The role of the Japanese CFO in a globalizing world - EY · PDF fileThe role of the Japanese CFO in a globalizing world ... Senior Vice President Global Manager Accounting and Finance

The role of the Japanese CFO in a globalizing world

1 The role of the Japanese CFO in a globalizing world |

EY would like to thank all of the 100 CFOs of Japanese corporations who responded to our survey, in particular, the following who shared their insights and personal experiences in a series of interviews:

Tadayuki Seki ITOCHU Corporation Representative Director Executive Vice President CFO

Kazuyoshi Aoki Kao Corporation Senior Vice President Global Manager Accounting and Finance Division

Yukio Yokoyama Nissin Foods Holdings Co., Ltd. Director CFO

Shigeru Nosaka Oracle Corporation Japan Executive Officer Vice President CFO

In this report

Introduction 2

Executive summary CFO as chief strategist to the CEO 3

Changes in the economic climate Strategic issues for global corporations 5

The changing role of the CFO in Europe and the United States 8

Global expansion of Japanese firms Organizational and strategic challenges 10

The ideal Japanese CFO A proposal from EY 13

Issues and solutions for the Japanese CFO 19

Reference materials

CFO Survey 2013: summary of results 27

Related EY thought leadership reports 41


Introduction Since the 2008 financial crisis, demand in developed markets has slowed and the markets of BRIC and post-BRIC countries have boosted their presence in the global economy. This shift in the economic environment has affected patterns of corporate activity and accelerated the pace of entry into emerging markets by corporations from developed countries. The economic power of the developing world is creating demand in emerging markets themselves, which are increasingly seen as profit-generating markets in their own right rather than simply areas in which to increase revenue.

Japanese corporations will need to bring about a bold global management revolution under strong executive leadership from the CEO downward if they are to avoid being left behind in this changing environment.

As Japanese corporations facing operational change implement this revolution, EY has collated wide-ranging data on all aspects of business operations. We believe the CFO plays

an important role as the chief strategist to the CEO, a role that provides a comprehensive perspective across the entire company. Accordingly, EY carried out a survey of CFOs of major Japanese corporations (below: CFO Survey 2013 1) and also conducted a number of interviews with some of the CFOs. In this report, we analyze the survey and interview results to examine what kind of role the Japanese CFO should perform, what kind of issues may arise in performing such a role and how those issues can be overcome.

We sincerely hope that this report can assist Japanese CFOs in planning and implementing measures to deal with strategic and management issues.

Yoshitaka Kato CEO, Ernst & Young ShinNihon LLC

EY Japan Area Managing Partner

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3 | The role of the Japanese CFO in a globalizing world

Executive summary The CFO as chief strategist to the CEO

As a result of corporate globalization, responses to operational issues have become important as never before, including risk management, business portfolio restructuring and optimal resource allocation for maximizing corporate value. The world’s rapidly growing markets have shifted to developing countries, and there, companies are now seeking profits rather than just market share. This trend poses urgent new issues for Japanese corporations on the path to globalization: closely examining the risks and opportunities associated with each market, and acting swiftly to distribute management resources accordingly under the leadership of the CEO. As a result of this change in the operational environment, the importance of the CFO’s strategic role is increasingly recognized both inside and outside the company. Within the company, the CFO has access to practically all management information available and must serve as chief strategist to the CEO, a role that is vital in terms of maximizing corporate value. The time is right for companies to transform the positions of the CFO and the accounting and finance division in pursuit of this strategic role. According to the CFO Survey 2013, 98% of CFOs would like to actively reform their accounting and finance division, showing a clear appreciation of the need to implement change.

Japanese CFOs attach great importance to their strategic role when they pursue their work, even when faced with a variety of challenges. For example, Japanese CFOs largely come from the accounting and finance division of their company, so they sometimes lack a comprehensive understanding of the company’s business. Furthermore, CFOs also face issues such as a scarcity of accounting and finance personnel resulting from corporate restructuring. We believe that in order to maximize corporate value in this period of structural transition, the following three points are particularly important for Japanese CFOs to fulfill their role as chief strategist to the CEO.

Support the CEO’s strategic decision-making

The CFO should strengthen his or her relationship with the CEO and support the CEO’s decision-making and implementation of strategic policy. To survive in competition with global corporations, Japanese companies need to decide on and implement a strategic growth policy that targets emerging markets under the strong leadership of the CEO. By providing the CEO with the information and advice necessary to make strategic decisions, the CFO can contribute to maximizing corporate value.

Actively participate in business operations

To achieve the consolidated financial goals to which the CEO has committed, the CFO must participate more actively in running the business by instilling the managerial strategy throughout the entire corporate group, monitoring the distribution of budgetary resources and their use by each business department, and serving in an advisory role as required to those departments that need to implement cost reductions and other such measures.

Because the budget control and bottom-line profit of business departments are usually under the direct responsibility of the accounting and finance division of each department, it is difficult for the CFO to be effective unless he or she has a good relationship with each business department and information flows freely between them. Some advanced corporations have developed a lean and flexible matrix management system by giving the CFO the authority to access not only the financial information but also the business information of each department — a clear example of a CFO actively participating in non-financial operations.


In order for the CFO to fulfill these roles smoothly and make the transition from head of accounting and finance to chief strategist to the CEO, the CEO’s leadership and appetite for change is vital. At the same time, the CFO and the accounting and finance division must begin thinking of themselves as active participants in the operational side of the business working to maximize corporate value. In addition to nurturing the next generation of business-savvy CFOs, Japanese firms also need to both transform the position of the CFO and the accounting and financial division to make management information easier to visualize and to make the accounting and financial functions in those group companies under the leadership of the CEO more efficient. This will create an environment where the CFO can fulfill a strategic role more effectively and efficiently.

Communicate with stakeholders (shareholders and other investors)

With entry into emerging markets comes an increase in sources of risk, the types of stakeholders and the importance of accountability for external stakeholders. Traditionally in Japanese corporations, the CEO has undertaken communication with external stakeholders, such as shareholders and other investors. However, we predict the CFO will be expected to play a much greater role in the future, for example, in the communication of complex issues such as the effectiveness of resource allocation across markets with large differences in profitability and growth rates. As a result, the CFO, in tandem with the CEO, will be instrumental in meeting the expectations of external stakeholders by disseminating the company’s operating result forecasts and other useful information that contributes to investors’ decision-making.


Changes in the economic climate Strategic issues for global corporations

To survive against global competition, corporations need to develop new business models and achieve sustainable growth. Here we examine some of the important strategic issues companies must deal with to survive in a globalized world.

