The life of a CFO (2024)

FAQs

What is the lifestyle of a CFO? ›

Navigating the Financial Seas: Risk Management and Strategic Prowess. A significant part of a CFO's day is dedicated to the vigilant pursuit of risk management. They are the custodians of fiscal integrity, diligently identifying, assessing, and mitigating financial perils that may loom on the horizon.

If you're looking for a new chief financial officer, do you have an idea of what kind of CFO you need? The average CFO tenure is between two to five years and is declining. There's lots of turnover. It used to be that people stayed in the same position for their entire life.

Research by Datarails found that over 80% of CFOs have the most manual-intensive workload in the C-suite. It negatively impacts their work/life balance and leads to higher stress levels. Many find themselves navigating complicated systems and out-of-date technology that can lead to higher chances of errors.

Whether you're a morning person or not, early alarms will become the norm. Successful CFOs can work anywhere between 50 and 60 hours per week and any delay in starting the day will only increase the e-mail queue! Before you head to work, you might also need to catch up on the latest business news.

Strained Relationships

CFOs would face challenges in maintaining a work-life balance as the role's demands might require long hours of travel and constant availability. This can strain relationships with family and friends, adding to extra stress and emotional burden.

Many CFOs have professional backgrounds in fields such as accounting, investment banking, or financial analysis. For financial professionals, the CFO is among the most prestigious and highly paid positions available in a firm.

For many Chief Financial Officers (CFOs), the journey to the C-suite was well worth the time and effort invested. It typically takes several years of hard work, dedication, and experience to become a CFO. The average age of a CFO is usually around 45, though some can become CFOs as early as their late 30s or early 40s.

At the age of 26, Watson became the youngest ever CFO of a NYSE-listed company. As a CFO, Watson says, it helps to be impatient. “If something needs to get done, I make sure it gets done, period—no excuses. A lot of people think patience is a good quality, but I would describe myself as a relatively impatient person.

Reasons for Departure: A CFO might leave for a variety of reasons—retirement, better opportunities, disagreements with the board, or personal reasons. The reason for the departure can heavily influence the impact it has on the company's performance.

Inadequate Delegation Skills

Just a few CFOs have demonstrated management and delegating skills, whereas most CFOs like to dominate their team members. This is also the most typical reason for a CFO's dismissal.

What is the best personality type of CFO? ›

The CFO is someone who most people want to have confidence in." Employees, executives, shareholders and the public may start looking to CFOs for answers, so companies will have to work harder to ensure they are retaining this vital talent — that's where better pay comes in, explains Branthover.

In a C-suite executive role, the chief financial officer is the second most important person after the chief executive officer and a business partner with the CEO. One of the primary benefits of becoming a chief financial officer is that they are well compensated and have stock options.

The median total reported compensation for CFOs remained stable at $4.7 million across 2021 and 2022.

Based on the sample, the average tenure for the C-suite executives, in general, is 4.6 years, up from 4.3 years in 2022. However, the average tenure for CFOs is 4.5 years, down from 4.6 years in 2022 and down from 4.9 years in 2018, according to the firm. CEOs in the Fortune 500 have an average tenure of seven years.

The CFO's responsibilities include, but aren't limited to, building a top-notch finance and accounting team, ensuring revenues and expenses stay in balance, overseeing FP&A (financial planning & analysis) functions, making recommendations on mergers and acquisitions, obtaining funding, working with department heads to ...

chief finance officer's work schedule

On average, you work around 50 hours to 60 hours a week. During busy times, such as the end of the quarter or when travelling to attend meetings with investors, you can expect to work even more. CFOs have fairly non-traditional work hours.

Chief financial officers usually work in a private office; a 40-hour week is standard. Depending on the size of the company, travel to satellite offices may be required.