Financial departments are constantly being transformed by the new financial technologies introduced from cloud computing to artificial intelligence. They are being forced to adapt to the new methods of reporting and budgeting. This struggle raises the question as to what the CFO’s role will be in the future and whether this role will merge with the Chief Technology Officer as the two departments become interrelated. This switch depends on the organization and how both roles pair together.
I believe that these are two tremendously important departments in any organization and should remain separate given the uniqueness of responsibilities. While IT and finance will continue to grow closer together, they will always have their own roles and require specialized skills. I can see, however, the two working as one in smaller companies or startups with fewer resources. It is important for individuals to have an understanding of both departments as the two continue to develop. Nowadays, students are encouraged to study technology and financial systems as these are always changing fields that can require a specific skill set.
https://www.raconteur.net/business/finance-tech-puts-cfos-in-control-of-it-budgets
I agree with Trevor that the CFO and CTO’s jobs should most likely not be combined, because this would likely result in issues with segregation of duty that would leave holes in the system for fraud to take place. As we have discussed in class, without proper SOD, a CFO in control of the IT budget could make decisions that affect the entire CTO department, yet the CFO will not be required to consult the department at all to ensure that the decision made do not negatively affect the division.