Balancing distribution of management resources between developed and rapidly growing markets

The ultimate goal of corporations is to maximize corporate value. This requires the efficient utilization of limited management resources. The skillful distribution of these resources involves resolving a number of trade-offs between long-term and short-term returns, between rapidly growing markets and developed markets, and between increasing revenue and improving profit margins. Based on the CEO’s strategic vision, business lines and divisions must be prioritized, a balance struck between risk and return, and resources allocated to growth areas. It is no exaggeration to say that only companies that can speed up operations and redistribute resources flexibly in response to changes in the business environment can survive in today’s climate of uncertainty and intense competition.

However, in reality most companies struggle to strike the optimal balance between various markets because investment in rapidly growing markets must be funded by

short-term profitability, which is likely to be greater in developed markets. Consequently, striking this balance is not a simple case of halting strategic investment in developed markets.

According to a 2012 EY survey of CFOs worldwide, “A tale of two markets: telling the story of investment across developed and rapidly growing markets,” 2, 87% of the CFOs surveyed stated that it was difficult to explain the rationale for increasing investment in developed markets when other, rapidly growing markets were available. In contrast, 63% of CFOs stated that it was difficult to explain the rationale for investing in rapidly growing markets when the return on investment in developed markets was larger in the short term.

2 For an overview of this report, please see “Related EY thought leadership reports” on page 41.


Achieving excess profits in developing countries

Entering developing markets brings a high level of risk because of business uncertainty, which is due to problems such as political instability. However, many CEOs of global corporations are looking to developing markets as a means of maintaining continued growth even if entering these markets complicates matters of resource allocation. Recently, growth in BRIC markets has slowed, but as Chart 1 shows, predicted BRIC growth still makes them an attractive investment proposition in comparison with developed markets. To expand earnings and maintain

growth, the realization of excess profits in developing markets is a vital issue.

Chart 1: BRIC countries continue to grow at a faster pace than other markets


Average real GDP growth (%) GDP, all index countries GDP, BRIC countries

(Source: Looking beyond the obvious : Globalization and new opportunities for growth 3)

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Improving business risk management

When companies move into new markets or expand through M&A activity, risk exposure increases with the number of subsidiaries that make up the group company. One of the most important mechanisms for success in a globalizing world is transferring authority to local staff on the one hand while enhancing parent company risk management functions that allow for prompt strategic adjustments on the other. Parent companies must improve business risk management in order to optimize the allocation of resources between developed and rapidly growing markets, and they must take responsibility for

explaining the benefits of investing in a high-risk, high-return environment and for returning profits to shareholders. All companies approach risk management from a common standpoint, so corporations can achieve returns compatible with their resource allocation by not taking on risk greater than the company can handle and by not concentrating too much risk in a certain country, region or industry.

Currently, we centrally manage 18 main sources of risk for the whole group and also carry out periodic risk assessments on a company or group basis to deal with any new risk. Through various conferences and meetings, each group company’s CFO and I give advice on matters such as selection and concentration of business lines, achieving financial goals and risk asset management. For example, in the Asset Liability Management Committee, once a year each group company’s CFO and the head of the Corporate Planning Department come together to analyze each company’s balance sheet, allowing us to share information and our analyses of issues such as balance sheets, historical trends and risky assets. Materials from these balance sheet analysis meetings are used to decide on selection and concentration of business lines at strategy conferences attended by the CEO and the company presidents, so the meetings are very useful for me as CFO in managing the group-level balance sheet.

With regard to overseas operations, we manage profitability and risk on a country basis. In other words, we create a country risk framework (the maximum investment for each country) based on the country and credit risk, which abates the risk of concentrating investment in certain countries, and we set a hurdle rate (the required expected return for each business line) for each country and industry. The key performance indicators of each company are periodically assessed, and if an unexpected situation develops, the financial team in that country or one of our four group finance companies conducts an impact analysis and promptly reports its results to the CFO.

Tadayuki Seki ITOCHU Corporation Representative Director Executive Vice President CFO

CFOs play a vital role in working toward the financial goals announced to the public in medium-term business plans by encouraging selection and concentration while maintaining company-wide asset and capital efficiency. At ITOCHU, for over 10 years we have been working to improve group-level business portfolio management.


The changing role of the CFO in Europe and the United States

In Europe and the United States, where pressure from shareholders and other investors to meet targets is greater than in Japan, the pressure to maximize corporate value through optimal resource allocation has always been high. The European or American CFO provides financial advice to the CEO to help develop a management strategy and, after its implementation, monitors management benchmarks, promptly reports investment results to the CEO and supports the CEO with adjustments to the overall strategy. In addition, the CFO needs to gather a great deal of data to fulfill this role and thus is often very active in the development of company information systems. As a result, the transparency and accessibility of business information has always been much more advanced in Europe and the United States than in Japan.

Furthermore, the globalization of corporate activity has brought about changes in the role of the European and American CFO. A fundamental shift in resource allocation has occurred. The CEO is now expected to manage activities in both developed and developing markets; in other words, the CEO is simultaneously responsible for both grasping opportunities in developing markets and maintaining the company’s core profits in developed markets. This has led to a change in the extent to which the CFO is expected to become involved in business management.

Complexity of valuing investments in unstable markets

To realize the CEO’s strategy for growth, the CFO must have clear financial criteria for evaluating risk and return and must take responsibility for the optimal allocation of resources.

In the EY Global Survey 2012, 66% of CFOs stated that because of insufficient data and a lack of transparency, it was difficult to set accurate risk evaluation criteria for investments in rapidly growing markets. In response, CFOs in Europe and the United States have introduced new valuation criteria for developing markets and increased the frequency of valuation in order to optimize their resource

allocation between developed and developing markets in accordance with changes in the business environment.

“Before deciding to approve an investment, we always conduct some stress tests and sensitivity analysis in order to see what would be the best and worst-case scenarios foreseeable. We can then make long-term decisions based on all this intelligence.”

— Paulo Prignato, CFO of Votorantim Metais, an industrial conglomerate

“Every six months, we do a forward-looking 10-year internal rate of return (IRR) on each of our assets, and if that IRR is below our average weighted average cost of capital, then either the business is not working the asset hard enough or we should think about selling it.”

— Peter Allen, CFO of property group Westfield (Source: EY Global Survey 2012)

Rethinking performance evaluation indices to foster a risk-taking mindset in business divisions

Dividing resources between profitable developed markets and those developing markets that have the potential to produce short-term losses tends to inspire opposition at both the level of group companies and the level of individual business lines, making investments in developing markets hard to follow through with as a result. Because this trade-off is so difficult, there is a need for the CFO to explain the legitimacy and premise of resource redistribution clearly at all levels of the organization as part of the corporate growth strategy.

