Tom Eisenmann, Harvard Business School professor and author of The Fail-Safe Startup, says only 10% of high-tech, high-potential startups are successful. In that success, the CFO has a critical role that includes managing cash and working out when to raise more and monitoring key metrics. He warns the new entrepreneur against rushing in without proper customer research and product evaluation and explains why “trusting your gut” can lead to flawed decisions.

Financial Management (FM) magazine

Starting up: 3 metrics entrepreneurial CFOs need to watch

To celebrate International Podcast Day, we’ve compiled some of the top insights offered in 2021 episodes from speakers all over the world. Learn more about advice for fighting ransomware, the role of finance in navigating Olympic Games uncertainty for a medal-winning team, how to spot “greenwashing” in ESG reporting, and more from a five-part FM series on ESG. International Podcast Day is 30 September.

International Podcast Day special: The best of the FM podcast

There is no “opt-out clause” for management accountants on environmental, social, and governance (ESG) information, says Association Chair and CIMA President Paul Ash, FCMA, CGMA, in this final podcast in an FM series on ESG. Ash describes how his formative years led to developing businesses focusing on environmentally clean energy and real-time measurement of emissions. Ash says management and public accountants both need to deliver on ESG compliance, and collaboration with engineers and architects will enable businesses to create workplaces in line with their ESG goals and protect workers’ health. What you’ll learn from this episode: What has driven Ash’s pursuit of clean energy and reliable emissions data. Management accountants’ opportunity to lead on ESG reporting. Why ESG compliance is an issue for both public and management accountants. The potential of clean coal and nuclear technology. How ESG encompasses creating a healthy workplace for employees. 

ESG, clean energy, and the need for reliable data

Extreme weather risks have been on the rise for businesses worldwide, and regulators and standard setters are taking steps to keep investors updated. The recent merger of the Sustainability Accounting Standards Board (SASB) and the International Integrated Reporting Council (IIRC), which formed the Value Reporting Foundation, was a step towards consistency in environmental, social, and governance (ESG) and sustainability reporting. In this episode, Jeremy Osborn, FCMA, CGMA, director of business relationships and networks with the Value Reporting Foundation, suggests that integrated thinking and reporting can help corporate boards create long-term value, particularly when they consider potential consequences of climate change as they devise business strategy. This is part of a series of podcasts that explore how the finance function can drive sustainable business success and account for ESG issues.

What boards should know about climate change and value creation

The belief that companies should not solely focus on shareholder value, but should benefit all stakeholders — including employees, customers, and communities — is what many investors, large and small, have been rallying around. As a result, investors have been demanding environmental, social, and governance (ESG) information from companies to help guide their long-term investment decisions. Matthew Hurn, OBE, FCMA, CGMA, is the CFO for Disruptive Investments at Mubadala Investment, an investment vehicle owned by the government of Abu Dhabi in the UAE with approximately $24.5 billion of assets under management. In this episode, he shares what ESG means for investors and for him personally, and how his team determines whether ESG issues are truly embraced by a company and not merely lip service.

Getting to the heart of ESG: An investor’s perspective

Ransomware is on the rise. Organisations of all sizes are at risk, and finance departments are at the forefront of identifying and mitigating ransomware risks. However, that diligence comes with its own challenges. To help organisations identify the growing risks and cost of ransomware, we talk with Gerry Glombicki, CPA, director with Fitch Ratings insurance group, about how finance professionals should be approaching ransomware. What you’ll learn from this episode: How organisations should be assessing their ransomware risk. How accountants and finance professionals should be preparing for ransomware attacks. How the growing risk of ransomware can cost organisations in unexpected ways. Why organisations should be thinking about cybersecurity across the organisation. The value of ransomware insurance. 

The hidden risks and costs of ransomware

Finance’s role is evolving rapidly, which means the skills needed by finance professionals are changing. A recent FM Q&A series with finance leaders from around the world provided insight on skills that matter most. Hear this conversation with Alexis See Tho, an FM associate editor, and Barry Payne, the Association’s director of external relations for management accounting, for more on the series and what’s on the minds of finance leaders. What you’ll learn from this episode: A look back at a series of finance leader Q&As from late 2020 and early 2021. How the focus area was determined for FM’s summer Q&A series on finance skills. What skills accountants should have, according to a Yelp finance leader. What members of a leadership advisory group are focused on in 2021 and beyond. 

