The Human CFO: Leading in Perpetual Disruption l Gartner CFO & Finance Executive Conference

00:45:47
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sgSH-5DHOE4

Résumé

TLDRThe conference brings together over 2,000 finance leaders to review past economic challenges and explore future opportunities, especially in light of technological innovations like generative AI. Attendees are invited to consider their roles over the past year with words like 'dynamic' and 'unpredictable' and to anticipate further economic cycles. Amid discussions on maintaining financial discipline, the need for empathy, adaptability, and authenticity in leadership is emphasized. Generative AI is highlighted as a transformative force for business prospects, prompting leaders to re-evaluate data, policies, and workforce needs. Participants are encouraged to form connections, explore new vendors, and prepare their organizations for growth, sustainability, and digital transformations. The conference underscores the importance of human leadership in navigating disruptions, suggesting that human traits like empathy and vulnerability can enhance financial and organizational performance. The event concludes with a focus on the role of the 'human CFO' in leading innovation and change.

A retenir

  • 👥 Network with thousands of finance leaders.
  • 🔮 Explore future opportunities with generative AI.
  • 🌱 Embrace empathy, adaptability, and authenticity as leadership essentials.
  • 📈 Anticipate new economic cycles and opportunities.
  • 🛠️ Integrate AI and machine learning into workflows.
  • 🏭 Prepare for the industrial revolution driven by AI.
  • 🎯 Focus on enhancing financial discipline with empathy.
  • 🔍 Explore new vendor capabilities and AI implementations.
  • 🌀 Understand the human-machine learning ecosystem.
  • 🚀 Gear up for expanding and evolving CFO roles.

Chronologie

  • 00:00:00 - 00:05:00

    The event begins with an introduction highlighting the significant increase in attendance compared to the previous year. The audience is composed of CFOs and finance leaders from various organizations. The speaker reflects on the past year's challenges, including economic pressures and reorganizing finances, while also stressing resilience in the face of these issues and pushing towards digital transformation and automation.

  • 00:05:00 - 00:10:00

    Looking forward, finance leaders are encouraged to prepare for the next economic phase with opportunities for growth, particularly as generative AI promises to revolutionize industries. There is excitement but also caution, as some organizations are hesitantly integrating AI tools due to risks and the need to rethink organizational strategies and processes.

  • 00:10:00 - 00:15:00

    Gartner is positioned as a supportive partner in navigating these changes, offering guidance and knowledge on adapting to AI-driven transformation. The conference aims to provide practical sessions to enhance financial strategies and organizational structures, focusing on leadership skills, ESG, and technology deployment. Attendees are encouraged to engage, learn, and connect for future readiness.

  • 00:15:00 - 00:20:00

    The keynote speaker highlights the rapid changes AI has introduced, including disruption in workflows and the increasing role of digital technology in finance. While AI is advancing, the importance of human leadership and emotional intelligence remains vital in managing teams and guiding organizations through technological shifts.

  • 00:20:00 - 00:25:00

    Leaders must address employees' concerns about technology replacing jobs, fostering a collaborative environment where human and machine roles enhance each other. The emphasis is on creating systems that leverage technology without alienating staff, recognizing that the human element in leadership is crucial for successful integrations and innovation.

  • 00:25:00 - 00:30:00

    Human leadership in the technology-driven world involves adaptivity, empathy, and authenticity. It's highlighted that many leaders are not meeting these expectations, with a focus on understanding employees' motivations, building strong relationships, and fostering a culture of risk-taking without fear of repercussions.

  • 00:30:00 - 00:35:00

    The session further explores the detailed elements of empathetic leadership, integrating business and financial strategies through human interactions. Examples illustrate how empathy in leadership can bridge gaps, enhance cooperation, and lead to better business outcomes by understanding and acting on the needs of stakeholders.

  • 00:35:00 - 00:40:00

    Authenticity is examined as a leadership trait, emphasizing transparency and vulnerability to improve engagement and reduce turnover. Role modeling Candor enables open dialogues and honest exchanges, essential for strategic decision-making and fostering a trustworthy corporate environment.

  • 00:40:00 - 00:45:47

    The closing emphasizes the human-CFO approach as essential for guiding financial discipline through empathy and authenticity, promoting market success, and navigating technological changes. Attendees are encouraged to integrate these insights into their roles to drive future-ready financial leadership and effective enterprise outcomes.

Afficher plus

Carte mentale

Mind Map

Questions fréquemment posées

  • Who are the attendees of this conference?

    The attendees include CFOs, heads of FP&A, controllers, and finance transformation leaders from various companies and government institutions.

  • What are some challenges faced by finance leaders in the past year?

    Challenges include dealing with higher rates, tighter credit, slowing demand, recession planning, inflation forecasting, and ensuring efficiency and productivity.

  • What technological advancement is expected to drive the next industrial revolution?

    Generative artificial intelligence is expected to drive the next industrial revolution.

  • How does the conference propose to handle technological disruptions?

    The conference discusses using autonomous finance, advanced analytics, and machine learning to drive business and finance transformation.

  • What is a recurring theme in the conference about work style transformation?

    The recurring theme is the digital enterprise transformation, pushing towards digital workflows and processes.

  • What is emphasized as essential leadership quality in the conference?

    Empathy, authenticity, and adaptivity are emphasized as essential leadership qualities in the conference.

  • How do finance leaders plan to leverage generative AI?

    Finance leaders plan to leverage generative AI by experimenting with it in the office, integrating it into workflows, and keeping updated with new applications.

  • Why is human leadership important despite technological disruptions?

    Human leadership is crucial as it includes empathy and authenticity, which can enhance financial discipline and organizational outcome.

  • What advice is given regarding new partnerships and vendors?

    Attendees are advised to explore new vendors, understand new capabilities, and learn about the implementation of AI in processes.

  • What is the expected outcome for attendees after the conference?

    Attendees are expected to feel more ready for a dynamic, expansive, and unpredictable CFO role and equipped to lead their teams through transformation.

