Australian CFOs are more involved in technology decisions than ever before.
In 2024, up to 70% of technology decisions (including IT investment decisions) involved CFOs.
But why?
Well, when you consider factors like rising inflation, higher interest rates, and slower business growth, it’s little surprise that it’s in the best interest of the CFO to understand technology’s role in driving strategic value.
Today, the role demands more than technical accounting expertise. It calls upon a skill set that aligns with the evolving expectations of modern business leadership.
For aspiring CFOs, sharpening your technical skill set isn’t optional – it’s essential.
Knowing how to leverage financial acumen, strategic vision, and leadership prowess is critical.
Enter Robert Half’s Aspiring CFOs Series.
This dynamic series recognises that today’s CFO requires more than just mathematical proficiency. A CFO must be a leader, a strategic partner, an agent of change, a driver of sustainable growth and an impactful innovator.
Your success hinges on your ability to master key technical skills – ask the session’s CFO panellists, Jodie Meadows (Schlam Payload), Alyson Tong (Arup) and Yudhajeet Banerjee (ANZ, Cover-More Group).
An accomplished CFO, executive, and director, Jodie has over 20 years of local and international experience spanning the IT, professional services, telecommunications, gaming, hospitality, property, and manufacturing sectors. She is known for driving innovative projects that leverage digitisation, automation, and AI. The driving force behind some robust, streamlined operational systems, Jodie has generated significant cost efficiencies and margin improvements for her organisations.
A CFO with over 30 years of global experience spanning professional services, construction, and manufacturing, Alyson boasts a comprehensive understanding of strategy, governance, operations, and financial management. With a keen interest in technology, Alyson has successfully led global transformation programs for systems implementation, automated reporting for executives and boards, and executed complex organisation redesign.
With more than 16 years of diverse financial leadership across travel, general insurance, and the broader financial services sector, Yudhajeet has forged a strong reputation as an agile executive leader in Australia and New Zealand. Yudhajeet believes innovation must lie at the heart of every business – together with solid strategy, technical proficiency, and operational understanding, he’s delivered profitable growth in notoriously challenging and complex markets.
Together with Will Cannaby (Regional Director, Robert Half), these esteemed panellists explore the six essential technical skills for advancing your finance career and securing your first CFO role.
Like many other senior finance professionals, you’ve probably found yourself asking, “What are technical skills in finance that are simply non-negotiable?”
This crucial conversation offers key insights into crafting a well-rounded CFO profile to
to elevate your executive function in this digital age.
Read on to discover the expert opinions around which skills matter most in today’s job market, and the best ways to acquire them.
What are the technical skills in finance that will give you an edge?
When it comes to the competitive executive market, Will Cannaby knows what it takes for aspiring CFOs to rise to the top.
With over 15 years of experience as a specialist recruiter, he’s well-versed in CFO appointments. In the last five years alone, he has helped to advance the careers of over 2,500 candidates and supported more than 500 clients in securing top-tier talent.
Kicking off the latest session of the Aspiring CFO Series, Will says, “Finance is a technical role, and there is no getting around the fact that a CFO needs excellent technical skills. They are simply essential.”
“Competition for Chief Financial Officer roles is intense. Competing candidates tick many boxes – all are intelligent, conscientious, and highly motivated. But, it can be your technical skills that can help you stand out as a candidate.”
Will believes six factors are in demand for any aspiring CFO – everything from strategic advisory to AI.
“It can all sound like a tall order. But it can be done,” says Will.
“Take these three experienced CFOs here today. They each bring a different degree of experience and expertise, but they’ve all developed the crucial technical skills that should be on every aspiring CFO’s resume.”
Let’s explore each one in greater detail.
1. Strategic Advisory
We know what you’re thinking – “What are the technical skills in finance that I need to become a CFO?”.
Strategic advisory sits at the top of Yudhajeet’s list.
Having acquired his strategic advisory skills in Financial Planning and Analysis (FP&A), he believes that the most critical step for any aspiring CFO is understanding your business from A to Z.
“Don’t look for shortcuts. Take the time to look at everything - identify the revenue drivers, the expense base, and the various KPI ratios that matter to all stakeholders.”
Strategic advisory skills allow CFOs to elevate the finance function beyond reporting to actively shape business outcomes. It’s the provision of future insights, scenario modelling, and data-driven recommendations that help these executives to influence key decisions.
Yudhajeet says, “When we talk about financial results within a business, it can be dry, often running along the lines of ‘Here’s the P&L’; ‘This is the cash flow statement’; or ‘These are the headwinds and tailwinds’”.
