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You are here: Home / 2012 / Archives for December 2012

Archives for December 2012

December 20, 2012 By Samuel Dergel 2 Comments

Top 12 Samuel’s CFO Blogs of 2012

20132012 sure has been an interesting year.

And I’m looking forward to 2013! I’m looking forward to:

  • Working with my clients at Stanton Chase and providing them with excellent service and value in retained executive search.
  • Staying close to CFOs in my network, and continuing to add value to their businesses and careers.
  • Continuing my blogging, both here and at CFO Moves. I find it humbling that I have people that are not only interested in what I have to say, but have signed up to ensure they don’t miss any of it.
  • Working on my book for CFOs. Stay tuned!

It is customary as the year turns to a close to look back at the previous year.

Blogging is great, but sometimes people can miss out on some very valuable insights or content. So, to make sure you didn’t miss what other people thought was worth reading, I would like to share 12 of my most popular CFO Blogs in 2012.

12) Negotiating your CFO Employment Contract

11) 5 Steps to Building your Finance Dream Team (and 3 tips on how to get it done)

10) The Value of “Thank You”

9) 5 Reasons why Talent Development is a Challenge for CFOs

8) Road Map to Successful CFO Relationships

7) 5 Most Popular Names for CFOs (2012 Edition)

6) The First 90 Days of a New CFO

5) 1 key difference between your LinkedIn Profile and Resume

4) Dear CEO & Board: You can’t afford to hire the wrong CFO.

3) Investor Relations for the New CFO – 6 Steps for IR Success

2) 4 Reasons you should use an Executive Search Firm when hiring your CFO

And the most popular of Samuel’s CFO Blogs for 2012 is:

1) How a Recruiter sees a Candidate (You may not like the analogy)

If you like these blogs and want to ensure you don’t miss any of them, please click on the SIGN ME UP! button on the right.

Happy Holidays and all the best for an amazing 2013!

Samuel

Filed Under: Blog, Blog, Board, Books, Books, Career Management, Career Management, CEO, CFO Compensation, CFO Consulting, CFO Consulting, CFO Moves, CFO Search, CFO Search, Confidential Search, David Calusdian, Executive Search, Great CFO, Guest Blog, HR, Human Resources, Investor Relations, LinkedIn, Negotiation, New CFO, Social Media, Social Media, Succession Planning, Training and Development, Training and Development

December 18, 2012 By Samuel Dergel 3 Comments

CFOs: Can you afford NOT to have an Excellent Finance Function?

As CFO, you would like your team to provide you and the business with correct and timely information that will allow your organization to make timely and profitable business decisions. You would also like your finance team to be lean and cost as little as possible.

It may seem that being able to deliver on both of these goals is counterintuitive.

However, recent research by APQC (summarized in the The True Measure of Finance Function Excellence: Deliver Value Efficiently) shows that top performing finance teams cost less than mediocre or poorly functioning Finance Teams.

So how does a CFO build an Excellent Finance Function that costs less?

APQC’s report identifies two areas that lead towards this excellence:

1)      Efficiency: The Report states that “given that approximately 60 percent of the cost of finance can be traced to labor cost, the argument can be made that what’s holding some organizations back is the over-allocation of talent to low-value adding tasks.”

2)      Effectiveness: According the APQC, effectiveness comes from “providing strong analytical support to decision-makers.” APQC has identified that Talent Development is a key investment that organizations need to make to provide effective business support. (Read: 5 Reasons why Talent Development is a Challenge for CFOs).

This Summary Report by APQC is an excellent short read for CFOs that want to improve their Finance Team.

According Mary Driscoll, Senior Research Fellow at APQC, “the topic of finance transformation is not new, but it is back on the front burner. Why? It has to do with the economics of competition these days. Strong and profitable growth is harder to come by in many sectors. There’s little room for error when deciding what actions to take or investments to make to grow market share, retain valuable customers, etc. That’s why more CFOs today are asking: ‘how can finance help the enterprise compete more effectively and achieve the desired financial results?’ At the same time, they are asking: ‘how can we efficiently perform the core work that is necessary, such as getting bills paid and doing basic accounting work?’ The answers often involve major process streamlining and automation.” 

CFOs: What are you doing to improve the performance of your Finance Function?

+++++++++++++++++

I would like to thank Mary Driscoll from APQC for bringing this report to my attention. I would also like to thank SAP and Chris Herbert for running the CFO Intellectual Exchange Network (IXN) that allows me to network with Leading Thinkers and Bloggers on the topic of the Chief Financial Officer.

Filed Under: All of Samuel's Blogs, All of Samuel's Blogs, All of Samuel's Blogs, APQC, Build your Finance Team, CFO, CFO, CFO, CFO Coach, CFO Coach, CFO Coach, CFO Coaching, CFO Coaching, CFO Coaching, CFO IXN, CFO Relationships, CFO Relationships, CFO Relationships, Chief Financial Officer, Chief Financial Officer, Chief Financial Officer, Executive Coaching, Executive Coaching, Executive Coaching, Finance Team, Finance Team, Finance Team, Mary Driscoll, SAP, Successful CFO, Successful CFO, Successful CFO, Talent Management, Talent Management, Talent Management, Team Structuring, Team Structuring, Team Structuring

December 11, 2012 By Samuel Dergel 11 Comments

From Blogger to Author

I have been writing Samuel’s CFO Blog for the past year and half. The goal of my blog is to connect with and make a difference to CFOs, those on the path to CFO, as well as those that work with CFOs. I am grateful to have found an audience that appreciates and is interested in what I have to say and share on the topic of the Chief Financial Officer.

My Upcoming Book

Is ‘being CFO’ an art or a science?

I believe that ‘being CFO’ is more social science than pure science. Yes, math is a key part of the delivery of the finance group, but success at the financial leadership level is more about building successful relationships. Numbers that balance are a given. Getting things accomplished in a multi-stakeholder environment is what makes a successful CFO stand out from his or her peers.

I am about to embark on a project that will challenge me in ways I have never been challenged before.

I will be writing a book.

The book, unnamed as of yet, will focus on what it takes to become a successful CFO. The goal is that my upcoming book will benefit the CFO of today and tomorrow. CFOs who read my book will not only be able to become better CFOs for their current employer, it will help them with their career as well.

So, as I embark on this new and exciting project, I would like your input. I am writing this for you.

What would you like me to include in your new book?

Please email me and let me know what you would like to be included in your new CFO book.

Filed Under: Author, Better CFO, CFO Readiness Program, Leadership, Personal Branding, The Strong CFO

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