“It’s important to be transparent about the big picture and why investing in a particular market is good for the business. Once you have the right metrics in place, you will find that, over time, managers understand how they work and the rationale for choices the business is making.”

— Jon Biro, Executive Vice President and CFO of Consolidated Graphics, a commercial printing company (Source: EY Global Survey 2012)


Explaining the rationale for allocating resources to rapidly growing markets: improving communication with stakeholders

Because investment in developing markets is often high risk, the CFO is becoming increasingly accountable for value creation and shareholder return. Since it can no longer be said that a system of financial reporting through annual reports that centers on prior information can meet the needs of shareholders and other investors, many CFOs are rethinking their communication strategy and disseminating more granular information about their

investment decisions to stakeholders on a more regular basis.

According to the EY Global Survey 2012, 74% of the CFOs surveyed felt it was necessary to increase the frequency of communication with shareholders upon increasing investment in developing markets, while 64% of investors expected more detailed data to be provided by the CFO about future prospects for rapidly growing and developed markets.


Global expansion of Japanese firms Organizational and strategic challenges

In the past, Japanese corporations have maintained domestically concentrated growth through high efficiency, and excellent product quality and development. However, slackening demand brought about by the continued decline and aging of the population has created challenging conditions at home, making expansion into Asia and other developing markets a matter of utmost importance for Japanese corporations. While other competing corporations, particularly in Europe and the United States, are already changing their perception of developing markets from being revenue producing to being profit producing markets, Japanese companies have largely been cautious about foreign investment, and immediate reform of the organizational landscape will be indispensable for survival. At EY, we believe that Japanese companies need to make the following three strategic and organizational changes in order to achieve continued growth in the face of global competition.

Allocation of resources and optimal functional layout at the global level

As markets become multipolar and sites of production and consumption diversify with the rise of developing countries, Japanese corporations must reconsider the global-level organization of their value chain (research and development, marketing, funding, manufacturing and sales) in order to optimize costs and respond rapidly to

customer needs. As the proportion of the value chain based outside Japan increases, striking the most suitable balance between optimization on a business, regional or national level on the one hand and improvement of brand value and group-level operational efficiency on the other is becoming increasingly vital to win out against global competition. Up to now, Japanese corporations have been poor both at understanding the business trends of foreign regions and at considering domestic businesses in need of structural change. The result has been difficulties in prioritizing resource allocation on a business, regional or national level. However, without concentrating in core competencies, treating all business lines equally or favoring domestic businesses in resource allocation will lead to nothing but ever lower global competitiveness. Only the CEO can resolve conflicts of interest between regions and business lines and prioritize resource allocation. Japanese corporations must once again share global-level growth strategies and management visions across the group and, in doing so, must implement dynamic resource management by directing the overall allocation of operational resources from headquarters from a group-level perspective, taking into account the different profiles of domestic and foreign markets and of developed and rapidly growing markets.


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Procurement of funds

Financial reporting

Financial management

Regulatory compliance

Project management / businesstransformation plans

Cash flow

Management of IR and stakeholders

Focus on emerging, rapid-growth markets

Cost management

Corporate governance

Advising management and board ofdirectors on growth strategy

Risk management

Chart 2: Tasks more important now than three years ago

Taking risks

Japanese corporations have been slow in expanding into developing markets in comparison with their Western counterparts; this partly due to their lower risk tolerance. As a result of insufficient risk-return definitions and a lack of information transparency, companies have been unable to make timely evaluations of investment results or flexibly revise resource allocation and have tended to become too cautious with regard to risky investments. In order to realize the high profits available in developing markets and

maintain growth, Japanese corporations must break the curse of characteristically Japanese “perfectionism,” propose strategy based on hypothetical thought, implement strategy after appropriate hypothesis testing, strengthen monitoring of business lines and carry out flexible strategic revisions.

As shown in Chart 2, 47% of the CFOs surveyed place more importance on focusing on developing, rapidly growing markets now than three years ago, illustrating an awareness of the importance of these markets.

(Source: CFO Survey 2013)



We often decide to try expanding into new areas and take on risk. It’s our executive policy because you only see the real needs of your consumers through expansion into their home region.

The time has come for Japanese corporations to implement dynamic resource allocation, establish a new model for growth in the global market and create corporate value. The CFO is crucial to achieving these goals as chief strategist in support of the CEO’s strong leadership.

Adhering to the PDCA cycle

A switch to a more risk-taking ethos can be achieved through simultaneously ensuring a stricter monitoring framework. To utilize limited management resources efficiently and create corporate value, companies need to flexibly review their strategy and allocation of resources while adhering strictly to the Plan, Do, Check, Act (PDCA) cycle. This includes establishing criteria for withdrawal from business lines that are not generating results commensurate with investment.


The ideal Japanese CFO A proposal from EY

To fulfill the role of chief strategist to the CEO and to support the CEO’s dynamic global resource allocation while maximizing corporate value in line with the expectations of stakeholders, the Japanese CFO must fulfill the following three roles.

Stakeholders (shareholders and other investors)

Group company A (Domestic)

Group company B

(Domestic)

Group company C (Overseas)

Group company D (Overseas)

Consolidated group

Line A Line Line C

A B A B C B A C

Parent company

Group com

panies

Support for strategic decision-making Communication with

shareholders and other investors

Active participation in business operations

Expectation of maximized corporate value

Return

CEO Responsibility for achieving

corporate goals Decisions on operational

resource allocation

CFO: Support maximization of corporate value as chief

strategist to CEO

Responsibilities as chief strategist to the CEO


Actively participate in business operations

Communicate with stakeholders

Chart 3: The role of the CFO as chief strategist to the CEO



Support of the CEO’s strategic decision-making refers to the CFO’s duty to produce management reports and provide strategic advice from a financial standpoint. The CFO is the company’s only position that has access to important management information from all departments, and one of the CFO’s most important roles is to provide advice and information to the CEO from the perspective of overall optimization. Regarding the relative importance of the CFO’s various roles, Chart 4 shows that 57% of CFOs surveyed agreed that “advising management and the board of directors on growth strategy” is a higher priority now than it was three years ago. This was the second most popular response, showing that the CFO’s strategic role is becoming more recognized in Japanese corporations.

To give a practical example, M&A deals and investment in facilities by each business division are in danger of being judged based on only the needs of the division in question. The CFO must therefore support the CEO’s strategic decision-making through broader analysis of conflicting options, considering company-wide factors such as return in developed and rapidly growing markets and short- and long-term returns. As for the disposal of underperforming operations based on the strategic direction of the entire business portfolio, here too the CFO is in an impartial position with respect to individual business operations and can judge the situation objectively.

