Finance Leaders Refocus With ERM

According to the recently published 2010 Global CFO Study, finance leaders increasingly are becoming champions for enterprise risk management in their organizations.  Conducted by the Economist Intelligence Unit and IBM, the study included interviews and surveys of over 1,900 CFOs from 81 countries and 32 industries.  One of the authors sat down with Dow Jones Newswires to discuss the insights gained from the study.  Here is what he had to say.

Bill Fuessler, co-author of the study, told Dow Jones Newswires that finance chiefs are moving away from their transaction activities--and paying more attention to the integration of data. He said the CFO position has evolved into a much more strategic role as they take on more involvement with risk management.

Fuessler said the role of finance has evolved in recent years, with the two biggest jumps in responsibility being driving integration and supporting managing enterprise risk, both of which have doubled in importance in the last five years. And more than 70% of finance chiefs are advising or playing a critical decision-making role in areas such as risk management and business model innovation, the study found.

With a focus on Enterprise Governance, Risk and Financial Management, Wheelhouse Advisors provides a unique perspective to finance leaders who are looking to strengthen their risk management and decision-making capabilities. Wheelhouse Advisors creates practical, business-focused solutions and brings added expertise through its array of strategic alliances.  Visit www.WheelhouseAdvisors.com to learn more.

CFOs and CIOs Find Common Ground

A recent article in CFO magazine discusses the critical partnership between corporate CFOs and CIOs.  As is often the case, these two executives have difficulty speaking the same language.  CFOs are certainly more focused on the financial and risk aspects of any major information technology undertaking.  On the other hand, CIOs tend to focus on the innovation and efficiencies that they can bring to the business through greater automation.  Here is what CFO magazine noted from a recent roundtable discussion with CFOs and CIOs.

If one trait of CIOs could be changed, the executive said bluntly, they would develop more appreciation for prudent risk-taking. "They're always coming up with these very capital-intensive programs that are essentially faith-based initiatives. The projects are not well supported with metrics, the numbers don't work, but they want to run off and take the risk."  Similarly, one CFO at the table, who also asked not to be named, chimed in: "Stop saying that it's going to produce 2,000% ROI. Nobody believes you."  The first executive did allow, though, that there are two sides to the issue. Finance leaders, he acknowledged, often lose sight of the fact that "we have to have some vision, too." Rather than being just numbers-driven, CFOs have to find room for belief in innovation and "understand the power of a better idea."

To be truly successful, the two executives must find common ground.  Wheelhouse Advisors provides practical solutions to bridge the gap between CFOs and CIOs leading to stronger business results.  To learn more, visit www.WheelhouseAdvisors.com.