INTHEBLACK June 2026 - Magazine - Page 29
“Over [a] timeline, you build up the skills and experience
the successor needs and gradually transfer the role of the
incumbent over to the successor. Start with the end in mind.
You need to have some basis for knowing when the final
transition will take place and you need to understand what
the incumbent wants.”
SUE PRESTNEY, SUE PRESTNEY & ASSOCIATES
PROTECT CONTINUITY
With CFOs and CEOs working alongside
each other, senior finance appointments
are increasingly a board concern. The CFO
plays a critical role in the financial health
and long-term direction of a business, so any
leadership transition in this position can have
immediate ripple effects.
“If a departure happens unexpectedly,
it can disrupt financial reporting, shake
investor confidence and slow key strategic
decisions at a time when stability is essential,”
says Smith. “For boards, succession planning is
really about protecting that continuity.
Experienced finance leaders
are in high demand, and
organisations that have
not planned ahead often
find themselves making
rushed hiring decisions
under pressure. Having
a clear pipeline of
future CFO talent
allows businesses
to manage transitions
smoothly and
maintain confidence
among investors.”
Long-term planning
is also the way that
Yvonne Chan FCPA,
Singapore Management
University CFO,
handles succession
management.
“Talent is normally
scouted at a young
age based on attitude,
competency and ability.
After that, time is
required to build their
institutional knowledge,
groom their leadership
skills and provide them
with opportunities to test their
resilience and tenacity,” she says.
The preference is also to promote from
within at Singapore Management University,
although it is important to appropriately
develop candidates.
“If they have been in a role too long,
internally developed candidates may lack
exposure to different contexts,” explains
Chan. “They are often blindsided by
department or company culture and tend
to be resistant to change. To groom such
candidates, it may be worth rotating them
out of finance to operational units or even
other companies of varying sizes. Whereas
external candidates start fresh and may drive
transformational change.”
It is also worth considering recruiting senior
finance executives with experience broader
than just finance. Fleming, for example,
did a law degree first. “These days, as the role
becomes broader; being a career accountant
is not the only pathway to CFO role,” he says.
MAKE A PLAN
Overall, a business’s level of maturity often
determines the approach to succession planning.
“If the business is in a high-growth stage,
with a three- or five-year plan, supporting
a CFO, financial controller and a couple
of accountants, but in two years it is going
to be a $500 million revenue company, you need
to think through the roles you will need over
this journey,” says former Adore Beauty CFO,
Stephanie Carroll CPA, who led the company’s
finance team through massive expansion.
“With Adore, I started with a team
of four people. I developed them and brought
them up, but there were not enough people
to really seed the pipeline. However, if you
are in a finance team of 150, then it is around
how you make sure there are career pathways
for all those people.”
Figure out the skills and attributes
the business needs and if the current team
has the capability to grow into bigger roles,
Carroll says. Then, put in place systems
to develop top talent on an ongoing basis. ■
READ
an article on why
a documented
succession plan
is important
EXPLORE
CPA Australia’s
My Firm. My Future.
Managing the
succession of
your business
short course
intheblack.cpaaustralia.com.au 29
