A new guide from ACCA (the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants) aimed at the ‘C-suite’, examines the key drivers for successful collaboration in organisations.

Companies with better collaborative management capabilities achieve superior financial performance. ACCA’s new report, CFOs and the C-Suite – focusing on effective collaboration  explores what lies at the heart of successful collaboration, the obstacles to overcome and offers a ‘road map’ of dos and don’ts for effective CFO collaboration.

Omid Tissier, ACCA’s senior manager said, “CFOs need to become collaborative leaders and this requires honing their ‘softer’ skills. From effective conflict management, to an entrepreneurial mind-set and advanced emotional intelligence, these are particular focus areas which will allow leaders to collaborate more effectively.”

In today’s highly competitive, fast changing and interconnected world, those working within the finance function have the opportunity to take a key leadership role in developing collaboration. But this isn’t without its challenges. CFOs and other senior executives must be mindful to pursue collaboration that goes beyond classical business partnering.

ACCA’s new guide paints a full picture of the collaboration landscape using structured interviews conducted with key C-Suite figures; CEOs, CFOs, chief human resources officers (CHROs), chief information officers (CIOs) and chief marketing officers (CMOs) from across the UK, Europe, Asia and the US. These are supported by conversations with academia, government and the private sector as well as a review of the literature currently available in the public domain.

Palma Michel, Co-Founder of Profuse29, mindful leadership advisor, executive coach and lead author of the report said, “The question is no longer whether companies, and specifically members of the C-suite, should collaborate internally as well as externally with customers and suppliers, but rather how. It’s important to collaborate in order to thrive and not just merely survive as a business and as leaders.

“Collaboration is not unfamiliar to business, however only a few companies/individuals manage to do it well. Understanding the need for it is not enough. Effective collaboration often requires a shift in culture, mind-set and behaviour to ensure its strategic value to the rest of the business.”

Omid Tissier added, “The C-suite interviews conducted for this report demonstrate that many of the challenges organisations face require effective enterprise-wide collaboration – and the CFO has a really big role to play, given the wide remit of the finance function.”

To download the full guide, please go to http://www.accaglobal.com/gb/en/technical-activities/technical-resources-search/2016/june/cfos-and-the-c-suite.html

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Notes to Editors

About ACCA

ACCA (the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants) is the global body for professional accountants. It offers business-relevant, first-choice qualifications to people of application, ability and ambition around the world who seek a rewarding career in accountancy, finance and management.

ACCA supports its 178,000 members and 455,000 students in 181 countries, helping them to develop successful careers in accounting and business, with the skills required by employers. ACCA works through a network of 95 offices and centres and more than 7,110 Approved Employers worldwide, who provide high standards of employee learning and development. Through its public interest remit, ACCA promotes appropriate regulation of accounting and conducts relevant research to ensure accountancy continues to grow in reputation and influence.

Founded in 1904, ACCA has consistently held unique core values: opportunity, diversity, innovation, integrity and accountability. It believes that accountants bring value to economies in all stages of development and seek to develop capacity in the profession and encourage the adoption of global standards. ACCA’s core values are aligned to the needs of employers in all sectors and it ensures that through its range of qualifications, it prepares accountants for business. ACCA seeks to open up the profession to people of all backgrounds and remove artificial barriers, innovating its qualifications and delivery to meet the diverse needs of trainee professionals and their employers. More information is here: www.accaglobal.com