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The Australian
05-05-2025
- Business
- The Australian
Why companies need a formal CFO succession plan
All CFOs want to set their companies up for continued success after their departure. A critical, but often overlooked, part of this is ensuring there's a plan to hand over the role to the right candidate. Good succession management for CFO roles is a strategic enabler for any business: It preserves leadership continuity, minimises the risk of disruption, and helps allay shareholder concerns about changes in management and the finance function. A well-executed succession also secures the legacy of the outgoing CFO. The numbers would say this issue is particularly important. According to the Russell Reynolds Global CFO Turnover Index, approximately 50 per cent of ASX200 CFO appointments in recent years have been internal appointments. While this percentage varies year to year and across different market conditions, it is imperative that CFOs are continually developing their teams in a meaningful way and thoughtfully planning for succession. However, many businesses are not fully prepared. According to Deloitte's 2Q 2024 North American CFO Signals survey, about one quarter of 200 CFOs say that their companies do not have a formal CFO succession plan. Interestingly, almost one-third of that cohort are large companies with annual revenue of US$10 billion or more. Why is this? One reason could be that traditional approaches to succession planning can be incredibly slow-moving, with a bias towards internal candidates and away from high performers who work outside of finance or outside of the business altogether. Stephen Gustafson is CFO Program Leader at Deloitte Australia Stephen Tarling is CFO Program Leader at Deloitte Australia There may also be uncertainties over what will be required of the hypothetical successor, given the remits of many CFOs are rapidly expanding to include responsibilities like sustainability reporting, tech implementation, and talent management. There's also the fact that two-thirds of respondents to our CFO Signals survey say the primary responsibility for creating and maintaining the CFO succession plan rests with the CEO, HR, or the company's board of directors, suggesting it may get lost amid other priorities. So, what can CFOs do to help support the development and continual management of a living, breathing succession plan that is always fit for purpose? The first play is to set or update the succession criteria. Don't just think about the skills a candidate needs to do the job of CFO today, think about the skills they'll need three years down the track. This will require contemplation of both the changing business environment and the needs of the organisation at a particular point in time. Next, to execute on the succession strategy, a future-ready succession pipeline of three or so possible successors should be intentionally cultivated. Skill gaps at the individual and cohort level should be identified, with CFOs coaching and giving feedback to each internal candidate to enhance job readiness. This may mean making some bold moves, like setting up job rotation systems so potential successors can be put in the position to gain the necessary experiences to be considered CFO-ready. They should also be assigned to high-profile projects, where practicable, to build leadership skills. Mentorship is also important, particularly in relation to certain topics or responsibilities that can be more difficult to gain meaningful experience in before taking on the CFO role – such as investor relations or debt refinancing. It is also a good idea to expose potential candidates to running other parts of the business, with finance leaders increasingly being asked to act as enterprise leaders in different roles across many organisations. Beyond the broad leadership and technical skills required to do the job, CFOs should also show the ropes to successor candidates. That is, acquainting them with the detail needed to perform the CFO role while also exposing them to new experiences like interacting with the rest of the C-suite and the board. Once a new CFO has been chosen, the old CFO should use the last 100 days or so to wrap up and leave a clean slate. This may mean making some tough choices on people and budgets, but it's important not to hand a successor a bad set of books, least of all for the legacy of the departing CFO. Additionally, CFOs should not enter any earth-shaking M&A deals whose consequences they don't have to live with. Part of this is preparing for the transition openly and honestly, communicating clearly to staff who will be next in charge in finance, and making clear to the successful candidate that they have the licence to make the role their own. After a six-to-nine-month safety net period, former CFOs should step back, only offering solicited advice from afar. One succession planning technique often contemplated — the creation of a deputy CFO role — can pose an interesting dilemma. In some instances, this is actively used as a tool for broadening the exposure of the leading internal candidate to the full breadth of enterprise challenges and stakeholders they are likely to face in the future. In other instances, some choose to avoid creating the role as it is viewed as too public a declaration of the heir apparent that could cause challenges, rifts or confusion. For an outgoing CFO, forward planning requires a genuine concern about the colleagues — and company — being left behind and this is what should ultimately sit at the core of any succession plan. Confidently identifying a successor can be challenging when the nature of the job continues to shift but getting it right can create a legacy that will continue long after a CFO has stepped away. Stephen