CFO Leadership

This is the second installment in a series of blog posts based on Vena’s ongoing “Women in Finance” video series. Each post corresponds with a different interview with a woman in finance leadership. Watch Episode 2 below.   Melissa Howatson didn’t always know she wanted to be a CFO. While today Melissa is Vena’s Chief Financial Officer, there was a time when she thought she might take a completely different path.  In recognition of Women’s History Month, Melissa spoke to Wendy Braithwaite, Chief Financial Planning & Orchestration Officer at Microsoft Canada, for Vena’s second Women in Finance video, “Harnessing Your Finance Leadership Potential.” There, she explained how she shifted into finance very early on. “I actually did a co-op in teaching when I was in high school,” she says. “And then I did one in accounting and I was really torn. I didn’t know which way to go. I’m very happy the journey’s taken me down this path.” After high school and university were over, Melissa’s path took her from senior accountant at KPMG on through increasingly bigger leadership roles. But her journey is just one journey. Every financial leader follows a different path to get them where they are. And if your dream is to be a CFO one day too, so will you—following the opportunities that come your way and chasing your own unique leadership goals.  Still, there are some key pieces of advice every young financial professional with leadership dreams can follow to keep on track for future CFO success. 💡Key Takeaways: The path to CFO starts with a relevant education and certifications that will assist you on your journey—which might simply mean a bachelor’s in finance, but could also include additional education such as a master’s degree and/or CPA credentials. To put yourself on the leadership track, you need to ask for opportunities that will get you noticed—whether that means asking for a chance to lead projects, for feedback along the way or for additional opportunities to set yourself apart. Don’t wait to develop the skills you need for a CFO position. Take a look at what your favorite finance leaders bring to the table and start developing those skills early on—including both technical and soft skills. And find mentors that will point you in the right direction. The Path to CFO and Five Tips To Get You There You have to start somewhere. And if becoming a CFO is your ultimate goal, that means putting together the right list of credentials to get you there. That starts with an appropriate education and any additional certifications you think will help. A bachelor’s degree related to finance or business might be enough, but you could also pursue a master’s degree and/or CPA qualifications as well. After that, it’s all about gaining the requisite experience you need and working your way up the leadership track. Ultimately, it’s a combination of education, experience and best practices that will set you apart. Along the way, there are a few tips you can follow to stay on track with your leadership goals. In her interview, Melissa offered these five: 1. Ask for Feedback Asking for feedback serves multiple purposes. Not only does it help you learn from your colleagues, mentors and leadership team—giving you a better frame of reference to fix any mistakes or to make improvements you might not have noticed yourself—but it shows you have a willingness to learn as well. And that’s an important trait to have if you’re hoping to tackle a CFO position one day.  But asking for feedback “can be scary sometimes,” Melissa says.  So how do you find the courage to ask for the feedback you know will make you better—while also staying open to possible criticism too? One way is to be specific. Asking specific questions in specific situations can help guide the feedback and keep any criticisms situational rather than soul-crushing. “It's lower stakes feedback,” Melissa says. “[Such as] ‘What could I have done better?’ or ‘Tell me where I went wrong?’”  By asking those types of questions regularly of the people you admire, you can start applying that feedback to your job and ongoing projects—and put yourself in a stronger position for promotions and future career growth. 2. Lead From the Side Even if you aren’t yet in a leadership position, you can still gain leadership experience. Just try “leading from the side,” Melissa says. “It can be ‘There's a project and can I be on this and take on a bit more of a leadership role?’” she explains. “It doesn't always have to be formal leadership.”  Those experiences can set you apart and show your managers that you have what it takes to expand your role and take on new responsibilities. They can also help you hone your leadership style and build soft skills such as communication, listening and empathy. Plus, you can start to figure out where you excel and what you still need to work on (in fact, it may be a good time to ask for feedback!).  That’s the kind of work that gets noticed—putting you on the leadership track. 3. Seek Out New Opportunities The common thread between the last two suggestions? They both started with asking. Because you can’t always wait for opportunities to come to you. Sometimes you have to ask for them. “If you asked me earlier [in my career] about things I would do differently, that's something that I would've done differently,” Melissa says. “I think I waited for leadership to happen to me. In hindsight, I would have been more proactive. So I think that if somebody aspires to be a leader or thinks maybe they will but doesn't know, ask for those opportunities to have those experiences.” Asking can come in different forms: applying for promotions and new jobs you think will help you get ahead, for example, or asking your leadership team for the chance to get involved in new projects that will expand your skill set. Whatever the case, the idea is to round out your abilities and make yourself a better leader overall. Which brings us to our next two suggestions. 4. Build the Skills That Matter The best leaders have a range of skills they can draw on—including both the technical skills required in their industry as well as non-technical, soft skills such as decision making, communication and collaboration.  While the skills that matter will vary depending on the path you choose to follow, identifying those skills early will help you develop and build on them throughout your career. To figure out what skills you need, look at the leaders around you and where they excel, and examine the skills that make your colleagues or managers stand out.  By adding more tools to your own toolbox, you’ll make yourself the obvious choice when the next leadership role opens up. 5. Get Help Along the Way We talked about the importance of mentors in our last Women in Finance blog post, and Melissa reiterates the need for them as you build a career that will take you into leadership circles.   “Mentorship has been so key to helping me get where I am and having those places where you can go and bounce ideas off or get feedback from others,” she says. “And so I'd encourage anybody who's looking to move into leadership to look for some strong mentors.” To find the right mentor, go in with a specific goal in mind. For example, are you looking for industry-related help, seeking out gender-based advice or trying to find assistance getting over specific obstacles in your way? Knowing what you want and where you need assistance will help you choose the best mentorship fit from your professional network.  And if you’re a woman, that doesn’t necessarily mean you need to find another woman to take on that role. “I've had some amazing male mentorship as well,” Melissa says. Conclusion If you're a finance professional with ambitions to make it to the highest ranks of financial leadership, it’s never too early to start your journey. By putting the right skills, learning and best practices into place—and working on your leadership abilities—you can get yourself onto the leadership track.  From there, it’s just about having the confidence to know you can make your goals come true. Want to learn more? Watch Vena’s newest Women in Finance video, "Harnessing Your Finance Leadership Potential" with Vena CFO Melissa Howatson. The next interview, with Vena’s Vice President of Finance, Muneerah Kanji, is scheduled to be released March 22, 2023.

