Brian Kirsch Email & Phone Number

New Albany, Ohio, Us

Columbus, Ohio, Us

Provided strategic leadership to Brand Finance teams (3 direct reports and 15 total employees), with hands-on management of budgeting and forecasting for sales, margin, and expenses, as well as risk/opportunities management for DSW P&L ($3 billion in revenue and $185 million in operating income). Developed/implemented long-range strategic plans and managed non-accounting finance activities for DSW and Affiliated Business Group (ABG). Oversaw operating and capital budgets. Formulated business insights for each division.Managed DSW corporate headcount. Directed execution of store payroll model/weekly store hours allocation and bonus and incentive programs. Managed test and learned agenda and insights implementation, performing 120+ tests annually. Supported DSW innovation team through development of new operating/financial models. Reviewed and approved new DSW leases and lease renewals. Prepared monthly performance letter for Board of Directors and met with Board to discuss business performance.* Increased income $15 million by reducing clearance markdowns through process redesign requiring evaluation of clearance turn and capacity of each store to determine viability of moving clearance items to deeper discount.

Columbus, Ohio, Us

Oversaw Corporate Financial Planning and Analysis (FP&A), Brand Finance, Investor Relations, and Procurement, with 3 direct reports and team of 45. Managed P&L for entire organization, with specific focus on DSW, representing largest P&L. Coordinated all DBI brand operating budgets, along with accountability for bottoms-up driver-based budgeting for DSW brand. Created/communicated capital budget to each division of DBI. Worked with investors and sell-side analyst on model assumptions and shared long-term growth strategies. Gave quarterly investor relations update to Board of Directors.Corporate FP&A: Led (FP&A) team, accountable for corporate consolidation, DSW Brand, DSW Test & Learn Analytics, Affiliated Business Group (ABG), Shoe Metro, Canadian retail operations, customer service center, and fulfillment centers. Managed and risk assessed earnings per share forecast; compared street consensus, budget, and last year for corporate CEO and CFO. Managed corporate budget timeline; communicated with brands on timing and deliverables. Managed consolidated balance sheet and cash flow forecasting. Performed quarterly ROIC analysis at corporate level with benchmarks vs. other retailers.Investor Relations: Wrote quarterly earnings scripts and press releases. Prepped CEO and CFO for investor questions and provided financial support schedule for analyst calls. Worked with sell-side analyst to answer questions and adjust quarterly targets to ensure alignment with DSW. Prepared material and scripts for Investor Relation Days and associated events. Met with current/prospective investors and sell-side analyst to discuss DSW mission, vision, and strategies to drive long term growth.Procurement: Managed competitive bidding processes for supplies and services; enforced contract signing guidelines.

Mahwah, Nj, Us

Directed brand FP&A and Brand Accounting teams consisting of 4 direct reports and 25 personnel. Managed risk/opportunities for P&L, representing $1.5 billion in revenue and $140 million in operating income. Prepared long-range strategic plans, linking strategy and financial performance. Managed capital expenditure forecast and budget process for entire organization. oversaw brand capital spend and tracked alignment with ROIC goals. Directed monthly close process, with oversight of Accounts Payable, Sales Audit, Inventory Control and Brand reporting teams. Reviewed account reconciliations monthly (blacklines), evaluated accounts for collectability, and determined appropriate reserves.* Generated $3 million in annual savings by leading closure of Brothers Brand. Led closing process, including scheduling and fixtures removal. Produced additional $250,000 in tax savings by recommending partner to receive donation of remaining inventory.* Produced $2 million in annual savings for Ascena, Inc. by leading efforts to migrate Justice accounting operations to shared services. Identified and communicated to associates moving to Shared Services and quantified savings.* Reduced ticket price 40% and promotional markdowns by over 50% by performing strategic analysis that correlated rising ticket prices and elevated promotional activity with negative customer sentiment/reduction in total Justice customers.* Saved $5 million in annual store payroll by leading cross-functional finance and store operations team in conducting time studies on all store tasks. Improved payroll model accuracy that assigned labor drivers (traffic, transactions, units, floorsets) to all hours given to stores.

Mahwah, Nj, Us

* Achieved $10 million in markdown avoidance by implementing process linking financial, marketing, and merchandise plans, resulting in inventory buys aligned to marketing activities and financial expectations.* Turned around underperforming P&L forecasting/reporting process suffering from inaccuracy, lack of logic, and longer than average roll-up time:- Reinforced accuracy as foundational pillar of FP&A team, with all submissions review by management prior to forwarding to executives.- Reorganized and expanded team to create specific owners for sales/margin, home office expense management, and overall P&L consolidation. Chunked P&L into smaller parts to improve ownership and accuracy.- Implemented MicroStrategy BI tool across all analytical teams (Merch, Marketing, and Finance), providing consistent metrics for all teams and faster tool for analysis.- Transitioned to driver-based forecasts, improving accuracy and allowing FP&A to be viewed as trusted business partner.* Generated $1 million in annual savings by implementing headcount reporting and policy requiring CEO/CFO approval before hiring of unbudgeted headcount.* Developed strategic planning model/long-range plan built based upon key business drivers and key business initiatives, used to identify "blue chip" initiatives for 3-year period.* Received CFO Award for Outstanding Contribution (Tween Brands, 2013).

Columbus, Oh, Us

Finance Manager (Bath & Body Works) (February 2009-April 2010)Finance Manager (C.O. Bigelow) (June 2008-February 2009)FP&A Manager (L Brands) (April 2007-June 2008)FP&A Senior Financial Analyst (L Brands) (February 2006-June 2008)Corporate FP&A Financial/Accounting Analyst (L Brands) (January 2003-February 2006)* Received Limited Brands Financial Leadership & Excellence Award (FLEX) (2009)* Generated $8 million in annual savings by changing shopping bag allocations, driving off transaction forecast. Eliminated redundant items from ordering catalog and set minimum/maximum order quantities on frequently ordered items.* Performed strategic analysis that drove $5M in reduced markdowns by laying out a plan to shorten the June Semi-Annual Sale by two weeks and leverage the Bath & Body Works Clearance Store Fleet (40 stores) to sell clearance items at higher tickets over longer time periods.

Master Of Business Administration - Mba, Finance

Bachelors Of Business Administration, Finance & Business Pre-Law