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Financial reporting



Project management and business transformation plans

Cash flow


Focus on emerging, rapidly growing markets

Cost management


Advising management and Board of Directors on growthstrategy

Risk management

Chart 4: Percentage of respondents who believe these tasks are a greater priority now than three years ago



To fulfill these roles, it is essential to conduct transparent, granular analysis of key performance indicators frequently (weekly or monthly), in a timely manner (within 10 business days for the consolidated group), and from various angles (product segment, business line segment, regional segment). For example, if a company has multiple global sites for production and procurement of a single product and the CFO promptly supplies the CEO with the results of comparative inventory analysis and material cost analysis, the CEO can make an operational decision about where to increase production and procurement and where to decrease them.

The CFO’s role in providing information becomes more complicated as the scale and complexity of the global

group increases, and the CFO’s ability to fulfill this role becomes a function of the position’s authority and the level of the company’s systems infrastructure. In other words, to fulfill this role effectively, it is a prerequisite for the CFO to have access to all relevant information.

Active participation in business operations

Active participation of the CFO in business operations refers to the CFO monitoring the budget attainment of each business line in order to achieve the combined goals of the consolidated company and to the CFO acting as adviser to the business divisions as necessary to help them achieve their goals.

Yukio Yokoyama Nissin Foods Holdings Co., Ltd. Director CFO

In the past, the CFO’s main responsibility was as a bookkeeper interpreting past results, but going forward the CFO will also need to provide analysis based on the figures currently available. I believe the CFO of the future will need to grasp global market trends, interpret and analyze financial figures and management information from a specialist perspective, and act as a navigator showing the direction in which the corporation should head.

In other words, the CFO must function as a “financial partner” to the CEO. As CFO of the Nissin group, I see myself in an important role for some time to come, creating and maintaining a platform on which we can define our positioning as a global group and support global management through business processes and enterprise resource planning.


To achieve the consolidated financial goals that the CEO has pledged to shareholders and other investors, the CFO must instill corporate strategy throughout the group, break down financial targets for each business department or group company and consistently monitor progress toward these targets. For example, when allocating return on equity targets, the targets will not be uniform across the group. Rather, they will differ according to the scale of the business and its function (production or sales). By monitoring the metrics of each business department or group company, grasping the situation of the consolidated group, and conceiving and implementing strategies as necessary, the CFO is in a position to display the leadership required to achieve the group return on equity target.

The CFO does more than just monitor. The CFO must also take the lead in implementing solutions to difficult issues in collaboration with each business department or group company. Such solutions are wide ranging, for example, the reduction of costs by restructuring or limiting procurement costs, or the lowering of debt. These challenges are not limited to the domestic environment but involve overseas group companies as well. Therefore, the CFO should show broad leadership and give advice on

matters such as reducing procurement or distribution costs (for example, by improving trading conditions) in order to lower overall operating expenses through negotiations at the multinational or even global level.

In this role, close collaboration with each business line’s accounting and finance division is of the utmost importance. In general, each business line’s accounting and finance division bears direct responsibility for its budget control and bottom line (control function), so without close collaboration it becomes exceptionally difficult for the CFO to master the figures for the group as a whole. Because many Japanese corporations emphasize management at the business-line level, the CFO often lacks authority over different departments and is unable to participate in decisions. In some advanced corporations, the control function of business lines comes under the CFO’s jurisdiction. In this way, the CFO maintains authority and access to information so that business and functions (accounting and finance, personnel, etc.) operate as a cross-functional matrix under the CFO’s control, which is one possible solution to the issues inherent to fulfilling this role.


In Oracle Japan’s accounting department, we share information on market conditions and information on all kinds of operations with our business lines, while also running various financial simulations on free cash flow, sales profit, SG&A (selling, general and administrative expenses) structure, cost structure and revenue. By sharing the analysis results with management teams including the CEO, as CFO I am able to lead discussions on strategic planning and implementation, which I see as a very important part of my role.

In addition, at Oracle, management accounting and financial accounting match in principle, so each business line has a “business finance” coordinator who assists with day-to-day budget control. These coordinators belong not to each business line but to the finance department, so they are responsible for managing gross margins and the bottom line.


Communication with stakeholders (shareholders and other investors)

The role of the CFO in providing information to stakeholders is to support the CEO from a financial perspective. The CFO does this by explaining the corporation’s strategy and progress toward strategic goals in a way that ensures accurate understanding on the part of stakeholders, as well as by feeding back stakeholder expectations at an operational level. It is still conventional wisdom that the CEO plays the main role in stakeholder

communication. However, as Chart 5 shows, 98% of the CFOs surveyed agree with the statement that “Increasing the credibility of the corporation’s financial health is a paramount issue for the CFO,” and 91% agree that “I am increasingly required to act as the face of the corporation.” This is a very strong consensus that clearly illustrates the CFO’s importance in external communication.

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The CFO is in a better position than the CEO to appropriatelyexplain corporate operating results to stakeholders

Shifting emphasis from management of financial results tocomplex stakeholder management is a difficult challenge

Non-financial indicators of operational success are becomingmore important

I am increasingly required to act as the face of the corporationin all matters related to financial performance

Implementation of training for CFOs is useful in helping the CFOdeal with the various business issues they will face

After the financial crisis, increasing the credibility of the corporation’s financial health is a paramount issue for the CFO

Strongly agree Agree

Chart 5: Communication with stakeholders: percentage of respondents who agree or strongly agree with these statements



Generally speaking, investor relations activities in Japan are carried out largely by the CEO and investor relations department, but the CFO’s role does not stop at simply explaining the financial results. The CFO must also plan consistent communication that allows stakeholders to clearly understand the medium-term business plan (in

contrast to analyst views, which tend to take a short-term perspective), the single-year financial forecasts and results, and the future business model. The CFO must also address any discrepancy between internal targets and external targets by feeding investor expectations such as analyst forecasts back into the management process.


I firmly believe that top management has a mission to address the expectations of shareholders and other investors and that the numbers we release externally are targets we must achieve. The accounting and finance division works to provide clarity on this issue by constantly providing feedback to executive management about the expectations of shareholders and other investors. This division also actively advises group companies about how to achieve operating targets. Working together in this way, the CEO, business departments, and the accounting and finance division can do everything in their power to address shareholder and investor expectations, which has allowed us to increase dividends continuously for the last 23 periods.