Gustafson and Stephen Tarling are CFO Program Leaders at Deloitte Australia. - Disclaimer This publication contains general information only and Deloitte is not, by means of this publication, rendering accounting, business, financial, investment, legal, tax, or other professional advice or services. This publication is not a substitute for such professional advice or services, nor should it be used as a basis for any decision or action that may affect your business. Before making any decision or taking any action that may affect your business, you should consult a qualified professional advisor. Deloitte shall not be responsible for any loss sustained by any person who relies on this publication. About Deloitte Deloitte refers to one or more of Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu Limited, a UK private company limited by guarantee ('DTTL'), its network of member firms, and their related entities. DTTL and each of its member firms are legally separate and independent entities. DTTL (also referred to as 'Deloitte Global') does not provide services to clients. In the United States, Deloitte refers to one or more of the US member firms of DTTL, their related entities that operate using the 'Deloitte' name in the United States and their respective affiliates. Certain services may not be available to attest clients under the rules and regulations of public accounting. Please see to learn more about our global network of member firms. Copyright © 2025 Deloitte Development LLC. All rights reserved. -
Forbes
29-04-2025
- Business
- Forbes
Unwritten Report Speaks Volumes About CFO Uncertainty
Study after study, headline after headline, and now earnings report after earnings report are showing the same thing: Business leaders are having a difficult time planning and managing in the current situation of economic volatility. But Deloitte's annual Q1 CFO Signals report likely captures the CFO's situation more clearly than anything else right now: The firm opted not to issue the report given the major changes in the macroeconomic picture in such a short amount of time. An email Deloitte sent me last week said that they fielded the survey in late February. In just two months, 'we believe the results may no longer accurately reflect the current sentiment of CFOs.' Today is President Donald Trump's 100th day in office, and the administration's new policies have forced business leaders to reassess their long and short-term plans, supply chains, budgets, customer base, and go-to-market strategies. And then, sometimes just days later, changes or reversals come from the executive branch, forcing businesses to start from zero and start figuring out their plans again. The outlook and ideas from late February can seem like they're from a past year, not just a past month. It's not known if and when the frenetic pace of change will slow down, and what it will mean for business. Trump received some support as he campaigned on tax cuts and fewer regulations. The tax cuts he instituted in his first term are on their way to an extension, and regulatory changes have been relatively slow to come. But without some clarity and stability on the economy and global trade, it may be hard for any business to plan much further than the immediate future, which could make for a very long 1,361 days left in Trump's presidency. One company that is optimistic about its future is fast-casual restaurant chain Cava. The Mediterranean food eatery has been on a growth path not only through its food choices, but by making customers and employees feel welcomed. I talked to CFO Tricia Tolivar about Cava's view of the future. An excerpt from our conversation is later in this newsletter. Brand new Subaru cars sit in a storage lot at Auto Warehouse Co. in Richmond, California last month. Last week was very good on Wall Street, especially compared to earlier this month. The Nasdaq rose 8.29%, while the S&P 500 saw gains of 5.59% and the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 3.1%. Markets mostly held steady on Monday. What caused the markets to rise last week seemed to be the absence of chaos and optimism that new tariff deals would be announced soon. Last Tuesday, Trump said that he had 'no intention of firing' Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell, following several days of insulting and threatening him with termination on social media. On Wednesday, he said the current 145% tariffs on Chinese goods would 'come down substantially.' Even though Trump sounded like he was softening his tariff stance, there wasn't much progress in the last week. On Thursday, Chinese officials said there had been no motion in trade negotiations with the U.S., and reiterated that they want Trump to drop all unilateral tariffs. Chinese Ministry of Commerce spokesperson He Yadong said China is open to talks, but any such dialogue must be 'conducted on an equal footing and based on mutual respect,' and the U.S. must correct its 'wrong practices' before engaging with Beijing. Tuesday morning, the Trump Administration confirmed a Wall Street Journal report that the 25% tariffs on foreign-made auto parts will be indirectly lowered gave automobile stocks a brief bump trading on Tuesday. Prices fell again as General Motors reported earnings and pulled its full-year guidance on tariff uncertainty. More economic indicators may be on their way down. Wednesday morning, the Bureau of Economic Analysis will issue its estimate of GDP in Q1, and forecasts from economists are expecting quarter-over-quarter growth of 0.4%—a huge decrease from last quarter's 2.4% growth rate. The U.S. hasn't had negative quarterly GDP growth since Q1 2022, as post-pandemic inflation and supply chain woes battered the economy. If GDP growth is slow enough, it may signify that the U.S. is on the