This is the first installment in a series of blog posts based on Vena’s ongoing “Women in Finance” video series. Each post corresponds with a different interview with a woman in finance leadership. Watch Episode 1 below.   A young Christine Harms was working in a restaurant when she first decided to pursue a career in finance. Early on in her college experience, the current Controller for the Arizona Cardinals had rejected her initial studies in electrical engineering, deciding it wasn’t for her. But she didn’t have a back-up plan either. “I went home and ran a restaurant. Or helped to run a restaurant,” she remembers. “And the owners were like, ‘You know, you're really good with accounting. You're doing all the headcount, you're doing all the payroll, you're doing all the bills, you're doing all of this—you should be an accountant.’ And I took that to heart and I researched it and said, ‘Okay, I'm gonna be an accountant.’” That was just the start of the journey that brought her to her current role. But there was a jagged path in between—including a period spent working in nonprofits, time off to start a family and some decisions that felt risky at the time. But for Harms, it was her mother—a first-generation immigrant turned small business owner—who inspired her at every step along the way.  “She's now in her seventies and she's very successful,” Christine says. “She taught my brother and me, ‘Do what you're good at and enjoy what you're good at. And you can do everything you want to do, you just have to learn it.’” While that might have been the case for Christine, though, is it still true for women today making their way up in finance? And how does the newest generation of female finance professionals navigate their own path to the top echelons of finance success? Christine spoke to Wendy Braithwaite, Chief Financial Planning & Orchestration Officer for Microsoft Canada, for “Building a Successful Career in Corporate Finance,” the first of Vena’s Women in Finance video series. There, she offered some words of advice for young women starting their own careers in finance today. 💡Key Takeaways: While women are gradually taking on more financial leadership positions, the balance of top-level finance jobs are still held by men—and there are still challenges in the way for women looking to make it to the top. The reason women aren’t making it to the top in greater numbers is multifold. Not only are they missing out on promotions early on in their career, but inadequate work-life balance is burning them out and a fear of failure and a seeming lack of mentorship opportunities are holding them back. To help build a clearer path to leadership roles, women need to get over their fear of failure, while finding a company that supports them, asking for the mentorship opportunities they need and pursuing a path they love—taking informed risks along the way. Why Aren’t Enough Women Making It to the Top? Before we look at Christine’s advice, let’s examine the state of women in finance today. Are they making it to leadership positions—and if not, why not? The truth is, while a similar percentage of women and men enter finance, women still aren’t making it to the top in the same numbers as their male counterparts. In financial services as a whole, women make up just 19% of C-suite positions throughout the United States. That’s even lower than the 22% average across industries. While the good news is that there are more female CFOs than ever before, the ratios are still widely uneven. And even today there are still a range of challenges getting in the way. These are just a few: 1. The “Broken Rung” If women and men are entering the financial services workforce in near equal numbers, but very few are making it to those top-tier positions, something must be happening along the way. And part of that is just a numbers game. Because the truth is, women are less likely to get promoted early on in their career—from entry positions into managerial roles. And that means they’re less likely to find themselves in a position later on to reach senior leadership too. “Within financial services, only 86 women are promoted to manager for every 100 men,” McKinsey and LeanIn.Org revealed in their 2021 Women in the Workplace report. In fact, they found that that’s pretty much the standard across industries. That “broken rung” early on in the career ladder presents systemic challenges that make it harder for women to make it to the top. 2. A Lack of Mentors The right mentors can help guide you—pointing you toward career-enhancing opportunities and becoming a sounding board for decisions along the way. In that role, they can be key to your professional growth and embolden you with the confidence you need to excel. Yet research shows that 63% of women haven’t had a formal mentor—even though 67% rate it as highly important for the advancement of their career. Of course, many women seek out other women when they look for mentors so the fact that there are fewer women in leadership roles can make it seem like there are fewer mentors to choose from. Yet, it’s also the case that female leaders simply aren’t being asked. In fact, 54% of women in leadership positions have only been asked a few times or less to be a work mentor, while 20% have never been asked at all. This despite the fact that 71% of those leaders say they always accept mentorship requests. 3. Inadequate Work-Life Balance Even today, women still spend more time on household responsibilities than men. This is true in every country around the world and is the case whether a woman works full time or not. In fact, research has shown that while women spend more time on “family activities” compared to men, they spend the same amount of time on “work activities.” Not surprisingly, then, work-life balance can be a struggle. That struggle to find a balance can lead to a higher risk of burnout and lower productivity overall. Both of which can affect a woman’s performance, damage her review scores and negatively impact her overall career trajectory—making top-level success harder to achieve. 4. Fear of Failure “Failure isn’t the opposite of success, it’s part of success,” Arianna Huffington once said. But fear of failure can often get in the way of actually achieving that success. This is true for anyone, but can especially be the case for women, who often feel a pressure to be perfect, something they’re taught from a young age. A global study of female students, published in 2021, found that this fear was particularly prevalent among high achievers. The study pointed to that fear-of-failure gender gap as one of the reasons women are underrepresented in certain occupations. Fear of failure—and an overall lack of confidence—can be a real obstacle, then, for women trying to get to the top. Not only because failure can be a learning experience that can make us better leaders, but because that fear can make us give up on those bigger dreams before we even have a chance to realize them. Advice for Future Female Finance Leaders Of course, those aren’t the only challenges women face in the workplace today. There are still biases that pervade many workplaces that can also get in the way when it comes to getting ahead. Despite those challenges, though, women entering the finance field today also have a wealth of opportunities available to build the type of career that will make those leadership roles possible. And with more female CFOs than ever before, the trajectory is clearer than it once was. So what can the next generation of female finance professionals do to put themselves on the fast track towards top-level success? Here are a few pieces of advice: 1. Find a Path You Love “I love numbers,” Christine Harms says. But when she first started her education in accounting, it still took her some time to find the best place to apply that love of numbers to her future career.  “I had never in my life received a C in any class and my very first accounting class was a C and I thought, what have I done?” she remembers. “But it got a little easier and I got a B. Then I went into managerial accounting. And I think that the different approach of financial accounting and managerial accounting is what tipped the scale for me.”   