WASHINGTON, June 4, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- In the aftermath of
the financial crisis, corporate boards are paying close attention
to liquidity and risk exposures, which have elevated the strategic
role of corporate treasurers, a trend that is expected to continue
in the next five years, according to a survey by the Association
for Financial Professionals (AFP).
The AFP Strategic Role of Treasury Survey found that the
role of corporate treasury, the subset of finance that assures that
an organization has enough cash on hand to meet its needs,
continues to grow in strategic importance as global commerce
expands and as companies face business decisions about when and how
to put historic cash piles to use. Oliver Wyman provided
insights and financial support to the 2014 AFP Strategic Role of
Treasury Survey.
With critical financial insight, treasurers are uniquely
positioned to evaluate strategic cash deployment, ranging from
financial options such as share buy-backs, debt repayment or
dividend increases, to operational alternatives such as capital
expenditures, acquisitions or product development.
"Treasurers provide value at the highest levels of corporate
decision making," said Jim Kaitz,
AFP's president and CEO. "They fireproof corporate finances,
shore-up shareholder expectations, weigh in on global expansion,
build bridges to business units, advise on shifts in payroll
numbers, and make major decisions about financial technology."
"Coupled with ensuring effective and efficient day-to-day
treasury management, sound strategic input and strong leadership
skills are critical for the 'new' treasurer in order to manage and
optimize the results and impact of the treasury function," said
Elizabeth St-Onge, Partner at Oliver
Wyman.
"The role of the treasurer will only become more strategic as
more corporate leaders and Boards of Directors focus on optimizing
the use of cash on their companies' balance sheets and improving
their performance in an increasingly uncertain business
environment," said Alex Wittenberg,
Partner at Oliver Wyman and head of the firm's Global Risk
Center.
Key survey findings:
- 84% - Corporate treasury's role has expanded over the past five
years.
- 83% – The role will continue to expand over the next five
years.
- 69% – The enhanced strategic role is linked to the emphasis on
cash management and liquidity in the current economic
environment.
- 63% - Corporate treasury's expanded role is the result of the
close attention that senior management and the board of directors
now pay to liquidity and risk exposure.
- 94% - Treasurers take the lead role in bank relationship
management.
- 75% - Corporate treasury has strong access and visibility to
the organization's Executive Committee/C-Suite.
- 37% - Treasurers are members of the Executive
Committee/C-Suite.
The survey also explored staffing realities, communications
skills and leadership development necessary for successful treasury
departments.
ABOUT THE SURVEY
In March 2014, AFP surveyed its
senior level corporate practitioner membership, including CFOs,
treasurers, controllers, vice presidents of finance and assistant
treasurers, plus non-members with similar job titles, yielding 243
responses. The 2014 AFP Strategic Role of Treasury survey's content
and conclusions are the sole responsibility of the AFP Research
Department The full report is available at
www.afponline.org/Strategic and
www.oliverwyman.com/insights/publications/2014/jun/redefining-the-role-of-the-treasurer.html
ABOUT THE ASSOCIATION FOR FINANCIAL PROFESSIONALS
Headquartered outside Washington,
D.C., the Association for Financial Professionals (AFP) is
the professional society that represents finance executives
globally. AFP established and administers the Certified Treasury
Professional and Certified Corporate FP&A Professional
credentials, which set standards of excellence in finance. The
quarterly AFP Corporate Cash Indicators serve as a bellwether of
economic growth. The AFP Annual Conference is the largest
networking event for corporate finance professionals in the
world.
AFP, Association for Financial Professionals, Certified Treasury
Professional, and Certified Corporate Financial Planning &
Analysis Professional are registered trademarks of the Association
for Financial Professionals.
ABOUT OLIVER WYMAN
Oliver Wyman is a global leader in management consulting. With
offices in 50+ cities across 25 countries, Oliver Wyman combines
deep industry knowledge with specialized expertise in strategy,
operations, risk management, and organization transformation. The
firm's 3,000 professionals help clients optimize their business,
improve their operations and risk profile, and accelerate their
organizational performance to seize the most attractive
opportunities. Oliver Wyman is a wholly owned subsidiary of Marsh
& McLennan Companies [NYSE: MMC]. For more information, visit
www.oliverwyman.com. Follow Oliver Wyman on Twitter
@OliverWyman.
SOURCE Association for Financial Professionals