# Developing Business Acumen necessary to become a strategic business partner with Robert Blanding Page: https://stenobird.com/podcast/fp-a-unlocked-6854784/developing-business-acumen-necessary-to-become-a-strategic-business-partner-with-robert-blanding Text version: https://stenobird.com/podcast/fp-a-unlocked-6854784/developing-business-acumen-necessary-to-become-a-strategic-business-partner-with-robert-blanding.md Podcast: [FP&A Unlocked](https://stenobird.com/podcast/fp-a-unlocked-6854784) Published: 2026-06-11T11:00:00+00:00 Episode link: https://fpa-unlocked.captivate.fm Audio file: https://p.podderapp.com/4728109098/op3.dev/e/episodes.captivate.fm/episode/00f50637-c24f-4f8c-af08-3624edaf9345.mp3 Processing state: not_requested JSON: https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/fp-a-unlocked-6854784/episodes/developing-business-acumen-necessary-to-become-a-strategic-business-partner-with-robert-blanding Duration seconds: 3386 ## Resource In this episode of FP&A Unlocked, Paul Barnhurst sits down with Robert Blanding, an experienced finance and operations leader in the ag-tech sector. Robert shares insights on building high-performing FP&A teams, partnering effectively with accounting, developing financial acumen, and applying strategic finance to drive operational impact in global businesses. Robert Blanding is the Chief Financial Officer at Fall Creek, a global leader in the Ag-Tech sector. He brings extensive experience in finance and operations from 18 years at Intel and leadership roles across industrial manufacturing, technology, and ag-tech companies. Robert combines strategic financial leadership with a focus on innovation, long-term business growth, and developing high-performing teams. Expect to Learn: What great FP&A looks like and the importance of business acumen How to develop strong partnerships between FP&A and accounting Strategies for building high-performing, empowered finance teams Navigating systems, processes, and technology challenges in FP&A Here are a few relevant quotes from the episode: "It starts with being connected to the business, having strong acumen, and being consulted by stakeholders." – Robert Blanding "Investing in relationships outside of crisis is critical to getting support from accounting and operations." – Robert Blanding Robert shares practical insights for FP&A professionals and aspiring CFOs, emphasizing the importance of business acumen, strong partnerships with accounting, creative problem-solving, and developing high-performing teams. Follow Robert: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rfb19/ Company Website: https://www.fallcreeknursery.com/ Earn Your CPE Credit For CPE credit, please go to earmarkcpe.com , listen to the episode,… ## Actions - request_transcript: `POST https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/fp-a-unlocked-6854784/episodes/developing-business-acumen-necessary-to-become-a-strategic-business-partner-with-robert-blanding/transcription-requests` — Idempotently request low-priority transcript generation for this episode. - read_markdown: `GET https://stenobird.com/podcast/fp-a-unlocked-6854784/developing-business-acumen-necessary-to-become-a-strategic-business-partner-with-robert-blanding.md` — Read the agent-friendly Markdown representation of this episode resource. A page view does not enqueue transcription. Agents should invoke `request_transcript` explicitly when they need this episode processed. ## Transcript Full transcripts are not published on public pages unless there is a clear rights basis.