Chief Financial Officer (CFO)

A chief financial officer (CFO) is the most senior executive official within a company to have responsibilities [Page 290]for leading the organization's financial affairs, including the direction of its financial and managerial accounting and control functions, and often its treasury functions. He or she oversees the recording, analysis, and reporting of financial information internally and externally; administers its system of internal accounting control; counsels the organization's leadership on financial matters; and represents the organization to external auditors, tax and financial regulatory authorities, capital markets, and contracting entities.

The complex regulatory frameworks that govern the work of a CFO and his or her organization call for (1) principled leadership in conformity with relevant financial, legal, and ethical standards and the organization's mission and identity; (2) prudential decision ...