Of course, university isn’t the only opportunity to switch gears and find a new path that works for you. You’ll have those opportunities throughout your career, as you follow different career trajectories and explore different positions. And when you do, it’ll be easier to find the path you love and excel in.  “There are so many different areas of finance, honestly, that you can find your niche in what you find intriguing, interesting, fun. And it's not really a career once you find that point,” Christine says. “It's like doing what you love to do every day.” 2. Find a Company That Supports You Positive work-life balance is possible. And it’s even more possible at a company that does what it can to support it. You just need to find the right workplace. That might mean seeking out a company that offers flexible working hours that let you easily juggle things like childcare and family appointments as well as work. It may mean choosing to work with companies that provide mental health benefits or have a culture that recognizes your overall accomplishments, not just the hours you spend behind a desk. But most of all, it means finding a company that actually cares about your overall well-being and career progression—and will support you in your journey. Because when you find those companies, charting out a path to a successful career can be as easy as asking for it. “Your job and the people you work with, you have to let them in—to tell them ‘This is what I want and this is what I'm going to work for,’” Christine says. “‘And I'm going to do the best job I can for you, but these are also the things that I desire.’” 3. Ask for Mentorship Opportunities Research shows that men are more likely than women to seek out mentorship opportunities—as well as to offer them. But there’s an easy solution.  By seeking out and asking for the mentorship opportunities you want, you can start to reap the benefits the right mentor can offer. As we saw earlier, 71% of female leaders say they always accept work mentorship requests. And if you approach someone who, for whatever reason, doesn’t accept your request? Well, that doesn’t mean you need to stop looking for someone who will. Someone like Christine, for instance, who loves being a mentor. “Being an advocate and mentoring career growth not only makes me feel good, but it makes my team members feel good and it teaches them more,” she says. “I think the biggest motivator for me is being able to share my knowledge, to share my understanding of what I can help someone else with in their career.” 4. Take Informed Risks “Don't be afraid of change,” Christine says. In fact, taking calculated risks is often what it takes to get ahead.  Yet women have long been seen as more risk avoidant than men in the workplace—probably at least in part because of that aforementioned fear of failure. But 2022 research in the Psychology of Women Quarterly also shows that their risk taking isn’t always met with the same positive response as that of their male counterparts.  Does that mean women should avoid risks altogether? No. But you should embrace workplaces that will reward those risks—whether they’re made by a man or a woman. And while you can learn which risks will get the best response, you shouldn’t let roadblocks along the way stop you from taking more. Take applying for a job, for example. Women apply to 20% fewer jobs than men—in part because they feel like they need to meet 100% of a job’s criteria to be considered. Men, on the other hand, will apply after meeting only 60% of the requirements. Taking a risk, and applying for that job anyway, could go a long way to helping you realize your goals. 5. Face Your Fears “There’s nothing in the world that anyone can’t do if they would just put their mind to it,” Christine says.  But that doesn’t mean your goals are going to come easy—and that there won’t be failures along the way. And being afraid of that failure before it happens isn’t going to help you achieve your goals. In fact, by accepting the fact that you will fail at some point, and understanding exactly what it is that has you so scared, you can start to face your fears and get past them—so that they don’t get in the way of your success. "Fearlessness is a muscle,” Arianna Huffington said. And like all muscles, it takes some exercise to develop. The Next Generation of Finance Somewhere out there, the next generation of female finance leaders is already forging their way to top-level success. While you may not know yet what the future has in store, you have the goals to get you there. And that’s where it starts. Finding the path that will make those goals a reality is the next part. Thankfully there are female finance leaders—Christine Harms, for example—to provide inspiration along the way. Watch the entire Building a Successful Career in Corporate Finance video, featuring an interview with Christine Harms. And stay tuned for the next interview, with Vena CFO Melissa Howatson, scheduled for release March 15, 2023.

Finance has always been a numbers game. The traditional role of finance, after all, was largely an accounting role: budgeting, cash flow, profits and loss and so on. Jobs were done in a silo, and finance professionals stayed in their lane—poring over manual spreadsheets, making sure the numbers were good.  But that’s not what finance is today. While those accounting duties are just as important as they always have been, technology, automation and more collaborative processes have left finance with more time to spend on other things. And as their role has grown, finance leaders have become important strategic finance business partners—leading their organizations to successfully meet their business objectives. Today’s Finance Leaders Are Helping Their Organizations Become More Agile in the Face of Ongoing Change In our third annual benchmark survey, The State of Strategic Finance: Industry Benchmark Report 2022, we surveyed 132 business leaders and finance and operations professionals coming from organizations across a range of industries. We asked them about strategic planning, risk assessment, relationships, the three elements of the foundational framework for success—people, processes and technology—and more. In the following infographic, discover how this year's survey respondents are working to become better strategic finance business partners and what they’re prioritizing as they aim to make an even greater impact in the future.      2022 Industry Benchmark Report The State of Strategic Finance What role have finance teams played amid the turbulence of 2022? How are they positioning themselves for the next uncertainty? Find out in Vena’s latest Industry Benchmark Report. Download the Insights

You need to come to an agreement on a business deal. Lead your team through an acquisition or merger. Maybe you want to get your leadership team or department heads to sign off on new strategic goals or a fresh budget. Or one of the team members you lead is requesting a pay raise. Whatever your current scenario, it’s clear you need strong negotiation skills to see it through. That’s not surprising. Today, negotiation is almost as much a part of finance as are proficiency with numbers or strong analytical skills. And as finance takes on more of the role of strategic business partner, those negotiation skills are becoming even more valuable. It’ll often be up to you to build a foundation of support among your business leaders for the strategy and goals you’re advocating for, to reach an agreement with investors, customers and your own team members. And those negotiations aren’t always going to start with an automatic “yes.” So whether you’re a naturally skilled “people person” or tend to shy away from all forms of confrontation, you’ll need to hone your negotiation skills and learn how to apply them to every situation. Need some help in becoming a skilled negotiator? Here are six tips to get you started. 