It's never been harder to be a CEO.
It's never been harder to be a CEO.
Recent high-profile resignations amongst CEOs underscore a stark reality: leading a company today is more daunting than ever.
"Being a CEO sucks," stated Emad Mostaque, former head of Stability AI, reflecting a sentiment felt across boardrooms.
There were a record 622 CEO changes at US companies last quarter, up 48% from a year earlier.
The complexity of managing everything from economic uncertainties to technological advancements takes a personal toll, as evidenced by Elon Musk's candid admission that his role at Tesla is "not that fun" and often leaves him feeling "quite lonely."
You understand that building an enduring legacy demands a laser-sharp focus on game-changing initiatives like product innovation and building a winning culture.
However, the constant pull of daily distractions, board demands, investor whims, and the unrelenting pressure to maintain cash flow keeps derailing your efforts and draining your bandwidth.
What if you had a partner to stand shoulder to shoulder with you in your business, who could lighten your load and help you navigate these challenges with confidence?
What if you had a partner to stand shoulder to shoulder with you in your business, who could lighten your load and help you navigate these challenges with confidence?
Someone you could trust implicitly to lend you authority in the boardroom, to step up and be your champion and proxy when you need them and to proactively manage the flow of capital through the business to support your vision?
You need a catalyst CFO.
Elevate Your CFOs Impact with CFO Boardroom Elite
Elevate Your CFOs Impact with CFO Boardroom Elite
CFO Boardroom Elite is designed to empower your CFO to become that catalyst - a strategic partner who can:
- Ideate and execute capital raising initiatives to support your vision
- Expertly manage investor relations, board dynamics and financial performance allowing you to focus on the big-picture vision
- Provide critical support and leadership when you need it most, giving you the capacity to breathe and focus on your legacy
By nominating your CFO for this exclusive program, you'll unlock their potential to become the catalyst you need to achieve your most ambitious goals and cement your legacy as a visionary leader.
What participants are saying about the CFO Boardroom Elite
What participants are saying about the CFO Boardroom Elite
CFO,
ASX Listed Company
❝ Alena puts questions to you that really make you think. She provides you with the opportunity to reflect on what you want out of your career, who you are, your brand, and your achievements, something that we don't really do as we move from one task to the next or one month/ year-end to another. ❞
CFO,
ASX Listed Company
❝ We wouldn't be anywhere near where we are without you and your leadership to guide us through. You've made my life a hell of a lot easier. Thank you Alena. ❞
❝ We wouldn't be anywhere near where we are without you and your leadership to guide us through. You've made my life a hell of a lot easier. Thank you Alena. ❞
CFO,
ASX Listed Company
Finance Director,
Design Industry
❝ The program provides a wealth of resources allowing you to learn, grow and develop into the senior finance leader you have always wanted to be! ❞
Create Capital
Watch your CFO drive outsized financial performance and free up capital to invest in your vision.
Build Bandwidth
Gain a powerful ally and partner prepared to advocate for your vision whenever you need.
Leave A Legacy
Cement your reputation and shape your organisation's trajectory for years to come.
❝ The true meaning of life is to plant trees under whose shade you do not expect to sit ❞
What the journey looks like
What the journey looks like
Nominate Your CFO
Start by nominating your CFO for CFO Boardroom Elite. Schedule a consultation to discuss how the program can help you achieve your vision.
Create A Catalyst
Watch your CFO transform into a strategic partner through intensive workshops, coaching, and peer collaboration. See the impact ripple across your organisation.
Achieve Breakthrough Results
Enjoy a fresh flow of capital to fund innovation as your CFO champions initiatives without outsized financial returns and builds authority and respect amongst the board and the investors.
Cement Your Legacy
Watch your CFO transform into a strategic partner through intensive workshops, coaching, and peer collaboration. See the impact ripple across your organisation.
