Chief Financial Officer (CFO)

Answer 1

A chief financial officer of a company will have a great deal of responsibility and will make many of the company’s most important decisions. Becoming a CFO is not easy, but those who put in the years and have the skills get big time rewards from the CFO position. A chief financial officer will typically work with the CEO of a company to decide on budgets, direct the financial future of a company, and make the macroeconomic decisions for that company’s immediate future.

Becoming a CFO

In order to become a chief financial officer, one would need to put in years of work in the corporate world. Most of these individuals come from a finance background and it will take a Masters in Business Administration almost 100% of the time. This is something of a career summit, as CFOs will work for years in other positions on their way up the corporate ladder. It takes much political maneuvering and a great deal of business acumen to land one of these positions.

How much do they make?

Depending upon the company, this could be anywhere from a few hundred thousand dollars into the multi-million dollar range. CFOs of large companies will sometimes have equity in that company, so they will make a percentage of the company’s profit. There are also bonuses that go along with a CFO position, so the actual take-home pay can be huge. CFOs of smaller, local companies can still bring home $250,000 or more depending upon the company’s profit margins. These individuals typically sit near the top of the corporate structure, so their salaries will be above almost all of the company’s other employees.

What do they do?

The life of a CFO can include some complex work and some serious decision making. These guys will oversee all financial operations of a company, from the accounting to the budgeting to the auditing. They typically sign off on budgets and make the major decisions that impact the bottom line. Their work is most macro-economic, as they dispense most of the busy financial work to other employees. Some CFOs are more hands-on than others, depending upon the corporate climate.