What to look for in a new CFO?

professional profile

September 25, 2023

by a professional from University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire - College of Business in Minneapolis, MN, USA

After completing the purchase of a business we have to take stock in the leadership team on hand. In some cases, finance has been the last position addressed and has not grown with the business. So a change/upgrade needs to be made. When shifting attention to hire a new (possibly first) CFO, what traits, history, education, experience would you look for?

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Reply by a professional
from Seton Hall University in Morristown, NJ 07960, USA
Hi ^redacted‌ - great to meet you. Happy to help if I can - probably first by throwing a dart, LOL. My suggestion to anyone asking that question is to make sure you think through your needs. Do you really need that expensive C-level resource first, or are you trying to build out a department that needs a good Controller to keep the train on its tracks? Size of the company matters, but the tasks required are more important in the decision.

If CFO is what you need, CFO is a great title, but anyone can use it. So I'd focus more on experience matching what you are looking for and less on education. I've seen some really good CFO's out of schools you wouldn't think about. And I look at it from this perspective: CFO shouldn't only have skills to look backwards (Controller) or forwards (financial analyst). CFO has to use the info from backwards in order to look forward.

Getting too long for an email/message. Hopefully that's a start for you. Otherwise feel free to reach back. Or the Contact Us page on my website at www.veltregroup.com has links to my Calendly. Happy to chat anytime. RV
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Reply by a professional
from Northwestern University in Breckenridge, CO 80424, USA
Hi ^redacted‌, are you able to share more on the company (size / stage) or is this more of a theoretical question? The CFO of a $10mm business has different experiences than the CFO of a $500mm business. Also, do you plan to do any M&A or only organic growth? Thanks!
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