Novartis [NYSE: NVS]

Byron Flores is a global finance leader with nearly two decades at Novartis, spanning Latin America, the U.S. and Europe. A CPA and Doctor of Business Administration, he has held CFO and digital finance roles and now leads Financial Reporting and Accounting across 10 European countries. Known for driving compliance, transformation and talent development, Flores blends strategic vision with hands-on leadership. Based in Barcelona, he also teaches in MBA programs, inspiring the next generation of financial professionals.

Through this interview, Flores emphasises authentic, values-driven leadership that inspires teams and drives innovation, while advocating for disciplined, need-based technology investments to create sustainable value.

At a Glance: To Be Designed as a Panel

• Ensuring Global Consistency with Local Insight– Leading regional operations across multiple countries with a unified framework aligned to IFRS and FCRs—balancing global standards with deep local expertise for seamless transparency and shared purpose.

• Driving Digital Innovation with AI and SAP –Empowering curious, growth-minded teams through hands-on experimentation with AI tools tailored to our financial processes and executing a strategic SAP S/4HANA migration to modernise and scale operations.

• Building High-Performing, Diverse Teams– Fostering authenticity and inclusivity, combining diverse perspectives with deep expertise to create empowered teams that deliver sustained results through trust, accountability and continuous learning.

• Bridging Theory and Practice for Real-World Value– Maintaining external focus to benchmark learn and innovate— leading with clarity and agility by integrating best practices while contributing thought leadership and shared insights within the broader ecosystem.

Ensuring Global Consistency: Regional Oversight With Local Insight

Consistency is a quiet force in today’s business. It doesn’t make headlines, but it shapes outcomes. As a regional leader overseeing operations across multiple countries, I spend a lot of time ensuring we stay aligned with International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) and fully compliant with our financial controls. That work isn’t glamorous, but it matters— because clarity and alignment across borders don’t happen independently.

That alignment relies heavily on local intelligence. I work closely with country leaders who know their markets better than anyone. They navigate the nuances of local regulations, culture and expectations and I make sure their insights inform our broader strategy. My role sits at the intersection of regional direction and local action. It’s less about issuing instructions and more about building understanding, removing friction and ensuring every team has the clarity to operate with purpose.

Driving Digital Innovation: Empowering Teams With AI And Sap

The first lever I pull isn’t digital—it’s human. If we don’t invest in curious, capable people, no amount of technology will save us. Our shift toward digital reporting and AI-driven workflows is built on that foundation.

We’ve recently developed an internal AI tool tailored to our IFRS processes. Think of it as a context-aware assistant— similar to ChatGPT, but with our rules, language and history embedded. It gives teams faster access to information, sharper draft responses and more explicit guidance on tricky accounting questions. It’s already proving its value in how quickly people can resolve issues and move forward.

“People often ask what differentiates strong leaders or resilient companies. It’s not always radical innovation. Sometimes, it’s the ability to stay steady, human and focused while others are distracted by noise.”

At the same time, we’re migrating to SAP S/4HANA. This isn’t just a system upgrade—it’s an overhaul of how we think about data, infrastructure and scale. Over the next few years, it will give us a faster, more integrated platform better suited to serving a growing, evolving business.

Building High-Performing Teams: Leading With Authenticity And Diversity

The best leadership advice I’ve received is still simple: Be yourself. Cultural nuance matters in multinational teams, but authenticity always connects. I lead with openness and try to meet people where they are. That’s especially important in a region where generations, languages and viewpoints mix daily.

Diversity isn’t just a checkbox—it’s a strength. We build teams that span ages, industries and career paths because innovation happens when perspectives collide. I don’t expect perfection from my team; I expect curiosity, courage and the willingness to keep learning. That blend of experience and hunger to grow has shaped my career and I look for it in others.

Staying Relevant Means Looking Outward

Companies lose their edge when they turn too inward. I’ve seen organisations become so focused on internal alignment that they stop asking how others are doing it better. We avoid that trap.

We make it a point to watch what’s happening outside our walls, benchmarking, learning and adapting. If a competitor has found a faster way to report or a more straightforward way to reconcile, we ask why we haven’t. External awareness keeps us sharp. We share what we learn and stay open to what others are doing. That two-way exchange is part of our innovation culture and keeps us from becoming irrelevant.

Building Around The Right Technologies

Artificial intelligence has changed how we work. It’s more than a buzzword. We’re using AI to compress response times, reduce manual effort and extract insights from sprawling datasets. Robotics is another essential tool. It handles the repetitive steps so our teams can focus on judgment and strategy.

Cloud infrastructure is non-negotiable. Without it, there’s no scale, no agility. We’re building data lakes and working toward better data standardisation because the insights we need often exist—they’re just buried under noise. And while blockchain gets hyped for all the wrong reasons, we see real value in its ability to create tamper-proof, transparent systems. That kind of trust is indispensable in audit, finance and fraud prevention.

Grounded Innovation And Values That Stick

It’s easy to chase trends. Much harder to pause, reflect and ask: “Does this solve a real problem?” That discipline matters. I’ve seen too many projects that start with fanfare and fade into irrelevance. We invest where there’s purpose. We train, document and standardise—not to slow things down, but to make them stick.

None of this works without a firm cultural grounding. Our values are not side notes. Integrity, respect and accountability aren’t just poster words—they are filters we use to make decisions, build teams and choose partners.

What Sets Us Apart Isn’t Just Strategy— It’s Consistency

People often ask what differentiates strong leaders or resilient companies. It’s not always radical innovation. Sometimes, it’s the ability to stay steady, stay human and stay focused while others are distracted by noise. We build momentum by consistently leading, investing, treating people and responding to the world outside our window.

This is how we lead with clarity and build trust. In the long run, that shapes success across borders, teams and time.