Khozema Shipchandler, Chief Finance Officer at GE (MENAT) describes the challenges and skill sets that are becoming standard expectations of a corporate finance head. Zoya Malik spoke to him about management leadership, financial controllership and his flair for multi-media communication that may be contributing to his success as a young and dynamic CFO

What is your outlook for GE company policy for 2013 and investments within MENA and the emerging markets?

The company outlook for 2013 is positive. Obviously the world is a pretty dynamic place right now and it has been and will likely be volatile, but with that has come a lot of opportunity. We're focused on technology leadership, services growth, growth market investment and simplification - we believe this strategy will best position the company to win for a long time. In MENAT, where we've established and grown partnerships over eight decades, the strategy is the same. That will usher continued investments, building on previous ones such as in the UAE, Turkey and Saudi Arabia, as well as the LOI we signed last week in Egypt.

How do you predict risks and plan solutions to these risks?

The world is a risky place and this region particularly carries a high risk profile. One of the best strategies for risk management is of course diversification and so we run the region as a portfolio of 24 different countries. At any given point in time, some are up, some are down. In aggregate, we're up. With that said, we have a very comprehensive risk management programme run from the Board of Directors, down to every individual in the company - we evaluate risk constantly, bottom-up and plan for a variety of scenarios to ensure we're prepared for both the downside and upside.

How do these forecasts impact your corporate decision making i.e. to delay investments or pursue growth?

We have to be smart about risk - but the real risk is, being too risk averse. We plan for the bad and then we play to win. If we stopped or even delayed decisions or investments, we probably wouldn't have some of the great leadership positions we do today.

How do you prepare your business for extraordinary results and become an innovation leader?

We are a "we" company, not a "me" company. What that means is that we rally the entire enterprise to try and make the world a better place. We're in industries that affect people's lives and we're participating in markets where we have the opportunity to really make a difference. That's a tremendously motivating rallying cry to innovate and win.

What do you expect to encounter as opportunities and challenges in 2013?

There are always challenges, but we have big opportunities in front of us in this region. We've done well in places like the UAE, Saudi and Turkey and we'll continue investing there. In addition to that, we see big opportunities in Algeria, Egypt, Pakistan and Iraq, too. My job is to help the operating team allocate personnel and capital to win there, plus ensure that our enabling teams make it easier to win.

What is at the forefront in dealing with corporate finance and treasury management?

A big focus area is sales and project finance. We have a great team there that is localised in the markets in which we compete. If we can connect capital to projects, we stand a better chance to win. This takes time, is hard and requires patience, but our team is among the best in the world at making it happen. We also have a great commercial finance team that helps shepherd the projects to the right people at the right time, to ensure we've prioritised intelligently.

How did you begin your early career?

I started my career in GE Capital then went to the Financial Management Program at GE Plastics. From there, I spent six years on our Corporate Audit Staff, then seven years in our Aviation business, before moving to my current role as the Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of GE in the Middle East, North Africa and Turkey. Simply put, that career path has cultivated skills in corporate finance, controllership, operational excellence and growth, which are the key ingredients for any successful finance career at GE.

What are the challenges in CFO's roles today and how have these changed from any traditional view of their roles and functions?

A key challenge and opportunity, is a tilt to growth. Traditionally, GE finance leaders have been tremendous at controllership, operational excellence and people development. Those all remain crucial. In addition to that, a finance leader at GE has to be good at, or at least well versed in, sales and project finance, tax and treasury. Plus, he or she has to be comfortable meeting customers, with strategy and helping get deals done. That's new.

What are organisations' expectations of CFOs in terms of leadership and performance? Are these realistic?

Sure, they're realistic. A CFO in GE is viewed as much as a COO and our roles are given a tremendous amount of responsibility. I spoke earlier about equipping the operating team to win. Part of that entails creating the right metrics to drive accountabilities within the rest of the organisation to be aligned with the company's overall strategy.

What skill sets do CFOs need to meet day to day business operations, since the downturn and now providing a new order for current MENA market needs?

One of the most important skills is to commit ourselves as an organisation to the highest standards of controllership, which then translates to governance and investor relations. We've undertaken numerous actions over the last ten years to strengthen an already great controllership foundation and provide transparency to our investors and other stakeholders.

What's your opinion of CFOs now being groomed to become CEOs at their organisations?

I think it's great and a path I hope to pursue, myself.

Is it a likely ambition for CFOs to move to CEO position and what would be the circumstance?

Not necessarily. Every circumstance requires a different kind of person.

What strengths and experience are HR firms looking for in a CFO hire? What's new?

I think the skills I described earlier, plus experience in growth markets. Having real experience in places that are riskier, tougher to do business in, but carry enormous promise.

You speak at events and contribute to a company blog? What's important about being media friendly and creating brand exposure through multi-media channels? Why are these, positives?

I do it because I think it's important to communicate as much and as openly as possible to my teams and everyone else who's listening. I keep mine a bit light and mix some personal references with business ones. If readers can pick up something along the way while seeing a different side of me, then it's working.

What's important when recruiting, incentivising and retaining talent for GE management positions?

I spoke earlier about "we" instead of "me" - that requires a humility that we expect of everybody. The differentiating skill at GE is leadership. That always has been and always will be what we recruit for and the primary driver behind how careers develop. Obviously substance trumps style and things like domain expertise and executive communication, are very important too. My job is to ensure that our teams come to work every day feeling like they make a difference and that we recognise that they're making a difference. If we can recruit the right people and create that environment, we will win.

© Banker Middle East 2013