Search for the country’s top CFO gets tougher amid volatile times

In volatile times as these, they are like members of the SWAT team discovering an unexpected obstacle in the midst of a raid. It is in this kind of environment, after all, that separates the best CFOs from the crop, said the Dutch financial giant ING Bank N.V. and the Financial Executives Institute of the Philippines (Finex), organizers of the 2017 ING Finex CFO of the Year Award.

This year’s search theme, “The Agile CFO: Enabling Change”, befits the evolving role of the CFO as the CFOs cocaptain in driving and executing a company’s overall strategy. As an agile CFO, he or she must be able to spot early signs of distress, and know how to steer the ship away from a potential crisis and toward safer ground.

“The CFO’s role is more pronounced now as the macroeconomic environment has become more volatile, more global and more interconnected, and where survival is no longer a certainty”, said ING Bank N.V. Manila Branch Country Manager and Managing Director Consuelo D. Garcia. “‘Change’ is not just a political battle cry. We saw it in full display in 2016, the year when many market orthodoxies and a wave of antiestablishment and antiglobalization sentiments, have been turned on their heads.”

Eye of the Needle

While the search is open to the CFO of any company—whether local or foreign-owned, operating in the Philippines, privately held or publicly listed—the search usually attracts the “bravehearts” of the local  financial community. This is because going through the search and selection process, as well as the final judging, is like “going through the eye of the needle”, said Maria Victoria C. Españo, chairman and CEO of Punongbayan & Araullo (also known as P&A Grant Thornton), who cochairs the 2017 Search and Selection Committee (SSC). “It is after all the thoroughness of the process that gives the search more prestige and sets the bar higher for aspiring CFOs,” added SSC Cochair Marilou C. Cristobal, president of Multinational Investment Bancorporation.

To keep the bar high and maintain the search’s reputation for being credible, fair and independent, the organizers invest a lot of time and resources. The detailed and deliberate process takes almost half a year to ensure that the award is given on the basis of merit as proven by track record, accomplishments, certain ethical standards, consistency and sustainability of performance,” explained Judith V. Lopez, chairman of the 2017 CFO of the Year Award Committee.

Rigorous Process

The search uses clearly defined qualitative and quantitative criteria designed by Finex Foundation, together with the Ateneo Graduate School of Business. The selection gives equal weight to the CFO’s performance of his various roles as the company’s strategist, catalyst, operator and steward.

The SSC starts the meticulous work of identifying potential candidates by securing endorsements from the CEO or direct boss of the CFO, and from the vast membership of Finex. Once the CFO’s company or his or her colleagues submit the nomination form and other requirements, the Finex secretariat reviews the documents to ensure that the nominees meet the minimum requirements of the search. The SSC, through a panel of its select  members, interviews the nominees and conducts the necessary due diligence review. The committee also assigns its members to “champion” the nominees—a responsibility that entails conducting even more thorough interviews with the shortlisted nominees’ CEO, peers and staff to validate the results of the initial panel interview and the information stated in the nomination form. The SSC, likewise, commissions a third party to look into the character and credit standing of the candidates.

After rigorous deliberations/wrap-ups/summary sessions, the committee shortlists the nominees, and assigns its members to champion the nomination of the shortlisted CFOs—a responsibility that entails conducting even more thorough interviews with the shortlisted nominees’ CEO and colleagues.

The SSC then ranks the shortlisted candidates according to the results of: (1) qualitative and quantitative information about the actual work performance of the candidates; (2) feedback from other fellow stakeholders in the organization; and (3) the panel interview.

The shortlisted CFOs then each face the board of judges (BOJ) in a closed-door panel interview. The identities of those who made it to the interview process are kept strictly confidential. To determine the awardee, the SSC ranking is combined with the results of the deliberation of the BOJ.

Now on its 11th year, the search has already recognized 10 CFOs: Delfin Gonzalez Jr., who won when he was CFO of Globe Telecom; Sherisa Nuesa, who bagged the coveted title when she was CFO of Manila Water; Jose Sio, who was CFO of SM Investments Corp. when he won; Ysmael Baysa, CFO of Jollibee Foods Corp.; Jaime Ysmael, who won as CFO of Ayala Land  Inc.; Jeffrey Lim, who was CFO of SM Prime Holdings Inc. when he was recognized; Felipe Yalong, former CFO and now executive vice president of GMA Network Inc.; Jose Jerome Pascual III, who was finance director and country controller of Shell Philippines Exploration B.V. when he clinched the award; Luis Juan Oreta, CFO of Manila Water; and Danny Yu, CFO of Philex Mining Corp.

“For a business to ensure its sustainability, companies rely on the CFO’s ability to play multiple roles, particularly in this time of volatility and business uncertainty,” ING Bank’s Garcia said. “This is why the bar is getting higher every year that we hold the search for the next ING Finex CFO of the Year.”

Companies operating in the Philippines and registered under Philippine laws have until August 31 to submit their nomination for the 2017 ING Finex CFO of the Year Award.

The coveted award will be bestowed on November 15. For more inquiries, go to the searchs web site, www.ingfinexcfooftheyear.com, or call the Finex secretariat at: (632) 811-4189 and 811-4052.