Making the move from financial controller to CFO

So what skillsets are organisations looking for in a modern CFO, and do you have them? We’ve put together some advice to take you from CFO-in-waiting to the top job.

The great (leadership) leap forward

If you’ve been keeping tabs on the role of a CFO during your career, you’ll know that it’s evolved to demand a broad-ranging skillset. While your technical financial expertise is highly valued, CFOs need to step up from reporting the numbers to growing them.

A CFO needs to be an excellent leader, strategist, communicator, collaborator, risk assessor and cultural guardian. They need to understand how each part of the business operates and how they interlock to deliver value and generate the most productive outcomes to bolster the corporate bottom line.

But how do you harness the expertise of each section of a business and bring them together to work in harmony to produce the best result?

Establishing credibility, trust and influence across various business functions and with external stakeholders starts with getting to know them – their roles, their contributions to business outcomes and the challenges they’re facing – and then working with them to identify productive solutions.

The most valued CFOs today are also forward-thinking, agile leaders who have a thorough understanding of the economic, political, and global environments in which their companies operate. They are adept at reading the tea leaves to determine current and future risks and opportunities, and then setting their strategic compass to chart the best way forward in partnership with their CEO and Board.

Take the field and get match fit

How is your C-suite skillset looking? Is it broad and deep, or narrow and shallow?

It’s time to turn the SWOT analysis on yourself. You may well and truly tick the finance box. But what about the other critical C-suite skillsets required – such as leadership, communication, strategy and business operations? If your analysis has identified gaps, it’s time to fill them.

If you haven’t stepped outside finance, now is the time to go beyond your comfort zone and delve into your business to learn what the teams in areas like HR, IT and Marketing do. Make it known to your supervisor or senior executive team that you’re keen to advance your professional experience and skills. Find a trusted mentor to champion your professional growth within your organisation or identify a respected external advisor to provide guidance and constructive feedback.

Put yourself forward to lead or contribute to new projects. Request to sit in on strategic discussions on issues such as supply chain, recruitment, or crisis management. Ask to shadow your CFO at important meetings, to prepare Board briefings and to practice presenting the company’s financial narrative to different audiences.

Cybersecurity is also an ongoing risk and concern to businesses. Understanding potential digital threats and their disruptive impact on your company is just as important as being prepared for the physical risks to people and property posed by natural disasters.

It’s also a good idea to keep your eye on opportunities to expand your skillset outside your organisation through activities like professional development or industry secondments. The key take-out here is don’t stagnate: keep learning and evolving.

Corporate storyteller and truth teller

In addition to gaining a broader operational skillset, financial controllers aspiring to the role of CFO need to show mastery of 21^st Century soft skills such as communication, problem-solving and collaboration. The most critical of these is communication.

The CFO is an important corporate storyteller and truth teller who regularly fronts the Board to present the organisation’s results. The best CFOs can tell the story behind the numbers, how the organisation’s performance compares with the market, what the Board can expect in the future and how growth and value can be maximised.

The CEO and Board look to the CFO for expert, honest and objective perspectives on the organisation’s current and future health. This requires distilling complex financial concepts and terms into clear and concise narratives for audiences with extensive to limited background financial knowledge.

Leadership is more than managing people and resources

Are you ready for all eyes to be on you? The CFO is a leader second only, in many organisations, to the CEO.

However, leadership is more than simply managing people and resources. Respected leaders are macro-strategists, not micro-managers. They delegate tasks, but not the responsibility for delivering them. They articulate the company’s strategic mission and vision in ways that resonate with and bring people together to achieve a common goal. 

You may not hold the title of CFO yet, but there’s nothing stopping you from showing the attributes of a leader now – expanding your knowledge, connecting numbers to the corporate vision and empowering your staff.