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Lessons in Leadership: What It Takes to Be a Future CFO

Last Thursday we had the pleasure of hosting an insightful and inspirational Future CFO-focused event, where we explored their experiences and journeys. All attendees had the privilege of hearing from three fantastic senior finance leaders - Nick Shaw, Kayleigh Wright and James Wenninger, each bringing a unique perspective shaped by their own career journeys — with the consensus across all speakers and focus of: driving meaningful, strategic value across their organisations. Each leader shared personal experiences of navigating challenges, leading transformation, and elevating the role of finance from a back-office function to a true business partner and value creator. Each speaker offered valuable perspectives, and several key takeaways stood out: Build a team that compliments you : Great leadership means recognising and embracing the skills you don’t have. All three CFOs emphasised the strength of surrounding themselves with good people and team members whose strengths contrast their own — creating well-rounded, agile finance functions. Embrace the unknown with confidence: Whether navigating new industries, acquisitions, or rapid change, one message was clear: lean into the uncertainty and trust your ability to adapt. Growth doesn’t happen in comfort zones. Blend experience from big & small companies : The synergy of experience from both large-scale corporations and nimble, fast-paced environments is invaluable. The ability to scale thinking and apply structured processes in leaner settings was a recurring theme. Identify and align with key business needs : Strategic finance leaders go beyond numbers. They seek out synergies and align with business-specific needs — from systems integration to cultural alignment — to ensure long-term value add. Own your decisions…fully! : True ownership means standing by your decisions and being accountable for their outcomes. Openly discussed and demonstrated how conviction and responsibility can elevate leadership and trust across the organisation with a wider impact! A huge thank you again to Nick Shaw, Kayleigh Wright & James Wenninger who were incredible speakers and all who contributed to making this event a success. It was a timely reminder of the evolving, multi-dimensional role of today’s Finance leaders. Huge thanks as well to all attendees for bringing openness in their points / questions , and energy to the room. Looking forward already to next year!To hear about future events, contact Jack Curtis!

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Here’s the first in a new regular series where we look to offer help and advice to candidates, employees and employers on a range of career progression and recruitment topics. Our highly experienced team of consultants will utilise their skills and knowledge to share insights in how to best to handle today’s burning workplace issues.

My workload is becoming too much for me to handle; I need some help but I don’t know how to ask as I’m worried it will look like I can’t cope and could affect my career prospects. What should I do?

Firstly, well done for recognising that you have become overloaded; it’s not always easy to admit and many people will try to hide the fact because, as you say, they are concerned that if they seem to be unable to cope it could affect their chances for promotion.

It is important to understand that feeling overwhelmed is not a sign of failure or that you are unable to do your job. Try to establish why you are overworked – is it because it is a busy time at work, there’s an important deadline looming or you are covering for a colleague who is absent, in which case your increased workload may be a temporary issue or is this an ongoing situation as too much is being expected of you because more tasks have been added to your remit.

Whatever the cause, it is important to address the matter in the right way; you don’t want to come across as complaining – even if your concerns are genuine – but instead you should demonstrate that you want to do the best possible job and that you don’t feel you can currently perform to the best of your ability.

Before speaking to your line manager, give some consideration to what tasks you are currently working on, what time will need to be allocated to them and any deadlines that have been set so you can look at how they can be prioritised. It is possible that after doing this exercise you may find that you can manage your workload better than you initially thought.

If however, you find that there is too much that needs to be done in too short a time frame, arrange to speak to your boss to agree the most appropriate way forward. Demonstrate that you have given the matter some thought by going into the discussion armed with possible solutions such as where another member of the team could provide assistance, a deadline that could be rearranged or a task that could be allocated to a colleague.

Your manager should appreciate your honesty and that you have identified not only that there is issue but have taken the initiative to come up with possible solutions before it’s too late to resolve the matter. In doing so, you will have demonstrated to your manager that you are prepared to take responsibility for your workload and can think through a situation and are not simply wanting someone else to sort out the problem for you.

Good luck!

Sharp Consultancy specialises in the recruitment of temporary, interim and permanent finance professionals. With offices in Leeds and Sheffield our highly experienced team of consultants recruit for positions throughout Yorkshire and beyond. CONTACT US today to discuss your recruitment needs with a member of our team.