Dr. Robert A. Howell      

CONSULTING    

Consultant to a number of the top companies in the world including General Electric, Intel, AT&T, Johnson & Johnson, Nestles, KPN, Daimler Chrysler, RWE/Thames Water, Hallmark Cards, Applied Materials, Northrup Grumman, Cummins Engine and many others.

Typical Assignments: Advise and counsel boards, CEOs, CFOs, and their organizations; analytic assignments ranging from detailed ABC cost/profit studies to broad competitive analysis, valuation, and competitive strategy; design and deliver in house training and development programs; led series of executive study missions to Japan and U.S. "best practices" firms; organize and lead annual Senior Financial Executives Roundtables; technical advisor for two Fortune CFO conferences; subject matter expert for three Wall Street Journal CFO Network Programs;


Advice and Counsel to Boards, CEOs, CFOs, and their organizations  

Over the years, Dr. Howell, has served as an advisor to Boards of Directors, CEOs, CFOs, and their organizations.

He has made presentations to Boards of Directors, for example, presenting an "outsider's perspective" to the company's reported financial results. Boards have found that his extensive financial statement analysis experience and his cash flow and value creation orientation have been most helpful in seeing how others might look at, and evaluate, the firm's reported results.

For the CEO and top management team of one international company, considering its strategic direction, Dr. Howell recommended that the company pursue being acquired. The company did just that, and sold itself to another larger international company, at a significant premium to its market price.

Dr. Howell has served as an advisor to a number of CFOs and their organizations. In the case of a very high growth technology company, he guided the CFO and top team through a process of defining Finance's Vision, Mission, Strategies, and Action Plans. The results of this effort led to the Finance organization being considered a much more valuable aspect of the overall firm.

Analytic Assignments  

Dr. Howell, through his consulting firm, The Howell Group LLC (formerly Howell Management Corporation), has conducted a number of comprehensive analytic studies intended to help its clients understand better the profitability of its various products and product lines and customers and markets. In several assignments, the analytical work led to a repositioning of the firm -- product lines and customers were identified as being more valuable to the firm; others, far less valuable and, in certain cases, dropped. Dr. Howell's background in cost and managerial accounting coupled with a strategic perspective provides him with the combination of skills necessary to conduct such analyses and reach strategic conclusions from them.

 
Training and Development Programs  

Dr. Howell has designed, developed, and presented a number of both "open" and "in-house" training programs, covering a wide range of topics, over his career. These include financial and managerial accounting, management control systems, corporate financial management, strategic finance, financial statement analysis, corporate strategy, and creating shareholder valuation programs, for firms and institutions in many parts of the world.

For example, Dr. Howell has recently completed six 3 1/2 day programs, reaching the top 200 executives of a leading software company, focused on understanding and using financial information to create additional shareholder value, both organically and via acquisition.

Dr. Howell also completed the development of a four-module program (financial and management accounting, corporate financial management, and financial statement analysis), sponsored by the World Bank, to train Georgian (USSR) business executives.

He is very skilled at designing programs which meet the needs of the participants. He is considered one of the top teachers in his field.


Study Missions and Roundtables  

Dr. Howell has designed and led a number of study missions to both U.S. and Japanese "best practices" companies. Such missions typically are for 15-20 executives, last up to 10 days, and result in visiting 10-12 specific companies. Each visit includes observation of best practices coupled with discussions with the host companies. The "takeaways" for the participants and their companies have significant value.

He has also run a number of "roundtables" for senior financial executives. The "model" is to, annually, bring 3-5 senior financial executives from 6 non-competing companies together for three days to discuss critical issues and challenges each company is facing. Among the participating companies in the last several years have included American Express, Anadarco Petroleum, Entergy, The Hershey Company, The Home Depot, Intel, MetLife, PepsiCo, United Technologies, WalMart, and Yahoo!.


Advisor to Conferences and the Press  

Dr. Howell was the technical advisor to two Fortune CFO Conferences. In this capacity, he designed the program and secured many of the panelists.

He has been a "subject matter expert" for three Wall Street Journal CFO Network Programs.

Dr. Howell designed and pulled together three Center for Corporate Excellence's "Changing the Game (of Business)" Forums. These forums feature speakers, moderators from the press, and panelists addressing significant issues of corporate governance, ethics, and leadership.

He is also an active member of The Wall Street Journal's "experts panel" and contributes frequently to WSJ.com.

Dr. Howell often is quoted in the press on current issues of accounting and finance.