The Budget Pitch: How to Speak the CFO’s Language
Join us at the first Think Again event of 2026 for a candid conversation on what CFOs, CEOs and Boards really want from marketing leaders and how you can talk the language of the C-Suite with financially grounded arguments. Find out how they interpret risk vs opportunity, the data and metrics they see as credible (and which they consider fluff) and how they decide if your marketing initiative is worth the investment.
Don’t miss this opportunity to network with other senior marketers over drinks and a gorgeous sit-down lunch at Auckland’s exclusive Northern Club, followed by a lively panel discussion.
Here are just some of the questions we’ll be putting to the panel:
- What gives you confidence that marketing spend is aligned to strategy?
- How can marketers justify experimental initiatives without hard historical data?
- Where do marketers consistently overestimate impact?
- How should marketers present long-term brand investments to a financially focused Board?
- What the Board and CEO asks them about marketing
- Why CFOs reject budget requests - the most common patterns.
The Think Again series is proudly sponsored by Federation.
Pricing
Members: $129 + GST
Non-members: $169 + GST
Product Details
Date:
3/03/26
Time:
12:00pm - 2:00pm
Event Location:
Auckland
Venue Name:
The Northern Club
Venue Address:
19 Princes Street, Auckland
Sunset Session with D3
Winning in Retail Media: What Amazon Teaches Us - Even Without a Local Marketplace
10/02/2026
5:30pm - 7:30pm
Auckland
Sunset Session with D3 | Livestream
Livestream: Winning in Retail Media: What Amazon Teaches Us - Even Without a Local Marketplace
10/02/2026
6:00pm - 7:00pm
Online
The Keith Norris Charity Golf Cup 2026
Join us at Akarana Golf Club for some friendly competition, great company and an even greater cause.
12/02/2026
12:00pm - 8:00pm
Auckland
Brainy Breakfast 2026 / Auckland
Where AI is Headed in 2026 - From GenAI to Brand Discoverability and Agentic AI
18/02/2026
7:00am - 9:00am
Auckland
MindFuel Webinar with Brand IQ
How to use AI to reduce your marketing costs and amplify results
25/02/2026
11:00am - 12:00pm
Online
Think Again 2026
The Budget Pitch: How to Speak the CFO’s Language
3/03/2026
12:00pm - 2:00pm
Auckland
Your Panel*
*More panellists to be annouced soon
Todd Hunter
Group Chief Executive Officer
Turners Automotive Group
Panellist
About Todd
Todd started his career as an accountant with Ernst and Young before joining Microsoft NZ where he worked in finance, marketing and sales roles.
He joined NZX listed Turners Auctions in 2006 and was appointed CEO in 2013. In 2014 Turners Auctions merged with NZX listed Dorchester Pacific and Todd took on the Group CEO role for the merged entity Turners Automotive Group in late 2016.
Todd was also appointed Chair of the Financial Services Federation in 2023, the industry body representing specialist lenders in NZ (1.5M customers $22B in lending).
Todd is a Chartered Accountant and holds a Bachelor and Diploma of Commerce from the University of Auckland. His wife Liz is a lawyer and they have three teenage daughters.
Mike Asbridge
Chief Financial Officer
MediaWorks NZ
Panellist
About Mike
Mike is an experienced finance professional with a proven track record in leading teams, implementing financial systems and processes. Mike has 20 years of experience working in senior roles in New Zealand and internationally including at Westpac, Vodafone, ANZ in Singapore, Deutsche Bank in London and Singapore, and now MediaWorks.
At MediaWorks, Mike has played a critical role in driving the company's financial transformation and growth, initially joining as the Head of Finance Business Partnering in 2019, before serving as interim Finance Director and most recently as GM Finance and Transformation.
Rebecca James
EGM Business Banking
ASB Bank
Panellist
About Rebecca
Rebecca joined ASB in August 2023 as EGM Business Banking. Prior to this, she was CEO at ASX listed Humm Group, a non-bank consumer & business financier.
Rebecca has almost 15 years’ experience in financial services across Australia and New Zealand, holding product, marketing, customer experience, and strategy roles with business lending fintech Prospa and ME bank.
She was also managing partner with Australia’s largest independent customer experience consultancy, lavender.
With extensive entrepreneurial, marketing communications and customer experience, Rebecca is passionate about leading businesses of all sizes and stages and helping to drive innovation, create jobs and stimulate economic growth.
In her role as EGM Business Banking, Rebecca leads ASB’s commercial, small business and rural divisions as well as the Brand, Marketing and Design practices.
Rebecca has a Bachelor of Business and Marketing from the University of Technology in Sydney and completed a Design Thinking course at Stanford University.