road to an economic recession. ANDREW THOMAS/Middle East Images/AFP via Getty Images Over the weekend, Trump posted on Truth Social that his new tariffs could end income taxes for 'many people.' Economists are skeptical of the claim, to say the least. Trump said that the increase in revenue collected from tariffs, coupled with the 'massive number of jobs' that will be created will make tariffs 'a BONANZA FOR AMERICA!!!' Studies on the probable impact of tariffs say it is not possible to generate enough money through tariffs to offset income taxes—especially because the goal is to reduce imports into the U.S., which would mean less money paid into the U.S. Treasury. Many economists say that the cost of tariffs is ultimately borne by the consumer, meaning that any savings that may come to income taxes would be paid back to the federal government in another way. Tariffs are already impacting container shipping from China, which currently has a 145% tariff rate, writes Forbes senior contributor Pamela Danziger. U.S.-bound containers are down 40%, and given the long shipping route to the U.S. and the goods that usually come this time of year, analysts are expecting emptier shelves to greet consumers in the second half of 2025, just in time for back-to-school shopping. Trump has eliminated some taxes, however. The Treasury Department and IRS announced they were scrapping new rules to audit business partnerships—an area that the Biden-era IRS said was rife with 'sophisticated maneuvers' to rack up undeserved tax benefits, writes Forbes contributor Joshua D. Smeltzer. Trump also quieted talk among Republicans of a potential new tax on millionaires, saying it would 'be very disruptive because the millionaires would leave the country.' getty Potentially good news on the economic front: Small businesses are still borrowing, and doing it responsibly. Live Oak Bancshares, a North Carolina-based bank that had the second most SBA loan originations last year, reported that so far in FY 2025, it originated $1.5 billion in loans, writes Forbes' Brandon Kochkodin. In comparison, FY 2024 saw $2 billion in loan origination all year. 'We have not yet seen a decline in potential borrowers' appetite,' said CFO Walt Phifer during the bank's earnings call last week. So far, delinquencies are low, and credit standards are tightening, the lender said. Cava CFO Tricia Tolivar. Mediterranean fast-casual restaurant chain Cava has seen a string of success, growing its profit by more than 35% last year with 388 locations nationwide. Tricia Tolivar has been the chain's CFO since 2020, and talked to me about her employee- and customer-centered approach to the company's finances. This conversation has been edited for length, clarity and continuity. A longer version is available here. What does the business space look like now for fast-casual restaurants? Tolivar: At Cava, we've been very fortunate to be able to deliver some of the strongest traffic growth of anyone in the public environment. We believe that's because of our strong value proposition with our guests, where quality, relevance, convenience and experience are incredibly important. The quality of food that we offer, the relevance of the Mediterranean diet, as well as the convenience. [Customers are] able to experience us in our restaurants, as 65% of our guests do, or enjoy our digital platforms where you're able to either have it delivered or pick up. Last is the experience. We believe that right now, more than ever, it's incredibly important to reinforce the human connection and our Mediterranean hospitality. The experience in our restaurant is that we welcome everyone to our table and want to encourage those who come to share a meal with us and to enjoy this incredible cuisine. In this environment, it's important to leverage those aspects of the business so that we can continue to deliver on those strong traffic results that we've seen. There is so much uncertainty today about the economy in general, about supply chains and consumer confidence. How are you seeing that at Cava? How does the fast-casual restaurant industry as a whole see it? One of the other competencies that we admire in our organization is our ability to act with agility. Certainly in this environment, there have been a lot of changes, a lot of things to navigate, but our team is well positioned to adjust and adapt to those changes, while staying focused on our strategic objectives and what we want to deliver for the business overall. For example, making sure that we're being thoughtful around pricing and the consumer. We believe it's important to make appropriate investments in team members and guests, so over the years we've been more modest in price increases on our menu. This year, we raised prices 1.7%. If you look at pricing from the end of 2019 to the end of '23, our pricing only went up 15%, where CPI went up 23%. That's an eight-point difference, and many in fast food went up over 30%. Making sure that we're not reacting to swings and some fluctuations in the short or medium term, and that we're being thoughtful in those changes. I heard you had talked to some team members about how they don't like to chop onions and you made changes with your supplier to make sure they came pre-chopped. What kinds of things like that should a CFO be doing to work with employees and customers to create a better fit? We believe that it's incredibly important to continue to work with our team members and our guests. Every quarter we do what's called a shoulder-to-shoulder in our restaurants so we can learn more about how to be better partners for the business overall. Last month, I worked in one of our restaurants. We are testing an expanded catering program this year, so I was capturing insights from the general manager on how we might be able to