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Finance Director Europe Spring 2022


Editorial Editor Andrea Valentino Sub-editor Nikki Peach Production manager Dave Stanford Designer Henrik Williams Group art director Henrik Williams Head of content Jake Sharp


Commercial Client services executive Derek Deschamps Publication manager Sanjeev Dole sanjeev.dole@progressivemediainternational.com Managing director William Crocker


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ar, so goes the cliché, is great for business. But the expression only really makes sense if you add a question at the end: which business? While the Raytheons and Lockheed Martins of the world can doubtless expect their bank balances to inflate as the Ukraine war limps on, many of their more tranquil cousins risk losing out. If nothing else, this is clear when you ask company executives their thoughts. According to a recent Deloitte survey, to give one example, just 38% of CFOs are optimistic about their company’s financial prospects, compared with 57% at the start of 2021. Beyond these abstract questions of hopes and fears, the situation seems equally dark when you examine concrete statistics. European energy inflation hit 27% in January 2022, squeezing firms just when customer purchasing power is collapsing. It goes without saying, too, that Vladimir Putin could cut gas supplies to his rivals overnight – and trash a large section of European manufacturing. Nor is the picture much rosier when you move beyond the immediate dangers of the Ukraine emergency. From grain to steel, commodity prices are increasing worldwide. From supply chains to the environment, ESG strains are unavoidable. From the boardroom to the showroom, finance directors are expected to embellish their CVs at a stroke, hopping across business functions even as they’re still expected to keep the lights on. In part, then, this edition of Finance Director Europe is an attempt to interrogate the many struggles today’s CFOs currently face. Much focus, inevitably, is on Ukraine, where Jim Banks explores how many companies were surprised by the Russian invasion, and how the shock might encourage a more robust approach to risk management. From there, we take time to investigate the rising ethical obligations for firms of all stripes. For his part, Tim Gunn unpicks supply chains, suggesting that more robust auditing is only one tool in a far larger kit. That is shadowed by pieces on climate-boosting vehicle fleets, and how football can improve life for women and girls. As these last examples imply, this edition of the magazine is not only doom and gloom. On the contrary, the emergency in Ukraine, for all the horror on the ground, may also be an opportunity for companies to fundamentally improve their performance both morally and economically. War may not exactly be great for business, in short, but it could yet do some good.


Wars and all W


Andrea Valentino, editor


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