Tweedie Takes a Bow

In June, Sir David Tweedie will retire as chairman of the International Accounting Standards Board, a position he has held since the organization’s inception 10 years ago. We recently asked him about the future of accounting.Some critics grumble that if the United States does not adopt IFRS, it s...

By Marie Leone • Feb. 1, 2011

Back in Business

Finance chiefs are welcoming 2011 with plans to loosen their purse strings and hire new workers, while also expressing more optimism than they have in many months.Nearly 50% of CFOs are more optimistic about the U.S. economy than they were last quarter, while just 14% are less optimistic, accordi...

By Kate O'Sullivan • Feb. 1, 2011

Explore the Trendline➔

Tax policy shifts: What CFOs need to know to stay ahead

Discover how evolving tax policies are creating new opportunities and challenges for CFOs.

By CFO.com staff

Forget What You Think You Know

Finance chiefs, by their nature, rarely need to be reminded that, “If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is.” But with domestic demand sluggish at best, many are looking to overseas markets for growth, and there is a marked tendency to put on rose-colored glasses when doing so.Of course, ...

By Janet Kersnar • Feb. 1, 2011

For This CFO, Nine Gigs Are Better Than One

If variety is the spice of life, it explains why Tom Kelly is so happy in his work.After spending the early years of his career as a Peat Marwick accountant and a finance executive at Pepsico, the famed CFO factory, Kelly landed finance-chief spots at several companies — large and small, public a...

By David McCann • Jan. 28, 2011

Credit Still Scarce for Small Companies

The relationships between small businesses and their banks continued to be tense in 2010, according to Greenwich Associates’s annual survey of banking experiences for companies in the $1 million to $10 million revenue range. Overall satisfaction levels were down across the board, in large part be...

By Alix Stuart • Jan. 27, 2011

Want Preventive Care? Join the Club

Small businesses that don’t provide health insurance for employees may be able to help them stay healthy anyway — by telling them to join Sam’s Club.This month the members-only retailer launched its new Prevention Plan, a personalized online health-management program. Available only to Sam’s Club...

By David McCann • Jan. 19, 2011

Want Preventive Care? Join the Club

Small businesses that don’t provide health insurance for employees may be able to help them stay healthy anyway — by telling them to join Sam’s Club.This month the members-only retailer launched its new Prevention Plan, a personalized online health-management program. Available only to Sam’s Club...

By David McCann • Jan. 19, 2011

Late to the Party: Small Biz

Weak sales are continuing to keep small businesses cautious, according to a monthly barometer of small-business optimism.Based on a survey of business owners done in December, the index released today by the National Federation of Independent Business (NFIB) shows that the moderate recovery being...

By Sarah Johnson • Jan. 11, 2011

Best of 2010: Budgeting and Planning

Budgeting and planning continued to challenge CFOs and their finance teams in 2010. Although revenue stabilized at many companies, worries about demand and when (or whether) it would return to prerecession levels plagued finance chiefs all year. Many finance chiefs sought new ways to get better d...

By CFO Editorial Staff • Jan. 4, 2011

Best of 2010: Budgeting and Planning

Budgeting and planning continued to challenge CFOs and their finance teams in 2010. Although revenue stabilized at many companies, worries about demand and when (or whether) it would return to prerecession levels plagued finance chiefs all year. Many finance chiefs sought new ways to get better d...

By CFO Editorial Staff • Jan. 4, 2011

Best of 2010: Risk Management

Risk came at CFOs from seemingly every corner in 2010. Two major global brands faced reputational disasters, as Toyota’s safety problems and BP’s record-breaking oil spill grabbed headlines. The unstable global economy made news throughout the year, prompting finance chiefs to evaluate their curr...

By CFO Editorial Staff • Dec. 30, 2010

CFO Outlook: Onward and Upward

Finance chiefs are more optimistic than they were last quarter and plan to increase their spending in 2011, according to the latest Duke University/CFO Magazine Global Business Outlook Survey. The survey, which polled 848 finance executives worldwide and concluded December 10, finds nearly 50% of...

