Office of the CFO: Chris Caprio on Putting People First, Navigating Economic Volatility & More

The NetSuite Podcast

For more advice on handling economic volatility: https://bit.ly/3xB1HtB

Host Kendall Fisher and guest co-host Megan O’Brien, NetSuite business and finance editor, join three-time CFO Chris Caprio, the current CFO of Focus Technology and co-chair of the CFO Leadership Council for the Boston Chapter. He’ll kick things off by diving into his educational path and why he chose to get an MSA over an MBA (3:36), before taking us on his career journey leading up to his first CFO role in 2010 (5:40). He then explains the skills required in his role as a controller (9:30) and how they’ve shifted over the past decade (12:16). He also recalls navigating the 2008 recession, during which he learned the importance of focusing on macroeconomics (13:25) and valuing people above everything else when cutting costs (15:32). Caprio then explains the key differences between a controller and a CFO (19:17), including tracking KPIs around DSO and forecasting as well as metrics pertaining to the workforce (20:34). He also unveils the challenges that are specific to Focus Technology, most notably around cybersecurity (25:31), and why a big portion of the budget is allocated to hiring and retaining top talent to overcome those challenges (27:37). As for his role as the CFO of Focus Technology, Caprio says a majority of his time is spent on strategy (30:26) and one of his current priorities is creating greater automation within the business (34:29), especially amid economic volatility (39:04). Caprio says NetSuite automates many of the core processes within the business, including accounting, finance, CRM and project management (44:46), and is used by almost 75% of the company’s employees on a daily basis. He then explains how he uses NetSuite to track success around employee retention, turnover rate, references and more (48:37) as well as communicate important data and decisions with other C-level executives and the board (52:23). Finally, Caprio concludes with his No.1 piece of advice for other financial leaders or those hoping to become one (55:29).

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