Why The Best CEOs Build CFOs Who Can Sell

The best CFOs can sell.

And if your CFO can't, I have bad news: you're the only one who doesn't know it yet.

Your CFO should be the second best salesperson in your business (after the CEO).

You see, whether they like it or not (and it's most often not) CFOs are always selling.

When they ask for a bigger budget, defend a hire, or make the case for restructuring, investing or holding steady. They're selling a vision of the company's future potential. When speaking to investors, banks, regulators and suppliers, your CFO is selling the business itself.

Your stakeholders already know if your CFO is a good salesperson, because they're the ones being asked to buy in.

There is another reason that your CFO needs to be able to sell. They're typically really good at it.

Not because they are natural born salespeople. They often aren't. Most CFOs were trained to be cautious. To audit and to analyse all potential upsides and downsides rather than to advocate for a particular position. And some of them are still recovering from the trauma of public practice accounting, so "selling" feels like turning up to work in thongs. Improper, risky and best avoided.

However this is precisely what makes them so credible.

Everyone assumes the CEO is going to paint the rosiest possible picture. That's literally their job.

The CFO on the other hand, is expected to provide a more balanced view. They have the data. The numbers. The (alleged) objectivity. When they back the CEO, they bring a particular flavour of credibility to the table.

This is why I'm such a passionate advocate of having the CFO sit in on the entire board meeting. I am still seeing too many CFOs not brought in, or wheeled in halfway through to deliver a spreadsheet, talk about cashflow and exit stage left.

It's such a missed opportunity.

Hear me talk more about this here.

The best CEOs see this. They don't just bring their CFO to the entire meeting.

They prep with them beforehand. They talk positioning and work together to sell their vision for the future of the company.

A CFO who can't sell will hold your business back.

A CFO who can will give you an edge.

So yes, keep investing in your CFO's technical capabilities. Just don't neglect to build their commercial ones too.

Which audience does your CFO most struggle to sell to?
What do you think is getting in their way?

I'd love to hear your thoughts.

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