THE chief financial officer (CFO) will emerge as one of the C-suite’s most critical roles in reframing the future of the enterprise post the COVID-19 pandemic and beyond.
Describing their future priorities, 86% of the 2020 Ernst & Young (EY) DNA of the CFO survey respondents said they will be required to protect their organisation today, while enabling future growth.
At the same time, 84% of the respondents from more than 800 global CFOs and senior finance executives agree that achieving a balance between short-term results and creating long-term value will become a priority.
This will also include traditional mandates such as corporate reporting along with new ones like overseeing digital transformation.
As they deliver on these priorities, CFOs will also need to enhance relationships with their fellow C-suite peers.
The survey, however, found 52% of responding finance leaders reported limited or no collaboration with the chief human resources officer (CHRO) with 44% saying the same of their relationship with the chief marketing officer (CMO).
“The COVID-19 pandemic has been a significant disruptor, causing unprecedented challenges,” Ernst & Young PLT Malaysia managing partner Datuk Rauf Rashid pointed out.
“However, it has also brought about some positive changes, including to leadership styles, with a focus on workforce, digital and technology, and long-term value creation.”
In this regard, Rauf said CFOs should seek to lead in the development of a value framework that allows the organisation to measure and communicate not only financial value but also consumer, human, environmental, social and governance values.
“In short, I foresee the exciting transformation of the CFO to a chief value officer (CVO) in the near future,” he noted.
According to the 2020 EY DNA of the CFO, the performance of markets is fundamentally changing.
New virtual markets are emerging as platform-based giants connect buyers and sellers in a more seamless way, and new technologies converge to eliminate even more inefficiencies and frictions.
A more fluid operating model that extends beyond the enterprise’s four walls will likely be a key factor in enabling finance to play a central role in the connected markets of the future.
Many finance leaders see this more open future for the function becoming reality over the next five years.
More than three-quarters (77%) of respondents believe that by 2025, finance IT will be cloud-native rather than on-premise, while 74% believe the function will be part of a blockchain-based ecosystem. – Dec 14, 2020
