This is a YouTube video titled "How Do CFO's Perceive the Role of The Treasurer?" containing a monologue by Mike Richards from a treasury recruitment company, recorded in November 2020. Mike Richards discusses how CFOs view the role of treasurers, the varying technical qualifications they seek, and the evolving responsibilities of treasurers from cash management to strategic treasury leadership.
Hello, it's Mike Richards from the treasury recruitment company. Here are CFOs recruiting treasurers who are more technically qualified. That's what I get asked about, are they more technically qualified in accountants, CSAY or Treasury? Now I've not necessarily seen a rise in that, but what I have seen, it depends on the CFO really and how they see and perceive the role of a treasurer. If a CFO sees a treasurer as the simple custodian of cash or a cash manager, maybe they won't need someone technically strong in so many areas as cash and cash management is their thing. Or maybe they're focusing on someone that they feel can manage their risk, mitigate their risk. If you like, de risking the business and that might then also lead to them helping and getting closer to the business, actually helping the business. Then there is the treasury thought leader and where they are going, where's treasury going next? And that's where you see treasurers, if you like, going from a crossover point where they come in, do the day to day work, but they're able to then start to look to the future and where treasury is going to be in two to five, maybe 10 years time. Now those guys embrace the now and they also look to the future and onward from that as well. You also have those treasurers, treasury visionaries, where are you going to take treasury next? So do you need someone therefore that is going to be stronger in terms of qualification? I still think it's about the clients themselves because some CFOs will see treasurers coming from that controllership background, particularly in the US where they want someone who might be CPA or ctp. Qualified CPA with accountancy, ctp, treasury within Europe and uk, you've got act, so you've got amct, the mct, very good to have in your cv. But ultimately it comes down to the client and again, maybe it's what their previous treasurer looked like and what they used to. Were they an accountant? Were they a qualified treasurer? If so, then that's probably something I'd look for. If not, client is usually more flexible. So again, the definitive answer is it depends.
