Catherine Marks is a coach, mentor and facilitator. She works in finance L&D having spent 20 years working in finance and M&A. She qualified as a Chartered Accountant at Deloitte, spent a number of years in financial services executing transactions at RBS, led the FP&A team at O2 during its merger with Virgin Media and was VP of Finance at Depop.
The finance world is rapidly evolving, and the role of finance leaders is changing too. This shift requires a broad skill set, strategic thinking, and an ability to navigate complex organisational landscapes.
Based on my experiences as a finance leader and coach, here's how ambitious finance leaders can redefine their roles and optimise their career trajectories.
Breaking the mould
1. Beyond the accountant stereotype
First things first, let’s shake off that old accountant stereotype. The most successful finance leaders are often the ones who break away from traditional roles. They’re not just number crunchers; they embrace broader roles within their organisations.
2. Developing a broad skill set
A diverse skill set is a game-changer. Don’t limit yourself to just finance tools and techniques. Learn from other disciplines. This broader knowledge base will help you offer more comprehensive solutions and stand out from your peers.
3. Embracing strategic vision
Having a strategic vision is crucial. You need to see the big picture, think commercially, and connect finance with your organisation's overall strategy. Not only does this make you more valuable, but it also helps your team align their efforts with the company’s goals.
4. Becoming the Chief Value Officer
Finance pros can step up to become Chief Value Officers by expanding their focus beyond traditional financial metrics to a more well-rounded view of value creation. This involves looking at economic, environmental, and social factors in their planning and reporting. This helps align the organisation's goals with long-term sustainability and stakeholder expectations.
5. Mastering stakeholder management
One of the trickiest parts of the job is managing demanding stakeholders. You have to be the guardian of the finances while also acting as a trusted advisor. Balancing these roles requires excellent communication and negotiation skills.
6. Relentless prioritisation and the 80/20 mindset
What goes hand in hand with stakeholder management is relentlessly prioritising (and continuously re-prioritising). Remember to apply the 80/20 mindset to focus on the most important tasks that will drive the biggest results. The role of finance is continuously expanding, so it's crucial to always prioritise what is most important to move us forward, considering limited time and other resources.
Stephen Covey’s 7 Habits of Highly Effective People offers great tips on effective prioritisation, especially Habit 3, the Time Matrix.
Forging unconventional paths
1. Embracing non-traditional career paths
Many top CFOs didn’t follow the traditional accounting path—it’s certainly not a requirement. I’m a big advocate for gaining experience outside of finance, like in business or strategy roles. These experiences provide a broader perspective and sharpen your strategic thinking.
2. Seizing project opportunities
Jump on projects like M&A deals if they ever come up. Working on these kinds of projects forces us to think about things with a very strategic lens and offers fantastic exposure. These opportunities don’t present themselves every day, but there may be other project opportunities to get involved with if you can.
3. Engaging in skills-based volunteering
Skills-based volunteering is another great way to broaden your skill set. Plus, you get to make a positive social or environmental impact.
There are so many non-profit organisations out there that would love to benefit from your financial skills. They also offer chances to broaden your professional CV by getting involved in other areas. Charterpath is on a mission to get finance professionals more engaged—check out their website for advice and inspiration!
Proactive risk management
1. Regular self-assessment
Regular self-assessment against an industry competency framework (like those for free from GrowCFO) can help you identify and address skill gaps. It’s a proactive way to ensure continuous growth.
2. Seeking proactive feedback
Seek 360-degree feedback from your managers, peers, and direct reports. This comprehensive feedback helps you understand your strengths and areas for improvement. Conducting regular debriefs with your team, where you discuss both failures and successes (and the lessons learned!), can foster a culture of continuous improvement.
3. Investing in mentorship and recruitment
Spend time with mentors and good recruiters. They can provide valuable insights into potential career gaps and growth opportunities.
Enhancing career prospects
1. Relationships, relationships, relationships!
Make sure you're building strong relationships and visibility with your senior leadership team. Look for diverse experiences beyond your usual role to broaden your skills and perspective. It's a great way to establish yourself as a trusted advisor.
2. Expanding your network
Maintain and expand your professional network. Join finance communities, participate in events, and stay in touch with former colleagues and mentors. A strong network can provide support, advice, and new opportunities.
I highly recommend getting involved with a community like GrowCFO. Being a finance leader can sometimes feel very lonely and we can make the mistake of thinking we have to figure it all out alone. Engaging with peers in other organisations facing similar challenges offers different perspectives and insights.
3. Engaging with recruiters
Connect with recruiters who understand your profile. They can help you find opportunities that align with your skills and career goals.
Emphasising continuous learning and upskilling
1. Preparing for automation
Continuous learning and upskilling are becoming more vital than ever, especially with the ongoing automation trends in finance. This transition allows us to focus on more value-added activities we've been striving towards. While it's an exciting opportunity, there are significant gaps that need attention. Looking ahead, our teams will need to adapt in terms of structure and skill sets, posing challenges in upskilling, navigating change, and ensuring future success.
2. Investing in learning and development
We often overlook the importance of investing time in learning and development within finance. It's a bit of a catch-22 situation — we're constantly busy, but this is precisely how we can begin to address that challenge.
Many finance professionals dedicate 5,000 to 10,000 hours to earning professional qualifications early in their careers. However, these traditional qualifications often don't equip us with the skills needed to excel as modern finance leaders. Much of our learning then happens on the job, which can be valuable, but it often doesn't push us to explore different approaches or prepare us adequately for becoming effective people managers.
3. Leveraging coaching and mentoring
Coaching and mentoring can accelerate personal growth. Working with a skilled coach can provide more significant insights and progress than trying to solve challenges alone.
Balancing achievements: Short-term wins and long-term goals
I think sometimes we can get too focused on the short term, probably because our roles emphasise quarterly results. Successful finance leaders are often driven and quick to move on to the next achievement. However, finding a better balance can really pay off in the long run, both in our current roles and in our career progression. It's important to have a clear personal vision and values, and to know what you want to achieve in each role or project. Make sure your direction aligns with these goals. Finding intrinsic meaning and purpose can help us see beyond just hitting targets or dealing with setbacks.
And remember to prioritise personal resilience. Finance can be tough at times, and our careers should be viewed as marathons, not sprints!
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