“These observations are not solving the business problem. You are just handing out data that can be gained from the system.”
“For a CFO, your real value lies in pinning data points. Not only are you reporting, but you are also giving management the levers around what can be done to progress from A to B,” he says.
When it comes to building a good mix of strategic advisory skills across his own team members, Yudhajeet looks for:
A proactive approach.
An ability to learn on the job (i.e., thinking about issues such as how regulatory requirements apply to the business).
Innovative thinking.
“In my field of insurance, I aim to get my team thinking about how claims data and distribution expenses are captured in the P&L. It’s all about breaking the business down into its core building blocks to understand the key drivers and the risk factors behind them,” says Yudhajeet.
As a decorated executive leader, Yudhajeet stresses that a successful finance team is not measured by the number of MBAs or CPAs.
“I firmly believe that the success of finance is having a seat at the table. The finance function is not a back-office function or a shared service function.”
He says, “You're not just running numbers because you are required to provide results and updates. You are driving business outcomes in a risk-controlled way because you don't want to take risks that are detrimental to the business, and you need to figure out the probability of those eventualities.”
2. Mergers and Acquisitions (M&A)
As companies pursue growth through M&A prospects, CFOs play a critical role in assessing the opportunities, understanding valuations, conducting due diligence, and structuring deals for growth.
In today’s market, it can’t be understated that M&A is a technical skill set that is increasingly sought after among CFOs.
Rest assured, there is a way to gain relevant M&A experience other than through investment banking.
As Yudhajeet explained, FP&A can provide a stepping stone towards M&A within a business.
He says, “Most organisations have their own M&A team, but I’ve seen many instances where FP&A is leveraged when it comes to M&A or divestments.”
“When M&A happens within my own organisation, I’ll bring in the FP&A team to review all the financial modelling that they receive from the seller and conduct due diligence activities, including reviews of impairment of assets.”
“In my experience, FP&A provides the tools to look into the future for the business – it could be 3, 10 and even 20 years down the track, depending on your scope. It's pure strategic finance, and it provides the tools to identify the opportunities and the risks to your business,” says Yudhajeet.
The Aspiring CFO Series audience was keen to understand whether the expectations of CFOs have changed with M&A and integrated acquisitions.
According to Will Cannaby, the answer is ‘Yes’.
“It is reasonable to expect that companies will begin to question the value of paying hundreds of thousands of dollars to outside consultants to analyse M&A, when they can pay someone internally, or have their own CFO evaluate M&A activities,” says Will.
“This has been amplified in the wake of well-publicised scandals involving large accounting firms. It could drive the need for CFOs to expand the capacity and technical skills of their teams.”
From a recruiting point of view, Will believes M&A experience will put CFO candidates in good standing with hiring businesses.
He says, “As recruiters, we want to know what activities you are engaged in that a hiring business may need at the moment. When it comes to CFO candidates, I’m always asking what experience they’ve gained in the last five years in FP&A or due diligence in M&A. It’s become an increasingly important skillset.”
“As a CFO candidate with M&A experience, you may want to showcase your involvement in integrating a newly acquired business into your own – from the reporting elements through to moving people across from one organisation to another.”
3. Governance
Reflecting on her CFO journey, Alyson highlighted the importance of building governance skills.
Crucial in ensuring accountability, transparency, and long-term sustainability, Alyson says governance skills are not something aspiring CFOs can afford to neglect.
“Governance is becoming a highly valued skill, even among unlisted companies, for the element of risk management it incorporates,” says Alyson.
“I learnt pretty quickly that the higher up you go, the more you need to understand governance and how risk is managed.”
Alyson’s advice to aspiring CFOs was centred around further education in the governance space.
She says, “Before becoming CFO of Arup, the company was facing one of its largest legal claims, and I truly believed it had the potential to inflict significant financial damage. I felt compelled to learn more to help guard against this claim, and I could also see the benefits of growing my understanding of governance as I stepped up to the executive level.”
“This case was a turning point for the company, and I approached company directors, seeking approval to complete an AICD course in governance so that the experience didn’t have to be repeated.”
Alyson says this course was a ‘game-changer’, helping her to master the art of being a true strategic partner.
“I’d strongly recommend the course to aspiring CFOs – it involved five full days with exams and assessments. The strong finance component taught me about strategy, risk, the role of a board and what boards are looking for. Once I completed the course, I was able to share my new skills with other finance teams around the globe.”
