Loreal Jiles
Loreal Jiles is Vice President of Research and Thought Leadership for IMA(Institute of Management Accountants). In this role, Loreal advances the management accounting profession through robust research initiatives that deliver actionable insights to accountants and financial professionals in business. She leverages accounting, technology, and transformation experience along with a team of researchers and practitioners to define and execute a research agenda that delivers resources enabling the finance function’s elevated value delivery and upskilling of accounting, finance, and business professionals.
Loreal leads IMA’s research and thought leadership department in conducting applied research and fostering strategic global partnerships to fuel a data-backed view of the future of the profession and guide actions finance teams need to take in preparation. She also contributes to the preparedness of the future leaders of the profession by strengthening the global academic offering of collegiate accounting programs through collaborative research projects, accounting curricula advisement, and oversight of the IMA Higher Education Endorsement Program. Loreal’s previous role at IMA was Director of Research for Digital Technology and Finance Transformation.
Prior to joining IMA, Loreal worked in the energy industry for nearly 15 years across a host of roles covering accounting, digital technology, financial reporting, change management, auditing, and planning & performance management, including leading a Robotic Process Automation implementation in a finance organization.
Loreal is a former IMA Global Board Director and is a member of the IMA Technology Solutions and Practices Committee and Chair of ACBSP’s Business Advisory Council. Loreal has authored dozens of articles and research reports across global media outlets, including two IMA Statements on Management Accounting titled “An Agile Approach to Finance Transformation” and “Transforming the Finance Function with RPA.” Loreal holds a B.S. in accounting from Southern University in Baton Rouge, La. and MBA from Tulane University.
“An Agile Approach to Finance Transformation“
With increased data accessibility and the accelerated pace of change, businesses must often make decisions quickly to maintain a competitive advantage and, in many instances, survive. To efficiently deliver data-backed insights, leaders of functional teams, like finance, are looking beyond strategy and analytics competencies to Agile principles and the Scrum Framework for tailored value delivery. Join us as Loreal Jiles of IMA® (Institute of Management Accountants) presents characteristics of agile organizations, provides an overview of Agile and Scrum-based project management approaches, and explores practical use cases for Agile and Scrum in finance functions.