As 2026 approaches, CFOs are navigating one of the most complex operating environments in recent memory. Liquidity is tight, confidence is fragile, and long-standing operating models are creaking under the weight of change. Looking at current market realities, we can see the forces shaping the CFO role – but we also need a reminder that no leader can cover every front at once.
- Treasury resilience as strategy
When debtors age, cashflow tightens, and banks grow cautious, the treasury capability shifts from a support function to a core strategic pillar.
This is backed up with some recent research from Gartner which confirms that cost optimisation and capital discipline will dominate CFO priorities in the coming year as 56% cite enterprise-wide cost efficiency as a top concern.
Relationship management and transparency with lenders has never mattered more. A CFO’s ability to maintain an open dialogue and demonstrate robust cash forecasting can now determine whether a business stays on plan or faces derailment. Yet treasury remains one of the least understood and most technically demanding areas of finance, and few organisations have the expertise to manage it effectively.
For CFOs, this means:
- Building deeper treasury expertise and visibility into working capital.
- Maintaining transparency and proactive dialogue with banks and lenders.
- Stress-testing debtor risk, liquidity, and interest-rate exposure.
- Cutting costs surgically, not uniformly.
As a CFO, ensuring treasury resilience is now crucial and will determine how profits flow or potentially, even survival.
- Uncertainty as the new constant
Across industries, sales are falling short of targets, investments are being delayed, and deal cycles are lengthening. Private equity remains well capitalised but sidelined, which is a reflection of valuation gaps and high borrowing costs.
There’s a shift towards “ruthless prioritisation.” CFOs are expected to act like activist investors, allocating capital with precision and abandoning low-return initiatives. Growth in 2026 will be built on focus, not expansion.
So here are some practical implications to consider:
- Replace static annual budgets with rolling 12- to 18-month forecasts – the main focus is on producing the best / most accurate data.
- Apply tighter ROI filters to new projects.
- Reinvest where differentiation is possible and streamline where it isn’t.
Don’t forget that in a confidence-starved market, restraint is a strategy.
- Scalability and transformation under pressure
Legacy operating models, especially in mature businesses, are showing their limits. Underinvestment, manual processes, and fragmented systems are slowing scalability.
Market research indicates that there’s low confidence in technology outcomes with few CFOs expecting meaningful AI gains or an ability to accelerate adoption. Confidence in digital talent is equally constrained.
So, the practical route forward here is incremental transformation:
- Leverage embedded AI and automation within existing platforms.
- Pilot modular projects before enterprise-wide rollouts.
- Partnering strategically when building in-house capability is unrealistic.
Transformation in 2026 is about modernising selectively and safely, not rebuilding from scratch.
- Recruitment and retention of talent
One of the biggest challenges in finance is attracting and retaining high-quality staff – particularly individuals with the skills and mindset to support organisational transformation, leverage existing capabilities, and adapt to new initiatives.
The most successful firms and CFOs will:
- Prioritise retention through a combination of financial and non-financial rewards.
- Position themselves as an employer of choice to attract top talent.
- Continuously upskill their workforce to meet evolving business requirements.
Finally, you can’t be everywhere
The scope of the CFO role continues to expand. Beyond finance, today’s CFO is often responsible for IT, risk, legal, HR, and even marketing. It’s a reflection of trust, but also an apparent structural risk.
Dependence on your second-in-command (the finance director or a similar role) becomes critical. Yet in small teams, succession is difficult, and high-potential leaders often move quickly to secure their own CFO roles. The result is constant tension—managing down, up, and out all at once.
The smartest CFOs will respond by:
- Defining where they add the most strategic value.
- Building leadership depth and clear accountability within finance.
- Setting boundaries across adjacent functions they oversee.
In an increasingly complex world, the only sustainable strategy is focus. A CFO can’t be everywhere, and the best ones don’t even try.
At The Siena Partnership, we work with our clients to recruit CFOs and help their organisations innovate and deliver value creation.
If you’d like to continue the conversation with one of our CFO Experts, Mike Faull, contact him here: Mike Faull