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Hey there,

Knowing when and how to bring in a CFO can transform how agencies grow.

Ad Age breaks down the right timing, critical skills, and why financial leadership matters more than ever for scaling teams.

Stay tuned to see how the right CFO turns creative momentum into lasting stability.

📰 Upcoming in this issue

• 💼 Everything Agencies Need to Know About Hiring a CFO

• 💼 OpenAI CFO Says No IPO on the Horizon

• 🏪 Leading Through Acquisitions: A C-Store CFO’s Playbook

📈 Trending news

• Fear, Greed, Ego, The Fintech Cycle Returns

• What a 6 A.M. CFO Checks First

• Where Risk Meets Responsible Play

💼 Everything Agencies Need to Know About Hiring a CFO

Ad Age explains when agencies need a CFO, what skills to prioritize, and how the role drives growth, control, and funder confidence.

Read the full article here »

Key Takeaways:

• 🧭 Know the Moment: Hire a CFO when complexity grows, cash tightens, or investors demand discipline that founders and controllers cannot provide.

• 📊 Skills That Matter: Seek pricing acumen, cash flow mastery, forecasting, and fluency in agency metrics across utilization, bill rates, and backlog.

• 🧱 Systems and Controls: Expect upgrades to ERP, billing, and revenue recognition, with clean data, audit readiness, and predictable closes.

• 🤝 Strategic Partner: A great CFO shapes go-to-market, talent plans, and M&A, aligning budgets with growth while guarding margins and risk.

💼 OpenAI CFO Says No IPO on the Horizon

At WSJ Tech Live, Sarah Friar said OpenAI is not working toward an IPO. She emphasized focus on scaling, product, and research over listing talk.

Read the full article here »

Key Takeaways:

• 🧭 Growth Over Listing: OpenAI prioritizes scale, product velocity, and research investment, not near-term public markets.

• 🧱 Structure ≠ Signal: The new public benefit setup offers flexibility, yet does not signal imminent IPO plans.

• 💸 Heavy Capex Needs: Compute and data center costs remain high, driving interest in creative financing and partner support.

• ⏳ Timeline Caution: Any public listing waits on readiness, clearer economics, and market conditions that justify the move.

🏪 Leading Through Acquisitions: A C-Store CFO’s Playbook

A veteran convenience-store finance chief explains how discipline, culture, and communication turn rapid acquisitions into durable results. Integration speed matters; clarity matters more.

Read the full article here »

Key Takeaways:

• 📊 Deal Discipline: Clear hurdles on returns, synergies, and cash ensure acquisitions create value, not volume.

• 🔗 Integration Rhythm: Standard systems, close calendars, and day-one checklists align teams quickly across new locations.

• 🧑‍🤝‍🧑 People and Culture: Retaining local know-how, explaining the why, and recognizing wins keep morale high during change.

• 🛠️ Modernize to Scale: Data visibility, automation, and clean controls improve forecasting accuracy and store-level decision making.

📊 Take This Edition’s Poll:

Why It Matters

A strong CFO gives agencies structure, visibility, and confidence in every decision. From managing pricing models to improving forecasting, they turn financial clarity into growth fuel.

It is the difference between running projects and running a real business.

Wishing you continued success,

Vanessa Carter
Editor-in-Chief
CFO Executive Insights

P.S. Interested in sponsoring a future issue? Just reply to this email and I’ll send packages!