1. Always Start Prepared Whether negotiating is your cup of tea or something you dread like a morning without your daily dose of coffee, it’s not going to go down well without proper preparation. Long story short: You’re setting yourself up for failure if you don’t prepare. And preparing for a negotiation starts with knowing who you’re negotiating with. Is it an investor, part of the leadership team or another department head? A board member, supplier or customer? More than that, who has the decision-making power on the other side of the negotiation equation? Once you know all of that, preparing means trying to understand what all of the parties are after from the negotiations underway. And that includes your own goals. What are you trying to achieve? What are you willing to concede? And what can’t you walk away without? Before you even start, write down all of the details you need to discuss and find agreement on so that you don’t miss anything during the process. In his recent keynote presentation at Excelerate =SUM(it) 2022, “The Art of Negotiation,” Chris Voss—former FBI Lead Hostage Negotiator and CEO and Founder of The Black Swan Group—took it one step further. Preparation, he explained, can help settle your emotions and get you ready mentally, not just intellectually, for a negotiation  “Getting ready to engage in a process actually settles you down,” he said.  A skilled negotiator starts every negotiation from a place of preparation, then. It puts you in a better position in more ways than one, to get more from the negotiation you’re about to begin. 2. Build Strong Relationships Not surprisingly, getting people to agree with your point of view is easier if you’ve already built a good relationship with them. We can’t only negotiate with our closest friends, though, so building relationships throughout the negotiation process can be a successful way to make sure everyone walks out happy. “Nobody would be surprised to know that we prefer to say yes to those individuals who we feel a liking, or a rapport, with,” psychologist Robert Cialdini, author of Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion, said in his Excelerate =SUM(it) keynote presentation, “The Science of Ethical Influence.” Another key ingredient in getting a “yes,” he added, is a feeling of unity—or a sense that you’re all part of the same group, working together towards a single cause. “If you can arrange for people to see you not just as like them, but as one of them, they will become significantly more likely to say yes to you as a result,” Cialdini said. In a negotiation, then, being empathetic and a good listener are key. They help you understand the other person’s point of view and use that knowledge to develop the kind of relationship that makes everyone feel like they’re part of the same team, with the rapport to match. Good communication and a foundation of trust can also make it easier to keep the negotiation civil and work through any conflict if it arises. “Focusing on influence and long-term business relationships is productive and profitable for both sides, long term,” Voss added. 3. Don’t Get Lost in the Emotions Even when you’re empathetic to the other side of the negotiation, and try to be as good a listener as possible, negotiations can still become fraught with tension, as everyone tries to get what they want out of the process.  But when emotions drive a negotiation, neither side is going to get far.  “If they're frustrated with the situation, they're probably annoyed with you,” Voss said. To get past any of those negative emotions, he suggests demonstrating “respectful awareness.” In other words, calling out the emotions in the room as a way of deactivating them. “[It’s about] calling out negatives, not denying them—but simply observing them, calling them out, recognizing them [and] verbally articulating the negatives,” Voss added. All of which, of course, means developing your own emotional intelligence, so that you’re able to monitor and recognize the emotions in play—both positive and negative. Emotional intelligence will also help you see through the words being spoken, so that you can better understand how everyone really feels. From there, you’ll be able to get to a place where you’re all content and ready to proceed. Modern Finance Skills Watch “The FP&A Guy” Paul Barnhurst’s Excelerate =SUM(it) 2022 session, Contemporary Skills for Strategic Finance Professionals, on Plan To Grow to learn more about the skills needed in today’s FP&A. 4. Remember the Power of Compromise Building the critical relationships that help power negotiations, and recognizing the emotions in play, make it easier to understand and empathize with the points of view of the other side of your negotiation. And that’s a plus when it comes to another important part of all negotiations—compromise. Whether relationships already exist, or if you’re in the process of building them, it’s important to listen to what the other person says and to understand what they’re trying to achieve from the negotiation in progress. More than that, try to put yourself in their shoes so  you can understand why those goals are important to them. And sometimes finding out is just a matter of asking. “Start the conversation with ‘Before I give my perspective, let me make sure I’ve got your perspective right. That's your opening phrase. Then you follow up with, ‘So far, you've told me’ and you lay out the facts of what they've said,’” Voss suggested “Then the second part is, ‘As a result, you feel and you …’ and lay out your best guess, based on their demeanor, their actions or tone of voice.” But don’t forget that list of “must haves” you put together during the planning phase. It isn’t a successful negotiation if you find yourself conceding on everything—especially those elements most important to you and what you’re hoping to achieve. Remembering—and understanding—all sides of the negotiation will help you reach a compromise all parties can get behind in the end. But it will also help you understand when to walk away—because the most skilled negotiators also know when no one is going to get what they want. 5. Understand That “Winning” Isn’t Everything If you go into a negotiation like it’s a game—where there’s a “winner” and a “loser”—the kind of compromise we talked about above won’t be possible. But more than that, you’ll be missing out on new opportunities that spring up from the conversation underway that can add extra value for everyone. The most skilled negotiators will find new value for all parties—or at least look for it. Maybe that means bringing additional people to the table or considering other alternatives to the options you’ve already considered. Whatever the case, don’t get so caught up in your own expectations that you stay closed off to other options. 6. Keep Working on Your Skills Like any other skills, negotiation is learned. Some will take to it naturally and for others, it will require more work. Either way, practice. Coaching and critical assessment is sure to make you better. So whether you walk away from your first negotiation happy or not, don’t worry. Assess what went right and wrong, and learn from your experiences.  Identify the pain points and challenges. Explore the emotional ups and downs. Assess whether each party walked out with more or less of what they wanted. What could you have done better? More to the point, what can you do better next time? Don’t be afraid to consult others, either. If you have any trusted advisors or teammates who you know are skilled negotiators, they can be a good resource as you continue to develop your own skills. That is, until you become a skilled negotiator yourself and start mentoring those who come behind you. Feeling Like a Skilled Negotiator? Then Let the Negotiations Begin “Negotiation is not an act of battle; it’s a process of discovery. The goal is to uncover as much information as possible,” Voss wrote in his book, Never Split the Difference: Negotiating As If Your Life Depended On It. Like any process, then, it can be learned, codified and improved upon. By building a negotiation style that works for you—then evolving it to meet the demands of each negotiation you find yourself in—you can make it just another skillset you bring to the table. And by doing so, you’ll be molding yourself into a strong financial leader in the process. Now go out and let the negotiations begin! Grow Your Finance Skillset Visit Plan To Grow to watch free, on-demand content of the latest skills financial professionals need today.