make enhancements from a technology perspective to make their jobs easier. The more we can take complexity out of our general managers' and team members' daily lives—like slicing pickled onions—and make it easier, the more they can focus on an even better guest experience. I think it's critically important to spend time in the environment in which you're working, and bring that back to become a better finance leader and business partner overall. I think it's critically important to spend time in the environment in which you're working, and bring that back to become a better finance leader and business partner overall. What is one experience from Cava that is helpful to pass along to other CFOs? The one experience I've learned is the importance of listening, and how listening thoughtfully to partners in the business, the guests in the organization and team members can drive outsized performance as you go forward. Toymaker Hasbro posted strong earnings last week, beating analysts' expectations and reassuring investors that tariff impacts on the company would be minimal. 17%: Q1 revenue growth across the company, driven by 46% growth in the Wizards and Digital Gaming segment $1.07: Adjusted EPS, which was more than 50% higher than analysts projected 'Driven by a strategic shift toward higher-margin businesses': The strategy CFO Gina Goetter said led to the company's strong revenue growth and profit increase Corporate leadership isn't easy by any means, but many of the larger challenges you face are shared across companies, industries and executives. Here are five of the top issues that leaders today deal with—from navigating uncertainty to AI—and tips for responding to them. With so much uncertainty in today's business world, it's extremely difficult to make decisions—but you still have to. Here are five steps to assess the right decision for your business. Which company's stock has had the best performance during Trump's first 100 days in this term? A. Netflix B. Palantir C. VeriSign D. Dollar General See if you got the right answer here.
Yahoo
26-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Deloitte shelves Q1 CFO survey amid scrambled economic outlook
This story was originally published on CFO Dive. To receive daily news and insights, subscribe to our free daily CFO Dive newsletter. Deloitte is not releasing its Q1 CFO Signals report — a quarterly survey of finance chiefs published by the Big Four firm since 2010 — due to changes in the economic climate since the survey was conducted last quarter, according to a spokesperson. 'Considering the significant changes in the economic environment since the survey was fielded (late February), we believe the results may no longer accurately reflect the current sentiment of CFOs. Consequently, the traditional report will not be released at this time,' the spokesperson wrote in an email sent to CFO Dive Wednesday. Deloitte did not respond to requests for further comment. Deloitte's last published Signals report from Q4 showed a sharp jump in executive optimism, with 72% of the 200 finance chiefs surveyed projecting an improved economy in a year, compared to 19% in the previous quarter. A Jan. 15 Deloitte post on the findings noted that the executives' rosier views may have been fueled by the anticipation of more Federal Reserve rate cuts, optimism around the settled U.S. election and the Republican majority in Congress favoring the extension of the expiring provisions of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act that many businesses want. Deloitte's decision to shelve its findings comes amid a growing surge of reports showing that the Trump administration's policy of sweeping global tariffs has upended economic outlooks. Last week, Moody's became one of the latest organizations to downgrade its economic forecast, as Chief Economist Mark Zandi said the administration had pushed the U.S. economy to the 'precipice' of recession and pegged the odds of a downturn at 60%, CFO Dive previously reported. During the current earnings season, many CFOs have cautiously stressed the uncertainty swirling around their forecasts even as many sought to lay out a plan for adjusting to President Donald Trump's fast-changing tariff announcements. Prologis CFO Tim Arndt said during the industrial real estate giant's earnings call last week that tariff actions 'clearly went beyond our early predictions, making the environment less certain.' He also said that even with the pause in some tariffs or resolution of others, 'customers simply lack a steady backdrop upon which to plan their businesses,' CFO Dive previously reported. Meanwhile, many CEOs of major U.S. companies — including American Airlines, PepsiCo, Procter & Gamble — have warned that the 'shape-shifting tariff threats'are making it nearly impossible to plan and are 'spooking customers,' The Wall Street Journal reported Thursday. While Lockheed Martin's newly minted CFO Evan Scott agreed on a Tuesday earnings call that the defense industry was more insulated from the tariffs, the company only reaffirmed its 2025 financial outlook with the caveat that it does not include impacts from the tariffs. At the end of the call, CEO Jim Taiclet was careful to acknowledge the shifting broader climate. He also sought to strike a positive tone, choosing the word 'dynamic' to describe the business environment. 'So look, in closing, based on our substantial backlog and this best value strategy we've been talking about today, this company's really well positioned in a very dynamic environment,' Taiclet said before signing off. 'We can all admit that we're in a dynamic environment, but we're continuing to innovate and deliver these advanced and reliable technologies and executing against that long-term strategy while we do the hardware and upgrade it.'
