âŚare operating at an enterprise-level, without resorting to heavyweight ERP systems.
CFO Techstack was created to amplify this reality, and State of the Stack 2026 is our inaugural report.
Shaped by community insights from over 13,000 finance leaders, we break down exactly how modern finance leaders are scaling with Xero and Mayday at the core!
Why read State of the Stack?
State of the Stack 2026 is for finance leaders who want to:
Build a world-class finance tech stack
Avoid the knee-jerk move to ERP
Learn from peers whoâve already done it
This isnât a vendor-led wish list, and itâs not a theoretical âfuture of financeâ think piece. Itâs derived from real community recommendations, with finance leaders openly sharing the exact tech stacks they successfully use day-to-day.
What can you find inside?
In State of the Stack, youâll discover:
App Map 2.0, our visual map showing how finance apps connect across the stack, with Xero + Mayday at the core.
Which apps finance teams are actually using. Not whatâs trending, but what consistently shows up in best-in-class stacks,
What these tech stacks actually cost: clear, transparent breakdowns of real-life software spend and benefits gained
What these apps can unlock for finance teams
Whether youâre refining what you already have, or starting fresh in 2026, this report is designed to meet you where you are.
Built with the ecosystem
Weâre incredibly proud to collaborate with Xero as Headline Sponsor.
The report reflects the shared belief that finance teams donât need monolithic systems to operate at scale. They need strong foundations and the right tools around them.
As Angad Soin, Managing Director, Australia & New Zealand & Global Chief Strategy Officer at Xero, puts it in his foreword:
âTodayâs forward-thinking finance leaders are choosing a smarter, more flexible foundation in Xero. By building a best-in-class tech stack around Xeroâs centralised core, businesses gain all the essential functionality they need to thrive and grow.â
That sentiment is echoed throughout the report; not just in words, but in outcomes.
A huge thank you from us!
This report wouldnât exist without the openness and generosity of our community of finance leaders who shared their experiences so candidly.
Thank you to everyone who contributed, from CFOs and Heads of Finance to partners and ecosystem builders, for helping us to create State of the Stack 2026: a foundational resource for todayâs finance leaders
We hope you enjoy reading it as much as weâve enjoyed building it!
COMMUNITY INSIGHTS
đ¤ How I stacked it
Katy Hazley, Finance & Operations Manager at SourceFlow, shares her tech stack.
SourceFlow is a recruitment marketing platform, building websites, career portals, and marketing tools that amplify ROI and provide transparency with state-of-the-art data insights for recruitment firms. Leading recruitment brands such as NES, Impellam, Source Group International & RSS use SourceFlow to drive digital transformation and revenue.
As Finance & Operations Manager, Katy Hazley is the only full-time finance head, supported by a fractional CFO. She takes care of end-to-end finances from transactional through to the management accounts and everything in between! She also works across all internal operations, including people and culture, IT, office management and events.
Here's what Katy and her team are using:
Chargebee for Invoicing:Chargebee automates recurring invoicing seamlessly, enabling us to easily manage large numbers of customers. It also syncs nicely with Xero.
Mayday for Intercompany: Mayday simplifies our intercompany reconciliation with one-click postings and has enabled us to post two years of unposted one-sided transactions in half a day! It's easy to see at a glance where any one-sided postings are, as well as the correct FX rates. I'll be looking at the new Deferred Revenue and Prepayments modules next!
Moss for Cards & Expenses: Moss enables us to give the team autonomy while bringing in control and accountability, used across cards, subscription cards, reimbursements and invoicing. The level of 2FA is through the roof!
Wise for Banking:Wise is easy to use and syncs well with Xero. One thing is that no interest is earned, and you are unable to submit future-dated batch payments for salaries.
HiBob for HRIS: HiBob is a single source of truth for our business.
Shape Payroll for UK Payroll:Shape Payroll is an integrated payroll platform that drives efficiency.
Keen to share how you stack it? Email: emily.lockyer@getmayday.com
CFOs are entering 2026 under pressure to forecast with confidence, communicate clearly, and maintain trust with boards and leadership teams. Excel still plays a role, but when assumptions shift, static models often fall short.
That is why Agicap are hosting a live CFO focused session with Jeremy Earnshaw, Kevin Appleby and Nathaniel Hobson from Agicap. Together, they will discuss how finance leaders can communicate difficult financial messages with clarity, use forward-looking forecasts to strengthen credibility, turn uncertainty into informed decision making
CFOs are operating in an environment of compounding uncertainty. Inflation remains stubborn, fiscal deficits are rising, and tariff threats are reshaping trade flows. At the same time, internal transformation is accelerating; AI is changing finance teams, energy has become a board-level concern, and skills shortages are constraining growth.
To address this evolving environment, EY and the Financial Times will convene senior executives, policymakers and industry leaders in Dublin. This high-level morning briefing will examine the forces reshaping global business strategy and the finance function. Discussions will explore how volatility, technology transformation and operational pressures are redefining the role of the CFO at a pivotal moment for global markets.
THE STACK EXCHANGE
𧾠This week's top threads, from The Stack Exchange
The Stack Exchange is a Slack forum for connecting with peers, sharing insights, and staying updated on apps and industry events, helping you transform your finance function into a strategic powerhouse.
Here are this week's top 3 discussions from The Stack Exchange:
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