Floating cars. Colonies in space. Robot servants at our beck and call. Let’s be real: That’s not exactly the reality waiting for us in 2030. We can’t expect the world to morph into a scene from The Jetsons in just eight years. But we can expect the world of finance to change. It already has. Over the past few years, finance has become more agile and proactive as the market around us has presented one challenge after another. Technological advancements have made collaboration easier. Automation has become the norm. And decision making has emerged as more forward thinking, with finance taking a leadership role in helping businesses grow and thrive.  So what comes next? At our recent Excelerate =SUM(it) event, Vena Chief Technology Officer Hugh Cumming presented The Future of Planning Technology. During the session, he gave us a sneak peek of what to expect as we go through a digital transformation in finance in the years to come. So here are his—and Vena’s—predictions for the future of finance in 2030. Prediction 1: Speed Will Be a Competitive Advantage “In the new world, it is not the big fish which eats the small fish, it’s the fast fish which eats the slow fish,” Klaus Schwab, Founder and Executive Chairman of the World Economic Forum, once said. And in the world of finance, that’s truer today than ever, Hugh told audiences at Excelerate =SUM(it). That’s only going to continue to be more the case in the future. So for companies of all sizes, agility is key—and the financial organizations that have that agility will thrive in 2030. It will help organizations act quickly, stay ready for market changes ahead and make real-time decisions that will continue to drive them forward.  “Speed and agility, not size, [are] the things that define an agile organization,” Hugh said. “It defines the businesses that are going to win. And at the center of this is the ability to use data to make better and faster decisions, deliver insights to the organization and be at the center of strategy.” Which brings us to prediction two. Prediction 2: Accessible, Real-Time Data Will Drive Business Decisions Ideally, this isn’t something you’ll wait until 2030 to achieve. But the reality is that sourcing data from across the organization and making it accessible and operational in real time is still a challenge for many organizations. Nevertheless, data plays a key role in creating that agility we talked about in the first prediction. And as the digital transformation in finance evolves, the organizations that master their data by 2030 will be able to make faster, more meaningful decisions whenever needed. “Bringing this data together in meaningful ways means leading the way to creating an agile business—or, quite simply, a business that can swim faster,” Hugh said. More than that, though, in 2030, organizations will be able to use data in both retrospective and prospective ways—looking back, but more importantly looking forward. “We see that as what is the essence of this strategic transformation we see in finance,” Hugh added. Prediction 3: End-to-End Technology Will Connect Finance with the Entire Business When it comes to implementing new technology, it’s “the last mile” that’s often the biggest challenge for organizations. That is, introducing the connections and integrations that will let your new technology work together with the ones your business already has. It’s these connections that allow finance to integrate with the rest of the business and easily access the data you need, moving it in and out of the platform you’re using. Solving that last-mile problem will help businesses create a more end-to-end technology infrastructure that supports your entire financial organization—and connects it to the business as a whole. And by 2030, Hugh predicts, the solutions with those integrations and connectivity options available will rise to the top and allow finance to scale quickly and easily without struggle. That will make it easier for end users to integrate the technology they need to solve real, day-to-day business problems. Which fits into Hugh’s second prediction: Rather than seeing technology investments being driven from the top, he says, it’ll be those users who take the lead in finding functional, integratable solutions that fit their business requirements and connect the organization as a whole. Prediction 4: Even With New Tech Investments, There Will Still Be a Place for the Tried and True Technology and innovation will continue to play a growing role in the evolution of finance. That much is clear. But that doesn’t mean you need to replace what’s already working. Not if you want your team to stay happy and productive through those technology shifts. And for most finance teams, that means continuing to use Microsoft Excel. It’s still the go-to solution for finance professionals. Even companies that try to replace it will often find individual team members falling back into their Excel comfort zone. As a finance organization, pushing back against that can be like fighting an uphill battle.  So why bother?  Building your technology stack around Excel will enhance acceptance and continued use, allowing you to naturally build on the technology your team feels most comfortable using. With this in mind, expect Excel to become the de facto finance desktop through 2030 and beyond—even as the technology around it continues to grow. Prediction 5: The Workflows of Finance Will Be Reinvented Forget about clunky spreadsheets shared over email. They certainly won’t have a place as the digital transformation in finance evolves. We can’t even wait until 2030 to say goodbye to those.  What will have a place is efficient, agile workflows that use technology to provide smooth-as-butter, real-time collaboration alternatives. That means better communication, less work for your team members and a better way of doing business.  “[It’s about] being able to collaborate on data in real time, in systems that allow multiple types of users to collaborate, to create a workflow that allows for different users to come in and join a data-centric workflow at different points on the journey,” Hugh said. Again, that type of real-time collaboration will make your business more agile—a faster fish in a sea of slow swimmers. Final Thoughts: When It Comes to Digital Transformation in Finance, Agility Is Key If we know anything about the future of finance, it’s that without that kind of agility, you risk falling behind—or getting caught scrambling the next time the market experiences a new challenge or change. And the less proactive you are, the more behind you fall—and the more you risk losing out to your competition. By 2030, then, it will be the most agile organizations that will emerge at the top. The rest will go the way of floating cars, never gaining flight. Future-Proof Your =FV Learn more about the challenges ahead—and how technology will help you prepare—by watching Hugh’s full Excelerate =SUM(it) 2022 session The Future of Planning Technology on Plan To Grow.

There’s a technological shift happening in your business. Perhaps you’re implementing a new technology platform or making changes to the way you use a platform already in place. Maybe you’re adding functionality or using it in new ways, updating your tech suite or changing it to better meet your goals. Whatever the case, it’s happening because someone in your business has done the research. They think it’s going to facilitate your business or help free up time for other things. After all, technology can be a powerful aid to businesses looking to build towards their goals and help set their teams up for success. But for any of that to happen, a technology change isn’t enough. If you want technology to become part of your culture and processes, you need to get your people on board as well.  After all, adopting a new technology or embracing new uses can represent a significant shift in your day-to-day business—something that can have a huge impact on your team. So throwing that change on them without any kind of plan isn’t likely to get the results you need. So how do you go about getting your people engaged? That’s where change management tips and best practices come in. What is Change Management? In his Change Management Playbook session at our recent Excelerate =SUM(it) virtual conference, Vern Redwood—CPA and Senior Consultant with Vena—gave audiences some advice on how to use change management tips and best practices to build acceptance in their organization for a technology shift. In doing so, he described change management as “a structured, adaptable and repeatable approach to enable the people-side of change to deliver organizational results.”  But what does that mean? What is change management really trying to accomplish? Vern used the analogy of driving a car along the highway. “In order to change lanes there’s a framework to do so. You’re driving along the road and you usually turn on your signal to tell everyone around you ‘Hey, I need to move over,’” he explained. “In a similar way, having a change management framework at your organization is critical because it allows you to make sure you signal a change so everybody around you knows what you’re going to do and it gives them time to adapt to it.”   With change management in place, employees can feel prepared, equipped and supported for change. And it helps: Organizations with a change management framework are six times more likely to meet their objectives, five times more likely to stay on schedule and two times more likely to stay on budget.  While there are different theories and models you can use to help drive your change management tactics (watch Microsoft MVP Megan Strant’s Evolving Relationships with Change Management Methods session on Plan To Grow to learn more about them), we at Vena like the Prosci Methodology for change management. “The Prosci methodology is an enabling framework for enabling the people-side of change,” Vern says.   