Bender is the Senior Advisor to the President and Chief Executive Officer of Westlake Corporation since June 2026. Prior to assuming this role, he served as Executive Vice President, Chief Financial Officer for Westlake Chemical Corporation since 2008. In addition, Mr. Bender was also the Executive Vice President, Chief Financial Officer and Director of Westlake Chemical Partners LP since its formation in 2014.

From 2002 until 2005, Mr. Bender served as Vice President and Treasurer of KBR, Inc., and from 1996 to 2002 he held various senior Finance positions for Halliburton Company. Additionally, he was employed by Texas Eastern Corporation for over a decade in a variety of increasingly responsible audit, finance and treasury positions.

Mr. Bender received a Bachelor of Business Administration from Texas A&M University and an M.B.A. from Southern Methodist University. Mr. Bender is also a Certified Public Accountant.

Ryan Nagy

Regional Head of Capital Markets

Luke Wegner
Vice President, Finance | ABS

Luke Wegner is a global finance executive with more than 20 years of experience across finance, accounting, and strategic business leadership. He has built and led high-performing teams that deliver on business priorities and support growth, performance, and transformation across complex organizations.

His experience spans Audit, Accounting and Control, Financial Planning and Analysis, Treasury, Corporate Planning, Commercial Finance, Business Partnering, Pricing, Order to Cash, Business Intelligence, and ERP implementations. Luke has held leadership roles in both public and private companies across the products, services, banking, and capital markets sectors.

Luke currently serves as Vice President, Strategic Finance at ABS, where he oversees Corporate Planning and Analysis, Business Partnering, Operations Finance, and Project Accounting, and also serves as interim CFO of ABS Group.

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