Chief Financial Officer for Growth Firms: What to expect from your trusted Finance Business Partner

As the demands of industry leaders evolve, the expectations placed on Chief Financial Officers have increased significantly too, and no longer are they purely responsible for the financial stewardship of a company.

They will:

• Guide the company through multiple, ongoing events and inspire confidence across the broader business that there is a green light to do this
• Put in place the infrastructure, processes and controls to set you up for the future
• Provide strategic leadership to facilitate and drive growth
• Be a principal sparring partner to a CEO

Their focus:

• The past – explaining what has happened with factual accounts and insightful management information
• The present – what can be done to improve, prevent or enable change
• The future – supporting strategic decisions and create value

Key skills and attributes:

• Understands the business not just the numbers which in turn can lead to expanded revenue streams e.g. if consumer goods focused can interact with those purchasers to understand their demands and needs
• Able to originate and secure external funding options (debt / equity) and enhanced financing packages
• Constructive, analytical, firm but fair
• A leader of people, decisive not divisive, able to manage complex stakeholder groups including internal, external customers and peer groups
• Confident at providing an alternative solution, which a CEO had not considered, which may be more productive than saying yes, to keep status quo
• Able to operate at boardroom and floor level; communication is key
• Technically savvy or knows who to speak with to ensure financial compliance is in order e.g. auditor relationships
• Believes in supporting growth through innovation e.g. integrated reporting with enhanced IT
• Driven, recognises urgency, ensures corporate governance and drives process improvement
• Comfortable acting as point person for IT, HR and Operations i.e. legal documents which keep your company in line

Basics to consider:

• Planning
• Operations
• Financial Information
• Risk Management
• Funding
• Third Parties

Our conclusion:

Securing a highly capable, credible and driven CFO will have a significant impact on your business, providing financial leadership that will help your business understand and then deliver on its goals. The best CFOs are motivated by strong underlying business models, that are scalable and have the potential to deliver growth, working towards an event, which is where they truly demonstrate their value.