Drawing on that framework, Vern offered several of his own change management tips to draw on to help enable change in your organization. Here are a few: Tip 1: Never Stop Communicating Communication is a critical ingredient in getting change right. Without it, you risk alienating your team and leaving them without a clear idea of what’s happening around them. And without that, how will they ever embrace the change underway? In his presentation, Vern suggests starting the communication process early, letting everyone know that change is on the way and when the process is going to begin. But don’t stop there: keep people updated on how the implementation is progressing, any delays along the way and what’s expected of them at every step.  In fact, communication should permeate every stage of the change management process. Keep your team informed so that nothing comes as a surprise. Educate them on what they need to know. Get leadership involved to provide guidance and demonstrate the key benefits they can expect from the initiative. And most of all, make sure that everyone truly understands how they can benefit from the initiative themselves. “Step into their shoes, step into their role and just work with them to understand some of the technical aspects of what will be changing,” Vern told the audience during Excelerate =SUM(it) 2022. Tip 2: Don’t Forget the Power of a Great Story Communication is a critical ingredient in getting change right. Without it, you risk alienating your team and leaving them without a clear idea of what’s happening around them. And without that, how will they ever embrace the change underway? Just as important as constant communication is how you communicate. And that, Vern says, is where storytelling comes in. “Stories add value,” he explains. “If you think of any great achievement or anything that has value to you, there’s probably a great story attached. A story of overcoming challenges and reaching your final goal.” For those reasons and more, storytelling can be a powerful tool during the change management process. One that will help you at every stage to underline the importance of the changes underway, understand the broader picture of what’s going on and build a narrative around the shift in progress.  “What we believe is built through stories,” Vern says. “If we believe something is worth a lot to us, how we perceive it will be formed through the stories that we’re told about it.” With that in mind, he breaks the change management process down like a story in progress: Prologue: Build awareness Act I: Generate desire Act II: Build knowledge Act III: Reinforce the change  It’s up to the person leading the change management process to be the writer, director and actor in that story. In other words, you’re in charge of creating the script and putting it into action, while still being a significant part of the change unfolding. Tip 3: Rely on Your Champions The right champions will help build your communication efforts, know what stories to tell and help your entire team through the change management journey. That means it’s critical that you have the right champions in place. Your champions will help identify who will require training on your new software platform and ensure each user gets the right training to meet their specific needs. They’ll help build weekly communications during implementation to ensure everyone knows where things are in the process. And they’ll play a significant role in asking for feedback from your end users at every step so that you know where the biggest obstacles exist and whether everyone’s needs are being addressed.  But notice we said champions. There’s a reason there’s an “s” at the end—even when a single champion may seem like enough for your organization. People leave or change roles, after all, which leaves a void behind when there’s only one person championing the change along. So to ensure a seamless change management process and ongoing acceptance of your technology shift, it’s always better to have a team of champions smoothing the way. Tip 4: Ask for Help When You Need It Even with the best team of champions in place, though, you may still hit hiccups along the way. If that’s the case, you may need help figuring out how to move your people to the other side.  For that, Vern recommends reaching out to your technology partner. They should be just as invested as you are in seeing your implementation or technology shift succeed. Not only that, but they’re used to working with teams across their customer base, many of them probably dealing with similar issues as you. That means they likely have the experience and/or resource materials you need to help modify or build on your change management plan. And that can be a key difference in keeping things moving smoothly. Change Is Underway Let’s face it: Simply introducing a new piece of technology or unveiling a shift in your tech usage isn’t going to suddenly bring about the change you’re looking for in your organization. Bringing about real change means your people and processes need to change as well—and for that to happen, your team needs to be ready. They need to accept the change. Better yet, they should be excited about it. In order for that to happen, you need to have the right plans and processes in place to get your people up to speed and engaged in the transformation underway. Only once you do will you be able to get the most out of your technology investment. Change Doesn’t Happen Overnight Even with all of the right pieces in place, it takes continual planning, monitoring and communication to be successful when it comes to effective change management. Check out our recent session on change management methods with Microsoft MVP Megan Strant.

Finance is a numbers game. Or at least it has been, traditionally—drawing on those numbers for budgeting, forecasting and planning. It’s not surprising, then, that the types of skills most finance professionals thrive at are also numbers driven. As finance becomes a strategic partner to business, though—interacting more closely with internal and external stakeholders to build and push forward business goals—means other skills become just as critical. Softer, people-oriented skills that will help you bring your strategy to fruition. In other words, skills that rely on choosing the right words.  One of the most important among those? Strong communication. More than ever, finance teams need to be able to effectively communicate the message behind the numbers, to share their findings, build enthusiasm for what’s ahead and create advocates for their strategic plans. Yet impactful communication doesn’t always come easily for finance professionals. To help take your communication skills to the next level, Vena CFO Darrell Cox and Vice President of FP&A Tom Seegmiller hosted CFO Confidential: The Art of Impactful Communication. Now available on demand to members of Vena’s Plan To Grow platform, the session brought in Amy Schwalm, Vice President of Investor Relations for Canada Goose and Paul Lima, Managing Partner of Lima Consulting Group, to share their ideas on how financial professionals can up their communication game. These are four of the do’s and don’ts that emerged: 1. Don’t Get Too Caught Up in the Details Details matter. Any finance person can tell you that. But finance people can also sometimes get too stuck on the details, forgetting the bigger picture along the way.  At least that’s what Amy Schwalm told audience members during the Art of Impactful Communication livestream. “As a finance professional and somebody that's used to getting into the details and the numbers, you can get caught up in what I sometimes refer to as inside baseball. You need to step back,” she explained. For Amy personally, that means narrowing down the three key messages she’s trying to communicate and focusing her messaging around them. That way, she says, she understands exactly the takeaways she wants her audience to leave with and can whittle down the details to provide only those required to make her point. To do that effectively, though, those three key messages should track back to a larger company strategy or business goals. When those aren’t clear or don’t exist, it becomes more difficult to focus your communication on what matters—or to get people to listen to you at all.  “I’ve been at companies where they don’t have that overall strategy,” Amy added during the livestream. “And even if they do, you’re always looking at what are the expectations of the market and for investors, that leads to what are they expecting from the numbers, in the results—and even more importantly, how does that factor into what the company’s going to do looking forward.” 2. Do Have the Data To Back Up Your Message  You may not want to get lost in the details, but that doesn’t mean the details don’t matter at all. Without some details available to back up your message, you risk seeing that message crumble at the first sign of pressure (with a well-placed question from an investor or your CFO, for example). And the best details—as with most things in finance—start with solid data. If you want your message to be heard, data is the foundation upon which your argument should be laid. Without it, the loudest—or highest-ranked—voice in the room will often be the one that wins out instead. Just as important, though, is that the data be correct. Don’t pull out the numbers that best fit your narrative or throw one in without checking its veracity first. Rather, ensure your data is accurate and precise, then build your message around it.  “If the culture is aspiring to be data driven, then there has to be an acknowledgement that we can trust the numbers,” Paul Lima told the audience. After all, if the person you’re communicating with can’t trust your data, they’re not going to trust you either.   