How to leave FAB with an investment-ready tech stack: A CFO’s playbook
Use this guide to plan your two days so you walk back into the office with a signed-off roadmap, a shortlist of suppliers and clear ROI numbers for the board.
Start with the board’s goals
Download last quarter’s strategy slide-deck and highlight the three numbers that really matter: margin, working-capital days, head-count cost. Any tech you evaluate at FAB must shift at least one of those needles within 12 months. Take those targets to Birmingham – they will keep every conversation on track.
Map your tech gaps before you step on the train
List the workflows that still rely on email, spreadsheets or manual checks. Typical culprits:
- Consolidation across entities
- Purchase-to-pay approvals
- ESG data capture
- Rolling cashflow forecasts
Attach an indicative annual cost to each gap (time, errors, lost insight). This will become your budgeting baseline when you meet with vendors.
Pre-book the right 1-to-1s
Our revamped 1-to-1s (more on this exciting development coming soon) will allow you to filter vendors by:
- Integration with your core ERP or GL
- Capacity to handle your desired number of transactions a month
- Evidence of UK mid-market or enterprise installs
Mine FAB content for post-deal milestones
Sessions on basis-period reform, payrolling benefits and AI governance will surface the change-management tasks you must budget for: staff training, policy edits, audit sign-off. These aren’t just technical tweaks – they’re the operational hurdles that will make or break your tech investment’s success.
Convert coffee breaks into peer due diligence
Network with your peers between sessions. Ask fellow FDs:
- “Which pilot did you kill – and why?”
- “How long from purchase order to full adoption?”
- “What surprised your auditors?”
Often, peer answers beat vendor promises and give you valuable first-person feedback on their pain points.
Leave with a 90-day board pack
Before you exit the NEC, open Notes and draft:
- A vendor shortlist: Name, cost estimate, KPI impact.
- Quick wins: Workflows you can automate this quarter.
- Risks: Data migration, culture, licence overlap.
That document becomes agenda item number one at the next exec meeting.
If you're serious about building a smarter, more future-ready finance function, this is the place to start. Secure your free ticket for 11-12 March 2026 and turn two days at FAB into a tech strategy your board can fund on the spot.
