Opinion
The COVID-19 pandemic has warned companies to address potential impacts on cash flow and operations. Due to strict regulation, the insurance industry's ERM framework serves as the best reference. This article, authored by Jim Toole, Senior Managing Director at FTI Consulting, details the definition of ERM, a six-step management process, and insurance industry practices, emphasizing that through risk quantification, integration, and proactive management, companies can reduce volatility, improve capital efficiency, and enhance stakeholder confidence.
The pandemic has forced companies to compress their annual strategic cycle into a few weeks. Jason Maynard, Senior Vice President of Global Field Operations at Oracle NetSuite, notes that CFOs play a central coordinating role in this process, needing to make quick decisions across vision updates, scenario modeling, KPI resets, and supply chain resilience building. Through cases such as Bedford Industries, Dippin' Daisy's, and TOV Furniture, the article distills three principles for CFOs to navigate uncertainty: maintain visibility, strengthen control, and foster agility.
As the economic impact of COVID-19 persists, going concern has become a focal point for private and public companies. Bob Dohrer, Chief Auditor of the American Institute of CPAs (AICPA), analyzes the new implications of this accounting concept under the pandemic and offers specific recommendations for companies to communicate with auditors and address going concern doubts.
The COVID-19 pandemic has led to supply chain disruptions and declining demand, exposing multinational enterprises to the risk of ineffective transfer pricing policies. Based on insights from experts at Crowe LLP, this article proposes five action recommendations: reviewing existing transfer pricing policies, re-evaluating intercompany agreements, assessing debt positions, proactively addressing tax audits, and considering the tax implications of supply chain adjustments, to reduce tax efficiency losses and ensure compliance.
Amid increasing global economic uncertainty and technological penetration, the CFO role is undergoing profound transformation. Based on observations by Shawn Cole, President of executive search firm Cowen Partners, this article analyzes the shift in CEO expectations for CFOs, pointing out that traditional financial expertise is merely an entry requirement, while creativity, communication skills, technological literacy, and strategic flexibility have become core competencies for CFOs in the new era. The article references KPMG's concept of the 'Renaissance CFO' and emphasizes the CFO's bridging role in connecting daily operations, long-term strategy, and financial goals.
The pandemic has led to sharp labor market divergence, and companies face a trade-off between cost and speed when hiring contingent workers. Through AI and real-time compensation data, companies can price skills more accurately and improve market efficiency.
Facing an economic slowdown, CFOs should look beyond traditional financial metrics and prioritize reputation risk management. Based on research by Steel City Re, this article analyzes the relationship between reputation and stock prices, bond ratings, and cash flow, and uses BNY Mellon as an example to demonstrate how reputation resilience can enhance a company's relative market performance during a crisis.
The pandemic has forced CFOs to re-evaluate corporate spending, and the role of data is increasingly prominent. CFO-CIO collaboration not only helps address short-term financial pressures but also enhances long-term competitiveness by optimizing IT investments and extending asset life. This article, combined with practical cases, elaborates on the value and implementation paths of cross-functional collaboration.
The pandemic has forced finance teams to work remotely, but merely migrating processes to the cloud is not sufficient. OneStream Vice President John O'Rourke writes that scattered financial applications hinder efficiency, while a unified platform provides a single source of data, accelerates closing, supports agile planning, and helps enterprises navigate uncertainty through predictive analytics and automation.
The COVID-19 pandemic has brought balance sheet contraction, supply chain challenges, and human capital pressures to businesses. Kevin Dancey, CEO of the International Federation of Accountants, believes that CFOs should demonstrate leadership during the crisis and drive long-term value creation through three strategies: putting people first, delivering credible information, and balancing short-term survival with long-term planning.