U.S. Makes Move Toward ‘Chip and PIN’ Credit Cards

Only 2% of Americans have credit cards equipped with “chip and PIN” technology to enhance transaction security. That number will soon be going up after President Barack Obama announced that government-issued cards will make the switch from magnetic strip-based technology.An executive order signed...

By Matthew Heller • Oct. 21, 2014

In the Lead or In the Way?

Over the several decades of my working careers (I’ve had at least three distinct careers) I have been to “leadership school” several times, including a memorable class taught by John Kotter, one of the best minds to have researched and consulted on the topic. The variety of approaches covered by ...

By John Parkinson • Oct. 21, 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

No ‘Soft Landing’ for China’s Economy, Report Says

China’s economic growth will slow much faster than expected over the coming decade, falling to an average of 3.9% between 2020 and 2025, but China still represents a “huge and dynamic opportunity” for foreign firms, according to the Conference Board.In a report published Monday, the research grou...

By Matthew Heller • Oct. 20, 2014

Shareholder ‘No’ Votes on Pay Show Uptick

Shareholders appear to be getting more assertive in exercising their “say-on-pay” rights, according to a new report that shows an 18% increase this year in the number of executive compensation plans that failed to receive majority shareholder support.In their final ProxyPulse report for the 2014 ...

By Matthew Heller • Oct. 20, 2014

Patagonia Invests in Solar Energy Fund

Eco-conscious retailer Patagonia is taking sustainability one step further than most companies. The Ventura, Calif.-based outdoor clothing retailer is making a direct n investment in renewable energy, teaming up with a solar finance company to create a $27 million fund that will pay for the const...

By Matthew Heller • Oct. 17, 2014

Read All About It

Few sectors are experiencing the kind of turmoil that has engulfed the newspaper industry. With advertising revenue for print continuing to decline, media companies are separating newspapers and magazines from their far more profitable broadcast and digital businesses. Time Warner, for example, r...

By Edward Teach • Oct. 17, 2014

The Split Over Convergence

Who killed convergence? To Christopher Cox, the chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission from 2005 to 2009—a period of peak optimism about reaching the goal of a single set of global accounting standards—the answer isn’t a mystery. It was the International Accounting Standards Board who...

By David Katz • Oct. 17, 2014

Revenue Recognition Changes Could Hit Middle Market Hard

Earlier this year, the Financial Accounting Standards Board and International Accounting Standards Board issued substantially converged final standards on revenue recognition.Joe Adams, CEO, McGladrey These standards provide a robust framework for addressing revenue-recognition issues and will re...

By Joe Adams • Oct. 17, 2014

Health Care at the Gate

Should employees who smoke, have a high body mass index, or fail to follow doctors’ orders for managing diabetes pay more for their health benefits than their peers with healthier lifestyles do? For a growing number of finance chiefs, the answer is yes.Steven Shaffer is one of them. When he arriv...

By David McCann • Oct. 16, 2014

A Benefits Balancing Act

Senior finance executives are increasingly treating employee benefits as an opportunity for competitive advantage, as they seek to balance their core fiscal-responsibility mandate with the need to support their companies’ talent management strategy.In the most recent in an annual series of survey...

By CFO Editorial Staff • Oct. 16, 2014

Two-Thirds of Americans Favor Tougher Anti-Ebola Measures

Sixty-four percent of Americans believe the Obama administration isn’t doing enough to prevent more cases of Ebola in the U.S., with roughly the same number supporting restrictions on travel from Ebola-stricken countries, according to a new survey.The administration has said a travel ban would fu...

By Matthew Heller • Oct. 14, 2014

Who’s the Top-Dog Private-Exchange Vendor?

Among the big consultancies offering private health-insurance exchanges to active employees, Mercer may have grabbed the lead in covered lives away from Aon Hewitt, the early leader of the pack. It also may not have.Aon Hewitt had made notable news in September 2012 when it announced it had signe...

By David McCann • Oct. 14, 2014

Ireland to Scrap ‘Double Irish’ Tax Loophole

Amid mounting international criticism of its tax policies, the Irish government said Tuesday it was closing an infamous loophole that has been used by U.S. companies, including Google, to slash billions off their tax bills.The so-called “double Irish” provision, which has come under the scrutiny ...