Issues and solutions for the Japanese CFO

(1) Issues for the Japanese CFO

As mentioned previously, at EY we believe that the importance of the Japanese CFO as chief strategist to the CEO is high because of the need to fight for survival in a hostile, uncertain and changing business environment. However, it is also the case that the majority of CFOs are unable to fulfill this role. The main three obstacles to fulfilling such a role are listed below.


I believe there are two main career paths to becoming a CEO. The first is to start in the accounting and finance division and then acquire knowledge and experience in the business; the second is to start by gaining business experience in the sales or corporate planning division and then acquire knowledge and experience of accounting and finance.

With regard to the CFO’s responsibilities to support business departments by acting as their business partner and transmitting valuable information to the CEO, those from the second career path are more suited to this kind of role. Such personnel have extensive business experience and knowledge in accounting techniques but leave the technical accounting work to subordinates while improving their own business acumen.

To cultivate the next generation of CFOs, I think it is important not only to acquire technical accounting knowledge but also to prioritize on-the-job training, building relevant experience as a manager at a subsidiary firm.

Lack of knowledge or experience in the business

As a prerequisite to act as a chief strategist to the CEO, the CFO needs to have insights based his or her experiences and a deep knowledge of the business. To provide the CEO with advice on flexible resource allocation, it is vital that the CFO understands above all the future of the business, its processes (development, purchasing, manufacturing, sales, marketing, etc.), product specifications, and relative strengths and weaknesses versus its competitors. However, the current

trend calls for higher quality corporate financial accounting, this being due to factors such as changes in accounting standards and the need to handle quarterly reports. Therefore, many Japanese CFOs focus solely on their career in the accounting and finance division and do not have the skill set required to participate actively in business operations. This is a major factor in preventing them from acting as chief strategist to the CEO.

Lack of comprehensive knowledge or experience in the business

Lack of both information about business divisions and of authority to participate in business operations

Inefficiency of accounting and finance division operations


Lack of information about business divisions and lack of authority to participate in business operations

To support the CEO’s strategic decision-making and achieve the consolidated group’s financial targets, it is vital that operating information be transparent and freely accessible to the CFO because this allows his or her active participation in the business of the parent company, business divisions, and foreign and domestic group companies. Relevant operating information is wide ranging and not only consists of consolidated financial figures segmented by business line, region, product line or customer, but also includes the results of business intelligence and analysis.

Few Japanese corporations have completely computerized data processing, and in many companies the corporate development division or business division compiles data on the basis of the consolidated financial figures (for example, the manual pro rata calculation of consolidated figures segmented by product line), making it difficult for the CFO or accounting and finance division to access the relevant information directly. As Chart 6 shows, 51% of the CFOs surveyed saw the organizational climate of their company (vertical structure, poor relations with business divisions, and poor internal communications) as a major obstacle to active participation in business operations, showing that a lack of authority itself often hampers access to information.

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Unrealistic or unreasonable targets

Relations with other business divisions

Lack of relevant skills

The tough economic environment

Lack of experience in those fields becoming important for theaccounting and finance division

Organizational climate of the company (vertical structure,poor relations with business divisions and poor internal

communications)

Lack of resources in the accounting and finance division

Chart 6: Obstacles to active participation in business operations




Inefficiency of accounting and finance operations

The accounting and finance division has a number of traditional financial duties: accounting duties such as disclosure (for the consolidated group and individual group company reports) and other duties such as cash flow management. While these must still be performed as before, the CFO must also fulfill the new role of chief strategist to the CEO by supporting the CEO with the proposal and implementation of strategy. The extent to which the CFO can carry out these dual roles with limited operational resources is a difficult practical problem. In comparison with corporations in Europe and the United States, many Japanese corporations lag behind in automation (computerization) and centralization of simple,

low-value-added tasks (for example, using shared service centers). Chart 7 compares the amount of time spent by CFOs on matters of strategy with the amount of time spent on traditional financial management. The largest single group of respondents, 24%, spent just 30% of time fulfilling a strategic role. In contrast, EY’s 2010 survey “The DNA of the CFO” 4, asked the same question to European CFOs, and the largest single group of respondents said they spent 70% of time fulfilling a strategic role. This chart also shows that many CFOs expect the proportion of time spent working on strategy to increase. However, realizing this goal will mean improving the efficiency of operations in the accounting and finance division.

Chart 7: How respondents divide their time between traditional financial management and a broader strategic role now and in the future.

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Time (%)

Traditional

Strategic



(2) Proposed solutions to these issues

Based on survey responses, the following solutions would help the CFO fulfill the role of chief strategist to the CFO.

Chart 8: Issues and solutions for the Japanese CFO

Transform the perception and position of the CFO

Cultivate the next generation of business-savvy CFOs

Increase transparency of operational information

Streamline accounting and finance functions on a consolidated basis

Duties as chief strategist to the CEO

Issues for the Japanese CFO

Proposed solutions


Participate actively in business operations

Communicate with stakeholders

(shareholders and other investors)

Lack of knowledge or business experience

Lack of both information about business divisions

and of authority to participate in business

operations

Inefficiency of accounting and finance division

operations

Cultivate the next generation of business-

savvy CFOs

Increase transparency of

operational

information

Streamline accounting and finance functions on a

consolidated basis




The biggest problem for Japanese corporations is the traditional perception within the organization that the CFO’s role relates to only accounting and finance. In other words, the CFO is not expected to perform any strategic role.

In advanced US and European corporations, the CFO’s strategic role under the strong leadership of the CEO is vital. By contrast, in Japanese corporations low labor mobility leads to a large number of “employee CEOs.” In addition, as a result of characteristically Japanese arrangements such as cross-shareholding, pressure from shareholders and other investors can be comparatively weak. Therefore, the CEO often becomes a cooperative figure, a kind of “rubber stamp,” and in these cases top management may not necessarily require the CFO to act as chief strategist to the CEO. However, as in the previous example of Kao Corporation on page 18, there are companies that pledge operational targets to shareholders and other investors and thus require a CFO who takes on wide-ranging responsibilities to help meet those targets and who backs up strong leadership from the CEO. In adapting to globalization and the changing economic environment, the Japanese CEO must commit to consolidated group targets in front of shareholders and the investors, and steer the group toward achieving those targets. The CFO’s role as chief strategist is indispensable in this process.

In a highly uncertain operational environment, the Japanese CEO must show strong leadership in order to reform both the position itself and the organization into ones that can respond quickly and effectively to change, allowing operational resource allocation to be modified quickly and allowing the corporation to survive in the fight against global competition. The CFO, by playing an active role as chief strategist can support the CEO’s strong leadership and can take the first step toward promoting understanding of the CFO’s strategic role and its importance within the corporation.

