Beyond bean counting:

In the traditional executive suite, the chief financial officer's (CFO's) role was to keep tabs on the money and then make sense of that information for the board of directors, top management, and the investment community. And while the CFO's fiefdom was large, few ventured beyond these purely financial domains. But times have changed. Today, CFOs must take on dynamic leadership roles in four important areas of the business. First, they have exemplary strategic management capabilities. Second, they are able to provide line management with detailed, real‐time information that improves the quality of strategic decision‐making and execution. Third, they transform the traditional investor‐relations function into a source of competitive advantage. And fourth, their leadership transcends the finance function and carries over into all areas of the company.