More Challenges for CFOs
Over the past couple of years, the pandemic has hosted a paradigm shift in the behavioral patterns of many markets and trends. It’s no wonder that this has transformed the job roles of CFOs. Today, geopolitical tensions and the Ukraine-Russia conflict are fueling this predicament. Well, the challenges don’t end there. The increasing need to invest right in digital transformation, meeting employee expectations, and cyber security is combining to make life much more difficult for CFOs. Some are cracking under this immense pressure.
PLDT, a legacy Philippine telecommunications, internet, and digital service holdings company, recently announced that the company’s CFO, Annabelle Chua took early retirement in the aftermath of a severe budget overrun that saw the company’s profits plunging by 60 percent. The operator found no evidence of fraudulent activity in its investigation. However, Annabelle was relieved along with other key executives following the operator’s massive PHP48 billion ($853 million) overspending.
The challenges for CFOs in 2023 include everything from Inflation to potential recession, the need to continue the rapid evolution around becoming a digital-first, agile organization, and talent acquisition and retention. CFOs must invest in the right technology & automation tools to optimize efficiency and streamline operations. On the other hand, CFOs need to use data to their organization’s advantage. A data-first approach will help a CFO accurately monitor their financial position and decisionmaking. Creating a great work culture is also of paramount importance. In this issue, we feature a bunch of CFOs who have successfully set the standards right.
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