CFOs predict restored business growth in 2010

More than 60 percent of San Francisco Bay Area CFOs have revenue growth targets over 5 percent and 45 percent of finance executives predict revenue growth over 10 percent in 2010, according to Armanino McKenna LLP, the largest CPA firm headquartered in California. Organic growth and more efficient operations are identified as the top priorities for companies seeking to achieve these growth targets.

The 2010 CFO Benchmark Survey Report prepared by Armanino McKenna offers unique insight into the role of today's CFO and their organization. For instance, 70 percent of CFOs are viewed as scorekeepers or gatekeepers by their companies, while 86 percent wish to be seen as business accelerators and analysts. The responsibilities of CFOs are vast and they manage a myriad of departments, including not only accounting and tax, but human resources, legal and IT.

"Due to increased governmental scrutiny, CFOs and their organizations are forced to spend the majority of their time on accounting, regulatory and compliance matters and less time on value-added analytic activities," said Tom Mescall, partner in charge of consulting. "CFOs at best-in- class organizations must constantly reevaluate their organization's priorities to add strategic value to their CEOs, boards and shareholders."

To compile the survey results, Armanino McKenna contacted more than 150 San Francisco Bay Area CFOs and finance executives through an online survey instrument in December 2009. The executives were asked about their roles and responsibilities, the strengths and weaknesses of their finance organizations, and their priorities and initiatives for 2010.

Other major findings from the 2010 CFO Benchmark Survey Report:

• To manage anticipated 2010 business growth in the turbulent marketplace, CFOs are focusing on top issues such as managing cash and budget, improving operational business processes, and improving information provided to managers.
• Surprisingly, most CFO organizations struggle with the accounting function. Even in this high-tech region, the top-ranked bottlenecks in the monthly close process are manual processes and systems that are not integrated.
• The CFO organization is pivotal in enabling companies to access and analyze up-to-date information, yet companies have gaps in obtaining real-time data. Twenty-seven percent of CFOs state that they do not have the tools to obtain operational data and 22 percent do not have access to competitive intelligence in a timely manner.