We recently hosted our very first virtual Ramp Community Ask Me Anything (AMA), which gives Ramp customers a chance to engage directly with each other and the Ramp team. Who better to kick off our series than Ramp’s Expert-in-Residence, Dave Wieseneck? With years of hands-on experience in finance and accounting, Dave brings a unique perspective on leveraging Ramp to optimize workflows and processes.
If you missed this event, or this is your first time hearing about Ramp Community, check out our community forum to stay in the loop!
Dave shared great insights on his career journey, why CFOs are not "CF-NOs", and how he assesses new vendors. Read on for the full Q&A, lightly edited for clarity.
How did you transition from being a VP of Finance to Ramp’s very first Expert-in-Residence?
DW: I'm an accountant by trade. I started my career doing audit, got my CPA here in New York, and worked for several tech startups - all with international operations. I learned from the ground up about bookkeeping, FP&A, and running a corporate finance team. Over time, I became a VP of Finance for a few tech companies here in New York. These companies use Ramp and I became so impressed by the product that I eventually asked the team to hire me! Now I actually own our internal instance of Ramp. We try to use every feature that makes sense for Ramp to use. Ramp is actually the #1 customer of Ramp—which means I’m in the same boat as all of our customers, using our software to optimize our financial processes, implement controls, and free up time for our employees.
What motivates you now versus when you were starting your career as a junior accounting team member?
DW: When I was just starting my career, I was very task-oriented, I was very focused on month-end close and getting things done for the finance team, because that was the scope of work that I had. As I became more senior in my career, I realized that most of my job was actually very cross-functional. That realization helped me be a much better financial planner, forecaster, and business model-er because as you’re building out budgets and forecasts, it really helps to understand what other departments do, how they do it, and why it’s important to the business.
What is a common misconception about the world of finance and accounting that you’d like to clear up?
DW: I’m a CPA, so when I go home for the holidays, everyone wants me to help them with their taxes. I do not know how to do taxes. I open up TurboTax like everyone else! Another common misconception is that finance teams are the “Department of No” or that the CFO is the “CF-NO.” I don’t think that’s fair. I see my role as saying, “Yes, and here are the risks we need to consider.” If we say yes to one thing, it might mean saying no to something else because budgets aren’t unlimited. It’s about understanding the risks, trade-offs, and missed opportunities so we can make a good decision together as a team.
If you could go back and give your younger self one piece of advice before stepping into senior finance roles, what would it be?
DW: Build lasting solutions rather than implementing quick fixes. There’s never a good time to say, “things are quiet, we can now go back and fix the things we put the Band-Aids over.” Slow down, and put actual solutions into the problems. Don’t just put in quick fixes and move on.
What do you look for when you bring on new technology?
DW: When evaluating new software, I go deep. I’ll do a demo, talk to current customers, read recent blog posts and release notes, and even check the company’s job listings to see who they’re hiring. I also reach out to my network for feedback and sometimes watch a friend use the software to see it in action. I’ve even asked product teams about their roadmap. When you buy software, you’re not just buying its current features—you’re investing for the next few years. It’s important to ensure their roadmap aligns with your company’s growth and that they have strong product development momentum.
What’s one feature or part of the Ramp product that you think people don’t know about or is underutilized?
DW: Shared limits. This feature allows you to allocate funds to different people within the organization. Each user has their own unique card, but the spending draws from a shared budget. We use it for team offsites and events where multiple people need to spend from the same budget. Everything gets coded to the same GL and department, making it simple for both employees and the Accounting team.
What do you think Ramp should build next?
DW: So many things! We launched Travel just 5 months ago, and there are a few features I’d love to see, like group bookings and group trips. I’m also curious to hear what features our customers would like to see next!
If you have any follow-up questions for Dave, want to share your product suggestions, or are curious about how he uses Ramp to optimize financial processes, head over to our community forum. We’re excited to continue these AMAs in 2025, featuring Ramp customers and team members to share best practices and deepen everyone’s understanding of the product.
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