The Contemporary CFO

Michael Haupt is a Partner in Deloitte Consulting, based in London. He is a senior leader of Deloitte's Finance, Performance Management and Technology practice in Europe and works very closely with many senior finance, business and technology executives of leading global companies. He is a widely recognized thought leader who has contributed to several publications on finance and performance management. He has written The Contemporary CFO to help current and future finance leaders navigate the demands of an increasingly fast-changing, complex and interconnected world.

Chapter - 00: Introduction;


Section - ONE: The engineer perspective (and the art of design thinking);


Chapter - 01: Introduction;
Chapter - 02: Beyond process automation;
Chapter - 03: Data, data, data;
Chapter - 04: It’s all about people;
Chapter - 05: The engineer perspective - Summary;


Section - TWO: The entrepreneur perspective (and the art of systems thinking);


Chapter - 06: Introduction;
Chapter - 07: The strategic performance dialogue;
Chapter - 08: The operational performance dialogue;
Chapter - 09: Performance culture;
Chapter - 10: The entrepreneur perspective - Summary;


Section - THREE: The economist perspective (and the art of network thinking);


Chapter - 11: Introduction;
Chapter - 12: Digital business platform;
Chapter - 13: Digital business ecosystems;
Chapter - 14: Multi-stakeholder value;
Chapter - 15: The economist perspective - Summary;
Chapter - 16: Bibliography

"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."

"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."

"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."

"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."

"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."

"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."

"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."

"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."

"This book is absolutely inspiring for me. It reflects very well the situation that most of our CFO community is in - between leaving old business models and creating a new world. Transformation is becoming the main goal of every CFO. This book will help readers to be the leader in a digital transformation and shows the new role of the CFO in the 21st century. Thank you for this inspiring insight!"