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  • 00:00:00
    schedules to be here with more than 2
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    000 of your peers that is double the
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    number of attendees at this conference
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    that over last year you're joined in the
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    room this morning by CFOs heads of FP a
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    controllers Finance transformation
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    leaders
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    from companies and government
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    institutions large and small
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    now before we get started with this
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    morning's keynote we're going to take
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    just a few minutes and Look Backwards at
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    the year that we've had
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    and also forward at the opportunities on
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    the horizon
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    let's start with an easy warm-up this
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    morning
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    what is one word that you would use to
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    describe your role
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    in the last 12 months
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    I asked several of you leading up to
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    this event a few more of you at the
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    happy hours last night and a couple more
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    of you at breakfast this morning and you
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    told me things like dynamic
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    fluid
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    volatile
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    unrelenting unachievable expansive
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    complex
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    some of you said weird
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    and unpredictable
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    now this is no surprise we're in a
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    different part of the economic cycle
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    we've been battling through higher rates
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    tighter credit slowing demand we've had
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    to plan for a few recessions I think at
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    this point
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    we've had to reforcast re-budget as we
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    learn more about inflation the consumer
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    and demand of for our products and
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    services
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    we've had to drive efficiency across our
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    businesses challenging all teams to do
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    more with less and be more productive
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    we've had to manage expenses tightly
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    we've had to renegotiate contracts
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    who would have thought in the last 12
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    months we were worried about the health
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    of our banking system
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    right we had to meet Rising pay
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    expectations we had to deal with
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    activist investors that are circling
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    assessing the diversity of our boards
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    and the viability of our environmental
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    sustainability programs
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    this is all while we were walking a
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    tightrope with investors managing
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    expenses and profitability while
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    painting a picture of the Glorious
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    opportunities that lie ahead
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    and this is all while we were battling
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    our own burnout
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    and the burnout of our teams
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    at the same time we kept our foot on the
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    accelerator
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    most of us are still driving hard
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    towards digital Enterprise
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    transformation and in the finance
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    function we're still making strides
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    towards autonomous Finance
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    we're rebuilding our data architecture
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    we're applying Advanced Analytics we're
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    adding machine learning robotics
  • 00:02:33
    but this is all in the last 12 months
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    right and we as CFOs we get paid to live
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    12 months in the future
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    in the next 12 months we'll have to
  • 00:02:43
    start preparing for yet another phase of
  • 00:02:45
    the economic cycle where it's not only
  • 00:02:47
    about cost control and profitability but
  • 00:02:49
    hopefully more growth and opportunities
  • 00:02:51
    on the horizon
  • 00:02:53
    and there is a massive opportunity for
  • 00:02:56
    all of us right around the corner
  • 00:03:00
    do you realize
  • 00:03:01
    that you were going to be in the
  • 00:03:03
    driver's seat as CFO
  • 00:03:06
    during the next Industrial Revolution
  • 00:03:09
    driven by generative artificial
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    intelligence
  • 00:03:15
    trying to see some of your faces think
  • 00:03:17
    let that sink in
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    industrial revolutions are driven by
  • 00:03:23
    large broad mainstream adoption of
  • 00:03:26
    general purpose Technologies general
  • 00:03:28
    purpose Technologies like Machinery new
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    energy sources the steam engine Railways
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    automobiles
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    telecommunications the internet
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    generative artificial intelligence will
  • 00:03:40
    mean we work differently and it changes
  • 00:03:44
    how why when and where work is done in
  • 00:03:49
    the knowledge economy
  • 00:03:50
    it's going to restack Industries and
  • 00:03:52
    it's going to shake up leaders within
  • 00:03:54
    those Industries some are estimating
  • 00:03:56
    that generative artificial intelligence
  • 00:03:58
    could add upwards of 200 trillion to the
  • 00:04:01
    global economy by 2030.
  • 00:04:04
    and here's the deal our employees are
  • 00:04:07
    already back in the office experimenting
  • 00:04:09
    with these tools today
  • 00:04:12
    except a few CFOs last night told me
  • 00:04:13
    they've already banned it
  • 00:04:17
    digital Giants are releasing new
  • 00:04:19
    applications week over week over week
  • 00:04:21
    and those things will be embedded
  • 00:04:23
    directly into the workflows and
  • 00:04:25
    processes that we manage if they're not
  • 00:04:28
    already it will be before we know it
  • 00:04:31
    so as a CFO it is time for you and your
  • 00:04:34
    organization to reinvent to recreate
  • 00:04:38
    to reallocate and to reorganize
  • 00:04:43
    we have some time
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    we know this is on the horizon it's
  • 00:04:46
    moving quickly and it's but it's going
  • 00:04:48
    to be a large long massive
  • 00:04:51
    transformation over many years and
