Research conducted by the International Association of Finance Executive Institutes (IAFEI) identifies three key areas where stakeholder expectations regarding the role of the CFO appear to have changed dramatically.

• The CFO's role within the organization : Internal and external forces have changed the charter of the finance function within an organization, and with it, the role of the CFO. In addition to the traditional functions of financial statement presentation and cash flow management, the responsibilities of the global CFO have been rapidly evolving in areas such as corporate strategy formulation, operational decision support and value creation.

• Expectations of external stakeholders from the CFO : Events of the last few years relating to the financial and accounting improprieties conducted by some of the world's largest corporations have thrust the CFO into intense public scrutiny. External stakeholders are increasingly demanding that the CFO relentlessly commit to corporate governance compliance and assume responsibility for corporate financial results to ensure public trust.
• The CFO Career path : With an expanded corporate role and heightened visibility, increasingly, the CFO's position is now seen as a springboard to the CEO position. More and more corporate boards are considering the CFO as a natural successor to the CEO.

This evolution and expansion of the CFO's role, the corporate CFO's visibility as a key arbiter of public trust and his potential career progression to the CEO level has elevated the CFO to a position of increasing importance, influence and public scrutiny. Significantly, it is expected that the CFO role evolution is more apparent in developed economies and within multinational corporations.

Given this significant transition in the CFO's role, IAFEI has launched a large scale global research project called the 'IAFEI Global CFO Study' to examine the rise, evolution and future direction of the CFO in nations across the world.

For the uninitiated, IAFEI is a federation of Financial Executive Institutes of countries across the world, and is a private, non-profit, non-political organization, domiciled in Switzerland. IAFEI's key objectives include building a wider understanding of financial developments world wide and providing networking, visibility, advocacy and information opportunities to member institutes and their individual members. With 17 member institutes comprising more than 130,000 financial executives, IAFEI is the only global organization of its kind, and the IAFEI Global CFO Study has been launched in keeping with these core objectives.

IAFEI's Global CFO Study
IAFEI's Global CFO Study will entail a comprehensive and coherent analysis of the 'Global CFO' by measuring CFO perceptions across the world. CFO's will be asked questions relating to their evolving profile, position, performance, priorities, persona and career path, and general global, regional and nation specific trends will be identified, based on CFO responses.

The Study is being conducted in collaboration with IAFEI's 17 member institutes and CFO associations. A pilot study has already been completed in Germany and has generated interesting findings.

The Philippine segment of the study will be undertaken by IAFEI in collaboration with its Philippines member institute, Financial Executives Institute of the Philippines (FINEX). Expected to be launched in March, 2006, the study will seek the participation of CFO's and senior finance executives who are members of FINEX, and analyze the findings, highlighting both, areas where the Philippines CFO evolution has been similar to global CFO's and areas where unique differences exist. The Study results will be disseminated through IAFEI – FINEX study reports and seminars.

Significant Value Proposition
With an expected completion date of August, 2006, The 'IAFEI Global CFO Study' Project is expected to contribute significantly not only to CFO's but also to CFO stakeholders such as corporations and the financial community at large. It is anticipated that the study findings will not only provide valuable information on global CFO trends and disparities, providing benchmarking and learning opportunities for CFO's, but also provide insights on future development direction for CFO's globally. Finally, the study is expected to re-affirm the CFO's expanding significance and influence by reiterating the increasing demands placed on CFO's world-wide, and thus, this author hopes, ensure that CFO contributions and future potential are adequately recognized. The Germany Pilot study findings will be discussed in this author's next article.

Dr. C.L. Manabat is the Chairperson of C. L. Manabat & Co., the Philippine member firm of Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu and Chairperson of Capital Markets Development Council, and also the Chairperson of the International Association of Financial Executive Institutes (IAFEI), the first woman chair in the organization's 36 years of existence, as well as a member of the Consultative Advisory Group (CAG) of the International Auditing & Assurance Standards Board (IAASB) of the International Federation of Accountants.

Source :www.deloitte.com