CEO vs CFO

Difference Between CEO and CFO

A CEO of the company is a highest-ranking executive with the primary responsibilities of taking major corporate decisions, being medium of communication between corporate working and its board of directors and he is the company’s public face as elected by shareholders and board whereas, CFO is a senior executive with responsibility for the financial affairs of a company or other institution, which involves planning, taking significant decisions relating to investment, making strategies and managing finance activities.

CEO has the vision for the business and some perspective point of view what the business is going to be at some point down the road.

CFO is the head accountant of a company and manages anything that has to do with the company finances their objective is more strategic towards business transformation and prioritize cost management and balance with an increasing focus on growth profitable. Whereas the CEO is an individual who holds the highest rank of the Organization and the primary responsibility includes major corporate decisions.

CFO vs CEO Infographics

Let’s see the top differences between CFO vs CEO.

Key Differences

CEO works in a strategic way and play a critical role in the success of an organization and performs the following responsibility

• Work according to the vision and target set by the company.
• Represent the company and address the management as requires.
• It helps to understand the employees, directors, investors, and customers what the company does.
• Address the critical issues associated with day to day to business.
• Meeting with other lines of business heads that run ideas past and collaborate for the new business opportunity.
• Take the decision regarding the investment opportunity by taking the view of other board members.

Whereas CFO works in a separate vertical of an organization and performs the task related to managing finance action of a company which includes:

• They Manage Cash Flow
• Develop a structural plan for the budget
• Cash Forecast
• Ensure cash Last to next valuation set-up
• Monitor and report variances
• Budget capital expenditure
• Evaluate Lease vs Purchase evaluation
• Management meetings (Monthly and Quarterly ) to give the track record of the company I,e the performance of the company

Chief Executive Officer & Chief Financial Officer requires different skillsets to become more successful and the origination looks for the following skillset because the people they are going to hire will take the company into a higher level. Below we have mentioned important skills to become more successful at work.

Skill Requirements

Important Skills Requirement for CEO

• Know how to manage People
• Leadership Skills
• Communication skills
• Relationship building skills
• Negotiation skills
• Strategic development
• Creative thinking
• Stress management

Important Skills Requirement for CFO

• Business understanding
• Communication skills
• Relationship building skills
• Finance Teambuilder
• Strategic development
• Risk identification
• Accounting Knowledge
• Business acumen
• Fraud prevention
• Investment and credit risk
• Risk management & forecasting
• Financial and regulatory reporting

CEO vs CFO Comparative Table

CEO		CFO
Assemble the business team to put together the group of people who are going to take business		Coming up with a solution in terms of where the company is going by Making the decision for driving changes and Promote business ethical practices
Meet the formal planning process for the organization, document the path that the business is going to take to get to where it needs to go		Cost allocation
Monitor the plan and report back to stake holder’s board regarding the progress of the business		Balancing business book
Clearly, articulate the vision to it is all stakeholders, customer, employees, and shareholder to engage them in the success of the business		Contribute to the strategic direction
Leadership Role to manage the day to day affairs.		Quality and accurate reporting of financial statements.
Set the direction and lead the organization.		Strategy for risk mitigation.
They not only manage the company but also lead the company.		Seeing the opportunity and supporting the business to grow.

Conclusion

CEO and CFO are an integral part of every organization and play an impotent role to run a business. They are responsible for all the activities within an organization also help the Directors and investors to take the decision regarding the investment decision like the expansion of business or M&A moreover they represent an organization and build a relationship with Government and co-founders. They also set the road for the company for growth and expansion of business and work together to achieve the company goals within the stipulated time period.

Recommended Articles

This has been a guide to CEO vs CFO. Here we also discuss the top 8 differences between CEO and CFO along with infographics and comparison table. You may also have a look at the following articles –

• Merger & Acquisition Process
• CEO vs President
• CFO vs Controller
• Job Description of a CFO