  • 00:04:52
    decades
  • 00:04:54
    but it's at this conference today that
  • 00:04:57
    we start to have well-formed opinions
  • 00:05:00
    for our organization
  • 00:05:02
    we need to understand what should our
  • 00:05:04
    policies be what are the risks is our
  • 00:05:06
    data ready is our talent ready do we
  • 00:05:09
    augment staff or replace staff which
  • 00:05:12
    vendors should we be working with what
  • 00:05:14
    are the best use cases across our SG a
  • 00:05:16
    functions and how do we tell the right
  • 00:05:18
    balanced but opportunistic story to our
  • 00:05:22
    staff
  • 00:05:23
    our organization
  • 00:05:25
    and our investors
  • 00:05:28
    now Gartner is going to be right
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    alongside you on this path we're
  • 00:05:31
    investing ahead of the curve so that you
  • 00:05:33
    can stay two steps ahead
  • 00:05:35
    on this Industrial Revolution
  • 00:05:38
    we're also rethinking our own client
  • 00:05:40
    experience already in the face of
  • 00:05:43
    generative artificial intelligence
  • 00:05:45
    and at this conference we're going to
  • 00:05:47
    help you solidify your own opinions
  • 00:05:48
    learn best practices Benchmark your
  • 00:05:51
    thinking and partner with the right
  • 00:05:53
    vendors and service providers to unlock
  • 00:05:56
    growth
  • 00:05:58
    in this new opportunity
  • 00:06:01
    now at the conference we're also going
  • 00:06:02
    to get super practical and super
  • 00:06:04
    tactical with sessions related to our
  • 00:06:07
    finance transformations
  • 00:06:08
    what are the skills we need what are the
  • 00:06:11
    org structures that winning companies
  • 00:06:13
    are using how do we deploy talent What's
  • 00:06:15
    on our technology roadmap
  • 00:06:17
    how do we think about ESG and diverse
  • 00:06:20
    leadership just a few topics that we're
  • 00:06:22
    excited to bring all of you today
  • 00:06:25
    now as we get started with this
  • 00:06:26
    conference set a few goals for yourself
  • 00:06:30
    one goal is around the type of
  • 00:06:32
    connections you want to make who do you
  • 00:06:34
    want to meet and how are you going to
  • 00:06:35
    stay connected when you get into those
  • 00:06:37
    roundtables ask the tough questions
  • 00:06:39
    challenge each other and show
  • 00:06:40
    vulnerability
  • 00:06:43
    when you go to the vendor Hall to meet
  • 00:06:44
    with vendors make sure you're meeting
  • 00:06:46
    with new vendors that you haven't heard
  • 00:06:47
    of and the ones that you have heard of
  • 00:06:49
    ask them about their latest capabilities
  • 00:06:51
    maybe how they're deploying AI across
  • 00:06:53
    their processes
  • 00:06:57
    and then finally don't miss the Gartner
  • 00:06:59
    Zone which is right outside these doors
  • 00:07:01
    at the Gartner Zone we are showing you
  • 00:07:03
    how other clients are finding the most
  • 00:07:04
    value out of their Gartner subscriptions
  • 00:07:07
    now we have one aim for you in the next
  • 00:07:09
    48 hours these two days that you're
  • 00:07:11
    going to spend with us and your peers
  • 00:07:12
    and that is that you look back on Friday
  • 00:07:15
    and you feel more ready for a CFO role
  • 00:07:18
    that is expansive unpredictable
  • 00:07:21
    fluid
  • 00:07:22
    Dynamic and unrelenting and that you can
  • 00:07:26
    take Renewed Energy and confidence back
  • 00:07:29
    to the teams that you lead
  • 00:07:31
    and get ready for even more
  • 00:07:33
    transformation on the horizon
  • 00:07:36
    to get us started on that Journey I'm
  • 00:07:37
    now going to Welcome to the stage VP
  • 00:07:40
    analyst Dennis Gannon for this morning's
  • 00:07:42
    Keynote
  • 00:07:43
    [Music]
  • 00:07:55
    well hello good morning I am excited and
  • 00:07:59
    honored to be kicking off what is going
  • 00:08:01
    to be a fantastic couple of days here
  • 00:08:04
    with some words in my title that might
  • 00:08:07
    need a little bit of context or
  • 00:08:10
    explanation we're talking about the
  • 00:08:12
    human CFO leading in the face of
  • 00:08:15
    disruption now the disruption side of
  • 00:08:17
    that I think is really easy to get on
  • 00:08:18
    board with like everything Alex just
  • 00:08:20
    said 12 months ago I don't think anybody
  • 00:08:22
    in this room was thinking that
  • 00:08:24
    generative AI would be doing your kids
  • 00:08:26
    homework for them right that it would be
  • 00:08:28
    maybe writing the first draft of your
  • 00:08:31
    mdna maybe or that a headline like this
  • 00:08:35
    something that
  • 00:08:36
    would have been the the plot of a
  • 00:08:38
    mediocre science fiction story 12 months
  • 00:08:40
    ago it's reality now with a gaming
  • 00:08:42
    company installing an AI as their CEO
  • 00:08:45
    earlier this year
  • 00:08:46
    now yeah sure it's it's great publicity
  • 00:08:50
    for that company and it's a great way to
  • 00:08:51
    get your your story to go viral for a
  • 00:08:53
    day but the changes being wrought here
  • 00:08:57
    are very real technology is disrupting
  • 00:09:00
    expectations interactions workflows like
  • 00:09:03
    never before and so to be sure this
  • 00:09:06
    conference is going to be all about
  • 00:09:07
    harnessing technology to to drive
  • 00:09:10
    autonomous Finance harnessing digital
  • 00:09:12
    and data to drive Innovation and
  • 00:09:15
    profitable growth
  • 00:09:16
    and yeah if it's not already you are
  • 00:09:19
    soon going to have ai and ml executing
  • 00:09:23
    large parts of what humans used to do at
  • 00:09:25
    your organization
  • 00:09:27
    so why is the human CFO our topic here
  • 00:09:31
    today why why am I not up on stage
  • 00:09:33
    talking about how we're going to program
  • 00:09:34
    the AI CFO to navigate these disruptions
  • 00:09:37
    for us
  • 00:09:38
    well even though this environment is
  • 00:09:41
    marked by all the ways in which
  • 00:09:43
    technology is changing the game here
  • 00:09:45
    improving our people leadership is
  • 00:09:49
    actually more important than ever
  • 00:09:51
    so let's talk for a minute about that
  • 00:09:53
    talk about how these changes are
  • 00:09:54
    impacting our employees and impacting
  • 00:09:55
    what it means for us to be a leader
  • 00:09:58
    and then let's go a little deeper on
  • 00:09:59
    what it means for us as CFOs
  • 00:10:03
    let's start with the kind of the bigger
  • 00:10:05
    picture here because lots of employees
  • 00:10:07
    across all kinds of Industries all kinds
  • 00:10:10
    of functional areas they're feeling a a
  • 00:10:13
    new and unsettling relationship with
  • 00:10:16
    technology
  • 00:10:17
    they're seeing these headlines about
  • 00:10:19
    jobs that look like theirs now being
  • 00:10:21
    taken by AI about these jobs is
  • 00:10:24
    disappearing to to be done by machines
  • 00:10:27
    but as much as someone on your team
  • 00:10:29
    might fear that advanced technology is
  • 00:10:31
    coming to take their job away from them
  • 00:10:33
    altogether the picture that's actually
  • 00:10:35
    emerging is a lot more complicated
  • 00:10:39
    in practice what we're seeing is the
  • 00:10:41
    emergence of a human machine learning
  • 00:10:44
    Loop
  • 00:10:46
    an ecosystem in which humans and
  • 00:10:48
    machines are are doing what they're best
  • 00:10:50
    at and interacting with each other so
  • 00:10:52
    you have technology providing trip wires
  • 00:10:55
    and and Trigger warnings and formulating
  • 00:10:58
    simple recommendations cleaning and
  • 00:11:00
    refining data
  • 00:11:01
    and then you have humans that are
  • 00:11:03
    interpreting that data they're
  • 00:11:04
    formulating new goals identifying new
  • 00:11:07
    problems taking on more complex
  • 00:11:09
    decisions and recommendations
  • 00:11:13
    it's instead of having a technology
  • 00:11:16
    replace a person what we're seeing
  • 00:11:18
    happen far more often is that the human
  • 00:11:20
    and the Machine are complementing each
  • 00:11:22
    other
  • 00:11:23
    and making about making each other
  • 00:11:24
    better
  • 00:11:26
    or at least that's the theory right this
  • 00:11:28
    is what it looks like when it when it
  • 00:11:29
    goes right
  • 00:11:30
    but making it go right it's not easy at
  • 00:11:33
    all actually think about
  • 00:11:36
    how challenging this must be for someone
  • 00:11:37
    on your team
  • 00:11:39
    continuously changing their their
  • 00:11:41
    workflows and their routines that
  • 00:11:43
    they've built around these tools to the
  • 00:11:45
    overwhelming feeling that they must have
  • 00:11:47
    staring at this mountain of work that
  • 00:11:49
    they have to do to to keep the
  • 00:11:51
    proverbial lights on
  • 00:11:52
    and then constantly being told that
  • 00:11:54
    there's all kinds of new opportunities
  • 00:11:55
    out there for us to innovate quicker or
  • 00:11:57
    faster right and and push harder
  • 00:12:01
    The Human Side of this learning Loop
