VP Tax at Dell on Reputation, Risk, and Real Leadership (Lionel Nobre)

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Tax Leaders Unplugged

Loctax

19 episodes

3 days ago

Welcome to the Tax Leaders Unplugged, a podcast hosted by Stevi Frooninckx (CEO & Co-founder at Loctax), where we go beyond the numbers and the rules, delving into the essence of leadership in the tax world. Our focus isn’t on tax technicalities; it’s on the people behind them. Join us for in-depth conversations with leading in-house tax professionals, exploring collaboration, team management, and career development. Stay tuned for unique insights and advice you won’t find on Google, tailored to enhance your tax leadership journey.

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VP Tax at Dell on Reputation, Risk, and Real Leadership (Lionel Nobre)

Tax Leaders Unplugged

52 minutes 16 seconds

4 months ago

VP Tax at Dell on Reputation, Risk, and Real Leadership (Lionel Nobre)

Lionel Nobre, VP Tax Latin America at Dell Technologies, joins the Tax Leaders Unplugged podcast to explore what in-house tax leadership looks like in practice. After nearly two decades at Dell and deep involvement with TEI and academic programs across the Americas, Lionel brings a clear message: being technically strong is no longer enough. In this episode, he shares:

• How he built a 100-hour international tax management program focused on leadership, stakeholder communication, and operational readiness.

• Why the tax team at Dell tracks the number of “surprises” as a KPI, and how this drives trust with business stakeholders.

• What it means to position tax as a function that enables growth, not just manages compliance.

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Where to find Lionel Nobre: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lionelnobre/

Where to find Stevi Frooninckx: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stevifrooninckx

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In this episode, we cover:

(0:01) Intro and Lionel’s background in tax and tech

(1:02) Early career: Oracle, Arthur Andersen, BDO, Grant Thornton

(2:21) 18+ years at Dell and evolution of his role

(3:00) TEI involvement and Latin America’s growing voice

(4:59) Why TEI matters for in-house tax professionals

(8:09) Dell’s approach to tax as a business partner

(10:48) Building trust and internal tax reputation

(14:55) Launching the International Tax Management Program

(18:18) Who the program is for and what it teaches

(22:10) Curriculum: leadership, ops, communication, tech

(23:10) Tax KPIs and team performance evaluation

(24:00) The “surprise” KPI and why it matters

(26:28) Why even good surprises are a problem

(28:22) ETR impact: linking C-suite access to outcomes

(30:54) Teaching change management in tax teams

(33:40) Partnering with CIAT to teach cooperative compliance

(35:07) Risk dashboards used by tax authorities

(38:39) AI, data quality, and audit exposure

(42:52) Global expansion of the training program

(44:50) Future skillset: 50% tech, 30% business, 20% tax

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Referenced:

• TEI – Tax Executive Institute: https://www.tei.org/

• International Tax Management Program – launched in 2023, hosted by universities in Brazil (Insper) and Argentina (UTDT)

• Thomson Reuters Book – “Gestão Tributária no Brasil” co-edited by Lionel Nobre

• Texas A&M University – where Lionel lectures on tax leadership• CIAT (Centro Interamericano de Administraciones Tributarias) – partner on cooperative compliance module