Cultivate the next generation of business-savvy CFOs

Although a CFO must be highly knowledgeable about business operations to fulfill the role of chief strategist to the CEO, the next generation of CFOs with appropriate skills and experience needs to be cultivated over the long term. To this end, the personnel system could be reformed by introducing measures such as a rotation system that would allow employees to gain experience outside of the accounting and finance division in sales or corporate planning, or by implementing the transfer of employees to overseas group companies to gain wide-ranging business experience. For example, at Kao Corporation a program under the leadership of the central accounting and finance division’s top management aims to develop Kao Group accounting personnel with practical business knowledge. This is done by dispatching them to work as accountants at factories or as managers at group companies in Japan or overseas. Other corporations are implementing a scheme to build experience relevant to a corporate CFO by deploying accounting and finance personnel as CFOs of group companies. To cultivate the next generation of CFOs as is being done at these advanced Japanese corporations, it will be necessary to build and run development programs and a personnel evaluation system that cultivate the requisite business skills in a long-term, systematic way.


Improve transparency of operational information

To fulfill the role of chief strategist to the CEO, the CFO needs a corporate infrastructure that allows prompt access to and wide-ranging analysis of operating information and key performance indicators for all business divisions and domestic and overseas group companies. Realizing data transparency at the consolidated level requires not only unification of information and core corporate systems through large-scale investment in IT infrastructure, but also includes standardization and unification of operations, data, databases and accounting standards. Even among

advanced Japanese corporations, cases where this infrastructure is in place even across overseas group companies are rare. As Chart 9 shows, 76% of the CFOs surveyed see “strengthening operational management functions” as a future issue, showing the clear importance of this issue for Japanese corporations.

In addition, based on the research presented in this report, it may be necessary for the CFO to display leadership by taking on responsibility for upgrading the IT infrastructure based on the “to be” model of operational management, rather than leaving the upgrade in the hands of the IT division or corporate planning division.

Chart 9: Future challenges for the CFO

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27

27

28

34

37

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40

43

43

76

81

Responses to fraud or other irregularities

Group reorganization (supply chain, tax planning etc.)

Business process outsourcing and shared services

Functional assessment of accounting and finance division

Unification of enterprise resource planning systems

Improvement of financial reporting accuracy

Process standardization

Streamlining of internal controls

Introduction of cash management systems and improvement of working capital management

Reduction of tax expenses through tax planning

Global management of accounting and tax risk (led by the parent company)

Introduction of unified accounting standards

Supporting expansion into emerging markets (management support)

Speeding up financial reporting process (increasing personnel, process improvement,systematization)/unifying reporting periods

Cost reduction (personnel reductions, automation and operational efficiency throughsystemization)

M&A (deal sourcing, post-transaction integration etc.)

Strengthening operational management functions (budgetiing, operational evaluationthrough unified criteria)

Development of accounting and finance personnel



Streamline accounting and finance functions on a consolidated basis

In order for the CFO to fulfill a strategic role, there may be a need to increase the number of accounting and finance personnel. To maintain cost efficiency, however, automation and streamlining of routine low-value-added work is also necessary. This will involve not only the automation of operating processes through the implementation or improvement of accounting systems, but also the centralization and outsourcing of accounting and finance functions at the consolidated level.

Demands for domestic efficiency versus globalization, economies of scale versus segmentation and centralization versus decentralization are all very difficult to balance.

However, global corporations in Europe and the United States are succeeding in this regard and are able to balance global-level centralization of management operations such as accounting and finance while delegating authority for local processes such as manufacturing, sales and marketing to the local level. As shown in Chart 9 on the previous page, only 17% of the CFOs surveyed saw business process outsourcing and shared services as a future issue. Nevertheless, achieving simultaneous cost reductions and service improvements by promoting the outsourcing and centralization of back-office responsibilities and management operations such as accounting and finance is one responsibility that the CFOs should take on to help Japanese corporations survive against global competition.


At the Oracle Group, by using our own applications to their full extent, we have realized a system in which information is transparent and the CFO can obtain global-level management and accounting information. By sharing information horizontally across each department, the CFO can act as a catalyst for realizing synergies between departments and can even play an active practical role in advising each department on business proposals. I believe it is very important for the CFO to be involved in this kind of high-value-added work, so I try to devote as much time as possible to this area.

In addition, the objective of building a global organization is to transmit the decisions of the parent company to the local level quickly and to implement necessary measures rapidly. This makes it easier to control the organization and allows us to manage risk appropriately. To achieve these objectives, we standardized operational processes, integrated IT systems and implemented shared service systems on a global level. Through this promotion of GSI (Global Single Instance), we successfully reduced costs across the board, refined operational information and accelerated reporting processes.


(3) Conclusion

In a highly uncertain business environment, even the best business strategies need constant reappraisal, reallocation of resources and reconsideration of business portfolios. Only corporations that can do these things quickly and flexibly will win out against global competition.

This is a time of great change for Japanese corporations. Companies that relied on domestic demand in the past must now stake their survival on accelerated entry into overseas markets. They can take heart in a number of positive signs. Abenomics has enlivened the public and private spheres and brought about the green shoots of economic recovery. Economic growth has been striking in those emerging markets in Asia that are physically andculturally close to Japan.

In Europe and the United States, advanced corporations are diversifying from BRIC markets into post-BRIC markets and searching for growth in earnings and in sales. This trend indicates an advance to the next business stage in emerging markets. Japanese corporations, too, must transform themselves if they do not want to be left behind. The Japanese CFO’s role in this process is crucial, and CFOs must transform their ways of thinking in order to contribute to new corporate growth strategies.

We hope this report will be useful to the CFOs of Japanese corporations.


CFO Survey 2013: summary of results


The CFO Survey 2013 highlights issues and visions of the future for Japanese CFOs, as their companies enter a period of change spurred on by globalization. These results are a summary of the responses provided by 100 CFOs. The survey was conducted in March and April 2013 in cooperation with the Japan Association for Chief Financial Officers.

Chart 1: How respondents divide their time between traditional financial management (consolidated and non-consolidated accounting and disclosure, finance operations including cash management, etc.) and a broader strategic role (supporting the CEO in strategy formation and implementation, etc.)

1. Role of the CFO

Currently, CFOs devote more time to traditional duties. However, the responses indicate that in the future CFOs expect to spend more time on strategic duties than they do now.

It appears that although CFOs recognize they must spend some of their time on traditional duties, they also agree that they must increase their time in strategic duties to properly fulfill their roles.

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Time (%)

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Strategic

Number of respondents: 100; unit: %


Chart 2: Main roles of the CFO in organizational strategy

A very high percentage of the respondents —over 80%— agreed that “Operations for implementing strategy” is a key role.