  • 00:12:04
    that's where the real risks are
  • 00:12:06
    and our transformation efforts right now
  • 00:12:08
    if we can't keep our analytics team
  • 00:12:11
    engaged and dialed in with all the
  • 00:12:13
    change that we're throwing at them if we
  • 00:12:14
    can't retain that Hotshot new head of uh
  • 00:12:18
    artificial intelligence that we've got
  • 00:12:20
    who's going to develop our AI strategy
  • 00:12:22
    for the organization that's a much
  • 00:12:24
    bigger risk than a software pilot
  • 00:12:27
    crashing and burning
  • 00:12:29
    managing this human element is as
  • 00:12:32
    critical as it has ever been
  • 00:12:35
    but I'm not up here today to just give
  • 00:12:38
    you a reminder to pay attention to your
  • 00:12:40
    leadership I know how important this is
  • 00:12:42
    for for so many of you already
  • 00:12:45
    what's news here
  • 00:12:47
    is how much this environment has changed
  • 00:12:50
    what your people need from you as a
  • 00:12:53
    leader
  • 00:12:55
    now my colleagues in our HR practice
  • 00:12:57
    here at Gartner they're experts in all
  • 00:12:59
    things leadership and they have
  • 00:13:01
    absolutely caught on to this emerging
  • 00:13:03
    relationship that people have with
  • 00:13:05
    technology
  • 00:13:06
    and the leadership Gap that's emerging
  • 00:13:08
    here
  • 00:13:11
    and Gardner we've written a lot in the
  • 00:13:13
    last few months about the call to human
  • 00:13:15
    leadership in today's world
  • 00:13:18
    now human leadership it is fundamentally
  • 00:13:20
    what it sounds like it's corporate
  • 00:13:21
    leadership with a foundational human
  • 00:13:24
    component to it but as straightforward
  • 00:13:26
    as that might sound
  • 00:13:28
    Being Human as a leader
  • 00:13:31
    it's actually not that easy
  • 00:13:34
    most of us aren't getting there you look
  • 00:13:35
    across the Executive Suite not just
  • 00:13:38
    Finance but operations supply chain I.T
  • 00:13:41
    everywhere employees tell us that less
  • 00:13:44
    than 25 percent
  • 00:13:46
    of their leaders are meeting their
  • 00:13:49
    expectations for human leadership
  • 00:13:51
    25 that's not good
  • 00:13:54
    so what are we missing
  • 00:13:55
    it's gone wrong here well let's break it
  • 00:13:57
    down because there are three core
  • 00:14:00
    components of human leadership that
  • 00:14:01
    we've identified here at Gartner
  • 00:14:03
    their adaptivity
  • 00:14:06
    empathy
  • 00:14:07
    and authenticity
  • 00:14:10
    and let's take a minute and look at
  • 00:14:11
    these three things and figure out where
  • 00:14:13
    we're doing okay but where it is that we
  • 00:14:15
    have work to do to meet the expectation
  • 00:14:17
    that our employees have of us
  • 00:14:20
    and let's start with adaptivity and I
  • 00:14:22
    think on this one actually this is kind
  • 00:14:24
    of a good news story here we all deserve
  • 00:14:25
    some credit here our employees are now
  • 00:14:27
    demanding a more customized a more
  • 00:14:29
    flexible work experience and by and
  • 00:14:31
    large we've responded to that demand
  • 00:14:34
    not just with hybrid I know a lot of you
  • 00:14:36
    are meeting the the new expectations
  • 00:14:39
    that your employees have about when and
  • 00:14:41
    where they do their work right and
  • 00:14:43
    accommodating their desire to be at home
  • 00:14:45
    for several days a week or to shift work
  • 00:14:48
    around so you can do some things in the
  • 00:14:49
    evening to be with their family in the
  • 00:14:51
    afternoon things like that but it's not
  • 00:14:53
    just when and where we're working more
  • 00:14:55
    and more of us are extending that
  • 00:14:56
    radical flexibility to things like
  • 00:14:59
    with whom I'm working and how much work
  • 00:15:01
    I'm doing I don't necessarily want to
  • 00:15:03
    just be assigned into a relationship
  • 00:15:05
    with a random co-worker I don't want to
  • 00:15:07
    have to be kind of eight hours a day in
  • 00:15:09
    this one place day after day after day
  • 00:15:11
    and I want more flexibility in that or
  • 00:15:12
    even extending to what work I do
  • 00:15:15
    recognize that hey as an employee I'm
  • 00:15:17
    going to be more engaged to have the
  • 00:15:18
    opportunity to protect my time for this
  • 00:15:20
    thing and get after that
  • 00:15:23
    no the pandemic the ensuing shutdown it
  • 00:15:26
    may have forced our hands here to be
  • 00:15:28
    sure but
  • 00:15:29
    you've continued to meet the bar in the
  • 00:15:31
    years since and responding to the
  • 00:15:33
    demands of your employees here so so
  • 00:15:35
    credit to to this group actually and
  • 00:15:37
    this element of human leadership uh
  • 00:15:39
    honestly good work and there's more to
  • 00:15:40
    be done here our mission isn't finished
  • 00:15:42
    here by any means but it does mean if
  • 00:15:45
    adaptivity isn't the sticking point here
  • 00:15:47
    if that's not what we're falling down on
  • 00:15:49
    then it's the next two pillars where we
  • 00:15:52
    really need to dial in
  • 00:15:55
    let's start with empathy
  • 00:15:57
    what does it mean
  • 00:15:58
    to lead with empathy
  • 00:16:01
    I think when we picture empathy As
  • 00:16:03
    Leaders there's a good chance a lot of
  • 00:16:04
    us are getting it kind of wrong
  • 00:16:06
    because empathy isn't just being nice
  • 00:16:09
    it's not just saying kind words to
  • 00:16:11
    somebody the most productive way to
  • 00:16:13
    think about empathy is as a cognitive
  • 00:16:17
    process right it's not an inherent trait
  • 00:16:20
    something we're either born with or not
  • 00:16:21
    but it's more like an exercise that we
  • 00:16:24
    can choose to do or not do and sure the
  • 00:16:27
    the Baseline conception of choosing to
  • 00:16:29
    to bring some kindness to an interaction
  • 00:16:31
    that could be a good starting point on
  • 00:16:32
    this journey
  • 00:16:34
    but true empathetic leadership requires
  • 00:16:36
    more
  • 00:16:37
    past the articulation of kindness into
  • 00:16:40
    taking the time to cultivate a
  • 00:16:43
    deliberate understanding of the
  • 00:16:45
    motivations the experiences of someone
  • 00:16:47
    else and leaving your own biases behind
  • 00:16:49
    while you do that
  • 00:16:52
    and then building on that turning that
  • 00:16:54
    understanding into intentional action
  • 00:16:58
    right actually creating change
  • 00:17:00
    engineering our workflows based on that
  • 00:17:03
    empathetic understanding that we've
  • 00:17:04
    built
  • 00:17:07
    this is a critical mandate for us over
  • 00:17:09
    80 percent of the HR leaders that we
  • 00:17:11
    work with at Gartner they're telling us
  • 00:17:12
    that the emerging Generations see
  • 00:17:14
    Workforce
  • 00:17:15
    they've got a higher bar for empathy for
  • 00:17:17
    emotionally intelligent leadership at
  • 00:17:19
    work
  • 00:17:22
    and then authenticity
  • 00:17:26
    think about how there's no more hard and
  • 00:17:27
    fast line between who you are at home
  • 00:17:30
    and and who you are at work that that
  • 00:17:32
    boundary has been obliterated right it
  • 00:17:34
    is routine now that you're having a
  • 00:17:36
    catch up with one of your employees one
  • 00:17:38
    of your team members
  • 00:17:39
    in their bedroom
  • 00:17:41
    you think about that that's weird It's
  • 00:17:42
    Not Unusual That Someone's Child or
  • 00:17:45
    their dog becomes a new participant in
  • 00:17:48
    your one-on-one that day right that's
  • 00:17:49
    normal and it's raise the bar for
  • 00:17:51
    authenticity in our leadership at work
  • 00:17:53
    and you might be thinking yeah no I get
  • 00:17:55
    this I've been I've been reading the
  • 00:17:56
    books and and thinking about this I've
  • 00:17:58
    been doing these Town Halls he's asking
  • 00:18:00
    me any things where I'm super
  • 00:18:01
    transparent about what's going on I
  • 00:18:04
    actually did this feature on our
  • 00:18:05
    corporate internet last week and get to
  • 00:18:07
    know your leadership team they came and
  • 00:18:09
    took some pictures of my house my family
  • 00:18:10
    and all that and sure that's not wrong
  • 00:18:14
    per se that kind of sharing isn't bad
  • 00:18:17
    but it's not sufficient for True human
  • 00:18:19
    leadership right just like we saw with
  • 00:18:21
    empathy sort of a spectrum of approaches
  • 00:18:23
    we can use to organize our thinking here
  • 00:18:26
    and authentic human leadership requires
  • 00:18:29
    more than personal sharing it requires
  • 00:18:30
    also a level of personal candor
  • 00:18:33
    that we bring to our interactions
  • 00:18:35
    honesty and transparency
  • 00:18:38
    that sets a tone for others to do the
  • 00:18:40
    same
  • 00:18:42
    it requires us to be genuinely
  • 00:18:44
    vulnerable in front of our our boss our
  • 00:18:48
    our teams our peers
  • 00:18:51
    to show people that they can take a
  • 00:18:54
    personal risk they can put themselves
