The Finance Professional for Tomorrow
MARKET VIEW
Produced by:
The Finance Professional for Tomorrow
MARKET VIEW
Produced by:
About Joakim Langkaas
Joakim Langkaas serves as Director of Finance Operations and Shared Services at Equipment Depot, where he focuses on strengthening operational fundamentals and fostering a service-driven culture across the organization. With over 20 years of experience, including a career as a management consultant at Accenture followed by strategic finance roles within the oil and gas sector at Hydro and TechnipFMC, Joakim brings a wealth of expertise in process transformation and digital innovation. At Equipment Depot, he leads efforts to enhance customer-focused accounts receivable and credit risk management, streamline internal functions like accounts payable and treasury, and optimize supplier engagement through digital solutions in supply chain processes. His leadership is centered on integrating automation, telematics, and emerging technologies like Generative AI to drive efficiency and improve decision-making within the Shared Services functions.
About Joakim Langkaas
Joakim Langkaas serves as Director of Finance Operations and Shared Services at Equipment Depot, where he focuses on strengthening operational fundamentals and fostering a service-driven culture across the organization. With over 20 years of experience, including a career as a management consultant at Accenture followed by strategic finance roles within the oil and gas sector at Hydro and TechnipFMC, Joakim brings a wealth of expertise in process transformation and digital innovation. At Equipment Depot, he leads efforts to enhance customer-focused accounts receivable and credit risk management, streamline internal functions like accounts payable and treasury, and optimize supplier engagement through digital solutions in supply chain processes. His leadership is centered on integrating automation, telematics, and emerging technologies like Generative AI to drive efficiency and improve decision-making within the Shared Services functions.
How has the finance professional's role evolved beyond traditional responsibilities?
In the 20 years I've been working in both oil and gas and material handling, I've witnessed rapid changes in finance organizations. One of the major shifts are that transactions that impact revenue and cost are now happening earlier in the process—at the point of service, supply chain interaction, or customer engagement—placing financial accountability further from the finance team. We're increasingly dependent on processes and systems that run efficient operations, which means transactions are entered very early in the process.
This creates complexity because reporting becomes more challenging when you need accurate data from the beginning. One of the biggest challenges was that transactions happen early in the process, but without proper rules around master data entry, it becomes extremely difficult to create meaningful reports afterward.
The competency required has shifted dramatically. Previously, you could succeed by being a good accountant, but now finance professionals need much more operational understanding and business acumen. You must understand how data flows and how operations work.
With AI and increased computing power, analytical reporting has become more accessible. You can work with less perfect data upfront, but you absolutely must understand how to interpret results correctly.
What operational challenges have emerged with finance automation?
The shift toward automation has brought valuable efficiencies, but it has also introduced new challenges around trust and process control. As transactional responsibilities have expanded from finance departments to roles like warehouse clerks and sales coordinators, we’ve observed some delays stemming from hesitancy to fully rely on automated systems.
For example, on the accounts payable side, automation has allowed invoices to flow directly into our system. However, this has also led to an increase in exceptions requiring manual review—often because suppliers send invoices immediately after shipping, even when the warehouse hasn’t yet confirmed receipt.
Similarly, sales coordinators tend to wait until they are confident that equipment has been properly received before posting receipts. This cautious approach, while understandable, can result in delays of several weeks between delivery and system receipt, postponing customer billing and impacting cash flow.
Addressing these challenges involves a combination of focused training, efforts to reduce turnover, and strengthening process controls—such as implementing barcode scanning systems—to guide accuracy and build confidence in the process. These steps will help ensure smoother workflows and more timely financial recognition.
How are you bridging the gap between data and actionable insights?
We're not lacking data - we're lacking structured information and decision-making frameworks needed to turn that data into actionable insights. The biggest first step was consolidating our regions to one ERP system so processes and data flows consistently. Previously, we had multiple ERP systems including several that weren't supported anymore.
We implemented AWS as our reporting platform to centralize data, transitioning away from spreadsheets. The AWS platform with Power BI represents our core technology stack.
The breakthrough comes when you start building dashboards, because that's how you identify where data is problematic. We discovered we had the same equipment showing as multiple inventory items because some entries used dashes, others used spaces, and others had various formatting.
We had situations where equipment aged out in one operating company while there was demand in another, simply because people couldn't recognize that "Item ABC" was the same as "Item ABC-dash." As a company that tracks every piece of equipment we've sold, we weren't converting this information into actionable decisions.
Simple applications like lease renewals demonstrate the opportunity: we should contact customers 12 to 18 months before lease expiration, but we weren't systematically doing this despite having the data.
What are your key priorities as a finance leader today?
Getting and retaining the right people is my primary concern. Moving from Norway to the US, I've observed that people change jobs much more frequently here. The pace of change means keeping people satisfied enough to stay becomes critical, especially when you're trying to do more work with fewer people through automation.
Building career paths that give people growth opportunities is challenging but essential. The people you retain need to be exceptional because automation makes each individual more critical to operations.
Macroeconomic turbulence—tariffs, trade wars, and economic volatility—requires proactive management through intentional planning and data-driven decision-making. Having navigated 20 years in the oil and gas industry, where market cycles and oil prices have fluctuated widely, I’ve learned that effective planning is critical to resilience.
Positioned as a distributor between suppliers and customers, we’ve also refined contract structures to ensure cost increases can be passed through, helping maintain stability in uncertain times. During COVID-19, we developed a comprehensive playbook that continues to structure responses to today’s challenges.
What advice would you give to entry-level finance professionals?
Business acumen is absolutely critical. Spend time with business operations rather than getting bogged down in analytics alone. If you can take internships or work directly in operations - even simple tasks like working in a warehouse - do it. Understanding these operations is essential.
The earlier you gain operational experience, the better positioned you'll be. Take classes focused on business systems and how they interact. Learn basic programming languages like SQL, Phyton, BI & Dashboard Tools, etc. - it's incredibly helpful for finance professionals.
Understanding how to work with generative AI models is becoming essential. I'm still learning this myself, but it's clear that AI literacy will be fundamental for future finance professionals.
Spend time on cost accounting and understanding cost flows. Many companies lack control over cost accounting. Understanding which customers generate profit versus losses is crucial but challenging.
The traditional finance functions still need to operate efficiently, but automation is becoming essential. Understanding financing operations remains important, but these skills must integrate with operational understanding.
Finally, don't get siloed. The complexity of modern business means you need to understand how everything flows together.
about
Equipment Depot
Equipment Depot is America's largest independently operated material handling and rental source, serving local communities since 1939 across 50+ locations spanning 25 states. The Houston-based company provides comprehensive material handling solutions including new and used forklifts, aerial lifts, pallet racking, automation systems, parts, service, and rentals. Acquired by Mitsubishi Logisnext Americas Inc. in 2019, Equipment Depot operates as part of one of the world's largest material handling groups, employing over 850 certified technicians and delivering full-service solutions to maximize productivity and minimize downtime for businesses nationwide.