6 Questions With… Risa Sparks

From engineering at Intel to finance roles spanning energy, technology, and manufacturing, Risa Sparks has built a career around understanding how businesses make decisions, manage risk, and invest for growth. While her career has taken her around the world, some things haven’t changed: she still thinks like an engineer — and, despite her success in the world of finance, that’s what she still is — at least as far as her is as far as her mom is concerned!

In this edition of 6 Questions With…, Syncron’s Chief Financial Officer reflects on what finance leadership really means, why her engineering background still shapes the way she works, the people who have influenced her career, and what drew her to the opportunity at Syncron.

1. Finance is often seen as the function that says no. How do you think about the role?

Part of finance’s role is to be a counterpoint and bring balance to decisions about where the business allocates its resources.

We often have a different view because we can see spending and investment across the whole organization rather than through the lens of one function. And yes, that does sometimes mean saying, “We can’t invest in X because we’ve decided to invest in Y.”

The key is alignment. If the strategic priorities are clear, you can connect those decisions back to something the organization has already agreed matters. People may not always like the answer, but they understand it.

2. You’ve worked across technology, energy, and manufacturing. What have those different environments taught you about making good decisions?

In energy, I worked on projects with 30-year-plus horizons and billions of dollars of investment. There were governments, different countries, changing conditions, and a huge number of risks to consider. Technology is much faster with shorter cycles, quicker iterations, and smaller decisions.

What I brought from energy into technology is the discipline of thinking through scenarios and being very clear about risk. The decisions may be faster, but you still need to understand what could change.

I also learned a lot from large, international companies about rigor, structure, and what good looks like when financial analysis is done really well. Working in smaller technology companies has taught me the other side of that: speed, flexibility, and when not to let structure get in the way.

3. You started your career as an engineer at Intel. How did you find your way into finance — and how much of the engineer is still there?

I joined Intel straight out of university, right before the dot-com crash. I was 22, had just figured out what a 401(k), and was excited to be starting my career. Then, within a few months, everything changed.

It was an eye-opening experience and made me think more seriously about where I wanted my career to go. I decided to go to business school, but at that point I fully expected to return to manufacturing in some capacity. I did a joint engineering and MBA program with the idea that I might eventually become a general manager at a large industrial company.

Then I started taking different business classes. Marketing wasn’t really where my strengths lay, but when I took my first finance class something clicked. I’m very analytical, and I liked the combination of numbers, problem-solving, and understanding how a business works. I did a finance internship at Chevron, loved it, and have never looked back.

At the same time, my career in finance has always been closely connected to operations, whether through FP&A, M&A, or business planning. Engineering teaches you a way of thinking — logic, process, breaking down complex problems — that I still use all the time.

There’s a data connection too. Even at university, I was building databases and working with large amounts of data. Finance is increasingly about taking that data, distilling it, and understanding the story it’s telling you.

So I still very much think of myself as an engineer. My mom certainly does — she still tells people she has a daughter who’s an engineer. The fact that I now happen to be a CFO is apparently secondary!

4. Who has shaped the way you think about leadership?

I had a mentor at Intel who had a tremendous impact on me. She was calm, warm, and very much herself at work. She showed me that you could have a full life outside work, bring that part of yourself with you, and still be a very successful leader.

Later, at Chevron, I lived and worked in four different countries. One of those assignments was in Kazakhstan, where I had a manager who was a great advocate for me. That taught me how important it is to have someone who will speak for you and create opportunities for you.

Those experiences are a big part of why mentorship still matters to me. I don’t have as much time for it now, but I still mentor students, particularly people considering careers in finance or engineers thinking about making a similar move.

5. What drew you to Syncron, and where do you see the biggest opportunity for the business?

The aftermarket was a big part of what attracted me. It’s an area where there is tremendous value to be created, but it has historically been overlooked.

I’d done some pricing work earlier in my career, back when it was all still being done in spreadsheets, so I had some appreciation for how complicated those decisions can be and how much value the right software can provide.

Syncron’s customers also stood out to me — the companies we work with, how long many of them have been with us, and how much they continue to expand their relationship. That says a lot about the value we’re providing.

And the opportunity is still significant. Companies are under pressure to find new sources of value and improve efficiency, and aftermarket is one of the places where the ROI is clear. We have strong customer proof points, but there is still a lot of market left to capture.

6. And when you’re not being Syncron’s CFO, what does life look like?

Busy, although I’m not sure I have one hobby I can point to right now.

My husband and I live in the Northeast of the US, and we have two children. My son is very into robotics, which takes up a big chunk of time. My daughter is into sports, art, and is very social, so there is always something going on.

As a family, we try to spend a lot of time outside. We’re big skiers, so winters usually involve trips around the Northeast, as well as Colorado, where my parents live. In the summer, it’s being outside, gardening, and travelling when we can.

We also like food, although I should be very clear that I’m not the cook. My husband cooks. I’m the sous chef and the cleaner.

He recently bought an ice-cream maker, which has completely taken over the house and is incredibly messy. The end result is worth it!