The realities of the new economy are reflected in CFOs changing career goals. A recent survey revealed that considerably fewer CFOs today seek CEO positions than five years ago (5 percent in 2009 compared to 52 percent of CFOS surveyed in 1990).
While fewer opportunities exist for CFOs to make the jump to CEO positions, the skills and experiences CFOs possess make them strong CEO contenders in the changing economic landscape.
CEOs are not made with cookie-cutters; it takes years of appropriate experience to build to that position. Here are some of the professional experiences that contribute to the making of CEOs in this new economy:
The clamp on marketing budgets for fiscal year 2010 is unyielding and businesses are trying to cut corners without compromising on customer acquisition strategies and customer loyalty programs. The pie is shrinking, to make their companies grow CEOs will have to steal customers from their competitors. The internet allows CEOs to increase the return on advertising spend (ROAS) and customer profitability by reaching customers wherever they are online, generating qualified sales leads and closing deals with fewer heads and by minimizing waste. Focus on Return On Investment (ROI) initiatives are dominating these economic times. A CFO who can bring an appreciation of the cost and revenue anatomy of an organization is uniquely positioned to help with implementing efficient online marketing strategies such as social media marketing, SEO, pay per click, affiliate marketing to generate new revenues at much lower costs resulting in higher profit streams.
Any business with a broadband connection can use VOIP phone systems to enjoy the same features as expensive PBX systems. Apart from the low cost of calls and user friendly features, VOIP phones reduce the need for travel as they have built in advanced capabilities like video and web conferencing and require only one network for voice and data; they also allow easy integration with CRM applications. The person who can articulate how an organization can make the transition from the traditional systems to the new ones and can do that with some eloquence, who can exhibit the courage to cut costs without creating significant insitituional trauma is one who exhibits the kind of leading-edge mentality needed by a CEO in 2010.
What is one thing that small and medium businesses with limited budget and resources have in common with Fortune 500 companies that boast of thousands of customers? It is probably the common conundrum of how to serve existing customers profitably. Many businesses, these days, are turning to 24/7 call center companies that can handle large volumes of both incoming and outgoing customer calls to address this challenge. A call center essentially engages in receiving and resolving customer complaints. Customers hardly ever call to express satisfaction in a company’s products or services. However, what if these dissatisfied customers are somehow tapped and turned into life-long customers of the company. This is exactly the business proposition of call center companies. CEOs must have a tolerance for risk and be willing to try new things, including outsourcing customer service to outsourced call centers that operate round the clock to enhance customer loyalty.
CEOs have to balance the financial imperatives with the realities of the economic times and resolve conflicts that arise between operations and finance, which all fall in gray areas of managing a business. Making the jump from CFO to CEO takes a lot of energy and commitment and a willingness to do whatever it takes. Some individuals, once they discover the actual job requirements of the corner office, find they do not want to be CEOs after all.
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