More Than Being Finance Operations Expert, CFO Must Be a Corporate Strategist

By: Rachita Sharma, Managing Editor | Monday, 29 January 2024

A CFO doesn’t have ‘one’ primary responsibility. Ideally, the role encompasses handling financial dealings for an organization. But in reality the CFO is required to do so much more, depending on their respective organization and the stage of growth they are in.

Dan Wells, CFO, Grow CFO puts it better, “I think we need to recognize that the CFO role can mean a lot of different things in different businesses. It really depends on the type of business, their strategy and the type of skills they want the CFO to lead on.” More so in today’s highly competitive business landscape, the CFOs role is as much about risk management, identifying strategic opportunities and enabling future growth.

Maureen O’Connell, Former CFO of Scholastic has famously said, “Just as organizations continuously evolve with the ever-changing global business climate, the role of a CFO is bound to change. A CFO needs to go beyond being ‘the finance operations expert’ to become a corporate strategist who can enhance the firm’s valuation and brand, and win over stakeholders’ trust and goodwill.”

With the role of the CFO constantly evolving to gain amplified prominence, it is pertinent to acknowledge the exceptional individuals wearing this role with elan. The current edition of Women Entrepreneur India endeavours to do just that.

Join us as we converse with some of the most influential women CFOs. These women have been shouldering key responsibilities in their respective organizations with immense strength and skill.

For an instance, have a look at Smita Nanda, CFO, Kamat Hotels (India). she is a highly accomplished finance professional with a background in ACA (Financial Planning, Taxation Accounting, and Services) from The Institute of Chartered Accountants of India and an ACS (Banking, Corporate, Finance, and Securities Law) from The Institute of Company Secretaries of India. Her three decade long professional journey spans diverse industries, ranging from IT, Real Estate, and Entertainment to Hospitality, where she has gained extensive expertise in financial planning, company secretarial functions, strategic financial management, mergers & acquisitions, structured project funding, QIB, and IPO.

Similar to Smita is Anuradha Jain, Group CFO of Ananda Publishers. She is a versatile financial leader with a robust background in organizations like Paytm and Honda Siel Cars India Limited. Her cross-sectoral experience, resilience, and commitment to innovation mark a dynamic professional journey.

Geeta Karnik, CFO, Servier India is another prolific finance leader who inspires us. She has a diverse career spanning various industries and her expertise encompasses finance, digital transformation, change management, and a passion for ensuring robust digital strategies for organizational relevance.

Read on to know more about these women leaders who have aced finance and are steering their respective organizations to greater  success.

Do let us know your thoughts.