What do you think of when you hear the title \u201cChief Financial Officer?\u201d A master of math and analytics? The head of an army of accountants? A person with one finger on the pulse on the company?<\/p>\n
In today\u2019s post-recession world, that\u2019s only half the tale. During the economic downturn<\/a>, companies found themselves turning to extreme measures to survive. This meant cutting costs where they could, optimizing operations to be as cost-effective as possible, spinning off unprofitable subsidiaries, and investing strategically in certain sectors<\/a>. And no one was more familiar with the company\u2019s financial landscape or organizational challenges than the CFO. The title quickly stood out as meaning a lot more.<\/p>\n In 2016, eight years after the recession, caution and careful planning matter now more than ever, as do real management and limits on capital and credit. For the CFO, recessionary duties such as providing long-term strategy and financial planning have joined traditional responsibilities in compliance and revenue.<\/p>\n Perhaps the best example of the added workload placed on CFOs can be seen in industries that are undergoing considerable disruption. PWC, writing about the energy industry, comments on the \u201cstrategic CFO,\u201d<\/a> who \u201cfocuses on linking strategy with execution and market plans\u2026\u201d CFOs have to shape corporate agendas, and even implement wide-reaching changes, especially where it comes to green energy.<\/p>\n But the increased regulatory demands have come with a cost. In a recent 2016 survey of 769 CFOs from across the world<\/a>, EY reports that nearly 56% of CFOs report they \u201ccannot focus on strategic priorities because of time spent on compliance, controls, and costs.\u201d<\/p>\n So where to begin? Whether you\u2019re a newly-minted, \u201cstrategic CFO,\u201d an aspiring CFO, or a chief executive seeking to hire the best CFO possible, there are a number of key concepts and skills that can prove useful in navigating this evolving relationship in a role that gets stretchier by the day.<\/p>\n Note that this list assumes that CFOs are already financial experts and covers other skills not typically associated with the position.<\/p>\n From literal paper processes to modeling forecasts and budgets, there are excellent checklists for CFOs to maximize efficiency through automation<\/a>. \u00a0Whether it is replacing software systems, integrating existing ones, or building more algorithms, do whatever it takes to get those minute, time-wasting tasks out of the way.<\/p>\n It\u2019s not just crunching numbers anymore. CFO\u2019s are strategizing, planning, and organizing–which means building, educating, and organizing teams, sometimes on an international level<\/a>. Leadership, and perhaps even more important, people skills, are essential for this task.<\/p>\n A CFO should make sure he or she has a good team and that the building blocks are strong. A talented team can keep things running allowing the CFO to be freed up from the details to focus on larger issues.<\/p>\n There\u2019s more to it than management. CFO\u2019s need to collaborate with other executives, \u00a0among them the chief marketing executive, top information officer, and human resources. \u00a0From streamlining IT processes for a faster workflow<\/a> to assisting the CMO with developing predictive software and analytics to target<\/a> business opportunities, the possibilities are endless.<\/p>\n It\u2019s safe to say that if you\u2019re a CFO, you\u2019re already a master of the financial planning and analysis process. The key here is to take it one step further and think strategically. \u00a0Have you brainstormed challenges and worst-case scenarios<\/a>, as well as any potential solutions? \u00a0Are detailed sensitivity analyses your friend? Can you open up the process to other departments, and coordinate with other teams to get their feedback? These are the next-level skills necessary for success.<\/p>\n 38% of CFOs noted that building relationships and trust with external stakeholders was critical to success<\/a>. 37%, said the same about internal stakeholders. \u00a0From project managers to clients, the recipe for building relationships with stakeholders is rooted in the fundamentals of successful interpersonal communication. \u00a0Honesty, interest, and good listening go a long way<\/a>, as does openness and a willingness to compromise and see the other party\u2019s point of view.<\/p>\n Authors noted that successful CFOs needed to have \u201ca rare combination of technical and interpersonal skills.\u201d 44% of respondents to their survey listed practical experience in their current role as their overriding concern<\/a>, with only 8% touting the value of an MBA or other, postgraduate degree. \u00a0To hone the requisite strategic thinking and leadership, CFO\u2019s should consider spending time running other divisions of the company<\/a>. \u00a0At the very least, it will provide a complete picture of the company\u2019s operations–a view that may not always be clear from the C-Suite.<\/p>\n In a post-recessionary world, where the memories of economic trauma are still fresh in institutional memory, the CFO has become more important than ever. \u00a0Be it planning mergers, minimizing risk, or advising on strategy and five-year growth plans, the CFO\u2019s role will keep stretching. It\u2019s up to you to learn how to stretch yourself along with it.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" What do you think of when you hear the title \u201cChief Financial Officer?\u201d A master of math and analytics? The head of an army of accountants? A person with one finger on the pulse on the company?<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1176,"featured_media":625,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","_mi_skip_tracking":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[20,38,59,69,110],"class_list":["post-624","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-from-one-cfo-to-another","tag-bdc","tag-cfo","tag-finance","tag-henri-steenkamp","tag-saratoga"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/ragnarok-ms.us\/henristeenkamp-com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/624","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/ragnarok-ms.us\/henristeenkamp-com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/ragnarok-ms.us\/henristeenkamp-com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ragnarok-ms.us\/henristeenkamp-com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1176"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ragnarok-ms.us\/henristeenkamp-com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=624"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/ragnarok-ms.us\/henristeenkamp-com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/624\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ragnarok-ms.us\/henristeenkamp-com\/wp-json\/"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/ragnarok-ms.us\/henristeenkamp-com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=624"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ragnarok-ms.us\/henristeenkamp-com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=624"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ragnarok-ms.us\/henristeenkamp-com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=624"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}Understanding automation<\/b><\/h2>\n
Sharp management and a savvy team<\/b><\/h2>\n
Collaborating with other teams<\/b><\/h2>\n
Minimizing risk<\/b><\/h2>\n
Win over stakeholders<\/b><\/h2>\n
There\u2019s no substitute for practical experience<\/b><\/h2>\n