By Kate O'Sullivan • Dec. 14, 2010

CFO Outlook: Onward and Upward

Finance chiefs are more optimistic than they were last quarter and plan to increase their spending in 2011, according to the latest Duke University/CFO Magazine Global Business Outlook Survey. The survey, which polled 848 finance executives worldwide and concluded December 10, finds nearly 50% of...

By Kate O'Sullivan • Dec. 14, 2010

NetSuite’s Vertical Leap

When NetSuite went into business in 1998 as NetLedger, it sold a software-as-a-service product that competed with Intuit’s QuickBooks, the ubiquitous small-business accounting tool. Over the years, the company added inventory management and CRM tools, attracting ever-larger customers in the proce...

By Kate O'Sullivan • Dec. 8, 2010

NetSuite’s Vertical Leap

When NetSuite went into business in 1998 as NetLedger, it sold a software-as-a-service product that competed with Intuit’s QuickBooks, the ubiquitous small-business accounting tool. Over the years, the company added inventory management and CRM tools, attracting ever-larger customers in the proce...

By Kate O'Sullivan • Dec. 8, 2010

Your New Start-Up

“In the beginner’s mind there are many possibilities; in the expert’s mind there are few.”So holds a Zen proverb. And as much as your expertise has certainly helped your company weather this exhausting financial crisis, with the new year almost upon us it may be time to try to regain the beginner...

By Scott Leibs • Dec. 1, 2010

Shape Shifters

Nine months ago, CFO asked a number of leading economists to put themselves on the line — or the V, or U, or W, as they saw fit. That is, we asked them to predict the shape, literally, of the recovery (if any), and their collective response yielded one of the most popular articles we published al...

By Russ Banham • Dec. 1, 2010

Shape Shifters

Nine months ago, CFO asked a number of leading economists to put themselves on the line — or the V, or U, or W, as they saw fit. That is, we asked them to predict the shape, literally, of the recovery (if any), and their collective response yielded one of the most popular articles we published al...

By Russ Banham • Dec. 1, 2010

A New Method at Method

Method Products, a San Francisco-based maker of environmentally friendly home and personal cleaning products, has enjoyed years of healthy growth, becoming a $100 million, 100-person company since its founding in 2000. But in the rush to success, some basic planning was overlooked.“We have depart...

By Kate O'Sullivan • Nov. 17, 2010

A New Method at Method

Method Products, a San Francisco-based maker of environmentally friendly home and personal cleaning products, has enjoyed years of healthy growth, becoming a $100 million, 100-person company since its founding in 2000. But in the rush to success, some basic planning was overlooked.“We have depart...

By Kate O'Sullivan • Nov. 17, 2010

Abraham Getzler, Turnaround Pioneer, Dies

Abraham Getzler, a former feather merchant who helped lay the groundwork for the corporate restructuring services business, died on October 29. He was 84.Founder and longtime chairman of Getzler Henrich & Associates, Getzler consulted on turnarounds for middle-market companies, serving as int...

By David Katz • Nov. 10, 2010

Abraham Getzler, Turnaround Pioneer, Dies

Abraham Getzler, a former feather merchant who helped lay the groundwork for the corporate restructuring services business, died on October 29. He was 84.Founder and longtime chairman of Getzler Henrich & Associates, Getzler consulted on turnarounds for middle-market companies, serving as int...

By David Katz • Nov. 10, 2010

Big Retailers Put Testing to the Test

When Wawa, the $6 billion convenience-store chain, came up with a new flatbread breakfast product in 2008, the company’s marketing department was flat-out excited. The product had performed exceptionally well in spot testing and seemed more than ready for a systemwide rollout.At that very time, t...

By David McCann • Nov. 8, 2010

Is a Trade War at Hand?

A flurry of congressional activity regarding foreign trade has more than a few CFOs on edge, and for good reason. On the one hand, they understand why Washington would seek to improve current economic conditions by getting tough on major trading partners, including China, whose protectionist poli...

By Janet Kersnar • Nov. 1, 2010

Lite Makes Right

Call it the era of “asset-smart.” Wary of long-term capital investments, many companies have reacted to today’s economic uncertainty with a spin on the “asset-lite” strategy popularized during the 1990s, when companies rushed to lighten their balance sheets by slashing plant-and-equipment outlays...

By David Katz • Nov. 1, 2010