Since Anup Singh was hired to his first CFO job in 2006, he’s seen the role evolve from strictly financial-focused to what he calls “GM of the business.” (That’s general manager, non-sports fans.)

The CFO’s main role used to be crunching the numbers, publishing reports, building the budget, and controlling spending. They’re still doing all that, but they’re also expected to be more involved in setting business goals, and helping orchestrate growth.

One point on which Anup has never wavered is his commitment to building a culture of trust and transparency.

That includes among the people he works with closely. Every quarter he gives someone in the finance department his CFO Excellence Award, for going the extra mile to achieve one of the company’s business objectives. Anup also makes himself available to people working In the rest of the business, through an “Ask Me Anything” Slack channel, and small Q&A sessions he calls The Bottom Line.

On this episode of The CFO Playbook, Anup explains why he takes the time to explain Illumio’s finances to his non-finance colleagues, what he hopes to use artificial intelligence (AI) for, and why he relies on KPIs to guide business decisions.

Connect with Anup on LinkedIn.

Connect with our host Ross on LinkedIn.

If you want a better way to track and control your team’s spend, check out Soldo.com.

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