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The Modern CFO: Scott Engler on How To Master the Most Important Role in the Company

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Jul 3, 2025

Guest

Scott Engler

Scott Engler, CEO of Sync Executive Partners, dives into the crucial role of CFOs in corporate success. He boldly asserts that CFOs often outshine CEOs, particularly in private equity. Engler discusses the evolution of CFO responsibilities, emphasizing the shift from gatekeepers to proactive leaders driven by data. He offers insights on managing CEO relationships, the importance of financial storytelling, and tips for landing CFO roles, including negotiation strategies for equity packages. Expect revealing commentary on overcoming challenges and navigating performance dynamics.

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INSIGHT

CFO Role Evolution

The CFO role has evolved from governance to guidance and now to performance-driven leadership.
Today's CFO must master numbers, understand the business deeply, and drive operational cadence.

insights

INSIGHT

CFO Drives Business Pace

The CFO must drive the pace of the business, often leading ahead of the CEO.
This operational velocity is crucial to meet private equity expectations.

insights

INSIGHT

PE CFO Talent Shortage

Most private equity CFOs are underperforming, with only about 10% considered A players.
Supply shortage of skilled CFOs forces firms to retain less capable ones.

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Advancements in Finance Technology and Revenue Recognition

04:00 • 3min

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The Evolving Role of the CFO

07:11 • 9min

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Streamlining CFO Responsibilities in Travel and Expense Management

16:29 • 5min

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Navigating the CFO's Evolving Role

21:00 • 13min

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The Power of Financial Storytelling

33:51 • 10min

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Navigating the CFO's Role

43:51 • 20min

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Navigating CFO Roles in Private Equity

01:04:07 • 15min

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Thinking in bets

Making Smarter Decisions When You Don't Have All the Facts

Annie Duke

In this book, Annie Duke teaches readers how to make better decisions by treating them as 'bets' on uncertain outcomes. She emphasizes the importance of distinguishing between the quality of a decision and its outcome, acknowledging the role of luck, and avoiding biases such as 'resulting' and hindsight bias. Duke draws on her experiences as a professional poker player and combines these with insights from cognitive psychology and other fields to provide tools for making more objective and thoughtful decisions. The book encourages readers to get comfortable with uncertainty, seek truth through diverse opinions, and learn from outcomes to improve future decision-making.

In many companies, the CFO is more important than the CEO. And the majority of private equity-backed CFOs are actually not up to par. In this episode, CJ is joined by Scott Engler, of LinkedIn fame, to explain why he believes these bold statements to be true. Scott is the CEO and co-founder of Sync Executive Partners and the co-founder of PE-Xcelerate. He has decades of experience studying, recruiting, and coaching CFOs. He shares insights on the evolving role of the CFO, the many hats they wear, and which they should prioritise. He gives advice on how to navigate your relationship with your CEO, your PE sponsor, and other stakeholders, and provides some social profiling hacks that can help. The conversation covers the benefits of upside-down reviews and why not having a recommendation can be the smartest move, before examining the best way to get a CFO job at a PE-backed company, and how to negotiate equity packages.

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LINKS:

Scott Engler on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/scottengler/

Sync Executive Partners:

https://www.syncexecutivepartners.com/

PE-Xcelerate:

https://www.pexcelerate.com/

CJ on X (@cjgustafson222): https://x.com/cjgustafson222

Mostly metrics:

http://mostlymetrics.com

Looking for Leverage:

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TIMESTAMPS:

(00:00) Preview and Intro

(02:20 ) Sponsor – Brex | Aleph | RightRev

(07:12) How the CFO Role Has Changed Over the Last Decade

(12:08) Why the CFO Needs To Drive the Pace

(14:49) Why Most Private Equity-Backed CFOs Aren’t up to Par

(16:36) Sponsor – Navan | NetSuite | Pulley

(20:07) The PE-Backed CFO Versus Hypergrowth VC CFO

(21:54) How Senior Leaders Are Incented To Play It Safe

(26:04) The Operational CFO: The CFO Becoming More of a COO

(28:41) Why the CFO Is More Important Than the CEO

(32:16) How a CFO Should Prioritize Their Many Roles

(34:46) The Importance of Being a Good Storyteller

(38:49) What an Upside-Down Review Is

(43:46) Why Not Having a Recommendation Can Be the Smartest Move

(49:50) The Hardest CFOs Are the Easiest To Influence

(55:37) The Art and Science of Managing Your CEO

(57:48) Social Styles Hack

(1:00:47) Working With Your CEO and PE Sponsor

(1:04:08) The Best Way To Get a CFO Job at a PE-Backed Company

(1:11:54) The State of Comp for PE-Backed CFOs in This Market

(1:13:16) Negotiating Equity Packages

(1:15:39) The Biggest Challenge for PE-Backed CFOs Today

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SPONSORS:

Brex offers the world's smartest corporate card on a full-stack global platform that is everything CFOs need to manage their finances on an elite level. Plus, they offer modern banking and treasury as well as intuitive expenses and accounting automation, bill pay, and travel. Find out more at brex.com/metrics

Aleph automates 90% of manual, error-prone busywork, so you can focus on the strategic work you were hired to do. Minimize busywork and maximize impact with the power of a web app, the flexibility of spreadsheets, and the magic of AI. Get a personalised demo at getaleph.com/run

RightRev automates the revenue recognition process from end to end, gives you real-time insights, and ensures ASC 606 / IFRS 15 compliance—all while closing books faster. For RevRec that auditors actually trust, visit rightrev.com and schedule a demo.

Navan is the all-in-one travel and expense solution that helps finance teams streamline reconciliation, enforce policies automatically, and gain real-time visibility. It connects to your existing cards and makes closing the books faster and smarter. Visit navan.com/Runthenumbers for your demo.

NetSuite is an AI-powered business management suite, encompassing ERP/Financials, CRM, and ecommerce for more than 41,000 customers. If you're looking for an ERP, head to https://netsuite.com/metrics and get the CFO’s Guide to AI and Machine Learning.

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#CFO #CEOversusCFO #ChiefFinancialOfficer #PrivateEquity #ScottEngler

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