Over 20 years ago, Karl Dinkelmann, CA turned CEO of Nexus Data, kicked off a dynamic career in finance and data by studying accounting and informatics simultaneously. Since then, he has continued in this duality, more than once acting as CFO and CEO in the same breath.
Leaning into the CEO role at Nexus Data has been an adventure, often forcing Karl into uncharted territory. As he continues to push the boundaries of innovation in the data sphere, he emphasises and embodies the importance of a keen alignment between finance and data. Recently, CFO South Africa posed him a few questions to find out more.
Q: What is the one big lesson that you have learnt during your journey from CA to CEO?
A: The biggest lesson I’ve learnt is that in business, only one language matters – the language of value. In my consulting days, many CFOs brought me in to bridge the gap between themselves and their IT functions because I understood both worlds – finance and technology.
This experience gave me a deep appreciation for CFOs. People tend to associate them with red tape and budget constraints, but the truth is, if a company just spent money freely without financial oversight, it would go bankrupt. In contrast, people in data, IT, operations or marketing often lose sight of the fundamental purpose of business – delivering value to generate returns for the shareholders. CFOs never forget this. Their entire role revolves around generating and preserving value.
Q: What advice do you have for aspiring CAs in today’s world of RPA and GenAI?
A: Despite starting as a chartered accountant, my journey through the technical world led me away from the language of business. I, too, once criticised CFOs for their reluctance to invest. But then I had a conversation with a CFO that changed my perspective.
At the time, our data team had 160 people. The CFO called me into his office to inform me about an important project – a R20 million initiative. The project was already six months in, and he wanted the data team to take over support and management.
I was shocked. I asked him, “How can you tell me about this six months into the project? This should have been our project from the start.”
His response was eye-opening. He said, “Karl, you and your team are so busy keeping the lights on that if I had gone through you, it would have taken six months just to get the first meeting. Then, you would have taken two years to deliver. I didn’t have two years. I had the budget, the justification and the need – so I moved forward.”
This conversation highlighted a major challenge: why do data teams struggle to align with business needs and timeframes? Why can’t they justify their projects in terms CFOs understand? The root cause is the failure to communicate value effectively.
So, if you’re an aspiring CA, learn to speak the language of value early on. Justify your actions in value terms, not capabilities. No one cares about how impressive a new tool is if you can’t explain its business impact.
Imagine having a brand-new, high-performance car. If you don’t know how to drive, it’s useless. You could go further in an old, inexpensive car if you knew how to use it properly. The same applies to business – understanding and communicating value is what truly matters.
Q: Do you have a fail fast, forward lesson from your time as a CFO?
A: ‘Fail fast, forward’ assumes failure as an acceptable starting point. But if you go to a CFO saying, “We’re going to fail,” they won’t invest. They have other options that don’t involve failure.
It’s not about failing fast – it’s about proving value quickly. The focus should be on discovering potential value early, not failing. A better question for a subscription-based business, like a telco or streaming service, is: “Can I use data analytics to predict which customers are likely to churn?” That’s a business-driven approach rather than an experimental ‘fail fast’ mindset.
Achieving value quickly is the starting point, but value is quickly lost in a data environment that lacks solid foundations. Carefully balancing value-generating initiatives with foundational initiatives is crucial, but this takes experience. It is essential to strike the right balance, so that value delivery is not slowed down by the lack of, or when establishing, foundational capabilities.
I’m currently reading Golf is not a game of perfect by Dr Bob Rotella, and learning a lot. Just like golf is not a game of perfection, life isn’t either. Many people battle with perfectionism, which holds them back from taking the next steps. Coming from someone with OCD, that’s a big realisation. A lot of people have great ideas, but battle to take the next step because they want everything to be perfect.
You must embrace the idea that taking steps forward will be imperfect. Things might look different from what you expect, but the key is movement.
Q: Who’s on your podcast download list when it comes to thought leadership on data and finance?
A: For personal finance, I follow personal finance author Dave Ramsey. His insights transformed my personal and business financial approach. On business and finance, I admire UK Entrepreneur Daniel Priestley – his pragmatic, no-nonsense style resonates with me. As for data, I focus less on industry trends and more on solving real challenges. There’s a lot of hype in the data space, but few voices provide practical, business-aligned insights. Our goal is to correct that by bringing data practices in line with business objectives.
Q: When you retire, what legacy would you like to leave behind?
A; Throughout my journey, I have realised that leadership is not a privilege to be desired or chased, but rather, it is a heavy burden to carry. This is because people spend most of their time at work, they have some of their most important relationships at work, and they often achieve their most meaningful and fulfilling personal goals through their work.
When leaders act irresponsibly, people lose the will to contribute real value, and their impact is diluted. As a result, they lack fulfilment, with drastic downstream effects on their emotions and families.
My dream is simple: To help leaders establish companies that enable people to do the best work of their lives, leading to maximised impact and fulfillment. Leaders must realise that the best way to build a thriving business is to balance the needs of the company with the needs of its people.
