BlackLine CFO Patrick Villanova says the recent purchase of NetNow will let the company deliver a more complete invoice-to-cash experience.
Acquisition and Integration Plans
The Woodland Hills, Calif., firm announced the deal on Sept. 21. NetNow’s onboarding and credit-management tools remain fully operational, allowing existing customers to continue using the platform without interruption while the two businesses work toward a unified invoice-to-cash solution.
According to the announcement, the integration effort will focus on harmonizing data flows, standardizing user interfaces, and creating a single reporting layer that can be accessed by finance teams across both organizations.
Villanova told an interview that accelerating the merging of the two suites “the more value it’ll bring to our customers.” He added that end users need a seamless experience that reduces manual steps and eliminates duplicate data entry.
Although the CFO does not manage the technical side directly, he monitors back-office connections such as finance, accounting and human-resources systems to ensure that data integrity is maintained throughout the transition.
He stressed the goal of having “one team speaking from one voice on one set of systems,” a principle that the leadership team hopes will guide cross-functional collaboration for the duration of the project.
Leadership Perspective
Villanova brings 11 years of experience at BlackLine, serving as CFO since March 2025 after a six-year stint as chief accounting officer. In that role, he has overseen multiple product launches and guided the firm through periods of rapid growth.
Before joining in 2015, he spent 16 years at PricewaterhouseCoopers in audit leadership roles, where he gained deep insight into regulatory compliance and financial controls.
The purchase price was not disclosed, and the CFO did not give a firm timetable, though he said the process should not exceed a year.
Earlier in December, BlackLine bought WiseLayer, an AI-agent provider, to embed intelligence into its Verity suite for tasks like accrual and payroll accounting. That acquisition demonstrated the firm’s willingness to combine traditional finance software with emerging artificial-intelligence capabilities.
When assessing targets, he looks at the cost of building a solution internally versus acquiring it, asking “how long would it take to build this ourselves?” and “how many resources would we have to reallocate?” This cost-benefit analysis helps determine whether a purchase will accelerate product roadmaps.
He helped shape the deal’s financial model and used his own department as a test bed, involving the head of collections in a proof-of-concept trial that evaluated processing speed and user satisfaction.
Villanova said he wanted simple, non-technical answers, asking whether the solution was easy to use, required too many clicks, was intuitive, and if customers would buy it.
He acknowledges that no acquisition proceeds flawlessly; integration can be complex, and staff training may lag behind automation goals.
He said he and the CEO regularly discuss whether recent purchases are “a success, are they working, are they selling,” framing the conversation around tangible results such as adoption rates and revenue impact.
Strategic Growth and AI
BlackLine continues to scan the market for deals as the CFO function expands, with finance professionals handling more data and influencing other departments. The firm believes that broader responsibility for financial data creates new opportunities for software that can automate routine tasks.
Villanova noted that greater impact translates into more requests for software solutions, widening the addressable market and encouraging the company to pursue complementary technologies.
He said that if the rapid pace of change continues, the software and AI used today will look nothing like they do three years from now.
Future Outlook
Villanova said the firm will keep evaluating opportunities, aware that rapid technological change demands continual adaptation. He added that the leadership team will prioritize investments that align with the long-term vision of a fully integrated, cloud-based financial platform.
