Finance

Financial strategy

As a CFO I always strive towards spending most of my time and energy on strategic issues and create and execute the financial strategy for the company I work for.v A financial strategy is a comprehensive plan that outlines how an organization, individual, or entity will manage its financial resources to achieve specific goals and objectives. It involves decision-making processes, policies, and actions that guide the allocation, investment, and management of funds to maximize value, ensure sustainability, and mitigate risks. These are the main componens of a company´s financial strategy:

  1. Goal Setting

    • Defining short-term, medium-term, and long-term financial objectives, such as profitability, growth, stability, or debt reduction.

  2. Planning, Develop Roadmap and Forecasting

    • Developing plans to allocate resources effectively and forecasting future income, expenses, and cash flows to anticipate financial needs.

  3. Revenue Generation

    • Identifying and optimizing sources of income, such as sales, investments, or funding.

  4. Cost Management

    • Controlling and reducing expenses to improve efficiency and profitability.

  5. Investment Planning

    • Strategically allocating resources to investments that align with the goals and provide optimal returns.

  6. Capital Structure

    • Deciding on the mix of debt and equity financing to support operations and growth.

  7. Risk Management

    • Identifying financial risks (e.g., market volatility, credit risks) and implementing measures to mitigate their impact.

  8. Cash Flow Management

    • Ensuring adequate liquidity to meet operational needs, pay obligations, and seize opportunities.

  9. Performance Monitoring

    • Tracking financial metrics and key performance indicators (KPIs) to evaluate the success of the strategy and adjust as needed.

  10. Compliance and Governance

Financial strategies are dynamic and should adapt to changing circumstances, such as market conditions, competitive landscapes, and internal priorities.

Investment decisions

We've all been there. Worked our way through Excel sheet after Excel sheet with various assumptions and assessments of an investment decision. Such analyzes are, to put it mildly, not an exact science and the decision itself is very often driven by prejudice and bias. I have even experienced working with an investment analysis for a large Norwegian company that was to invest in a new, expensive digital platform, where the mandate was that the investment decision had already been made and that it should now only be considered home. Businesses make investments mainly based on the following goals: Increased business income: buy other businesses, invest in product development, invest in marketing, buy a customer base (SaaS). Increased efficiency/reduced costs: Invest in machinery and equipment, invest in efficiency projects, R&D. Increased quality: invest in increased quality in products, services, production, systems and organisation. Reduced risk: invest in HSE, management systems, control systems Sustainability: invest in measures that make the business more sustainable, such as reduced emissions and waste. This contributes to both improved reputation and sustainability in general