Good morning. For modern-day CFOs, managing a company’s financial activities is just table stakes.
During a panel at the Fortune Future of Finance conference on Thursday in New York City, I asked Yanela Frias, EVP and CFO at Prudential Financial, Xihao Hu, CFO at TD Securities, and Wetteny Joseph, EVP and CFO at Zoetis, a global animal health company, to share their perspectives on how their roles keep evolving.
CFOs spend a lot of time on “what the strategy and the direction of the company should be, and the execution of that strategy,” Frias said. And that includes everything from operational efficiency and implementing technology to spending time with investors and customers, she added. “We’re really becoming a second spokesperson for the organization,” she said. “You have the CEO, then there’s the CFO.”
Hu said at TD they’ve created a “finance blueprint” with four key expectations for any future finance person or CFO: deliver strategic advice, build strong capabilities and tools, provide effective challenge and effective control, and give a “rewarding experience to all of our colleagues in finance so we can grow together.”
From Joseph’s perspective, “You’re in the middle of everything,” he said. “And over time, I think it’s going to continue to evolve, but becoming a lot more like a COO.”
“We’re operating in a world that’s so dynamic that you wake up every day to something that’s shifting and changing, whether it’s with your customer or the markets,” Joseph added. And CFOs, even when forced to shift or make changes themselves, also need to not lose sight of key objectives, like asking the right questions when a business case is presented—some of which will be more easily attainable as tech like AI plays a larger role in operations.
“It’s a competitive edge now to win over customers, and also make your colleagues’ lives a little bit better,” Hu said. “In order to execute some of that technology, especially AI, you’ve got to have good quality data, and also [you] need to fetch that data more easily.”
Frias added: “Technology has always been an aid and enabler, but now it’s a strategic enabler.”
As finance and tech continue to become more closely intertwined, the CFOs also said they’re seeking talent with diverse skill sets. “We have data scientists within finance,” said Frias, offering a sports analogy: “When we think about hiring people, we’re looking for athletes who can play different positions on the field.”
You can watch a video of the complete panel session here.
Sheryl Estrada
sheryl.estrada@fortune.com
Leaderboard
Duncan Russell was promoted to CFO at Aegon, an international financial services holding company, effective Sept. 1. Russell will succeed Matt Rider, who will retire after over seven years of service to the company. Russell joined Aegon as chief transformation officer in 2020. Before Aegon, he worked at UK-based Admiral Group Plc, where he last held the position of CFO of Admiral Financial Services.
Brian Fraser was named CFO at LaSalle Medical Associates. Fraser brings more than 30 years of financial management experience, including more than 15 years as CFO of EPIC Management Services, where he worked alongside LaSalle’s current CEO, Duane Whittington.
Big Deal
A thought leadership report issued by S&P Global and AARP reveals not only the challenges of balancing work and caregiving, but also how the right workplace policies can ease the burdens. Most respondents (84%) said caregiving had a moderate or high impact on their overall level of stress, and 67% said they had at least some difficulty in balancing work and life responsibilities.
Half of working caregivers reported making work scheduling changes, including going in early, leaving late or taking time off from a job. Many took a leave of absence (32%), or shifted from full-time to part-time work or reduced hours (27%). S&P Global/AARP conducted an online survey of 1,200 full-time and part-time employees of U.S. companies (with more than 1,000 employees) who provided more than six hours of unpaid care a week to another adult.
Going deeper
Following two straight months of the Consumer Price Index rising by 0.4%, April edged lower to 0.3% with broad declines across the board, except for housing and gasoline, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics report released on May 15.
“These inflation numbers and softer-than-expected retail sales data—unchanged for the headline measure and down 0.3% for the ‘control group’—are fueling hopes for an earlier interest rate cut by the Federal Reserve, thereby boosting bond and equity prices,” Mohamed El-Erian, chief economic advisor at Allianz, said in an X post, Fortune reported.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed above 40,000 on Friday for the first time, after the data suggested inflation is cooling down, which could lead to interest rate cuts by the Federal Reserve.
JPMorgan Chase & Co. CEO Jamie Dimon told Bloomberg Television in an interview on Thursday he still has concerns about inflation. “There are a lot of inflationary forces in front of us,” Dimon said. “The underlying inflation may not go away the way people expect it to.”
Overheard
“Older employees still have a lot to give and receive in the workforce. Companies should be proactive about keeping and engaging those workers who still feel up for the challenge. It’s a win-win for everyone involved.”
—Janet Markoff writes in a new Fortune opinion piece. Markoff is the managing partner of the New York office of Major, Lindsey & Africa, a global legal search firm.