Finance leaders’ take on top skills for the future

Kuldeep Kaur, ACMA, CGMA, England Hockey’s finance and administration director, explains how scenario planning, data-led decision-making, and effective communication combined to lead the sport during the COVID-19 pandemic and the resulting Olympic Games scheduling uncertainty. What you’ll learn from this episode: An explanation of England Hockey’s business model. The role of timely communication in dealing with the pandemic. How visuals can help communicate with nonfinance colleagues. Why diversity can bring results — for sports teams, organisations, and in the boardroom. The opportunities for management accountants within sport. 

How finance led hockey through Olympic Games uncertainty

When finance and accounting professionals think about ESG, it shouldn’t be limited to churning out sustainability reports. To enable real change in a company’s impact on environmental, social, and governance issues, they need to be part and parcel of long-term strategy. But how can that be done? In this episode, we hear from Michael Bueker, senior vice-president of finance for Middle East markets at Siemens Energy. The company’s businesses are in both traditional fossil fuel and renewable energy. Embedding ESG in its strategy means having internal ESG targets that are tied to KPIs, such as executive compensation, and, externally, incorporating ESG into its product and service offerings, such as providing low-carbon energy options to its customers.

Beyond sustainability reporting: Embedding ESG in strategy

Sustainability has become a prominent topic of discussion in business, but it can mean different things to different people. Jeffrey Hales, Ph.D., professor of accounting at the University of Texas at Austin and chairman of the Sustainability Accounting Standards Board (SASB), explains what it means to management accountants. As SASB chair, Hales heads efforts to set standards for how companies should account for sustainability issues that represent likely financially material risks and opportunities within industries. This is the first in a series of episodes that explore how the finance function can drive sustainable business success and account for environmental, social, and governance (ESG) issues.

What evolving sustainability regulation means to finance

Jame DiBiasio, financial journalist and author of Cowries to Crypto: The History of Money, Currency, and Wealth, describes the long history of money, what the shift from Internet 1.0 to 2.0 means for trading large illiquid assets, and considerations for companies when dealing with bitcoin. He looks to a fintech future of wearable and implanted technology. DiBiasio is also the author of an FM quiz on the history of fintech.

Fintech: Past, present, and sci-fi future

Building trust has always been important in business, and COVID-19 has served to highlight it, according to leadership and workplace culture expert Liz Lugt. In this interview, Lugt sets out the elements of “vulnerability-based trust” and how finance leaders can focus on being effective rather than only efficient. Lugt is speaking at the upcoming AICPA & CIMA ENGAGE EUROPE conference on 19 May on the topic of “Expanding Your Sphere of Influence”.

How leaders can build trust and a cohesive team

Governments around the world are tightening anti-money laundering regulations and increasing noncompliance penalties. Management accountants are at the frontlines of money laundering risk. In this FM podcast episode, Matthew Russell, a London-based financial crime partner at PwC, discusses how finance professionals can address the changing anti-money laundering landscape and how they can use what they learn in the process to their strategic business advantage. Russell is a featured speaker at ENGAGE EUROPE 2021 on Wednesday, 19 May at 1pm–2.15pm GMT +1. You can find more information here.

Management accountants versus money laundering

Alnoor Bhimani, Ph.D., professor of management accounting at the London School of Economics, thinks the finance and accounting profession has yet to fully understand the sweeping implications of today’s digitalised business models and operations. In this episode of the FM magazine podcast, he shares key findings from his new book, Accounting Disrupted, and how finance professionals can equip themselves to deliver the right financial and nonfinancial intelligence that organisations need.

How are finance teams keeping up with digitalisation?

CIMA Member in Practice Fiona Bevan, ACMA, CGMA, describes recent trends in the UK SME sector and how her company, Bevan Financial Management Ltd, adapted to the COVID-19 crisis. She offers advice for SMEs — and larger businesses — on effective customer feedback and how businesses can improve and speed up their decision-making without losing control. Bevan is speaking at AICPA’s & CIMA’s ENGAGE EUROPE conference on 19 May on the topic of “How to Rethink Your Organisations’ Business Models and Revenue Streams”.

SMEs boosted by fast decisions, customer feedback

The Financial Management (FM) magazine podcast series features conversations with executives and thought leaders in management accounting. We discuss topics including governance, risk management, performance management, technology, corporate strategy, and leadership. Interviews are conducted by FM editors and contributors.

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