Shak Akhtar

Executive Director, EMEA Finance Transformation Redwood

Shak Akhtar, General Manager of Finance Automation at Redwood Software, possesses extensive experience in finance and IT. With an accounting background from IBM and roles at SAP®, BEA, and Wolters Kluwer/Tagetik, he now leads global initiatives in finance automation and Record to Report, facilitating client-led financial transformation.

Pre-Conference Workshops, Focus Stages & Main Conference Day One: May 20th, 2025

9:35 AM Workshop B2 ACHIEVING THE TOUCHLESS CLOSE: HOW SCHNEIDER ELECTRIC IS TRANSFORMING RECORD TO REPORT—AND HOW YOU CAN TOO

Join us at SSOW Lisbon for an exclusive, expert-led workshop hosted by Redwood and featuring Schneider Electric’s Director of Digital Projects, Stefano Olveri.

In this session, you’ll get a behind-the-scenes look at Schneider Electric’s SAP-based finance transformation—and learn how they’re building autonomy, cutting manual effort by up to 80%, and accelerating the close across journal entries, reconciliations, and more.

You’ll also gain access to fresh findings from SSON Research & Analytics, revealing what’s still holding back R2R automation in large enterprises—and where the biggest opportunities now lie. These insights will help you benchmark your automation maturity and sharpen your roadmap.

Redwood will then show how to go further—demonstrating how forward-thinking organizations running SAP are bringing to life the vision of a fully orchestrated, fully automated Touchless Close. With native SAP integration and modular, end-to-end automation, you’ll see what’s possible—and how to get there faster.

This is a must-attend session for global process owners, heads of shared services, and finance leaders responsible for R2R transformation—those tasked with scaling automation, boosting efficiency, and ensuring control and compliance across complex SAP environments.

Why attend?

  • Learn directly from Schneider Electric – See how a global enterprise is deploying Redwood across China, Germany, and North America to standardize and automate R2R in diverse SAP environments
  • See the art of the possible – Discover how Schneider is achieving deep automation across journal entries, reconciliations, and closing tasks
  • Benchmark your maturity – Access research from SSON Research & Analytics that highlights where companies are falling short—and what sets leaders apart
  • Build your automation blueprint – Understand the essential components of a fully orchestrated Touchless Close, including SAP-native integration and modular automation at scale
  • Leave with a plan – Walk away with actionable insights and practical next steps to eliminate inefficiencies, shorten close cycles, and strengthen compliance

Check out the incredible speaker line-up to see who will be joining Shak.

Download The Latest Agenda