38

60

65

68

68

82

Developing management strategy

IR activities (communicating with investors, analysts,media etc.)

Providing information for developing strategy

Setting accounting and finance basis of metrics foruse in executive decision-making

Directing key financial initiatives to meet strategictargets

Operations for implementing strategy (raising capitaletc.)

Chart 3: Obstacles to active participation in business operations

10

22

27

33

38

51

58

Unrealistic or unreasonable targets

Relations with other business divisions

Lack of relevant skills

The tough economic environment

Lack of experience in those fields becomingimportant for the accounting and finance division

Organizational climate of the company (verticalstructure, poor relations with business divisions,

and poor internal communications

Lack of resources in the accounting and financedivision

“Lack of resources in the accounting and finance division” is a key hindrance. Also, more than 50% of the respondents indicated the “organizational climate” to be a problem.


Chart 4: How CFOs evaluate their own performance

Chart 5: Tasks more important now than three years ago

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5

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20

28

33

40

71

Improvement in compensation package

High reputation for financial management from the market(organizational reputation)

Establishment of corporate ethics (e.g. winning trust fromsociety through strong governance)

Ability to hire and develop promising staff

Reputation as a financial manager from the market and frominside the company (personal reputation)

Reputation as a business leader from the market and frominside the company

Contribution to main internal business projects

Improvement in company financial indicators (revenue, profit,share price, return on equity, etc.)

32

35

37

41

41

42

43

47

50

51

57

67


Financial reporting



Project management and business transformation plans

Cash flow


Focus on emerging, rapidly growing markets

Cost management


Advising management and board of directors on growth strategy

Risk management

“Improvement in company financial indicators” was the most common response to how CFOs evaluate themselves.

Many respondents said that “risk management” is growing in importance. With uncertainty increasing greatly in the business environment, many CFOs appear to understand very well the importance of preparing for unforeseen contingencies.

“Advising management” is also among the highest ranked tasks in terms of increasing importance. This indicates that CFOs are aware of the importance of their strategic role.


Chart 6: Communication with stakeholders

Overall, respondents gave positive responses. It appears that many CFOs recognize the importance of communication with stakeholders.

3

13

12

27

9

26

36

63

75

64

83

72

The CFO is in a better position than the CEO to appropriatelyexplain corporate operating results to stakeholders

Shifting emphasis from management of financial results tocomplex stakeholder management is a difficult challenge

Non-financial indicators of operational success are becomingmore important

I am increasingly required to act as the face of the corporation inall matters related to financial performance

Implementation of training for CFOs is useful in helping CFOs dealwith various business issues they will face

After the financial crisis, increasing the credibility of thecorporation's financial health is a paramount issue for the CFO

Strongly agree AgreeNumber of respondents: 100; unit: %


Chart 7: Skills CFOs need to develop

The most common response was “Managing relationships with the CEO, board of directors, and other senior managers.”

“Strategy formulation and implementation” also ranked highly, indicating that CFOs are aware of their need to further fulfill strategic roles going forward.

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Communications with media and others

Stakeholder management

Communication and influencing others

Analysis and advice

New techniques and developments in financialmanagement

Personal management in his/her departments

Deep insight into the industry in which the companycompetes

Deep insight into countries' markets that are key forthe organization

Project management and change management

Strategy formulation and implementation

Managing relationship with the CEO, board of directorsand other senior managers


Chart 8: Reforming the accounting and finance organization and developing future CFOs

Almost all the respondents said that they want to actively reform the accounting and finance division.

However, even though most respondents noted the importance of developing future CFOs, lack of skills in staff development and insufficient time devoted to staff development were indicated as issues. Also, many respondents felt that as the role of the CFO broadens, experience in only the accounting and finance division will not give future CFOs the skills they need.

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I want to actively reform the accounting and finance division

CFOs have a duty to develop future CFO candidates from within thecompany

CFOs’ strategic functions and high standing image make the CFO role an attractive career goal

I want to improve my skill in staff development and allocation

I don’t spend enough time on staff development

The title “CFO” does not convey the full role and responsibilities of today's CFOs

The company provides young accounting and finance staff withopportunities to learn wide-ranging business skills

Only a few current staff in the accounting and finance division havethe wide-ranging skills necessary to be a future CFO

As skills necessary to be successful as a CFO broaden, CFOcandidates will become more limited in number

It is mainly HR department’s role to develop future financial leaders

Strongly agree AgreeNumber of respondents: 100; unit: %


Chart 9: Future challenges for the CFO

As the role of the CFO broadens, the tasks CFOs must face are diversifying. A great majority of respondents agreed that “development of accounting and finance personnel” and “strengthening operational management functions” are important tasks.

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Responses to fraud or other irregularities

Group reorganization (supply chain, tax planning, etc.)

Business process outsourcing and shared services

Functional assessment of accounting and finance division

Unification of enterprise resource planning systems

Improvement of financial reporting accuracy

Process standardization

Streamlining of internal controls

Introduction of cash management systems and improvement ofworking capital management

Reduction of tax expenses through tax planning

Global management of accounting and tax risk (led by the parentcompany)

Introduction of unified accounting standards

Supporting expansion into emerging markets (management support)

Speeding up financial reporting process (personnel increases,process improvement, systemization) and unifying reporting periods

Cost reduction (personnel reductions, automation, operationalefficiency through systemization)

M&A (deal sourcing, post-transaction integration, etc.)

Strengthening business management functions (budgeting,operational evaluation through unified criteria)

Development of accounting and finance personnel


Chart 10: Issues expected to arise in overseas expansion into emerging markets and countries

China was the number one response in all categories, and China, Thailand and India were the top three countries in almost all categories.

This reflects the fact that many Japanese companies have already entered these markets and are currently facing these issues.

For China, many respondents were particularly concerned about repatriating profits due to capital controls and about embezzlement and the risk of other irregular activities.

In contrast, Myanmar, which has gathered great attention in recent years, was not mentioned by many respondents. It seems that few respondents consider Myanmar to have the issues presented here.

It could be that while many companies are studying market entry into Myanmar, specific planning stages have not yet been reached.

Country

Regulatory compliance (investment regulations,

capital controls, etc.)