3. Don’t Be Afraid To Follow a Script Does all of that sound daunting? It doesn’t have to be. Not if you plan ahead.  Following a set script or framework can help ensure you have everything you need to communicate your message effectively—without forcing you to ad lib if communication isn't usually your forte.  For example, Amy creates a detailed script for all of her investor calls, laying out those three key messages we talked about earlier ahead of time. She even suggests extending that script if you know off-the-cuff communications really aren’t your strength, leaving less time for questions after. “There's a little bit more of a risk in the question-and-answer period,” she explained. Paul, on the other hand, uses the Balanced Scorecard framework to structure much of his communication with clients. “It starts off with the financials,” he said. “And then from there, it goes into the customer-centric objectives and the internal operations. Then it’s what you need to do to innovate and learn and grow. It's a waterfall.” However you choose to do it, building your communication off of a predetermined structure or set script can help you draw on the skills you use every day—building a plan—to facilitate a skill you may not feel as confident in. 4. Do Tell a Story We’re big advocates of storytelling here at Vena—-and from his words during the CFO Confidential livestream, it’s clear Paul Lima agrees. Building your message around a story can make that message more impactful—in turn, making your communication more effective too. “A story has an arc. Sometimes there’s even a villain,” Paul said during the event. “Sometimes the villain’s the problem, not the person.” By using the tried-and-tested tools of storytelling—adding in a complication, for example, and ending with a resolution—you’re adding drama to your message. In doing so, you’re entertaining your audience and keeping them engaged. After all, those are the same techniques the world’s greatest storytellers—from Shakespeare to Spielberg—have effectively drawn on throughout time to keep audiences at the edge of their seats. And who’s better at communicating than them? Conclusion Whether communication comes naturally to you or not, it’s a critical skill in the new world of finance. To take on a more strategic finance role and thrive as a partner to your business, you’ll have to find the communication style that best works for you. Building soft skills like these can help you excel in that role and collaborate with stakeholders throughout the company and beyond. Hopefully, some of these tips will come in handy. Communicate the Message Behind the Numbers Watch the full episode of CFO Confidential: The Art of Impactful Communication.

It’s a bird … it’s a plane … it’s, well, it’s National Superhero Day. That’s right. National Superhero Day is the day everyone (okay, barely anyone) celebrates everything superhero-related. So move over Justice League, Avengers and Fantastic Four—we’re using this day to celebrate our own brand of superhero. The finance team. In today’s ever-changing market, where the future is so uncertain, businesses need a finance team that will rise to the occasion. One that will step up and save the day—predicting the future, seeing through the noise and fighting the big baddies (disparate data sources, overspending and stagnant growth, to name a few). So what superheroes do you have on your team—and what superpowers do they bring to the job? In our opinion, the best teams have a Captain America, a Wonder Woman and a Spider-Man in their ranks, plus a secret weapon behind the scenes empowering the whole team in their efforts to make the world (or at least their business) a better place.  So that begs the question: which superhero are you? 1. Leading the Team: The Super CFO If you’re a Marvel fan, you know Steve Rogers—a.k.a. Captain America. The First Avenger, he was born in the 1920s and was an underdog before joining the military and becoming the Captain. More importantly, he leads The Avengers, putting his long-lived experiences as a tactician in the military to work. In the field of finance, Captain America would be the one in charge: an empathetic leader and strategic mastermind helping to move the business towards its goals. He leads with his heart but plans with his head—always a great combination for a superhero, and not a bad set of skills for a CFO or Vice President of Finance either.  In our minds, then, if you’re leading your finance team, you’re the Captain America of the group. Instead of pulling out a fancy shield or calling on your superpower friends to help, though, you use the technology, people and processes you’ve put into place to prepare for any possibility ahead. But the rest is basically the same: the best finance leaders lead by example, setting their team up for success; they strategize for every possibility, using their experience to guide them; and they’re the first in the fray if there is a problem, constantly analyzing their team objectives and how to achieve them. 2. Warrior With a Plan: The Power Director Who doesn’t know Wonder Woman—otherwise known as Diana Prince? An immortal Amazon in the DC universe, she's a powerful woman who works perfectly fine solo, but is also a key member of the Justice League. She’s got an arsenal of tools at her disposal—from an invisible jet and the Lasso of Truth to indestructible bracelets that come in handy when she needs to deflect any bullets being shot at her. The way we see it, this is the equivalent of your Vice President or Director of FP&A. After all, Wonder Woman is resilient but adaptable—you have to be when you live forever—and so are the best heads of FP&A. What’s more, she’s good at making a plan and confident enough to bring it to fruition successfully. Your head of FP&A probably has many of these same qualities. They’re the attributes you need in order to set business goals, plan for an uncertain future and provide insights to senior leadership to guide your business forward. And while your Director of FP&A may not have an invisible jet at their disposal (if they do, do you mind if we ask for a ride?), they do draw on an arsenal of tools to assist them in accomplishing their job. Not to mention, they’re good at dodging bullets too. 3. Junior Superhero: The Amazing Analyst Peter Parker—also known as your friendly neighborhood Spider-Man—is razor-smart, but he’s also just a teenager. So even though he has great power (and we all know that “with great power comes great responsibility”), he still has some learning to do. He makes mistakes, is a little too trusting and doesn’t always plan far enough ahead. But he’s learning, and he’s not afraid to ask powerful friends like Iron Man and Dr. Strange for help.  In other words, he’s like some of the more junior members on your finance team: the financial analysts, accountants and business analysts that provide powerful value to your overall aims but are still gaining knowledge and working their way up the ranks.  But, learning curve aside, Spider-Man has also saved the world more than once. Just like your accountants and analysts have probably saved your business from costly mistakes on occasion too—keeping timelines on track while supporting the organization for future growth. While these team members may be more junior, then, it’s a good idea to nurture their superpowers so that they can grow in their role. Adding new efficiencies to your business and reducing the wasted manual effort that often falls on them can also help them grow. 4. Powerful Support: IT for the Assist Even the best superheroes need excellent support. Take Black Panther as an example. Also known as T’Challa, he’s the king of the fictional country, Wakanda—a utopia with technical advancements that far surpass most of the world. But neither T’Challa nor the rest of Wakanda would get very far without their not-so-secret weapon: Black Panther’s sister Shuri, the princess of Wakanda. Okay, so technically Shuri isn’t a superhero, but she’s still super skilled. In fact, Black Panther constantly relies on the innovation and technology she brings to the table to get his superhero-ing done. Not only that, but she’s been instrumental in saving any number of Avengers and helping them save the universe too. Sound like anyone you know? Your head of IT may not technically have a role on the finance team, but they’re integral all the same, providing you with the tools you need to put your superpowers into action. In doing so, they empower you to drive the business to its goals—meaning they’re an invaluable resource you probably couldn’t do without. Superheroes Unite The thing about superheroes, though, is that they often work alone. While they may gather in The Avengers or Justice League, for most of them (with some notable exceptions) solo superhero-ing is what it’s at. And that’s where they differ from your typical finance team.  With the exception of the smallest companies—where there may be a single superstar driving finance—finance teams get many of their superpowers by working together, collaborating cohesively using the right tools to get the job done. And that team needs a Wonder Woman as much as it needs a Captain America, a Spider-Man as much as a Shuri.  It’s only when you’re all working together that your team will truly thrive. You may not actually be able to climb skyscrapers or deflect bullets, but it’ll feel like you can. What’s more, the right team can think strategically and help lead the business forward—excellent superpowers in themselves. You may not be saving the world, but you’re making your part of it thrive. So why not use Superhero Day as an excuse to celebrate your team? Stay Agile Learn how Vena can help you plan for the future and stay agile or change.

