JANUARY 14, 2021

A CFO’s Lessons Learned from Managing
Through the Pandemic
By leveraging professional networks, as well as expertise in scenario planning and corporate strategy, finance executives can steer their organization
through the tail end of Covid-19, and beyond.
BY SUSAN COSGROVE

I

n many ways, the Covid-19 pandemic and global economic
turmoil have forced all of us tore-examine the way we work.
Like many of my fellow CFOs, I spent
the initial days of the crisis refocusing on working closely with my organization’s board, my management
committee peers, and my team toensure the firm’s financial stability
and to manage risk so that we could
continue supporting our clients.
As time went on, however, I recognized the need to adjust how I
approach my role to fit this unprecedented moment in time. Although
the crisis is not fully behind us,
enough time has passed to cull four
key lessons that will shape my leadership going forward.
1. Invest even more heavily inrelationships.
While CFOs tend to be numbersoriented, logical problem-solvers,
the pandemic has put a spotlighton the importance of having a finely
tuned emotional antenna as well.
More than at any other time I canrecall, throughout the second halfof 2020, I worked closely with myleadership team and HR to help ourcolleagues see the bigger picture andmake sense of the chaos that seemed
to unfold daily.
We balanced business concernswith the understanding that our coworkers might be going through difficult personal challenges outside
their virtual offices. As many of us
have learned during the past 10months, we must be aware of mental health concerns in order to effectively support our colleagues. It’s theright thing to do, and it enhances ourcollective ability to serve the organization and our clients.

On many occasions this year, oneon-one “business” meetings drifted
into deeper personal discussions
where we shared our fears, frustrations, and concerns, as well as the
happy moments that we have experienced since the pandemic started.
Such conversations have been both
healthy and important—and while
my first instinct was to offer advice
or try to solve problems, I foundin most cases that people simplywanted me to listen.
Over time, I learned to focus on
being more attuned to my team andJANUARY 14, 2021

more sympathetic and thoughtfulduring my interactions. By investingin taking those existing relationships
to another level, I forged a stronger
connection with my colleagues. They,in turn, feel a greater level of support
and comfort in their work each day.
2. Counteract uncertainty withscenario planning.
Perhaps the biggest challenge
CFOs have faced throughout the crisis is the high level of uncertainty inalmost every area of our responsibility. This likely won’t change anytime
soon, which makes flexibility essential in maintaining superior execution and long-term focus.
CFOs are well-positioned to workwith the broader organization to
set priorities and identify the levers
needed to calibrate activities to stayin sync with the marketplace. CFOs’
360-degree view of the enterprisegives us deep insight into what isoccurring across the business andsupport functions. This helps us
better prioritize initiatives, connect
investments to outcomes, and linkoutcomes to growth.
Navigating the pandemic has felt alot like scenario analysis on steroids.
And scenario analysis is something
CFOs know how to do. Our strategic
approach to planning enables us to
identify the best ways to implementchanges or toggle decisions. As important, we can help colleagues understand the strategic planning process,set expectations, and create roadmaps that illustrate how opportunities and challenges align to priorities.
For example, when the pandemic
hit, my team quickly established aframework for tracking Covid-related
expenses in a mostly remote work
environment. Knowing that we would
need to make decisions without theluxury of time to complete our usual
reviews and approvals, we createdan efficient, transparent, and flexible
process that ensured we could act
and pivot quickly.

3.
Evaluate
prospective
investments, even during a crisis.
During times of crisis, organizations
must be especially selective and strategic when it comes to investments.
Resources are strained, and it may
feel superfluous to deploy capital oninnovation when a business’s coreservices are most in demand. But
this short-term mindset could havenegative long-term implications.
CFOs must look beyond the next
quarter and closely examine innovation initiatives for their potential
to deliver value and strengthen theorganization in the “new normal.”
As part of this evaluation, we haveto consider the costs and benefits ofeach opportunity, in the context ofour organization’s business partners
and the broader industry. In an environment of uncertainty, this is difficult, but leveraging data can provide
the necessary insights to guide effective decision-making.
While organizations will inevitably
need to pivot as the internal or external landscape evolves, CFOs are in thebest position to use data-driven analytics to determine whether innovation initiatives will generate sufficient
return on investment (ROI) over thelong term to justify continued investment in them. In addition, CFOs canleverage data for predictive purposes
to soften the blow of market downturns or take advantage of future
opportunities to further grow the business or enhance support for clients.
4. Cultivate your network, albeit
virtually.
The pandemic reinforced the significance of continuing to buildnetworks with colleagues. The alternative is to risk isolation, particularly
in a remote working environment thatcan make it challenging to maintainclose professional contacts. Virtual
business models are likely to persist long after the pandemic crisis isbehind us. Thus, leaders should set
an example by actively cultivating

and leveraging relationships withcolleagues inside and outside ourorganization and modeling networking behaviors for our team.
Such investments in building strong
connections with peers and partners
pays dividends. For instance, earlier
this year, my team successfully executed a debt offering that featured
a fully virtual roadshow. We laid thefoundation for that success long
before the pandemic as we polished
our presentation and spent many
hours engaging with bankers. Whenit was time to solicit financial support from the market, the strong rapport and trust that we had developedin advance reassured our banking
partners. We are fortunate to haveaccess to new collaboration toolsthat enable us to create strong relationships in a virtual environment.
As we’ve seen over the past year,
there’s no single set of rules to guide
how we should operate in the future.
Nevertheless, one thing is certain:
We all need to continue evolving ourstyle and approach to keep pace withfast-moving external dynamics.
The lessons I’ve learned since last
March represent a good starting
point, and I plan to continue adjusting and adapting my style to drive
business growth and support my colleagues over the long term.
Susan Cosgrove is CFO of The
Depository Trust & Clearing Corporation (DTCC), the premier post-tradeinfrastructure organization for theglobal financial markets. Prior toserving as CFO, Cosgrove led severalof DTCC’s businesses covering clearance, settlement, and asset servicing.

Reprinted with permission from the January 14, 2021 edition of the Treasury and Risk
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