Too many CEOs and business owners underutilize their CFO. Business owners of small businesses as well as middle-market companies often look at a CFO as a “chief accountant” rather than a business partner who can strategically help the company grow more profitably.
Here are some interesting excerpts from an article in CFO Magazine by an experienced CEO focused on helping mid-market companies:
“CEOs who are focused on technology rather than sales often partner with their head of sales. But not nearly enough CEOs enlist the CFO as their chief ally in the quest for growth. As a result, many CFOs lose their opportunity to provide support, though they have the capacity to become excellent collaborators in growth.”
“CFOs and other C-suite executives may try to guide their CEOs toward building leadership infrastructure, encompassing new processes — regular management meetings, business planning, market analysis, stronger leadership teams and more.”
“Therefore it is not surprising to find such a wide leadership infrastructure gap in growth companies. Early stage startups need few processes and big companies already have them in place.”
“Ultimately, CFOs need to get out of the finance department and use their skills to become architects of growth, laying the foundations for scaling the firm to the next level.”