Executive Vice President, Chief Financial Officer & Chief Strategy Officer, Brunswick
Search every verified Ryan Gwillim interview, podcast appearance, and on-the-record quote — each transcript cross-checked by AI and human review to confirm speaker identity. Ryan Gwillim, Executive Vice President, Chief Financial Officer and Chief Strategy Officer at Brunswick, has discussed the company's use of data to track inventory at the product SKU level, stating that the team can identify how many specific models of Boston Whaler are in a given district. He described the company's acquisition of Freedom Boat Club in 2019, noting that it had grown to about 170 locations at the time of purchase and has since doubled in size, with Gwillim calling it "one of the best investments we've made." He also outlined Brunswick's focus on becoming a "marine recreational technology company" that owns boats, engines, parts and accessories, and the boat club. Gwillim has emphasized his priorities as CFO, including accurately portraying results to investors, focusing on employee success, and preparing for potential economic volatility by tempering spending and scrutinizing capital projects while continuing to pursue growth. He noted that the company's public guidance for the year was to achieve about seven billion dollars in revenue, and that the previous year was the best in company history. Gwillim also discussed the company's hybrid work environment, stating that flexibility is critical to attract and retain talent, and described efforts to streamline reporting by reducing a three-inch thick quarterly binder of analysis to less than an inch.
“We use data to understand where inventory is, how fast it's moving, what brands we have.”
“Our team has gotten to the point where if I called our sales and marketing team they could tell me how many XYZ models of Whaler we have in a certain district in a certain state.”
“We can get down to the product SKU level, which for us helps with explaining inventory movements and the potential for continued growth throughout all of our organizations.”
“We are now a much more narrowly focused marine recreational technology company that really owns everything around the water including the boat, the engine, parts and accessories, and a boat club called Freedom Boat Club. We really succeed on focusing on technology and spending capital and R&D on things that not only pe...”
“Our public guidance this year is to get about seven billion in revenue. Last year was the best year in company history and we believe this year will top that, on the back of making very strong decisions on the portfolio and very good execution with all of our business lines.”
“A lot of it is people who view boating as a lifestyle. Our first-time boaters did increase during COVID because it was an opportunity for them to spend more time on the water when they couldn't travel or vacation as much. The flexible work-life balance has allowed more people to be on the water, which means more parts...”
“We use data to understand where inventory is, how fast it's moving, and what brands we have. Our team can get down to the product SKU level, which helps explain inventory movements and the potential for continued growth throughout all of our organizations.”
“Freedom Boat Club is a model where consumers don't own the boat but belong to a club that has multiple boats and can reserve them. It started in the late 90s, grew to about 170 locations when we purchased it in 2019, and we have now doubled its size. We think it can double again over the next decade and it's one of the...”
“We will continue to be acquisitive but given the Navigator deal last year, which was a billion-dollar deal turning out well, and the Power Products deal three years earlier, we will focus on digesting bigger deals carefully while also doing smaller bolt-on acquisitions relatively seamlessly.”
“FP&A is involved but my core M&A team is really the boots on the ground along with the business unit involved. The M&A team does valuations, works with business units to uncover synergies, and works with counsel on due diligence. FP&A handles organic business and there's crossover between FP&A and M&A analyst roles.”
“One of my main premises as a CFO is to focus the work on what is adding value and what is necessary. We reduced a three-inch thick quarterly binder of analysis and reports to less than an inch, freeing up FP&A and accounting teams to do more value-add activities and improve their experience.”
“We do a rolling forecast refreshed every month with input from divisions focusing on sales, gross margin, standard product margin, operating expense, and big-ticket items. The process has improved to provide the information needed to converse with investors and the board, though it remains somewhat laborious.”
“I have spent more time on talent and HR issues in my two years as CFO than anything else. We operate a hybrid work environment with flexibility, allowing people to work remotely or come into the office a day or two a week. Flexibility is critical to attract and retain talent in today's competitive marketplace.”
“Over the next 12 months, my priorities as CFO are to accurately portray the company's results to investors, focus on employee success at all levels, and prepare the organization for potential economic volatility by tempering spending and scrutinizing capital projects while continuing to focus on growth.”
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CFO Ryan Gwillim explains how Brunswick Corporation is becoming increasingly data driven.
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