Series Description
Financial oversight and management is an art as well as a science. How are your peers at other public power utilities navigating their financial planning responsibilities and framing policies? How can you analyze financial reports and monitor key indicators to ensure the long-term health and stability of your utility? Review public power case studies and get insights from the experts on how to ace your financial responsibilities. Learn about new standards, regulatory requirements, and future trends in this popular series, while earning CPE credits.
The six part series, recorded in 2018 includes the following webinars:
- Financial Pathways to the Utility of the Future
- How to Set and Achieve Revenue Targets
- Meeting New GASB Standards
- Developing Cash Reserve Policies
- Aligning Rate Strategies to Future Trends
- A Financial Health Check-Up
Recommended for
The series reviews key accounting and finance topics for public power utilities of different sizes and with a variety of governing structures. CEOs, general managers, finance and accounting personnel, rate analysts, and other utility staff involved in management and financial planning will benefit.
Speakers
- Mark Beauchamp, CPA, CMA, MBA, President, Utility Financial Solutions, Holland, Michigan
- Jodi Dobson, CPA, Senior Manager, Energy & Utilities Group, Baker Tilly, Madison, Wisconsin
- Russ Hissom, CPA, CIA, CISA, Partner, Energy & Utilities Group, Baker Tilly, Madison, Wisconsin
- Dawn Lund, Vice President, Utility Financial Solutions, Leland, Michigan
- Bethany Ryers, CPA, Senior Manager, Energy & Utilities Group, Baker Tilly, Madison, Wisconsin
Purchase the full 6-part series (half original price): $245 for members; $495 for nonmembers
Contact Us
Have questions or would like to purchase individual webinars? Contact 202-467-2997 or [email protected]
Webinar #1: Financial Pathways to the Utility of the Future
Recording length: 1 hour, 22 minutes
Webinar Description
The electric utility of the future will deal with increasing distributed generation, microgrids, changing loads, and real-time pricing. How should your finance functions evolve? Gear up for resource constraints, a shrinking workforce, sustainability accounting requirements, convergence of broadband and electricity, cloud services to customers, increasing data analytics, and other evolutions. Find out how to plan and manage your financial information to support real-time decision-making for the future, without overlooking a historical record.
Topics
- Financial reporting
- Rate structures and cost recovery
- Changes in technology
- Use of artificial intelligence in financial processing and reporting
- Skills required by the finance professionals of the future
Speaker
- Russ Hissom, CPA, CIA, CISA, Partner, Energy & Utilities Group, Baker Tilly, Madison, Wisconsin
Webinar #2: How to Set and Achieve Revenue Target
Recording length: 1 hour, 29 minutes
Webinar Description
Revenue requirements are a critical but little understood financial target at a utility. They determine the amount and timing of rate adjustments, which in turn are influenced by social and political factors. Learn how to determine revenue requirements—taking into account all influential factors—and achieve them.
Topics
- Rationale and methods to determine revenue requirements
- Financial factors in rate adjustments
- Monitoring cash flows and cash reserves
- Consequences of forgoing needed rate adjustments
- Communicating about rate adjustments
Speaker
- Dawn Lund, Vice President, Utility Financial Solutions, Leland, Michigan
Webinar #3: Meeting New GASB Standards
Recording length: 1 hour, 21 minutes
Webinar Description
New and revised accounting standards are being issued at a rapid pace, requiring you to review accounting structures for proper implementation and financial statements for transparent reporting. There have been several new governmental accounting standards over the past few years—many with huge impacts to utility statements. Review some of the newer standards that will affect your utility. Learn, through real-life examples, how to communicate the changes to your governing body. Understand how to interpret your financial statements after applying the new standards.
Topics
- GASB 74/75 on other postemployment benefits
- GASB 83 on asset retirement obligations
- GASB 84 on fiduciary activities
- GASB 86 on certain debt extinguishment issues
- GASB 87 on leases
- GASB 88 on certain debt-related disclosures
Speakers
- Jodi Dobson, CPA, Senior Manager, Energy & Utilities Group, Baker Tilly, Madison, Wisconsin
- Bethany Ryers, CPA, Senior Manager, Energy & Utilities Group, Baker Tilly, Madison, Wisconsin
Webinar #4: Developing Cash Reserve Policies
Recording length: 1 hour, 28 minutes
Webinar Description
A cash reserve policy is critical to maintaining your utility’s financial stability and bond ratings. You need to accumulate as much unrestricted net assets as possible to enhance and expand programs or sustain your organization during tough times. See how other public power utilities like yours are developing cash reserve policies and learn the process to develop your own. Understand what indicators cash reserves provide on bond issue and capital project financing.
Topics
- Factors influencing cash reserves
- Risk factors in determining cash reserves
- Cash reserves and project financing
Speaker
- Dawn Lund, Vice President, Utility Financial Solutions, Leland, Michigan
Webinar #5: Aligning Rate Strategies to Future Trends
Recording length: 1 hour, 22 minutes
Webinar Description
The way utilities set rates for electric services is changing, because of AMI technologies, increasing renewables, energy efficiency programs, and measures to reduce cross-subsidies and create revenue stability. Learn about industry rate trends. See how you need to transition your rate strategies to achieve long-term strategic goals. Learn how to develop standby rates for customer installed distributed generation, time-differentiated structures, and economic development.
Topics
- Cost-based rate structures to promote energy efficiency
- Real-time pricing with public power case studies
- Determining economic development rates
- Developing standby rates for distributed generation
Speaker
- Mark Beauchamp, CPA, CMA, MBA, President, Utility Financial Solutions, Holland, Michigan
Webinar #6: A Financial Health Check-Up
Recording length: 1 hour, 22 minutes
Webinar Description
Is your utility doing well financially? Are your key targets set and indicators turned on? How are you monitoring performance? Get help assessing your current and future financial stability. Ensure that you have funds to continue to deliver affordable and reliable service to your customers. Learn key financial areas to review to assess your overall financial health.
Topics
- Monitoring your utility’s financial health
- Assessing key financial targets — days of cash on hand, rate of return, debt coverage ratio, age of system, capital planning, rate structure and debt vs. net book value
- Communicating utility financial performance and rate changes to policymakers and customers
Speaker
- Dawn Lund, Vice President, Utility Financial Solutions, Leland, Michigan
Purchase the full 6-part series (half original price): $245 for members; $495 for nonmembers
Contact Us
Have questions or would like to purchase individual webinars? Contact 202-467-2997 or [email protected]
