AI will yield biggest return in CFO spending during coming decade: Gartner

Spending on artificial intelligence will help CFOs achieve outperformance more than any other investment, Gartner predicts.

By Jim Tyson • May 26, 2021

How CFOs' digital conservatism hinders progress

When it comes to implementing digital technology, nearly three quarters of CFO respondents said their teams are too cautious, which can dramatically slow growth, Gartner research found.

By Jane Thier • May 26, 2021

Explore the Trendline➔

Digital transformation, one smart step at a time

As pricing pressures tighten margins and technologies like artificial intelligence evolve, finance chiefs are more closely scrutinizing the cost and returns of the tech tools they implement.

By CFO Dive staff

Twitter looks to add e-commerce features, CFO says

"You should be able to click and buy something on Twitter," Ned Segal said at the J.P. Morgan Global Technology, Media and Communications Virtual Conference Tuesday. "We’ve come to appreciate that people do a lot of research on Twitter before they buy something."

By Jane Thier • May 26, 2021

New data analysis may help predict pandemic recovery: AstraZeneca FP&A head

The coronavirus sped up adoption of automation at AstraZeneca and generated datasets that may help forecast recovery, according to the company's FP&A director.

By Jim Tyson • May 25, 2021

Accounting, finance grads face different road to fill CFO shoes

New entrants to the business world are expected to bring data analytics, risk management, cybersecurity and business modeling to the table, say academic specialists. 

By Ted Knutson • May 22, 2021

Preparing for the CFO seat, with mentorship built in

The executive team at Herbalife Nutrition helped pave the way for Alex Amezquita’s finance leadership rise by giving him time to learn the ropes.  

By Robert Freedman • May 19, 2021

Up from the ashes: retailing CFOs get ready for a consumer rush

Retailing CFOs preparing for a "spring-loaded" consumer splurge provide insights for financial executives in industries less challenged by the coronavirus.

By Jim Tyson • May 18, 2021

Colonial hack a wake-up call to CFOs with legacy systems

Older systems leave finance and accounting operational data at risk of breach, security specialists say.

By Ted Knutson • May 14, 2021

Only 20% of CFOs can forecast revenue, earnings beyond a year: survey

Even after the pandemic shock, most CFOs forgo effective scenario planning and more than half lack the ability to forecast revenue and earnings beyond six months, according to a Prophix Software survey.

By Jim Tyson • May 11, 2021

Lack of automation preventing efficient financial close: CFO survey

Due to ineffective processes and technology, 51% of CFO respondents to Trintech's Global Financial Close Benchmark Report cited meeting deadlines and time pressures as their biggest challenges this year.

By Jane Thier • May 11, 2021

Up from the ashes: Restaurant CFOs prepare for boom

Profit-hungry restaurant CFOs blindsided by the pandemic get ready for robust economic growth, offering lessons for leaders in less-stressed industries.

By Jim Tyson • May 6, 2021

Leveraging cash flow's multiplier effect on valuation

Most finance tools are optimized for GAAP but they can be made more effective for increasing company value by enabling better cash management, finance leaders say. 

By Robert Freedman • May 3, 2021

Up from the ashes: How airline CFOs are preparing for the post-pandemic rebound

CFOs of airlines challenged by the pandemic are preparing for a rebound in demand, offering lessons for financial executives in less-stressed industries.

By Jim Tyson • April 26, 2021

Business spend management tools gain traction during the pandemic

Despite the COVID-19 impact, expense management software companies can expect 10.5% compound annual growth through 2024, research shows.

By Vaidik Trivedi • April 13, 2021

651 apps? How to get your SaaS stack in order

Software-as-a-Service applications help employees become more productive and innovative. But when unmanaged, too many applications can drain a technology budget and make collaboration difficult.

By Theresa O'Neil • April 8, 2021

Companies said to need deeper data dives to improve metrics

Data lakes contain much more information than CFOs typically use to track performance, data specialists say. 

By Robert Freedman • March 30, 2021

After digital payments rush, time to tighten security

Don't be surprised if a vendor you're about to pay turns out to be fraudulent. ACH and other types of cyber fraud surged during the pandemic. 

By Angela Anastasakis • March 30, 2021

CFO used automation to turn back-office function into value driver

LivePerson finance chief John Collins brought in top data scientists and engineers to build a data system that increased growth and improved margins.

By Robert Freedman • March 29, 2021

4 CFO lessons from the pandemic

CFOs are advancing into the second year of a once-in-a-century pandemic with lessons they’ve learned while coping with a broad range of disruptions from COVID-19.

By Jim Tyson • March 26, 2021

MicroStrategy CEO: Treasurers should buy Bitcoin as cash alternative to hedge inflation

Record stimulus is likely to stoke inflation, making Bitcoin an attractive backstop for corporate treasurers, according to Michael Saylor.

By Jim Tyson • March 23, 2021

Using a price-volume-mix analysis to improve performance

Whether you know it as a sales bridge or variance analysis, it can help decode your company's performance at a granular level.

By Dayton Kellenberger • March 17, 2021

Federal watchdog warns of cybersecurity risks to employee retirement plans

Fiduciaries might not realize they could be liable for losses they were obligated to prevent, the Government Accountability Office says. 

By Jim Tyson • March 17, 2021

The metrics behind feedback-driven growth

To get alignment behind common goals, employees must have access to the same data as leaders, the co-CEOs of Monday.com say.

By Robert Freedman • March 16, 2021

'Uncertainty cube' touted for sharper modeling

By analyzing more variables over more paths, FP&A teams can narrow down risk scenarios, McKinsey analyst Aleksander Petrov says.

By Robert Freedman • March 15, 2021

CFOs see need to overhaul capital strategy amid pandemic 'shock,' EY says

The pandemic has given CFOs a "once-in-a-generation shock," forcing them to completely rethink their capital allocation strategy, an EY survey found.

By Jim Tyson • March 11, 2021