C’mon, we won’t tell: Are you just not that into your job lately? Maybe the work seems meaningless, or the boss is a pain, or you just don’t feel challenged by the same old, same old.

Low employee engagement is a widespread and expensive problem for organizations of all sizes. But experts tell CFO Brew that by investing in employee engagement and leading by example, CFOs can help combat employee disengagement and boost the bottom line.

There are strategic upsides for organizations that get employee engagement right, especially in the face of economic uncertainty, according to one workplace researcher.

“You better triple down on employee engagement,” Ben Wigert, director of research and strategy of workplace management at Gallup, told CFO Brew. “We know quantitatively that it’s the organizations that are able to engage their employees…[that] survive and out-compete their competition.”

For Wassia Kamon, vice president of finance and accounting for ACM Chemistries, a chemical manufacturer based in Georgia, dealing with employee engagement is now a top priority for her finance department.

“Talent retention has been an issue. So anything around employee engagement…it’s very, very important,” she said. “I don’t think there is much of a choice. You have to care about those things.”

Disengagement costs money. Gallup’s “State of the Global Workplace: 2022 Report” found that a vast majority of workers are bored, apathetic, frustrated, and distracted at work and that withdrawal is costing companies, and the global economy, trillions of dollars a year. Keep reading here.—DA

There may not be anything more terrifying than sitting in a meeting as you frantically type into Google the acronym your boss is going on and on about, but you are secretly blanking on. It’s the beauty and curse of finance: The acronyms are never ending. In the spirit of new beginnings for a new year, we’ve pulled together a refresher.

Regulators: Let’s start with the regulating bodies, since even the most seasoned of CFOs can lose track of what their reporting managers are saying. If you’re brand new to the game, we’ll remind you that the Securities and Exchange Commission is the SEC, or the regulating body in charge of preventing market manipulation and that has a part-time YouTube influencer as its chairman.

The Fed, or the Federal Reserve Board, is more of a nickname than a straight up acronym; the logical acronym, FRB, isn’t commonly used. It might be hard to forget the board who has made its interest rate hikes impossible to ignore, but if you see FRB, know it’s really the Fed. And while we’re on the topic of federal agencies, don’t forget the FDIC—the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation—which keeps your money safe(ish).

But, the SEC and the Fed aren’t the only financial agencies in Washington; some lesser known regulators (but no less important!) include the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC), National Credit Union Administration (NCUA), and the Conference of State Bank Supervisors (CSBS).

And just because some are not household acronyms, that doesn’t discount their might. The CFPB, which was formed after the 2008 recession, works to protect consumers by chasing banks for abuses, for example. Neither do they work in silos: The FDIC and OCC recently teamed up with the Fed to warn banks about crypto risks.

Earnings call lingo: Tuning into earnings calls can feel like listening to a foreign language with all the acronyms thrown around—usually at a fast pace—as CFOs reassure analysts, and the markets, that all the numbers are actually great, despite what the pesky balance-sheet specifics might show. Keep reading here.—KT

Stat: $420. Elon Musk insisted in court this week during his trial on securities fraud charges that his 2018 tweet about taking Tesla private at that share price was not a reference to marijuana, but rather “just a coincidence.” (The Verge)

Quote: “If you don’t act clearly and decisively and early, we can compound the problem and make it much worse.”—Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai, attempting to explain to employees at a town hall meeting why Google cut roughly 12,000 jobs. (Bloomberg)

Read: Despite the higher cost of…everything, people apparently still need the occasional splurge, even after they cut cable and takeout delivery from the monthly budget. (the Wall Street Journal)

Fighting fraud: Alloy’s State of Fraud Benchmark Report uncovers the direct and indirect costs of fraud—and how financial institutions are driving those costs down. See how your org measures up.*

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We’re holding conversations with not one but two CFOs—Adrianne Lee of Overstock and Somer Webb of Solo Brands—to discuss how they’ve weathered the latest financial storms, what new tools and technologies they’re leveraging, and how they’re anticipating future supply chain woes. Join us on Feb. 9 for a free CFO Brew virtual event, sponsored by Oracle NetSuite.