Marylean Abney
I’m a result-driven executive focused on quick decisive actions. I’ve worked as CFO for multi-billion-dollar public companies as well as small to medium size startups. My accomplishments are many and CEO’s have sought me out to help them solve large and small problems from profit and margin improvement, to growing the company to deployment of a new strategy.
Some of the areas where my clients find my help most beneficial include:
- Financial performance improvement
- Business Process Improvement
- Strategic planning and execution
- Supply Chain Execution
- Driving Change and Implementation
- ERP Selection and Implementation
- Finance and accounting strategy execution
Prior to joining the Florida CFO group, I had my own consulting firm that provided project and fractional CFO services. Before I began providing CFO services, I spent 30+ years at Caterpillar Inc. and served as CFO for three muti-billion-dollar business segments.
After Caterpillar, I spent two years as Strategy and Transformation Executive at United States Steel, two years as CFO and COO for a Las Vegas purification startup and six months as Senior Strategy and Operations Advisor to a California based newly public commercial electric vehicles company.
A few accomplishments where I have led or played an integral role include:
- Assessed, decided, and implemented new ERP system in six months for a small Las Vegas cybernetic purification startup, fulfilling a critical investor goal that prepared the startup for buyout.
- During the pandemic when supply chain was a significant challenge, for a new startup, I secured a contract manufacturer and vendors to source, manufacture and deliver customer product demand in record six months from assess to deliver.
- Led a cost reduction initiative at U.S. Steel to deliver half a billion dollars savings in one year by focusing on operational improvements through benchmarking, identification of targets and a robust execution model.
- Drove a $3 billion improvement in economic profit at Caterpillar Inc. by categorizing product offerings into four profit/loss quadrants, allocating resources appropriately and establishing and monitoring clear metrics of success by quadrant.
- Delivered a $1.2 billion cashflow improvement at Caterpillar Inc., by changing supplier payment terms while implementing supply chain finance to support the supplier base.
I received a Bachelor of Accounting from Illinois State University, and I am a Certified Management Accountant (CMA). I earned a Master of Business Administration from the University of Illinois – Champaign.
Previously, I held executive financial positions at mid- to large-sized companies including:
- CFO, Global Business Services Segment, Caterpillar Inc.
- CFO, Compact Power Systems Business Segment, Caterpillar Inc.
- CFO, Construction Tractors Business Segment, Caterpillar Inc.
- CFO and COO, Purtec Inc.
- Chief Strategy & Transformation Executive, U.S. Steel
- Senior Strategy & Operations Advisor to the CEO, Xos Inc.