The Trial Balance is CFO’s weekly preview of stories, stats, and events to help you prepare.
Part 1: Ocrolus CFO Conor O’Donoghue and CFO Leadership Council Event Wrap-Up
This week, reporter Adam Zaki shares a Q&A with document AI platform Ocrolus’ CFO Conor O’Donoghue. Zaki and O’Donoghue discuss adjusting workflows in accordance with growth, developing and creating culture, the small business lending industry, and the value of networking. (10/5)
Zaki is also in Phoenix, Arizona, for the CFO Leadership Council’s West conference this week and he will publish a reporter’s journal on the event later this week. We will also run part two of the three-part Savannah Bananas series, where we talk to the unique baseball team’s vice president of finance Dr. Tim Naddy about the organization’s complete business transformation. (10/6)
Part 2: This Week
Yes, the U.S. federal government avoided a shutdown, but the stop-gap funding measure passed by Congress lasts only until Nov. 17. That sounds like a long time, but getting the House and Senate to agree on appropriations bills tied to some thorny issues will be a challenge.
It’s the “First Monday in October,” the name of the late 1970s play and film about the U.S. Supreme Court. Fresh off summer recess, the Supremes have a host of important cases this term dealing with controversial issues like gun rights, the Americans With Disabilities Act, social media use by public officials, and opioid maker Purdue Pharma’s proposed reorganization plan. One of the closely watched cases will be Loper Bright Enterprises v. Raimondo, which could overturn the Chevron doctrine. Chevron set the precedent of judicial deference given to administrative actions by government agencies. The justices will also hear a case concerning the constitutionality of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s funding mechanism.
September employment data arrives on Friday, preceded by job openings data on Tuesday. Job openings may fall some, but are still projected to be above 8 million. They haven’t been below that line since February 2021. The unemployment rate, at 3.7% for August, may rise ever so slightly. The Fed’s dot-plot projections predict 4% unemployment by 2026. The job market, in other words, is still historically very strong, unless Friday’s data has some surprises in store. That makes it hard to argue it’s time for the Fed to reverse course on interest rate increases.
Earnings reports arrive this week from McCormick & Company, Cal-Maine Foods, Acuity Brands, Helen of Troy, Constellation Brands, and Levi Strauss.
The Nobel Peace Prize winner will be announced on Friday. Odds-makers say Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is the favorite. Here’s the list of past recipients.
Part 3: The 6 a.m. CFO
This week, Kapitus’ CFO Anthony Rose shares the importance of small failures, why the best time to go through email is late at night, and the reason behind his current favorite number.
Rose also shares his favorite leadership lesson: “When things don’t go right, take the blame and when things go right, give the credit. When things don’t go right, make sure that people know it’s ok.”