  • 00:18:55
    out there and not be punished by the
  • 00:18:57
    system for doing so
  • 00:18:59
    which is by the way not the case right
  • 00:19:01
    now
  • 00:19:02
    over half of your teams over half of
  • 00:19:04
    Finance employees are telling us
  • 00:19:06
    they are afraid
  • 00:19:08
    to take a calculated risk on behalf of
  • 00:19:11
    the organization because they're afraid
  • 00:19:13
    it's going to blow back on them
  • 00:19:16
    so we need to challenge ourselves to
  • 00:19:17
    raise the bar here for what it means to
  • 00:19:18
    lead with authenticity
  • 00:19:21
    think about this maybe in terms of how
  • 00:19:23
    you might uh I might share some details
  • 00:19:25
    about a vacation that you took right
  • 00:19:27
    maybe you uh put a social media post out
  • 00:19:29
    there with a picture of of you and your
  • 00:19:32
    family and you're dressed beautifully
  • 00:19:33
    and you're all getting along and you're
  • 00:19:35
    smiling and you're sitting in front of
  • 00:19:37
    this beautiful Oceanside view right yeah
  • 00:19:40
    sure maybe that's some kind of of
  • 00:19:41
    sharing
  • 00:19:42
    but true authenticity would be the
  • 00:19:45
    Candor in letting people see just how
  • 00:19:47
    stressed it made you to keep your kids
  • 00:19:49
    contained and occupied on the seven
  • 00:19:51
    hours worth of flights that it took to
  • 00:19:53
    get there or or the vulnerability in
  • 00:19:56
    letting people know that when it came
  • 00:19:57
    time to uh to take that step off the
  • 00:19:59
    bungee jump platform you you got a
  • 00:20:01
    little nervous you started to
  • 00:20:02
    second-guess the decisions in life that
  • 00:20:05
    that led you to that point when you role
  • 00:20:07
    model what it means to be authentic in
  • 00:20:09
    this way you Empower your teams to be
  • 00:20:12
    their authentic selves
  • 00:20:16
    and the payoff here for nailing this
  • 00:20:18
    it's incredible if we lead our teams
  • 00:20:20
    with adaptivity empathy and authenticity
  • 00:20:23
    well for one thing that turnover and
  • 00:20:25
    attrition that we're always dealing with
  • 00:20:28
    the average human leader improves
  • 00:20:29
    intention to stay by full 12 points over
  • 00:20:32
    the average leader
  • 00:20:37
    net burnout
  • 00:20:38
    that we're always seeming to feel on our
  • 00:20:40
    teams and trying to get ahead of the
  • 00:20:42
    the pervasive weariness that we can
  • 00:20:44
    sense sometimes
  • 00:20:46
    human leaders improve well-being by a
  • 00:20:49
    full 30 points compared to their peers
  • 00:20:53
    and that disconnection that we see where
  • 00:20:55
    folks are turning off their cameras and
  • 00:20:57
    they're kind of dialing back and they're
  • 00:20:59
    just doing kind of the minimum that it
  • 00:21:00
    takes to get by for a while
  • 00:21:02
    human leadership drives up engagement by
  • 00:21:05
    37 points that is incredible that this
  • 00:21:09
    is why human leadership is the playbook
  • 00:21:11
    for this kind of environment of
  • 00:21:13
    disruption because this payoff is
  • 00:21:15
    amazing intention to stay well-being
  • 00:21:18
    engagement we know we need these things
  • 00:21:20
    we know how much value those things
  • 00:21:22
    Drive how much it improves team
  • 00:21:23
    performance
  • 00:21:25
    but
  • 00:21:26
    you might be sitting there right now
  • 00:21:28
    thinking
  • 00:21:29
    okay Dennis
  • 00:21:31
    I'm with you I buy this I like
  • 00:21:32
    everything I've heard
  • 00:21:34
    but it kind of sounds like something
  • 00:21:36
    that everybody needs to be doing not
  • 00:21:38
    just me but it sounds like something for
  • 00:21:39
    my CIO for my head of marketing for our
  • 00:21:42
    GMS right this seems like a good thing
  • 00:21:43
    for for everybody so
  • 00:21:45
    you know when you tell me that we're
  • 00:21:46
    talking about the human CFO yeah the
  • 00:21:49
    human part of that makes sense now
  • 00:21:51
    but what about the CFO part
  • 00:21:54
    because that's a finance leader we have
  • 00:21:56
    some unique responsibilities
  • 00:21:59
    we have to be the last line of defense
  • 00:22:01
    in protecting the financial outcomes
  • 00:22:04
    that determine whether the organization
  • 00:22:06
    gets to keep growing whether there are
  • 00:22:08
    new opportunities for people and whether
  • 00:22:10
    we get to live in that world of
  • 00:22:12
    expanding opportunities and Horizons or
  • 00:22:14
    whether we go the other way and things
  • 00:22:16
    start to shrink and we lose
  • 00:22:17
    opportunities for folks that's why the
  • 00:22:20
    organization has a CFO
  • 00:22:22
    it's not just signing off on the books
  • 00:22:23
    after everything has happened it is
  • 00:22:25
    making those hard decisions the tough
  • 00:22:29
    economic trade-offs that protect the
  • 00:22:31
    growth and profitability of the
  • 00:22:33
    organization the the outcomes that are
  • 00:22:36
    so foundational to everything else that
  • 00:22:37
    we're trying to do
  • 00:22:40
    and that need to make
  • 00:22:43
    hard trade-offs to protect Financial
  • 00:22:45
    discipline having that as a job one for
  • 00:22:48
    you as a finance leader
  • 00:22:49
    that can make my entire call to human
  • 00:22:51
    leadership that I've sounded here so far
  • 00:22:53
    make it feel maybe a little
  • 00:22:55
    remote from some of the hard questions
  • 00:22:57
    of your job
  • 00:22:58
    in fact it feels like what the
  • 00:23:01
    Enterprise is demanding of you
  • 00:23:03
    especially and again in this tough
  • 00:23:05
    economic environment that we're in is
  • 00:23:06
    something very different than human
  • 00:23:09
    leadership
  • 00:23:11
    and so we've been telling us in fact
  • 00:23:12
    over these last six months as we've been
  • 00:23:13
    doing research into how CFOs have been
  • 00:23:15
    responding to these changing economic
  • 00:23:17
    conditions and the unpredictability that
  • 00:23:19
    we've all been experiencing
  • 00:23:20
    and you've been telling us that even
  • 00:23:22
    though your CFO role it continues to
  • 00:23:24
    expand and evolve and all kinds of
  • 00:23:27
    interesting and unpredictable ways
  • 00:23:29
    you're leaning more than ever into
  • 00:23:31
    supply chain operations
  • 00:23:35
    corporate strategy Enterprise digital
  • 00:23:37
    transformation all these things but you
  • 00:23:38
    tell us that collectively amidst all
  • 00:23:41
    this your number one mission is still
  • 00:23:44
    about enforcing Financial discipline
  • 00:23:47
    he told us that in this environment
  • 00:23:50
    right now it is critical more than ever
  • 00:23:52
    for finance to provide things like
  • 00:23:54
    like scrutiny
  • 00:23:56
    right when our our teams are stretched
  • 00:23:58
    then cost of capital is high funding is
  • 00:24:01
    is scarce we need to make sure we're not
  • 00:24:02
    just throwing money at bad ideas right
  • 00:24:04
    so we're raising the level of scrutiny
  • 00:24:07
    that we bring to business cases we're
  • 00:24:09
    pushing harder on assumptions we are
  • 00:24:11
    looking at new spending requests with
  • 00:24:13
    more acute attention
  • 00:24:16
    and we know a lot of new bets that we're
  • 00:24:17
    making may not pay off so we're looking
  • 00:24:19
    for more and better data
  • 00:24:20
    to tell us if an investment is working
  • 00:24:22
    trying to find the good leading
  • 00:24:23
    indicators that give us Insight or or
  • 00:24:25
    the right metrics to put on a dashboard
  • 00:24:28
    and then more accountability
  • 00:24:32
    dialing up
  • 00:24:33
    business leader and project sponsor
  • 00:24:35
    accountability for the ROI that they
  • 00:24:37
    promised us putting their their feet to
  • 00:24:39
    the fire
  • 00:24:40
    now say what you want about this list
  • 00:24:42
    and how necessary you might think it is
  • 00:24:44
    to run this Playbook but
  • 00:24:46
    scrutiny data accountability
  • 00:24:50
    this doesn't feel like Humanity right
  • 00:24:53
    you don't see a lot of empathy and
  • 00:24:55
    authenticity emerging from this list
  • 00:24:58
    right I mean your business certainly
  • 00:25:00
    doesn't they tell us that that your
  • 00:25:02
    focus on financial discipline is
  • 00:25:04
    alienating to them
  • 00:25:07
    and I know this because Gartner we run
  • 00:25:08
    an exercise where we capture quantify
  • 00:25:11
    and structure the the feedback that you
  • 00:25:13
    get from your business partners on the
  • 00:25:15
    service that Finance is providing to
  • 00:25:17
    your stakeholders in the broader
  • 00:25:18
    organization
  • 00:25:20
    and in this exercise your stakeholders
  • 00:25:22
    are telling us loud and clear that
  • 00:25:24
    they're not feeling the human leadership
  • 00:25:25
    from you
  • 00:25:26
    it tells things like
  • 00:25:28
    if Finance is stifling innovation
  • 00:25:31
    you're creating a burden for my
  • 00:25:33
    department one CFO candidly remarked me
