Your CFO Is Not Your Sales Savior
Your CFO is not your Chief Everything Officer.
They’re not your backup Head of Sales or Head of Operations (Literally I learnt it the hard way!)
And they are definitely not the person to blame when revenue misses the mark.
I’ve seen this too many times:
Sales slip. Growth slows. Margins tighten.
And everyone looks at the CFO like, “Well? What are you doing about it?”
Here’s what I tell my clients:
Your CFO can spot the problem.
They can model the risk.
They can tell you when your assumptions are out of whack.
But they don’t own your revenue strategy. That’s not their job.
What a CFO Actually Does
A high-performing CFO is there to:
- Build a clear, sustainable financial strategy
- Allocate capital where it counts
- Flag risks and pressure-test your growth plans
- Keep you honest when the numbers don’t match the narrative
- Protect profitability—no matter how fast you’re scaling
They’re not “just” finance. They’re your operating partner. Your accountability compass.
But let’s be real. They are not here to:
- Write your GTM playbook
- Manage your pipeline
- Chase underperforming reps
- Own pricing or customer acquisition
- Deliver revenue targets
That’s your CRO’s job. That’s your sales leader’s job.
And yes—sometimes, it’s your job as CEO.
Falling Margins? Flagged.
Fixing Them? Not Their Lane.
CFOs should absolutely raise the alarm on eroding margins.
They’ll show you where sales costs are out of control or where discounting is killing profitability.
They’ll tell you when your CAC is rising and your LTV is falling apart.
But fixing it?
That’s on the revenue side of the house.
Sales strategy, pricing discipline, pipeline conversion—those are not Finance problems.
They are cross-functional problems, and they need leadership from the right people.
Let Your CFO Be Great—At What They’re Great At
Here’s the deal:
The best CFOs are not sales fixers.
They are truth-tellers, strategists, and stewards of your financial engine.
They bring the clarity you need to make hard calls.
They don’t rescue broken functions—they help you see them clearly, so you can lead smarter.
If you’re leaning on your CFO to compensate for weak sales leadership, you don’t have a finance problem.
You have a roles and accountability problem.