Voices of CFMA

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Aug 2026

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Real conversations with construction financial leaders on careers, credentials, and the trends shaping construction financial management.

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August 11, 202635 min

AI in Construction: What's Actually Working Right Now | Cindy Ly, ToolBox Consulting

What does AI actually look like on a construction jobsite in 2026 — not the hype, the reality? In this episode of Voices of CFMA, host Sal Marino talks with Cindy Ly, founder of ToolBox Consulting, about her unconventional path from industrial construction cost control to yoga teaching in Europe to leading AI strategy for hundreds of construction companies. Cindy shares what she's seen across the industry in the last six months, where AI adoption is accelerating, where it's stalling, and why data standardization matters more than the tools themselves. In this episode: - Cindy's path from $500M industrial mega-projects to yoga teacher training in Europe and back to construction - Why she believes AI is a catalyst, not the solution, and data is the real work - The gap between field operations and financial control, and how AI is starting to close it - Common mistakes leadership teams make when rolling out AI tools - Her advice for CFOs and controllers navigating AI adoption right now Chapters: 00:00 Intro & welcome Cindy Ly 00:35 What Cindy does now 01:11 Growing up near Chicago, drawn to construction 02:06 From pharmacy major to construction management at Purdue 02:36 Industrial construction: blast furnaces and coke batteries 03:04 Burnout, and becoming a yoga teacher in Europe 05:26 The pivot into construction technology 06:36 Hiding her career changes from her parents 07:35 How yoga reshaped her approach to work 09:30 Reconnecting with the industry 10:10 The data problem before AI was a buzzword 12:49 What pulled her toward AI specifically 15:38 Her first AI project: Groundbreak 2025 and Procore 18:01 Why she started ToolBox Consulting 20:50 Hard lessons and the value of a slow burn 23:33 Where AI adoption is accelerating and stalling 25:27 Field operations vs. financial control 27:33 Hackathons and vibe coding, explained 30:27 Common mistakes in AI rollouts 32:07 Her #1 piece of advice for CFOs and controllers 32:59 Life outside work: DJing 34:06 Final advice: keep an open mind Connect with Cindy: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ly-cindyt/ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@ToolboxTechTalk About Voices of CFMA: Voices of CFMA brings you conversations with construction financial professionals and industry leaders on the trends, tools, and ideas shaping construction finance. Learn more at cfma.org . #ConstructionAI #ConstructionTechnology #CFMA #ConstructionFinance

June 16, 202616 min

From Fleeing Vietnam by Boat to Leading in Construction Finance | Tiffany Trang, CCIFP

From a refugee boat in 1978 to chapter president, Tiffany Trang's journey into construction finance is one of resilience & reinvention. On this episode of Voices of CFMA , sponsored by Premier Construction Software, Tiffany talks about the mentor who put her next to him in every meeting, what her CCIFP credential did for her practice, and how CFMA helped her find the confidence to speak up in rooms where she was often the only woman. Her advice for anyone sitting quietly in the background? Speak up. It's the only way you'll be heard. Recorded live on site at CFMA's Annual Conference & Exhibition in Phoenix. 🎧 Listen, subscribe & share with someone in the industry who could use it. #VoicesofCFMA #CFMA #ConstructionFinance #CCIFP #ConstructionIndustry #Leadership

May 12, 2026Episode 7021 min

Why 'This Is How the Industry Works' Is Holding Construction Finance Back | Claire Wilson, Siteline

Claire Wilson is the co-founder and CEO of Siteline, but she started her career as a civil engineer and project manager at Tishman Construction — working on Hudson Yards and JP Morgan's corporate headquarters. In this episode, Claire talks about what she saw in the trenches, why Siteline was built specifically for subs (not GCs), and what it actually looks like when a contractor goes from scattered spreadsheets to a centralized billing system. She also shares her take on peer groups, the CFMA community, and why "this is just how the industry works" is the mindset holding construction financial management back. 00:00 From Engineering to Project Management 02:24 Identifying Industry Challenges 05:25 Siteline: A Solution for Subcontractors 08:49 The Importance of Community & Peer Support 12:36 Lessons Learned & Writing for Professionals 15:08 The Value of In-Person Connections 19:32 What's Next 21:13 Changing Mindsets in Construction Finance Links Learn more about Siteline: https://www.getsiteline.com Connect with Claire on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/construction-claire Join CFMA: cfma.org #CFMA #VoicesofCFMA #ConstructionFinance #Subcontractors #CashFlow #LienRights #ConstructionTech #Siteline #ConstructionBusiness #FinancialManagement