  • 00:25:35
    that his team had become known as the
  • 00:25:36
    office of business prevention
  • 00:25:40
    look Financial discipline is necessary
  • 00:25:43
    and I like standing in front of CFOs and
  • 00:25:46
    talking to them so I am never going to
  • 00:25:47
    stand up here and tell you to take your
  • 00:25:49
    eye off of that ball
  • 00:25:50
    but Financial discipline being necessary
  • 00:25:54
    doesn't mean it has to be alienating
  • 00:25:57
    it doesn't have to compete with human
  • 00:26:00
    leadership for our Focus
  • 00:26:02
    in fact
  • 00:26:03
    stewarding Financial discipline
  • 00:26:06
    can still be a human Mission at heart
  • 00:26:09
    and maybe the single most important
  • 00:26:11
    thing I can ask you to take away from
  • 00:26:12
    the time we have together today is this
  • 00:26:14
    that when we do it right the mission of
  • 00:26:17
    driving Financial discipline
  • 00:26:20
    is one in the same as the mission of
  • 00:26:23
    being a human leader
  • 00:26:25
    being a human CFO means that the impact
  • 00:26:28
    of our empathy and our authenticity it
  • 00:26:30
    shows up not just
  • 00:26:32
    in the quality of interactions we're
  • 00:26:33
    having not just in the feedback that we
  • 00:26:35
    get from our team on our managerial
  • 00:26:37
    performance
  • 00:26:38
    it shows up in improving our ability to
  • 00:26:41
    make those tough economic trade-offs to
  • 00:26:43
    protect Financial outcomes for the
  • 00:26:45
    entire Enterprise
  • 00:26:48
    it means that the human CFO
  • 00:26:51
    is a better CFO
  • 00:26:54
    that's a bold statement but it's what I
  • 00:26:56
    want you approaching the rest of the
  • 00:26:57
    conference with because this assertion
  • 00:26:59
    that the human CFO is a better CFO it's
  • 00:27:02
    not just some one-off assertion that we
  • 00:27:05
    derive for for this morning session
  • 00:27:07
    this imperative it's grounded in some of
  • 00:27:10
    the most important work that we've been
  • 00:27:12
    doing for you across the last few years
  • 00:27:14
    research that importantly didn't start
  • 00:27:16
    off on how to be a human CFO it started
  • 00:27:18
    off in questions like how do we grow
  • 00:27:19
    efficiently how do we expand our Top
  • 00:27:22
    Line while also driving bottom line
  • 00:27:24
    efficiency improvements simultaneously
  • 00:27:27
    or research on the right strategies to
  • 00:27:29
    allocate capital in this environment to
  • 00:27:30
    get full value from our digital
  • 00:27:32
    investing portfolios
  • 00:27:35
    or research on how to optimize cost and
  • 00:27:38
    generate sustainable profitability
  • 00:27:42
    what kept emerging in all this research
  • 00:27:44
    on questions of financial performance
  • 00:27:47
    are unexpected but very real themes of a
  • 00:27:51
    human CFO at work
  • 00:27:53
    of CFOs accessing their empathy and
  • 00:27:56
    their authenticity to drive Enterprise
  • 00:27:58
    outcomes
  • 00:28:04
    so let's take the remaining time that we
  • 00:28:06
    have together and let's look at some of
  • 00:28:08
    these examples where the answer is all
  • 00:28:11
    about being a human CFO share some human
  • 00:28:14
    examples of what it means to lead with
  • 00:28:16
    empathy and authenticity in your CFO job
  • 00:28:22
    and we'll start with empathy as a CFO
  • 00:28:23
    remember when we're talking about
  • 00:28:24
    empathy here we're not just talking
  • 00:28:25
    about how to be nice how to be kind
  • 00:28:28
    right that's a reasonable entry point to
  • 00:28:30
    exercising empathy but how do we take it
  • 00:28:32
    up a step and exercise a more deliberate
  • 00:28:35
    understanding of what matters to others
  • 00:28:39
    and then critically use that
  • 00:28:41
    understanding to make us a better CFO
  • 00:28:46
    well let's start here it's probably not
  • 00:28:47
    a surprise to most folks in the room
  • 00:28:49
    here that CFOs who drive corporate
  • 00:28:52
    performance have a strong CEO
  • 00:28:54
    relationship that's a powerful predictor
  • 00:28:57
    what the nature of that relationship is
  • 00:28:59
    what matters here
  • 00:29:00
    the most effective performance driving
  • 00:29:02
    CFOs
  • 00:29:03
    are able to challenge their CEOs and not
  • 00:29:07
    just challenge them on the financial
  • 00:29:08
    implications of a choice that they've
  • 00:29:10
    made but actually challenge them on some
  • 00:29:12
    of the fundamental strategic options
  • 00:29:14
    that they're dealing with and you know
  • 00:29:16
    people don't like being challenged right
  • 00:29:19
    they don't like having their beliefs
  • 00:29:20
    question there's great research out
  • 00:29:22
    there in the field of psychology on how
  • 00:29:24
    we defend our strongly held beliefs in
  • 00:29:27
    the face of countervailing evidence how
  • 00:29:29
    we stick to a decision that we made much
  • 00:29:31
    longer than than we should
  • 00:29:33
    so I was struck by how one CFO that we
  • 00:29:35
    work with he used empathy to better
  • 00:29:39
    challenge his CEO by working through a
  • 00:29:41
    big deliberate role play exercise with
  • 00:29:44
    them he said when they're faced with a
  • 00:29:46
    major strategic decision
  • 00:29:48
    they take a 30-minute meeting where they
  • 00:29:50
    intentionally switch chairs they they
  • 00:29:52
    attack the problem from each other's
  • 00:29:54
    perspective the CFO is forced to think
  • 00:29:58
    about and articulate if I were the CEO
  • 00:30:00
    here with all those stakeholders and all
  • 00:30:01
    those pressures on me what would I do
  • 00:30:04
    and the CEO is forced to articulate
  • 00:30:06
    things from a CFO perspective and try to
  • 00:30:08
    spell out what they would do with that
  • 00:30:10
    hat on
  • 00:30:11
    and then with about you know five
  • 00:30:13
    minutes left to go they go back to their
  • 00:30:14
    original chairs and they they talk about
  • 00:30:16
    what it is that they've learned here and
  • 00:30:17
    the CFO
  • 00:30:18
    made it a point to mention to us several
  • 00:30:20
    critical decision points that their
  • 00:30:22
    organization had reached where
  • 00:30:24
    where this deliberate understanding that
  • 00:30:26
    they work to build it changed not only
  • 00:30:28
    the answers that the CEO was naturally
  • 00:30:30
    inclined to run towards but it changed
  • 00:30:32
    the very nature of the questions that
  • 00:30:33
    they were asking to begin with
  • 00:30:36
    it's a great exercise in building
  • 00:30:38
    empathy deliberately
  • 00:30:40
    and getting to a Better Business outcome
  • 00:30:42
    for it
  • 00:30:46
    and the farther we go on the Spectrum
  • 00:30:48
    the more we start to generate
  • 00:30:50
    intentional action and when we start to
  • 00:30:52
    engineer work and create change in a way
  • 00:30:55
    that's informed by that understanding
  • 00:30:56
    that we've worked to create
  • 00:30:58
    like the CFO that we work with at a
  • 00:31:01
    diversified industrial she recognized
  • 00:31:04
    that the Cadence of their monthly
  • 00:31:05
    operating reviews that Finance was
  • 00:31:07
    leading
  • 00:31:08
    it wasn't yielding anything productive
  • 00:31:10
    she talked about how it was always this
  • 00:31:12
    defensive posture it felt like debates
  • 00:31:14
    about the numbers themselves rather than
  • 00:31:16
    about what they meant maybe that sounds
  • 00:31:18
    familiar right it was always an
  • 00:31:20
    interrogation more than more than it was
  • 00:31:22
    intended to be
  • 00:31:23
    and and instead of attacking this
  • 00:31:25
    head-on with a single version of the
  • 00:31:28
    truth data and more authoritative
  • 00:31:30
    analysis to kind of quiet descent at the
  • 00:31:32
    beginning of these sessions this CFO I
  • 00:31:34
    think was very clever and she looked at
  • 00:31:35
    it from a human perspective with empathy
  • 00:31:37
    and and played out the fact that she was
  • 00:31:39
    essentially forcing her Partners in the
  • 00:31:41
    business to be defensive here
  • 00:31:44
    by by Leading with the financial review
  • 00:31:46
    and a review of results you're making
  • 00:31:48
    them defend their decisions
  • 00:31:50
    you're making them justify choices that
  • 00:31:52
    they made
  • 00:31:53
    defend their performance and so instead
  • 00:31:56
    what the CFO did she kind of flipped
  • 00:31:58
    things she she moved the financial
  • 00:32:00
    review the the whole reason we're having
  • 00:32:03
    this meeting the the very thing that it
  • 00:32:05
    is that got us together here she moved
  • 00:32:07
    that to the very end of the agenda and
  • 00:32:09
    instead started with the stuff that was
  • 00:32:10
    more top of mind more relevant more more
  • 00:32:13
    urgent for her Partners in the business
  • 00:32:15
    on the other side of the table things
  • 00:32:17
    like uh how is the market changing
  • 00:32:19
    what's what's keeping you up at night
  • 00:32:21
    how is the customer changing what new