Reporting to local authorities (financial

statements, tax filings)

Managing financial

reporting process (meeting

deadlines for reporting to

parent company, reporting accuracy)

Finding staff and lack of outside experts (skills, cost, Japanese

language ability)

Dealing with fraud and other

irregular activities

China 24% 22% 21% 20% 25%

Thailand 13% 13% 15% 14% 9%

India 13% 10% 14% 11% 9%

Indonesia 12% 8% 10% 9% 9%

Vietnam 7% 4% 4% 4% 6%

Taiwan 4% 6% 5% 3% 5%

Malaysia 5% 3% 5% 3% 2%

Others 22% 34% 26% 36% 35%

% of respondents; respondents: 39 CFOs


Chart 11: Main operational role of the accounting and finance division at the parent company

2. Role of the accounting and finance division

The role of the accounting and finance division is mainly the traditional financial reporting and corporate finance functions.

2

5

9

12

15

23

34

Others

M&A (deal sourcing, due diligence, etc.)

Internal controls (J-SOX, risk management)

Supporting senior management in strategicdecision-making

Budgets and mid and long-term plans

Finance (fund raising, day-to-day cashmanagement)

Consolidated and non-consolidatedaccounting and disclosure


Chart 12: Does the CFO oversee the corporate development division or the investor relations division in additional to the accounting and finance division?

In fulfilling a strategic role, a critical point is whether the CFO oversees the corporate development division, which houses the main strategic functions of the company. About 30% of the respondents oversee the corporate development division. At the companies where the CFO oversees two of the above three divisions, the CFO oversees the accounting and finance division and the investor relations division in 72% of the cases.

4

32

36

28

Other

One of these three divisions

Two of these three divisions

All divisions (accounting and finance,corporate development, IR)



Chart 13: Approximate number of personnel employees in accounting and finance divisions across the corporate group

0 3

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20

27

23

17

Less than30

30 to 49 50 to 99 100 to 199 200 to 399 400 or moreNo response0

10

20

30

Companies with total group revenue of JPY500 billion or above (30 companies)

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22

39

19

8 6 3

Less than30


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20

30

40

50

Companies with total group revenue of JPY100 billion or above but less than JPY500 billion (36 companies)

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26

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3 0 0 0

Less than30


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60

Companies with total group revenue of less than JPY100 billion (34 companies)

% of companies

% of companies

% of companies

Number of personnel employees




Chart 14: Approximate number of personnel employees in the accounting and finance divisions at the parent company

0

10

3

23 23 23

7 10

Less than10

10 to 19 20 to 29 30 to 59 60 to 99 100 to 199 200 ormore

No response0

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20

30

Companies with total group revenue of JPY500 billion or above (30 companies)


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19 22

33

6 6 3 3

Less than10

10 to 19 20 to 29 30 to 59 60 to 99 100 to 199 200 ormore

No response0

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20

30

40

Companies with total group revenue of JPY100 billion or above but less than JPY500 billion (36 companies)

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44

15 12

0 0 0

12

Less than10

10 to 19 20 to 29 30 to 59 60 to 99 100 to 199 200 or moreNo response0

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20

30

40

50

Companies with total group revenue of less than JPY100 billion (34 companies)

% of companies

% of companies

% of companies




Chart 15: Total corporate group revenue

3. Profile of respondents

2

32

36

19

11

Less than JPY10 billion

JPY10 billion or above but lessthan JPY100 billion

JPY100 billion or above but lessthan JPY500 billion

JPY500 billion or above but lessthan JPY1 trillion

JPY1 trillion or above


Chart 16: Industry sector

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1

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2

2

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Agriculture, forestry and fishery

Petroleum and coal, manufacturing

Steel, manufacturing

Pulp and paper, manufacturing

Fiber products, manufacturing

Non-ferrous metals, manufacturing

Real estate

Construction

Transport equipment, manufacturing

Metal products, manufacturing

Services

Pharmaceuticals, manufacturing

Warehousing and logistics

Other products, manufacturing

Wholesale

Food and beverage, manufacturing

Telecommunications and IT

Machinery, manufacturing

Retail

Electric devices, manufacturing

Chemicals, manufacturing



Chart 17: Overseas sales percentage

Chart 18: Total number of corporate group employees

1

16

30

25

28

No response

Less than 1,000

1,000 to 4,999

5,000 to 9,999

10,000 or more


14

27

22

16

21

0%

Less than 10%

10% or above but lessthan 30%

30% or above but lessthan 50%

50% or above



Related EY thought leadership reports

Looking beyond the obvious: globalization and new opportunities for growth

Published in 2012, this report covers new issues faced by companies brought by globalization. The findings are based on EY’s 2012 Globalization Index, which is an index developed by EY to measure the degree of globalization of the 60 largest countries and territories by GDP, and on EY’s 2012 Globalization Survey, which is an online survey of 730 global business executives from around the world.

A tale of two markets: telling the story of investment across developed and rapidly growing markets

Published in 2012, this report covers new issues CFOs face and the roles they have in balancing investments across developed and rapidly growing markets and in communicating with investors. The findings are based on a survey of 759 CFOs from around the world and 244 professional investors and on interviews on leading CFOs and investors.

The DNA of the CFO: a study of what makes a chief financial officer

Published in 2010, this report covers the expanding role of the CFO and the skills needed to be successful. The findings are based on a survey of 669 European CFOs and interviews with 20 CFOs from leading companies.


Contact Ernst & Young ShinNihon LLC Accounting Solutions Department Email: [email protected]

EY | Assurance | Tax | Transactions | Advisory About EY EY is a global leader in assurance, tax, transaction and advisory services. The insights and quality services we deliver help build trust and confidence in the capital markets and in economies the world over. We develop outstanding leaders who team to deliver on our promises to all of our stakeholders. In so doing, we play a critical role in building a better working world for our people, for our clients and for our communities. EY refers to the global organization, and may refer to one or more, of the member firms of Ernst & Young Global Limited, each of which is a separate legal entity. Ernst & Young Global Limited, a UK company limited by guarantee, does not provide services to clients. For more information about our organization, please visit ey.com. About Ernst & Young ShinNihon LLC Ernst & Young ShinNihon LLC is an EY member firm and a leading audit firm in Japan, with one of the largest number of people and offices nationwide. We provide high quality audit and assurance services and offer a range of other financial advisory services. Together with the EY global network, we strive to promote greater trust and confidence in the businesses, capital markets and economy of Japan and play a role in building a better working world. For more information, please visit shinnihon.or.jp © 2014 Ernst & Young ShinNihon LLC. All Rights Reserved. EYG no. AU2222 This material has been prepared for general informational purposes only and is not intended to be relied upon as accounting, tax, or other professional advice. Please refer to your advisers for specific advice. ED 0115

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The role of the Japanese CFO in a globalizing world - EY · PDF fileThe role of the Japanese CFO in a globalizing world ... Senior Vice President Global Manager Accounting and Finance