The US has been making a transition into a postindustrial society for some time now, in which creative service-based goods (as opposed to material goods) are the driving force of the economy. As waves of technological innovation continue to flood the marketplace each year, industries have had to turn to a new brand of financial expert for ideas. This expert, known as the “postmodern CFO,” must be capable of overseeing the transitional effects of post-industrialization.
The new skills postmodern CFOs have, or in other words, the ones CFOs must soon expect, include:
The ability to create business models that reflect market trends. This requires business and marketing expertise, and incorporates analytical skills.
The ability to attend to core financial responsibilities while also recognizing and reacting to customer/client feedback, as well as social trends.
With the influence that politics and media now have on modern economics, CFOs must have the ability to foresee the influence of external trends on business and finance.