  • 00:32:23
    risks and opportunities are you seeing
  • 00:32:25
    emerging and so on it's a it's a much
  • 00:32:27
    less threatening conversation it's it's
  • 00:32:28
    way more empathetic of a CFO to to lead
  • 00:32:31
    it this way but what's great here the
  • 00:32:33
    best part about it is the CFO talked to
  • 00:32:35
    us about how she still gets all the
  • 00:32:38
    information she needs in fact even more
  • 00:32:40
    useful information and detail than ever
  • 00:32:42
    before
  • 00:32:43
    in this more empathetically grounded
  • 00:32:45
    discussion she told us that by the time
  • 00:32:47
    that you get to that financial review
  • 00:32:49
    item on agenda item seven and at the end
  • 00:32:51
    of the the two hours that we're spending
  • 00:32:54
    together
  • 00:32:55
    there's nothing left to say
  • 00:32:57
    all the important information that she
  • 00:32:58
    needs as a CFO about what's happening
  • 00:33:00
    and why has come out in a much more
  • 00:33:02
    empathetically grounded way
  • 00:33:04
    and I think this is what empathy can
  • 00:33:06
    really look like for you as a CFO using
  • 00:33:08
    that emotionally intelligent leadership
  • 00:33:10
    to drive better business results
  • 00:33:14
    so think about those places where
  • 00:33:16
    there's a gap in understanding between
  • 00:33:18
    business and the finance places where
  • 00:33:19
    you are forcing compliance instead of
  • 00:33:22
    enabling cooperation
  • 00:33:25
    and challenge yourself to tap into
  • 00:33:26
    empathetic leadership as your solution
  • 00:33:29
    here
  • 00:33:30
    by cultivating a deliberate
  • 00:33:32
    understanding of what matters to
  • 00:33:33
    stakeholders outside of yourself and
  • 00:33:36
    taking intentional action to create
  • 00:33:38
    processes and situations that are built
  • 00:33:41
    on that understanding
  • 00:33:47
    okay let me round out the picture here
  • 00:33:49
    by talking about authenticity and how
  • 00:33:51
    we've seen that make you a more
  • 00:33:53
    effective CFO
  • 00:33:54
    now remember here authenticity it's not
  • 00:33:56
    metering out strategic snapshots right
  • 00:33:58
    it's not the uh the carefully crafted
  • 00:34:00
    and curated social media post uh it's
  • 00:34:02
    putting your true self out there it's
  • 00:34:04
    raising the bar for Candor and
  • 00:34:06
    vulnerability in our interactions and
  • 00:34:09
    let's start with Candor and what that
  • 00:34:11
    means for us as a uh as a CFO because
  • 00:34:14
    there's a sense in which I bet a lot of
  • 00:34:15
    us think we have Candor nailed as part
  • 00:34:18
    of our job
  • 00:34:19
    right you know I'm the CFO I'm the one
  • 00:34:21
    who brings an unambiguous data-driven
  • 00:34:23
    perspective I cut through the Clutter
  • 00:34:24
    right with the data grounded perspective
  • 00:34:27
    that I bring but authentic Candor it's
  • 00:34:30
    more than Straight Talk
  • 00:34:32
    it's more than telling it like it is
  • 00:34:33
    authentic Candor is reciprocal it
  • 00:34:38
    enables Candor from others and that
  • 00:34:40
    Candor from others that's really what
  • 00:34:43
    you need as a CFO because at the risk of
  • 00:34:45
    shocking here I'm going to tell you
  • 00:34:46
    people don't always tell the CFO
  • 00:34:48
    everything they're thinking everything
  • 00:34:50
    that comes to you
  • 00:34:51
    it's been dressed up it's got its best
  • 00:34:53
    Sunday suit on its hair has been combed
  • 00:34:54
    it looks really nice before you see it
  • 00:34:56
    right and we need to use Candor to cut
  • 00:34:59
    through that
  • 00:35:00
    like one CFO we work with an energy
  • 00:35:02
    company who we identified as a leader in
  • 00:35:05
    efficient growth outcomes
  • 00:35:07
    he actually told his business leaders
  • 00:35:09
    and his executive team he literally said
  • 00:35:10
    this he said look it seems like once I
  • 00:35:13
    tell you that I'm going to apply a
  • 00:35:14
    hurdle rate to your proposals and do an
  • 00:35:17
    npv as part of that evaluation process
  • 00:35:20
    feels like it's all over at that point
  • 00:35:22
    because you're only going to bring me
  • 00:35:24
    things that meet those criteria becomes
  • 00:35:26
    all about dressing up your numbers to
  • 00:35:27
    make sure they get over that hurdle and
  • 00:35:29
    into the next stage of approval and that
  • 00:35:32
    becomes the entire game
  • 00:35:34
    so rather than continuing that back and
  • 00:35:36
    forth numbers game what the CFO did he
  • 00:35:39
    broke that Dynamic by leaning into
  • 00:35:40
    Candor and he said okay listen we're
  • 00:35:44
    going to stop doing npvs I'm going to
  • 00:35:46
    stop looking at your projects that way
  • 00:35:47
    they're getting in the way of a real and
  • 00:35:51
    honest conversation about what we want
  • 00:35:53
    to do and why
  • 00:35:55
    and so instead we're gonna have a
  • 00:35:56
    conversation that doesn't bury all the
  • 00:35:58
    specific details of your project under a
  • 00:36:00
    one-size-fits-all hurdle rate we're
  • 00:36:02
    going to dig in we're gonna have a
  • 00:36:03
    conversation about the operating
  • 00:36:05
    strategic Market customer dimensions of
  • 00:36:07
    your project we're going to talk about
  • 00:36:08
    you know what kind of tech does it
  • 00:36:10
    require how how complex is it has it
  • 00:36:12
    left the laboratory yet what's the scope
  • 00:36:15
    of this like is it bigger than the
  • 00:36:16
    things we've usually done smaller than
  • 00:36:18
    the things we've done what kinds of
  • 00:36:19
    execution risks are lurking here
  • 00:36:22
    and the full Candor is supported in this
  • 00:36:24
    conversation because at the end of it
  • 00:36:25
    all what the CFO does is actually
  • 00:36:27
    publish a list for the entire
  • 00:36:29
    organization
  • 00:36:30
    of the initiatives that they're funding
  • 00:36:33
    and why
  • 00:36:34
    so really being transparent about the
  • 00:36:36
    fact that hey guess what project
  • 00:36:38
    sponsors the the straight npv the
  • 00:36:41
    straight numbers of one of these things
  • 00:36:42
    that we're choosing to do might not have
  • 00:36:44
    been as strong as the MPV of something
  • 00:36:46
    else that we're looking at
  • 00:36:48
    but it was still the right thing to do
  • 00:36:49
    anyway
  • 00:36:50
    right and that Candor Cuts right through
  • 00:36:52
    the noise of the numbers game there and
  • 00:36:54
    it's enabled them to build a a growth
  • 00:36:56
    portfolio that is balanced and
  • 00:36:59
    achievable and not just the results of
  • 00:37:01
    uh of projections on paper
  • 00:37:06
    so take this one as another call to
  • 00:37:08
    action for you personally
  • 00:37:11
    think to yourself how can I explicitly
  • 00:37:13
    role model the kind of candor
  • 00:37:15
    that inspires Candor from others how can
  • 00:37:18
    I remove some of the trappings of my
  • 00:37:20
    authority some of the processes that I'm
  • 00:37:22
    tasked with enforeseen I mean maybe you
  • 00:37:24
    get rid of mpvs and hurdle rates maybe
  • 00:37:25
    maybe not right but how do I shed some
  • 00:37:28
    of those things to create a more
  • 00:37:29
    naturally candid conversation with my
  • 00:37:31
    stakeholders
  • 00:37:36
    now the more aspirational point on the
  • 00:37:38
    spectrum is vulnerability and uh saying
  • 00:37:42
    to this room that vulnerability is
  • 00:37:44
    aspirational
  • 00:37:45
    kind of like some of the other things
  • 00:37:46
    maybe I've said so far today it could be
  • 00:37:48
    a little bit of a tough sell
  • 00:37:49
    right because people look to you as a
  • 00:37:52
    CFO for for answers
  • 00:37:54
    for comfort
  • 00:37:55
    and when you walk into a room there's
  • 00:37:57
    more than one person who thinks
  • 00:37:59
    themselves
  • 00:38:00
    okay well there's the person who knows
  • 00:38:01
    what's going on they've got the real
  • 00:38:03
    answers the real data we'll hear what
  • 00:38:05
    they have to say
  • 00:38:06
    now this pressure uh to to have the
  • 00:38:10
    answers to be relied upon To Be steady
  • 00:38:12
    that is very real it's very much a part
  • 00:38:15
    of your job
  • 00:38:16
    so why am I talking about vulnerability
  • 00:38:18
    here
  • 00:38:19
    the answer is much like what we saw with
  • 00:38:21
    Candor if we don't
  • 00:38:23
    authentically role model and enable
  • 00:38:25
    vulnerability
  • 00:38:27
    in our leadership we're not going to get
  • 00:38:29
    it from others
  • 00:38:30
    and in an environment where over half
  • 00:38:32
    your team is afraid to take a calculated
  • 00:38:34
    risk for the organization we have to
  • 00:38:36
    enable that vulnerability we have to
  • 00:38:39
    create the space that allows someone to
  • 00:38:40
    say
  • 00:38:41
    hey I messed this up actually this this
  • 00:38:43
    project really isn't going that well
  • 00:38:45
    we're having a hard time getting the
  • 00:38:46
    kind of talent that we need hired on
