Highest Priority for CFOs? Strategic Planning

Strategic planning, budgeting, compliance with domestic regulations, profitability analysis and cash forecasting are the five most pressing concerns of CFOs and finance executives, according to a new survey.The 2015 Finance Priorities Survey from the Financial Executives Research Foundation and c...

By Matthew Heller • Nov. 13, 2014

Big Blue Moves Away from ‘Absolute’ Earnings Forecasts

Hoping to avoid a repetition of last month’s stock plunge, IBM is backing away from making precise earnings forecasts in the future.Martin Schroeter, CFO of IBM. The computer giant’s shares fell 7.1% to a three-year low on Oct. 20 after CEO Ginni Rometty abandoned the pledge she inherited from he...

By Matthew Heller • Nov. 12, 2014

Explore the Trendline➔

Top 5 stories from CFO.com

From CPA licensure changes to undergoing a digital transformation, these are the most popular stories CFOs are reading. 

By CFO.com staff

Glass Supplier Accuses Apple of ‘Bait-and-Switch’

The chief operating officer of GT Advanced Technologies has accused Apple of luring the sapphire glass manufacturer into a “massively one-sided” contract that resulted in it having to file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection.The Oct. 6 bankruptcy filing followed Apple’s decision not to use GTAT’...

By Matthew Heller • Nov. 12, 2014

Small Businesses Expanding But Skeptical

A measure of small business confidence showed a slight uptick last month but owners are slightly less optimistic about business conditions over the next six months, the National Federation of Independent Business said Tuesday.The federation’s Small Business Optimism Index crept back to its August...

By Matthew Heller • Nov. 11, 2014

White House Lowers Estimate of Obamacare Insureds

The Obama administration is now projecting that between 9 million and 9.9 million people will have health insurance through the Affordable Care Act by the end of 2015 — substantially lower than an earlier estimate.Administration officials said Monday that the estimate for Obamacare enrollment is ...

By Matthew Heller • Nov. 11, 2014

Chief SEC Accountant Revives IFRS Debate

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission’s new chief accountant isn’t saying whether he personally supports switching U.S. companies to global accounting rules. But in the near future James Schnurr does hope to make a recommendation.Schnurr, a former partner at Deloitte LLP, has been at the SE...

By Matthew Heller • Nov. 10, 2014

Salix CFO Resigns as Board Reviews Inventory Accounting

Adam Derbyshire has resigned as CFO of Salix Pharmaceuticals amid a board review of whether management mischaracterized wholesaler inventory levels of its key gastrointestinal drugs.Salix didn’t say whether Derbyshire’s resignation on Wednesday was related to the review by the board’s audit commi...

By Matthew Heller • Nov. 10, 2014

Patent Troll Made ‘Phony Legal Threats’

In the first consumer-protection case of its kind, so-called patent troll MPHJ Technology Investments has settled U.S. Federal Trade Commission allegations that it made “deceptive sales claims and phony legal threats” in letters accusing small businesses of patent infringement.The settlement was ...

By Matthew Heller • Nov. 7, 2014

CFOs on the Move: Week Ending Nov. 7

David Smith David Smith has been appointed as CFO and a director of Rolls-Royce, replacing Mark Morris, who opted to leave the company after 27 years. Smith joined the Rolls-Royce this year as finance chief of its aerospace division. He spent 25 years at Ford Motor, where he was CFO and then chie...

By Joan Urdang • Nov. 7, 2014

Red States Vote in Favor of Minimum Wage Hikes

With Republicans blocking a hike in the federal minimum wage, voters in five states — four of them conservative-leaning — have approved ballot measures that will gradually raise the minimum wage by an average of 24%.Red states Alaska, Arkansas, South Dakota and Nebraska all voted Tuesday to hike ...

By Matthew Heller • Nov. 6, 2014

Cyber Security Spending Up, But Many Uninsured

U.S. companies are increasing spending on information security in response to the threat of cyber-attacks but may still be unprepared for the widespread impact of a data breach, according to a survey of finance professionals.In a poll of members attending its annual conference on Monday, the Asso...

By Matthew Heller • Nov. 4, 2014

Japan Opts for More QE to Ward Off Deflation

In a surprise move apparently driven by concerns over deflation, Japan’s central bank announced Friday it was increasing its already large monetary stimulus program to 80 trillion yen ($726 billion) a year, up from 60 to 70 trillion yen.Haruhiko Kuroda, governor of the Bank of Japan. The 5-4 vote...

