A new study from finance management platform OneStream showed that companies with a female CFO increased shareholder value by an average of 4.5% annually, 0.2% higher than their industries overall.

But even with this outpaced performance, the percentage of female CFOs has been stubbornly static. Since 2011, the number of CFO seats at Global Fortune 500 and FTSE 100 companies held by women has remained stuck at 25%.

OneStream looked at the stock performance of US, Europe, and UK Global Fortune 500 and FTSE 100 companies, comparing those with female CFOs to industry averages. The company also looked at the LinkedIn profiles of 346 CFOs, 86 of them women, to map out the differences in career paths, and sent a survey to 700 senior finance professionals, half men and half women, to get qualitative context.

US companies saw an average revenue growth of 7.3% after appointing a female CFO, while those in Europe and the UK saw higher increases of 10.6% and 12.8%. As for specific sectors, energy organizations with women CFOs performed 2.8% better than the stock market, and those in the health sector performed 4.7% better.

Underperforming companies that hired women as CFOs went on to see total shareholder return improve by an average of 10%, relative to industry benchmarks, compared with the return under the previous CFOs.

How much does a female CFO improve the bottom line?—JK

We know all about challenges facing the accounting pipeline. But how’s the corporate finance and accounting hiring environment looking?

A recent survey by the Controllers Council, a national association of controllers, CFOs, and other finance professionals, helps answer the question.

The survey polled more than 300 executive-level finance and accounting leaders across North America, and included private, public, and nonprofit companies across 31 industries. Over half (53%) of respondents reported that their companies suffered no staffing shortages in corporate F&A, a stark change from the 69% of respondents who dubbed hiring “difficult or very difficult” in 2024.

This time around, only 10% of respondents reported “significant” staffing shortages, while 33% said they faced “minor” shortages.

“These results suggest a cooling labor market and possibly a rebalancing between employer expectations and candidate availability,” the report’s authors noted. “This improvement may reflect a combination of more stable hiring practices, expanded recruiting strategies, and shifts in market participation following widespread changes in workplace models and job mobility.”

What does the corporate finance talent pipeline look like?—NP

Kelly Steckelberg has had a whirlwind CFO career. She helped take Zoom public in 2019. And then less than a year later, she was guiding the company through the pandemic, when it ultimately became a breakout star of that era. Today, she is taking all those learnings and applying them as CFO of a buzzy new internet darling—Canva.

The Australian-based design platform was valued at $42 billion in August. There have been talks about taking the company public, and Steckelberg’s hiring in November 2024 fueled rumors even more.

Steckelberg spoke with CFO Brew about Canva’s finance strategies.

This interview has been edited for length and clarity.

What did your time at Zoom teach you that you’re applying to your role at Canva?

I learned a great deal at Zoom, but as far as parallels with Canva, the biggest takeaway was the power of product-led growth and the importance of building for scale before you need it. During the pandemic, demand skyrocketed almost overnight, and the only way we were able to keep up was because we had already invested in engineering, product, and sales capacity. That discipline made all the difference. At Canva, we are already at incredible scale, but I think constantly about where we need to invest to ensure we continue to meet the needs of our customers and drive long-term growth. It is all about being thoughtful with resources, prioritizing long-term sustainability, and making sure we have the foundation in place to flex up or down when needed.

For more on Steckelberg’s approach to IPOs, click here.—JK

Audit, risk, and compliance are more than checkboxes—they’re strategic advantages. On Sept. 16, hear how Erin Dempsey Heuwetter, head of audit, risk, and compliance at Navan, is helping organizations stay agile, compliant, and ahead of the curve in a fast-changing financial landscape. Register now!

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