  • 00:38:48
    time and I'm worried about the ramp up
  • 00:38:51
    or I might have been too aggressive no
  • 00:38:54
    check that I definitely was way too
  • 00:38:56
    aggressive in my forecast uh but I feel
  • 00:38:59
    like I'm locked into it and I'm gonna
  • 00:39:01
    defend it until month 12 because who
  • 00:39:04
    knows something might happen I don't
  • 00:39:05
    want to go through everything that comes
  • 00:39:06
    with forecasting down
  • 00:39:08
    uh or is funding I actually uh didn't
  • 00:39:12
    really need it this year but I thought I
  • 00:39:14
    was going to get it next year and I
  • 00:39:16
    thought if I didn't ask for it this year
  • 00:39:17
    it wasn't going to be there for me next
  • 00:39:18
    year
  • 00:39:19
    right you need to hear things like this
  • 00:39:22
    because people out there are thinking
  • 00:39:23
    them but I'm betting you don't hear it
  • 00:39:25
    very often
  • 00:39:27
    people feel like the system is set up to
  • 00:39:28
    punish them for bringing it forward so I
  • 00:39:30
    want to challenge you right now think
  • 00:39:32
    about the last time you said something
  • 00:39:34
    of the Forum hey
  • 00:39:36
    I really wish I had done that better
  • 00:39:39
    here's what I learned from that here's
  • 00:39:40
    what I need to do better next time
  • 00:39:43
    might be hard to come up with one that's
  • 00:39:44
    why I think it's a good challenge for us
  • 00:39:45
    to to Signal our own vulnerability to to
  • 00:39:49
    let the team know that hey you know what
  • 00:39:51
    I actually don't have a fully well
  • 00:39:53
    thought out theory of how generative AI
  • 00:39:55
    is going to change what it is that our
  • 00:39:57
    customers are looking for from us or
  • 00:39:59
    whatever it is that you don't have a
  • 00:40:01
    great answer on wherever it is that
  • 00:40:02
    you're trying to learn from your own
  • 00:40:04
    shortcomings remember this is not about
  • 00:40:07
    expressing concern for what other people
  • 00:40:09
    are doing this is about signaling that
  • 00:40:11
    you don't have all the answers
  • 00:40:14
    and that's an okay way to be because
  • 00:40:16
    it's much better than pretending we have
  • 00:40:18
    the answers when we don't
  • 00:40:21
    so let's ask ourselves
  • 00:40:22
    how can I dial up my personal candor
  • 00:40:25
    to enable Candor from others on things
  • 00:40:27
    like project upside and downside ways we
  • 00:40:29
    could be doing things better
  • 00:40:31
    and how do I role model that personal
  • 00:40:33
    vulnerability in my job as a leader here
  • 00:40:36
    so that someone is more willing to do
  • 00:40:38
    something that might represent a
  • 00:40:40
    personal risk for them
  • 00:40:42
    what is good for the outcomes that we're
  • 00:40:44
    all trying to drive as an Enterprise
  • 00:40:50
    okay I think these are hopefully some
  • 00:40:52
    good examples of what it looks like when
  • 00:40:53
    we bring empathy and authenticity
  • 00:40:55
    as a human CFO and this human playbook
  • 00:40:59
    for driving Financial discipline
  • 00:41:01
    it's only going to get more and more
  • 00:41:02
    important in the years ahead because
  • 00:41:03
    right now our digital investing
  • 00:41:05
    portfolios are growing rapidly I.T
  • 00:41:08
    spending is more foundational to
  • 00:41:10
    everything we're doing in our business
  • 00:41:11
    than ever before and yet from a human
  • 00:41:15
    perspective
  • 00:41:16
    the state of the CFO CIO partnership
  • 00:41:20
    is not great
  • 00:41:22
    it's usually arm's length
  • 00:41:24
    it's polite it's not antagonistic
  • 00:41:26
    usually but it's not grounded in empathy
  • 00:41:28
    and authenticity and I get it CFOs and
  • 00:41:30
    cios are they're cut from different
  • 00:41:32
    claws so we tend to live in different
  • 00:41:33
    worlds but the upshot is only three out
  • 00:41:36
    of every 10 of us in this room here have
  • 00:41:39
    an effective relationship with our
  • 00:41:41
    technology leaders
  • 00:41:44
    so let's give ourselves kind of a quick
  • 00:41:46
    check in here this might be a good
  • 00:41:48
    chance for you to internalize some
  • 00:41:50
    opportunities for you to lean into being
  • 00:41:52
    a human CFO ask yourself
  • 00:41:57
    do I have the reciprocal Candor that
  • 00:42:00
    creates transparency into each other's
  • 00:42:02
    priorities with my CIO
  • 00:42:04
    in other words
  • 00:42:06
    do you know Kenny rat off right now your
  • 00:42:08
    cio's objectives and how they're
  • 00:42:09
    tracking towards them and what role USA
  • 00:42:12
    Finance leader play in them can they do
  • 00:42:14
    the same for you
  • 00:42:17
    are you present at the I.T Road mapping
  • 00:42:19
    process not as the owner of finances
  • 00:42:21
    piece of that pie
  • 00:42:23
    but as a true partner to your CIO taking
  • 00:42:26
    advantage of an incredibly leveraged
  • 00:42:28
    opportunity to cultivate some deliberate
  • 00:42:30
    empathy with each other
  • 00:42:32
    and
  • 00:42:33
    are you explicitly role modeling
  • 00:42:35
    cooperation with your CIO
  • 00:42:39
    one CFO that we work with makes sure of
  • 00:42:41
    this he co-leads town halls with his CIO
  • 00:42:44
    they jointly issue statements about
  • 00:42:47
    Enterprise digital strategies both their
  • 00:42:49
    names both their pictures on it they
  • 00:42:50
    stand up and advocate for each other's
  • 00:42:52
    priorities in in leadership meetings and
  • 00:42:54
    kind of things that you just don't see
  • 00:42:56
    that often from these two Executives so
  • 00:42:58
    if you're three for three on this list
  • 00:43:00
    if you said yep yep yep that's that's
  • 00:43:03
    awesome that's great news that is real
  • 00:43:05
    markers of human CFO at work for you a
  • 00:43:08
    lot to build on there
  • 00:43:10
    insofar as you left some opportunity on
  • 00:43:13
    the table there it's a great thing to
  • 00:43:14
    get after
  • 00:43:16
    because when the CFO and CIO have that
  • 00:43:18
    kind of relationship we see that the
  • 00:43:20
    organization is significantly more
  • 00:43:22
    likely to deliver the intended outcomes
  • 00:43:24
    from their business portfolio
  • 00:43:26
    and they're significantly more likely to
  • 00:43:28
    keep spending in line with the budget
  • 00:43:32
    right this is the financial discipline
  • 00:43:33
    that we want as CFOs and it's by being a
  • 00:43:36
    human CFO that we get it
  • 00:43:40
    so that's our mission going forward here
  • 00:43:42
    let's ask ourselves walking out of here
  • 00:43:44
    how can I be a human CFO that drives
  • 00:43:48
    better Financial discipline through
  • 00:43:50
    empathy and authenticity
  • 00:43:53
    because in the months ahead you're going
  • 00:43:55
    to be making hard trade-offs about where
  • 00:43:57
    you can afford to invest and where you
  • 00:43:59
    can
  • 00:44:00
    you're going to be sitting in business
  • 00:44:01
    reviews where performance is choppy and
  • 00:44:03
    uncertainty you're going to be trying to
  • 00:44:04
    drive folks back to plan you're going to
  • 00:44:06
    be sitting in executive meetings with
  • 00:44:08
    real strategic decisions in front of you
  • 00:44:11
    and as you navigate those core CFO job
  • 00:44:14
    responsibilities I'm challenging all of
  • 00:44:16
    us here to look at human leadership
  • 00:44:19
    not as a part-time job not as the thing
  • 00:44:21
    that we do when we're running team
  • 00:44:23
    meetings or having one-on-ones but as
  • 00:44:26
    our path to Greater Financial discipline
  • 00:44:28
    as our path to being a a better more
  • 00:44:31
    effective Finance leader
  • 00:44:34
    I know that you're going to learn so
  • 00:44:35
    much in these next two days you're going
  • 00:44:37
    to meet a lot of amazing people you're
  • 00:44:39
    going to hear from some of the smartest
  • 00:44:40
    people in the world on things like
  • 00:44:42
    building use cases for AI and finance or
  • 00:44:45
    delivering real-time analytics to your
  • 00:44:47
    business and as you do that
  • 00:44:49
    I want you to keep your role as human
  • 00:44:51
    CFO front and center here knowing that
  • 00:44:54
    as technology continues to disrupt
  • 00:44:56
    everything we know about our lives it's
  • 00:44:58
    only accelerating the trend for us to
  • 00:45:01
    bring cognitive empathy and personal
  • 00:45:04
    authenticity
  • 00:45:05
    to the Enterprise outcomes at the heart
  • 00:45:08
    of our CFO role let's let's go out there
  • 00:45:10
    let's meet some people let's learn some
  • 00:45:12
    things let's have a lot of fun let's go
  • 00:45:14
    make it a great conference thank you all
  • 00:45:16
    so much
  • 00:45:16
    [Applause]
  • 00:45:26
    [Music]
  • 00:45:36
    Love Goes a pretty long way
  • 00:45:39
    [Music]
Tags
  • CFO
  • Finance Transformation
  • Economic Challenges
  • Generative AI
  • Human Leadership
  • Empathy
  • Adaptivity
  • Authenticity
  • Digital Transformation
  • Growth Opportunities