The Contemporary CFO How Finance Leaders Can Drive Business Transformation, Performance and Growth in a Connected World

"Brilliant! An insightful and highly relevant view into the ongoing evolution of the CFO role and the transformation of the Finance function and companies more generally." ("Tony Latham, Chief Financial Officer, Bacardi")
"Business are changing, evolving and adapting at a pace never seen before. CFOs are expected to play multi-dimensional roles, drive the transformation, foster capabilities and deliver performance. By framing the role through the lenses of a digital engineer, entrepreneur and economist, Michael has brought to life the impact a strong CFO can create, both for winning today and tomorrow. This book is a treatise on many highly relevant topics with key insights and practical implementation actions. A must read for all professionals." ("Srinivas Phatak, Executive Vice President Finance, Unilever")
"A must read for CFOs - and an asset for the wider executive team. By dividing the content into three parts, the book explores the central role of the CFO but also addresses her/his relationships to peers on the board, the need for contemporary finance leaders to integrate across functions, as well as the necessary tools for modern corporate governance in changing times." ("Dr Christian Langer, Chief Digital Officer HHLA Hamburger Hafen und Logistic AG, and former Chief Digital Officer, Lufthansa AG")
"Spot-on! Michael superbly describes how technology is as essential to finance today as double entry accounting has been for centuries. He provides very concrete clues to help a CFO navigate through a digital finance transformation keeping in mind that data is its Alpha and Omega." ("Christophe Lambinet, Global Head of Finance, Legal & Compliance Technology, Nestle")
"This book is a super interesting read and details how CFOs should be a driver of change rather than be driven by it. Creating an inspiring work environment and developing psychological safety within the team is, I believe, key to successful transformation. Along with choosing the right people for the team with the right mindset and allowing them the space to come up with bold new ideas, work on projects, develop an intrapreneurial spirit and establish a culture that embraces mistakes as learning opportunities." ("Sonja Simon, Chief Financial Officer, SAP Latin America")
"An excellent, actionable guide for current and future finance leaders seeking to drive sustainable growth and value creation in an increasingly complex and interconnected business environment." ("Mark Shadrack, Chief Operating Officer, Hope and Homes for Children, and former Vice President Finance, Unilever")
"A powerful insight into the changing landscape and role of CFOs in this dynamic environment - reminding me of many inspiring conversations with Michael and our Finance Leader Round Table." ("Anoop Agarwal, Chief Financial Officer, Mars Pet Nutrition, and former Vice President Finance, Digital & Staff Officer, Mars Incorporated")
"Talking about the future is always hypothetical and speculative. The Contemporary CFO brings it to the point: Future is happening now. This makes the book unique: a clear blueprint and call for action for finance executives - supported by extensive original research at academic standards, combined with exclusive insights from in-depth interviews with top management and hands-on experiences from delivering transformational change in leading global organisations." ("Dr Ulrich Kloubert, board member, TechFunder, and former academic director, GEM Global E-Management, University of Cologne")
"The Contemporary CFO is a must-read for leaders keen to understand and apply the principles underpinning successful digital transformation. Packed with timely, yet timeless insights about business performance and growth in a connected world, this is an essential guide for finance, business and technology executives." ("Mark Waller, Chief Digital Strategist, TechShifts Media")
"Michael has written a must-read for CFOs and their teams who really want to make the Digital Finance leap. This book helps finance leaders to avoid going after all the bells and whistles and instead focus on what really matters to drive transformational change." ("Mohamed Bouker, Partner at Deloitte, and author of The CFO in Pole Position")