While we’re not but in a pre-recession setting, indicators of a possible recession are surfacing, Christina Ross, CEO and founding father of FP&A software program supplier Cube stated in an interview.
The undeniable fact that the Fed is continuous to lift rates of interest on a daily foundation, the persistent power of the labor market, and CEOs’ optimism concerning the current — if not future — setting present we’ve but to enter pre-recession, she stated, however slightly we’re in a post-bubble setting.
This time interval provides CFOs a window of alternative as they appear to arrange their corporations to climate the possible incoming financial dip. While CFOs are actually dealing with challenges, the present setting additionally represents a time when CFOs are in the perfect place they are often in to make the perfect affect, Ross stated.
“When occasions are robust, that is when the CFOs actually shine,” she stated. “When occasions are nice, generally CFOs are form of taken without any consideration. It’s a mandatory function, however they develop into the hero when occasions are tough.”
A self-proclaimed “serial CFO” turned CEO, Ross has held CFO or head of finance positions for video advertising and marketing agency Eyeview, world expertise agency Criteo, and on-line trend startup Rent The Runway, in keeping with her LinkedIn profile. She has additionally served as a board member for the CFO Leadership Council, and has acted as CEO for Cube since 2018.
Invest in automation now
Taking benefit of this era before the economic system settles into pre-recession means CFOs should fastidiously take into account their subsequent steps.
The present setting means budgets will not be but being lower as drastically as they is likely to be within the subsequent six to 12 months, Ross stated — making it the perfect time to put money into key applied sciences that would decrease prices when that leaner interval does arrive.
“Making these investments now when you nonetheless have the price range to reap the advantages six to 12 months out means not solely do you’ve gotten decrease value for larger productiveness sooner or later, however you additionally get these budgets authorized now for extra automation and expertise spend,” Ross stated.
Technologies or software program similar to that provided by Cube — which offers corporations with FP&A automation and workflow options that may be built-in into already acquainted instruments similar to Excel or Google Sheets — can even assist CFOs to alleviate a few of the hiring and staffing pressures they could face transferring right into a recessionary setting.
“There’s additionally a play right here that you could be not wish to make any staffing adjustments whenever you put money into automation,” Ross stated. “You’re simply spending much less time on getting the info and spending extra time on the deep evaluation, which has benefits in a recession.”
Automation in areas similar to FP&A can go additional than merely decreasing the necessity to rent new employees or cost-cutting measures, Ross stated — it could possibly additionally assist to strengthen enterprise outcomes, permitting finance groups to gather information extra swiftly and to raised consolidate their future methods.
“What we discovered is that automation isn’t just slicing headcount or saving {dollars} within the conventional sense, it is serving to these finance groups be extra strategic and be simpler of their roles, serving to the enterprise transfer ahead in a simpler method,” Ross stated.
Making the CFO to CEO bounce
Being in a position to have and to execute that strategic imaginative and prescient is a expertise that would serve CFOs trying to make the transfer to a CEO place effectively, for that matter. “I do know my numbers,” Ross stated when discussing how her CFO experiences have helped her as a now-CEO.
Cube is a really “metrics-driven” firm partly due to her standing as a former CFO turned CEO, Ross stated, with a command of their numbers that impresses the corporate’s board.
CFOs are due to this fact very well-suited to transferring right into a COO or CEO place, she stated. Another advantage of bringing one’s CFO expertise to bear within the CEO seat is the familiarity monetary heads have already got in making robust decisions, she stated.
“I believe as a CFO, we’re form of very effectively skilled in sharing tough information, making tough choices, and it virtually turns into second nature to do the best factor with out worrying about whether or not or not you may be naturally favored,” Ross stated. “So I believe that gives a little bit of braveness coming from the CFO seat, going to the CEO [position].”
https://www.cfodive.com/information/cube-ceo-serial-cfo–automation-recession-fpa/633632/