Whether you’re working nationally or internationally, the ability to oversee compliance, manage risk, and uphold ethical standards will always be highly regarded.
4. Digital transformation
As every panellist pointed out, finance is no longer just about reporting.
In the era of AI, cloud platforms, and advanced analytics, it’s about driving efficiency, insight, and agility through technology.
For aspiring CFOs, this makes digital transformation skills essential.
Ultimately, professionals who understand the technical side of systems implementations are the ones who have the power to streamline processes, unlock real-time decision-making, and deliver more strategic value.
As the session explored, many CFOs run the entire systems implementation or upgrade across a region - if things go wrong, the project can experience significant blow-outs in time and money.
A CFO with digital transformation expertise is better positioned to take on the responsibility of ERP implementations. They are trusted to ensure they run well, with the right people involved.
Alyson acknowledged that ‘digital’ is not everyone's passion, but regardless, she believes a CFO needs to be digitally savvy.
She says, “Inevitably, as a CFO, you will come across systems implementation of some sort. If you don't arm yourself with some knowledge, you may not get it right, and the project may not be successful.”
“Over the years, I’ve invested the time to learn how to automate processes, optimise business processes and streamline finance technologies. While I’ve undertaken studies in digital, I’ve also made an effort to surround myself with digital experts who I can learn from, and who can help as the business embraces more tech.”
The stakes are high when it comes to digital transformation – leaders with these skills have the capacity to lead change, manage investment in technology, and ensure that innovation translates into measurable business outcomes.
So, should you apply for a role if you don't have all the technical skills?
Jodie's advice: don’t be scared about applying for a role that you don't necessarily have all the skills for.
She says, "If you look at a job description and there are 20 key attributes the hiring company is looking for – and you've only got 10, still apply.”
5. AI
Staying in the digital arena, the panellists agreed that AI skills were becoming increasingly important for aspiring CFOs.
Describing AI skills as a ‘highly marketable skill set’, Will believes they are pivotal for staying ahead in a data-driven finance landscape.
He says, “CFOs are hired for their ability to make solid recommendations, not just to report the facts. So, the most valuable technical skills are those involving reporting, forecasting, and strategic advisory - AI is transforming how CFOs do this.”
“Knowing how to automate routine tasks and extract real-time insights will boost your performance, enhance operational efficiency, and unlock new growth opportunities.”
Unsure how to get started?
Will says one of the fastest ways to collect AI skills (or any other technical skill) is to volunteer for projects and ‘shadow’ more senior colleagues.
“Observing and understanding a process is the next best thing to gaining experience. Then, when another project arises, you can put your hand up and collect another skill that will take you one step closer to your first CFO role.”
“From a recruitment perspective, AI fluency is a compelling capability, especially for organisations looking to position their organisations for smarter, faster, and more informed decision-making,” says Will.
6. Sustainabilty
View the 2024 Technical Skills Discussion
Alyson says, “Sustainability, and environmental, social, and governance (ESG) more broadly, are important areas for CFOs to be across, particularly as sustainability will become an area of mandatory reporting.”
“Aspiring CFO’s often ask me, ‘What are the technical skills in finance that I should focus on building?’ I really stress the importance of sustainability skills because, as I’ve found, financial leadership is moving beyond profit to encompass long-term value creation.”
Whether you’re talking office waste, procurement or energy bills, Alyson says there is always a link back to finance.
“Sustainability is a hot topic at the board table. Even though you might have a team that do ESG reporting, as a CFO, you must know what that's about and how it relates to the business and sector you're in.”
CFOs who understand how to measure, manage, and communicate ESG impact can position their organisations for sustainable growth and competitive advantage.
Reflecting this, Alyson invested in her technical knowledge and gained a deeper understanding of sustainability issues by completing a one-year global online program.
“I’d really encourage aspiring CFOs to expand their knowledge on this topic – especially if you intend on optimising business resilience, investor confidence, and regulatory compliance.”
As Will said at the start of the session, “There are many types of valuable technical skills that can be collected over the course of your career.” As our esteemed panellists identified, there are six in particular that can position you as a true strategic partner in your quest for the CFO role.
So, if you’re ready to elevate your chances of executive success, take the time to master a well-rounded skill set combining strategic advisory, M&A, governance, digital transformation, AI, and sustainability.
This is a brief excerpt from our 90-minute webinar with two leading CFOs. Contact your local Robert Half office if you’d like to work with us or attend our events. Stay tuned for our next session of the Aspiring CFO Series, where we deliver more essential advice for financial visionaries.
