I was in an airport recently and couldn’t help overhearing a conversation. The people speaking had no clue who I was, but it was easy to figure out that they worked in Finance for a known publicly listed company. The information they were sharing with each other was certainly sensitive, and maybe even damaging to the company.
All I could think of is: What would their CFO do if he knew his employees were sharing information that could damage the company?
Chief Financial Officers have many responsibilities. In addition to all the Finance functions, they have to have a strong working knowledge of the issues surrounding operations, human resources, and IT.
CFOs are also responsible for ensuring that the sensitive information Finance deals with on an ongoing basis is secure. This information security is not only an IT issue, but a human issue as well.
CFOs:
- Do you have Information Security policies for your Finance Team?
- What do you do to ensure your Finance Team complies with these policies?
The sensitivity of information is a crucial pillar for the smooth operation of any company.As this is also a human issue the first but very important measure is that a CFO must spend enough in order to choose very carefully the right person for the right job.