October 12, 2020Episode 310 min

A Conversation with Yvette Aubin

The third episode of Voice of CFMA is an interview with Yvette Aubin, CCIFP, on her experiences in the industry and her involvement with CFMA. Interested in getting involved with your chapter? Check out cfma.org/chapter to find more information on events and opportunities.

November 9, 2020Episode 410 min

A Conversation with Steve Freinberg

The fourth episode of Voices of CFMA is an interview with Steve Freinberg on his experience in the industry and information about CFMA's Financial Benchmarker . Music Info: Fearless First by Kevin MacLeod https://incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/3742-fearless-first http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

February 8, 2021Episode 713 min

A Conversation with Andrea Williams

CFMA's seventh episode is an interview with Andrea Williams about her career and her experiences as a Black woman in the construction industry. Music Credit: Fearless First by Kevin MacLeod https://incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/3742-fearless-first License: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

April 14, 2026Episode 6917 min

A Conversation with Lynne Pace

In this episode of the Voices of CFMA, sponsored by Premier Construction Software, Sal Marino sits down with Lynne Pace, CFO at Danson Construction in Arizona. Lynne didn't plan on a career in construction — she spent 20 years in transportation before a recruiter and a boss who just kept saying "just go" landed her at her first CFMA Annual Conference & Exhibition in Phoenix. A day and a half in, she was a member. Nearly two decades later, she's helping shape where the association goes next. T hey dig into what it really means to get involved — from being "voluntold" onto the membership committee at the Valley of the Sun chapter, to the moment Lynne realized CFMA's community was the reason she could do her job confidently. She also makes the case for why "I don't have time" is the wrong reason to stay on the sidelines, and what it felt like to get that call from Jennifer Murphy asking her to join the Exec Committee. Learn more about CFMA membership and volunteer opportunities at cfma.org.

November 8, 2022Episode 2810 min

A Conversation with Jason Lovett

Jason Lovett is Chapter President of CFMA's Knoxville Chapter and is passionate about growing as a leader. On this episode, Jason shares how he made the leap from working in assisted living to risk management, how he got involved with CFMA, why diversity is important, and advice he has for people who are new to the industry. Links to check out CFMA's Chapters Construction Financial Management Association Music Credit Fearless First by Kevin MacLeod Link: https://incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/3742-fearless-first License: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

March 10, 2026Episode 6826 min

A Conversation with Tobin Paxton

In this episode of the Voices of CFMA Podcast, sponsored by Premier Construction Software, Tobin Paxton , co-founder of Miter — CFMA's newest Elite Partner — stops by to discuss how a Thanksgiving payroll run with his bookkeeper mom, a co-founder obsessed with construction accounting, and a series of Bay Area job-site visits sparked the idea for a human capital management and workforce platform now used by 1,500+ contractors daily. The conversation covers the labor shortage reshaping construction, the "data backbone" problem costing finance teams time and visibility, and how Miter thinks about automation — not as replacing people, but as equipping them. Tobin also talks about what drew Miter to CFMA, what he hopes the Association becomes, and how he's balancing 18 weeks on the road with life as a new dad. Visit cfma.org to learn more about CFMA membership.

February 10, 2026Episode 6733 min

A Conversation with Craig Gramlich

In this episode of Voices of CFMA, we are joined by Craig Gramlich of Lonewolf Consulting to unpack the real-world numbers behind fleet decisions. We dig into equipment economics — where money leaks across the equipment lifecycle, how internal rates influence behavior, and what it takes to get equipment, operations, and accounting aligned around smarter decisions.