Microsoft is dedicated to becoming carbon negative by 2030. General Mills achieved their goal to sustainably source 10 priority ingredients by 2020. Prudential Financial considers environmental, social and governance factors in every investment they make. Green business may have once felt niche, populated by smaller players that weren’t afraid to lose out on revenue if it meant making a smaller impact on the environment. Today, though, the biggest businesses around the world are prioritizing the Earth—and proving that you can do exactly that while still achieving and surpassing your financial goals. In fact, with more customers taking a stand—and using their pocketbooks to show where their priorities lie—a commitment to the environment and sustainable business practices has become a selling point for many organizations. That’s good news for finance teams. While your business’s bottom line is always top of mind, the new focus on all things environmental means more businesses are supporting an environmental agenda and putting their money where their mouths are. And, as an integral part of the business planning process, finance teams are well-positioned to lead the way, building sustainability efforts into their decision making and weighing the risk and reward of every element of their organization’s sustainability efforts. Let’s look at three ways your finance teams can make sustainability part of your business plan—and how you can build on them to ensure your business is contributing to a better world as a whole. 1. Make Green Investments By choosing to invest in funds and businesses that prioritize the environment, you’re not only supporting companies that are helping the world rather than hurting it, you’re also demonstrating your own business ideals.  If green investing is a priority for you, you may opt to buy green bonds, exchange-traded funds (ETFs), index funds or mutual funds. Or you might choose to invest in businesses working on renewable energies or creating sustainable alternatives to everyday products. Either way, these kinds of investments can help you ensure your portfolio stays in line with your business values, while also adding to your earnings at the same time. 2. Measure Your Environmental Performance Businesses measure performance every day using key performance indicators (KPIs). So why should your performance around sustainability and your environmental impact be any different? The good news: You’re already collecting some critical data that can help you measure the impact of your sustainability and environmental initiatives. Utility bills, fuel, travel receipts and mileage for company vehicles can all help provide the data you need to measure your business’s environmental performance and sustainable business practices. Some of the KPIs you can use include: Your carbon footprint Consumption of energy Supply chain miles  Waste reduction Recycling rates 3. Source Out Sustainable Suppliers What’s another metric that can help you ascertain your ongoing environmental performance? The environmental sustainability of your suppliers.  After all, while it may be great for you to make sustainability and the size of your environmental footprint guiding principles of your business, if your suppliers aren’t taking their own actions, yours can only go so far. You become complicit by association. Understanding how your suppliers prioritize sustainability and whether their beliefs align with your company values can go a long way in building out your green finance commitments. But don’t be fooled by greenwashing attempts—instead, try to understand the concrete actions they’ve put in place to make environmental consciousness a priority. Going Beyond: Prioritizing Organizational ESG Creating a sustainable future  is all about building a better world—and in many organizations, that means prioritizing not just sustainable business practices, but a range of social issues as well. In fact, environmental, social and governance (ESG) criteria have become critical to many businesses today. They’re also something many investors, employees and customers look at as well. By focusing on ESG internally, you’re demonstrating that you care about more than just your growth goals and revenue objectives. It also reveals that you're looking outwards to the world at large and inwards to how you’re interacting with your employees and customers as well.  This is how ESG breaks down: Environmental refers to the impact your business makes on the earth. It includes the elements listed above, such as your sustainable investing efforts and any actions your business takes to reduce your harm to the environment. It can also include internal programs such as recycling efforts, volunteer initiatives and office retrofits to create a more sustainable workplace. Social refers to how you work with customers and any corporate activism you participate in around human rights issues. It also factors in your relationships with employees and how you treat the people who work for you. Are you prioritizing diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) and putting programs in place to back that up? Are you paying employees fairly and offering opportunities to grow or perks to keep morale up? What are you doing to close the gender gap? All of these demonstrate your social impact on the world. Governance is all about your leadership team. That is, how your organization is managed, whether your management team and board of directors lead by example and the type of compensation they receive. Are they avoiding any conflicts of interest? Are they diverse and inclusive? Are they receiving huge bonuses while employees are experiencing wage freezes? All of these can demonstrate the type of priorities your leadership team brings to the table—and in turn, the priorities of your business as a whole. By focusing on ESG internally and prioritizing it throughout your decision-making process, you help set your business apart for investors, employees and customers—and ensure you’re giving back to the world as a whole. More than that, though, you’ll show that not only is the environment a cornerstone of your business values, but rather, it’s just the start. Your organization truly cares about making a positive impact. Leading the Way To make a lasting impact on the environment and promote more sustainable business practices, everyone needs to get involved. And while ideally, your whole organization will join the initiatives underway, finance can lead the charge to make green initiatives a center point of your business. By championing green finance and making the environment and ESG part of your overall strategic goals, you’re taking a big step to building a more impactful business and creating the change the world needs. Sustainability and Your Business Think differently about the ways sustainable practices can be implemented throughout your organization.