Corporate fraud a top concern at the board of directors level

Fraud monitoring and mitigation ranked as the No. 1 area where CFOs fail to deliver critical information and decision support to their respective boards. At 36%, fraud detection ranked ahead of performance risk management and strategic/operational risk management (both 32%). Other critical areas included growth strategy, with 26%, and cost control/reduction at 25%.

The survey entitled The Six Key Areas Where CFOs Fail to Deliver for the Board of Directors also revealed:

• Business continuity planning, at 52%, was seen as the most important value that a strategic CFO can deliver to the board and CEO, followed by managing financial risk to prevent loss (51%) and reducing costs/improving margins (43%).
• When it comes to treasury management, most boards view cash and liquidity management and forecasting (66%) as the most important function, followed by risk management (46%) and financial transactions (45%).
• Nearly 95% of respondents said their CFO is seeking better ways, and better technologies, to meet the demands of the boardroom and the CEO. Fraud risk technology ranked highest, followed by risk management, working capital management and cash and liquidity management.

The good news for CFOs is that 94% of financial leaders agree or strongly agree that their CFO is perceived by their board of directors and CEO as a critical strategic business partner. Still, CFOs have work to do in providing the right information at the right time to help empower the board and meet their growth objectives.