By Matthew Heller • Oct. 31, 2014

CFOs on the Move: Week Ending Oct. 31

Mitchell Butier, who leads the finance function at Avery Dennison, has been promoted to president and chief operating officer. Butier, who has headed finance since 2010, will also remain in that role until his replacement has been named.Sandra Rowland, new CFO of Harman International Industries. ...

By Joan Urdang • Oct. 31, 2014

Cost-Saving Idea: Don’t Take Credit Cards

Credit card processing fees on business-to-business transactions have become a significant cost for companies, according to new research from REL Consulting, which recommends that organizations reduce fees by changing their acceptance policies for cards.In 2013, companies incurred an average of $...

By Matthew Heller • Oct. 30, 2014

Some Investors Get a Jump on SEC Filings, Study Says

Some investors may be getting a “significant timing advantage” by subscribing to a service that provides access to corporate filings seconds before they are posted on the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission’s EDGAR system, a new study says.According to researchers from the University of Chica...

By Matthew Heller • Oct. 30, 2014

Computer Sciences Accused of Medicaid Billing Fraud

Federal prosecutors have accused technology consultant Computer Sciences Corp. and the City of New York of conspiring to defraud Medicaid of millions of dollars by using computer programs to automatically alter billing data.In a health-care fraud lawsuit filed Monday, the U.S. Attorney’s office i...

By Matthew Heller • Oct. 29, 2014

Survey Finds ‘Confidence Action Gap’ Among Execs

CEOs and other top executives of U.S. companies are suffering from a “confidence action gap,” expressing confidence about the future of their organizations but failing to translate that feeling into long-term investment, according to a new survey.Deloitte Consulting said that two-thirds of the 30...

By Matthew Heller • Oct. 28, 2014

White House Unveils $300M Investment in Manufacturing

Hoping to build on job growth in manufacturing, the Obama administration announced a series of executive actions to strengthen the sector, including a $300 million investment in three emerging technologies.Advanced materials (including composites and bio-based materials), advanced sensors for man...

By Matthew Heller • Oct. 27, 2014

In the Trenches of the Cyber War

“The first thing the CFO should do is not speak to Tom Ridge,” Suni Munshani advises.Referring to the former director of the Department of Homeland Security, who launched a cyber-insurance firm in October, Munshani is making the point that finance chiefs should immerse themselves in the details o...

By David Katz • Oct. 27, 2014

Is Fleet Safety Your Risk Management Blind Spot?

As organizations struggle with how to appropriately manage the full spectrum of risks facing their organizations, an often overlooked exposure is the one associated with employees out on the road.It’s not unusual for CFOs to downplay auto risks for organizations that do not operate a large fleet ...

By Rich Bleser • Oct. 27, 2014

Supply Chain Headache at L.A. Port

The Los Angeles area is well-known for its gridlocked freeways. But it’s a different kind of congestion that is threatening timely delivery to retailers for the holiday season.The container port in Long Beach, Calif. A shortage of trucking equipment known as chassis and possible labor disruptions...

By Matthew Heller • Oct. 24, 2014

IT: A Fork in the Digital Road

Imagine that Apple had folded in the mid-1990s, as some predicted at the time. Perhaps music downloads would still be a hassle, smartphones a novelty and tablet computers two inches thick. But one thing would certainly be different: the information-technology industry would now lack a leading lig...

By Economist Staff • Oct. 24, 2014

‘Work Martyrs’ Turning U.S. Into ‘PTO Graveyard,’ Study Says

America is turning into a nation of “work martyrs,” with employees giving up $52.4 billion in benefits last year by not taking paid time off (PTO), according to new research.The average worker earns 21 days of PTO each year but uses only 77% of that time, forfeiting 4.9 days, the global advisory ...

By Matthew Heller • Oct. 23, 2014

Ten Riskiest U.S. Industries

U.S. industries ranging from apparel manufacturing to appliance repair are still struggling to recover from the recession, with foreign competition and changing consumer preferences likely to make their future prospects bleak, according to a new report.In a rating of the top 10 riskiest industrie...

By Matthew Heller • Oct. 23, 2014

Middle-Class Squeeze Hits Retirement Savings

In another indication of the “middle-class squeeze,” a new survey has found that 34% of middle-class Americans are currently not contributing to a retirement account and even those who have saved for retirement have saved only a median of $20,000.Nineteen percent of those surveyed by Wells Fargo ...

By Matthew Heller • Oct. 22, 2014