By Matthew Heller • Oct. 14, 2014

How to Generate More Value as a CFO

Like it or not, stereotypes are a fact of life. When we think of stereotyping we usually think of it from a social perspective, but it happens in business every day. If I asked you to picture an engineer or a salesperson in your mind, you would picture two very different people.Bill Budicin A lot...

By Bill Budicin • Oct. 14, 2014

Companies Move Cautiously on Private Health Exchanges

Companies are taking a cautious approach toward using private exchanges to provide health insurance to active employees next year, according to two recent surveys.Private health exchanges, some of which predate the Affordable Care Act, allow employees to choose the group coverage they want from a...

By Matthew Heller • Oct. 10, 2014

Microsoft CEO Sparks Uproar With Women’s Pay Comments

An appearance by Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella at a women’s tech conference backfired when he suggested that women who don’t ask for raises will earn “good karma.”While being interviewed on stage Thursday by Maria Klawe, president of Harvey Mudd College and a Microsoft board member, Nadella was ask...

By Matthew Heller • Oct. 10, 2014

CFOs on the Move: Week Ending Oct. 10

Robert Shearer plans to retire from the top finance spot at VF Corp. in March. Controller and chief accounting officer Scott Roe will take over for him then at the apparel and footwear designer, manufacturer and distributor.Steven Cakebread Technology firm Yext has appointed Steven Cakebread to l...

By Joan Urdang • Oct. 10, 2014

Ex-Dell CFO Gladden Moves to Snack Maker Mondelez

Eight months after resigning as CFO of Dell, Brian Gladden has a new job at Mondelez International, one of the world’s largest snack companies, where he will succeed David Brearton as finance chief.Brian Gladden Gladden, 49, spent six years at Dell, helping to engineer the October 2013 privatizat...

By Matthew Heller • Oct. 10, 2014

U.S. Budget Deficit Lowest Since 2008

The U.S. budget deficit fell by 28.5% during fiscal 2014 to $486 billion, the smallest shortfall since 2008 and the fifth straight year the deficit has declined as a percentage of gross domestic product, according to the Congressional Budget Office.In its latest monthly budget review, the CBO sai...

By Matthew Heller • Oct. 9, 2014

World Bank CFO Gives Up ‘Scarce Skills’ Bonus

Faced with a staff mutiny over cost-cutting measures, World Bank President Jim Yong Kim announced that CFO Bertrand Badré has agreed to give up the unpaid portion of an annual bonus worth almost $95,000.Betrand Badré, CFO of the World Bank Badré, who joined the bank from Société Générale in March...

By Matthew Heller • Oct. 8, 2014

IBM May Be Close to Offloading Computer Chip Unit

IBM may be close to announcing an agreement under which it would pay GlobalFoundries to take over its costly computer chip manufacturing operations.Negotiations over a deal reportedly broke down in July after GlobalFoundries rejected IBM’s original $1 billion offer. Since then, the on-again, off-...

By Matthew Heller • Oct. 8, 2014

ERP Made Easy? One View of a Better Way

Editor’s note: The author of this article runs a company that makes enterprise resource planning software for manufacturers. The article is critical of the traditional ERP software business and should be viewed with appropriate skepticism. However, we think it makes some cogent points about the h...

By Jay T. Deakins • Oct. 8, 2014

IMF Trims 2015 Growth Forecast to 3.8%

The International Monetary Fund has cut its economic growth forecast for 2015 to 3.8%, citing concerns over increased geopolitical risks and “frothy” equity valuations.The IMF’s latest World Economic Outlook sees average growth of 3.3% this year, unchanged from 2013. In July, it had predicted gro...

By Matthew Heller • Oct. 7, 2014

Adapt or Watch Your Business Erode

Did you know that in 1958 ( a year after the creation of the index in its current form), the expected tenure in the index for an S&P 500 company was 61 years and that by 1980, this had dropped by more than half — to 25 years? It’s been declining steadily ever since — now down to around 15 yea...

By John Parkinson • Oct. 7, 2014

HP Announces Historic Breakup

Hewlett-Packard is splitting up into two separate, publicly-traded companies, a historic move for the Silicon Valley institution that it said was part of CEO Meg Whitman’s five-year turnaround plan.Whitman will lead the new Hewlett Packard Enterprise, which will sell business technology, includin...

By Matthew Heller • Oct. 7, 2014