IFAC rolls out best practices for strategic CFO

The International Federation of Accountants has laid out a framework for finance pros to master more than just tracking and reporting on costs and income.

By Robert Freedman • Sept. 5, 2019

Target's scale gives it leverage as tariffs increase

The U.S.-China trade war is starting to create stark contrast between which suppliers and retailers have the power to shift the burden away from their own balance sheets and which do not. 

By Emma Cosgrove • Sept. 5, 2019

Explore the Trendline➔

CFO best practices in the evolving generative AI era

As the initial frenzy around the launch of generative artificial intelligence subsides, a new GenAI era appears to be taking shape.

By CFO Dive staff

Educating Bentonville about the startup culture of Silicon Valley

A CFO's strategic focus proves crucial to helping big-name brands Walmart and PepsiCo tackle new areas. 

By Robert Freedman • Sept. 4, 2019

Investors punish companies that combine philanthropy and tax avoidance

Investors find "Robin Hood" companies troubling because they appear to sacrifice the public good for private philanthropy.

By Robert Freedman • Sept. 3, 2019

CFO resigns from discount retailer Fred's

Former CFO Ritwik Chatterjee will stay on as a consultant while the company wrestles with falling sales and heavy debt. 

By Ben Unglesbee • Sept. 3, 2019

CFOs who 'convey appreciation and recognition' can retain top talent

A recruiting executive offers advice on how managers can keep high-value finance employees during a strong economy, when workers who "know their worth" are more likely to jump ship.  

By Jane Thier • Sept. 2, 2019

CFO's metrics analysis revealed sales structure problems

Riverside Insights CFO Graham Ballbach mined company data for insight even while building a new finance and accounting team. 

By Robert Freedman • Sept. 2, 2019

Driver-based planning helps CFOs put their focus forward

Tracking real-time business drivers instead of backward-looking KPIs helps companies trade hindsight for insight.

By Robert Freedman • Aug. 30, 2019

Employees unsatisfied with companies that don't invest in career growth

Growth opportunities are crucial for retaining talent in a tight labor market, The Conference Board says. 

By Robert Freedman • Aug. 29, 2019

Customer engagement key metric for SaaS companies, CFO says

SaaS companies rely on recurring revenue for growth. That's only achievable when customers are satisfied.

By Robert Freedman • Aug. 28, 2019

Frontline finance staff among best trained across industries

CFOs must understand training isn't merely an HR challenge, but an organizational one, "and CFOs who support their frontline workforce will benefit enormously," Carol Leaman, president and CEO of Axonify, told CFO Dive.

By Jane Thier • Aug. 27, 2019

CFOs must be 'strategic business partner' as role merges with COO

Companies increasingly are calling on CFOs to tackle operational problems — in human resources, technology, marketing and legal — right from the get-go. 

By Suzanne Northington • Aug. 27, 2019

Tech skills a rarity in new finance hires, CFOs say

As business becomes increasingly digitized, proficiency in all kinds of tech become integral to finance roles, a Robert Half survey finds.

By Jane Thier • Aug. 23, 2019

ManTech shifts to fixed-price contracting to match federal change

Consolidation of finance and transactional functions enables company executives to focus on relationships with defense and intelligence agencies rather than operational details. 

By Robert Freedman • Aug. 23, 2019

It's better to buy than to divest assets, survey finds

The size of divestments is inversely proportional to a divesting company's performance; the bigger the divestment, the worse it performs.

By Robert Freedman • Aug. 22, 2019

Finance should lead RPA integration, but IT must be at the table

Many functions within finance lend themselves to automation, freeing up staff time for higher-value work. 

By Robert Freedman • Aug. 22, 2019

Incoming General Mills CFO tasked with lowering debt

The food giant's debt reached $15.4 billion last year, up from $8.7 billion in 2017.

By Robert Freedman • Aug. 21, 2019

Company investment in talent undermined by staff burnout

Virtually all managers say their staff is burned out, which can present a huge, costly ripple effect, according to a survey conducted by employment firm Robert Half.

By Jane Thier • Aug. 21, 2019

CFO aligns metrics to track data integration company's move into cloud

Typical SaaS company metrics weren't sufficient to help track how well Talend was moving into core growth areas, according to CFO Adam Meister.

By Robert Freedman • Aug. 21, 2019

New Citrix, Lumber CFOs challenged to help their companies move forward

The businesses are asking their experienced CFOs to help struggling companies regain their competitive edge.

By Robert Freedman • Aug. 20, 2019

CFOs sweating unknown risks created by subcontractors

Be vigilant about reassessing a third party any time their work for the company changes, a Deloitte principal said during a risk management webinar. 

By Robert Freedman • Aug. 16, 2019

For biotech CFO, 1st priority is to keep trials funded in march toward product launch

With a background in medicine and investment banking, Marc Schegerin guides ArQule to use its money wisely while it finishes clinical trials for kinase inhibitor drugs. 

By Robert Freedman • Aug. 15, 2019

Companies continue to hire more CFOs from outside

Companies are looking for more varied experiences in order to move on from entrenched practices.

By Robert Freedman • Aug. 14, 2019

Finance teams must step up to guide company digital transformation

CFOs should create and lead a cross-functional team when it's time to get serious about digitally transforming their company.

By Jason Lin • Aug. 14, 2019

How Zoom became one of this year's biggest tech IPOs

CFO Kelly Steckelberg discusses how she organized her operations to support sales and product development, leading to a successful public offering.

By Robert Freedman • Aug. 14, 2019