The CFO’s role is changing 360 degrees

The CFO has always had a special place in corporate management. Historically, he is the guarantor of the main financial aggregates (balance sheet, profit and loss, cash flow, etc.) and is at the forefront of relations with banking and financial partners.The CFO must constantly juggle constraints and objectives that are often contradictory.

Long-term structuring and day-to-day management:

The robustness and stability of the financial organisation is crucial for the long-term future of the company, as is the management of day-to-day operations, which requires the CFO to anticipate challenges while ensuring day-to-day operations.

Managing the end of the month and preparing for the future: The CFO must ensure short-term liquidity while enabling the long-term development of the Group by financing future investments. At the same time, he must commit the Group to the energy transition in order to respond to the finite nature of natural resources.

Attracting and retaining talent: A company’s performance is highly dependent on its employees and the competition to attract and retain talent is intense, especially since the Covid crisis. CFOs have had to adapt their management to meet employee expectations for transparency, relevance and career development.

Enabling stability and agility: CFOs ensure the reliability of information systems while promoting the agility required for fast and informed decision-making

Taking risks and ensuring security: The role of CFOs has evolved to include the management of new risks such as cyber security and fraud.

Communication and confidentiality: Communication with stakeholders is part of the role of finance departments, with ever-increasing demands for transparency and disclosure of company information. At the same time, confidentiality requirements are essential to the CFO’s work, especially in mergers and acquisitions.

In recent years, the role of the CFO has changed the most. They have had to expand their usual role to take into account new constraints (financial, legal, regulatory, etc.) and new risks (fraud, geopolitical risks, foreign exchange, embargoes, etc.) that surround the finance department 360°. These changes are difficult and complicated to manage and CFOs must take them into account when hiring their teams. But these expansions in scope and areas of activity make the (new) role of CFO even more attractive.

Read the full article (in French) by Stephane Nénez, Partner at Eight Advisory, published in L’Agefi on 3 July 2024.