What participants are saying about the CFO Boardroom Elite
What participants are saying about the CFO Boardroom Elite
CFO,
ASX Listed Company
❝ Alena has a remarkable ability to turn individual held beliefs, experiences and values into a strong sense of purpose about who you are and what you stand for as a professional, and how to articulate these as your point of difference going forward. Working with Alena is an empowered growth experience that unlocked numerous strategies to define my path to long term fulfilment and success. ❞
Finance Director,
Communications Industry
Communications Industry
❝ Working with Alena gives me the perfect combination of an experienced mentor, who has her fingers on the pulse in all things finance and leadership, and a knowledgeable friend, who holds a safe space to provide personalised attention to my challenges. ❞
❝ Working with Alena gives me the perfect combination of an experienced mentor, who has her fingers on the pulse in all things finance and leadership, and a knowledgeable friend, who holds a safe space to provide personalised attention to my challenges. ❞
Finance Director,
Communications Industry
Communications Industry
CFO,
Radiopharmaceutical Industry
❝ The challenge I was facing was to deliver the message to the executive team and achieve commercial outcome, which was pending for a long time. I like Alena's structured and 360-degree approach of thinking beyond problems and represent the situation as a long term opportunity. I like the structured approach that Alena and her team bring to the overall situation. She has both telescope and microscope view of looking at things. CFO boardroom provides the perfect opportunity for growth minded business and finance executives on looking at things from a very broad business spectrum.❞
What is CFO Boardroom Elite?
What is CFO Boardroom Elite?
CFO Boardroom Elite is a highly selective 12-month program designed to transform ambitious, experienced CFOs into catalysts for business growth.
Led by expert finance leadership coach Alena Bennett, and supported by an intimate cohort of ambitious, high-performing CFOs, your CFO will participate in exclusive summits and immersive workshops that will provide a rare opportunity for them to step away from day-to-day operations and focus on developing and executing high-impact projects that will redefine your organisation's financial trajectory.
Supported by personalised coaching from Alena Bennett with both your CFO and your finance team and the frameworks, tools and resources that they need to execute effectively, your CFO will;
- Enjoy the space to think and the support to solve bigger problems
- Identify untapped opportunities for growth and efficiency across your organisation
- Create a detailed roadmap for executing these strategic initiatives, with clear milestones and metrics for success
- Build deep, lasting connections with a curated group of high-performing CFOs who will share insights into cutting-edge financial strategies, innovative technologies and emerging market trends
- Leverage the collective wisdom and experience of their CFO peer cohort to pressure-test ideas and workshop proactive ways to clear roadblocks and gain buy-in from key stakeholders and investors
- Get the support and accountability they need to deliver on their promises and grow personally and professionally
CFO Boardroom Elite provides a holistic approach to leadership development that will empower your CFO to become a true catalyst for change. And with ongoing support for both you and your finance team, you'll have the tools and guidance you need to build a finance function that is truly future-ready.
Program Overview
Program Overview
Intakes happen twice per year. Program membership includes;
- Support for CEOs
- Support for your CFOs
- Support for your Finance Team
When you consider the potential return on investment - significant increases in revenue, profitability, and morale, as well as your own increased capacity to drive transformational change - the value of CFO Boardroom Elite becomes clear.
When you invest in CFO Boardroom Elite, you're not just investing in your CFOs individual development; you're investing in the future success of your entire organisation.
Selection Criteria
Selection Criteria
Membership to CFO Boardroom Elite is exclusive to;
- Finance Professionals with 2+ years of experience reporting directly to the CEO
- CFOs with the potential to lead projects with 6 to 7 figure business impact
- CFOs who have reached 'Playmaker' status according to their CFO of the Future score
- Those who demonstrate a commitment to personal growth, professional development and creating an outsized financial impact on their organisations
- Participants with the enthusiastic support of their CEO
This ensures that all participants are operating at the same level and provides the best ROI on their time and your investment in CFO Boardroom Elite.
How to Apply
How to Apply
Step 1
Nominate Your CFO by clicking the 'Apply Now' button below
Step 2
Your CFO will be sent a link to Alena Bennett's proprietary 'CFO of the Future' index report to assess their strengths and potential areas for development
Step 3
You'll be sent a link to schedule a 1 hour strategy call with Alena Bennett and your CFO where Alena will take the time to discuss your goals, constraints and challenges and develop a personalised plan of action to step-change business performance
Step 4
Based upon your needs, you'll be sent an invite for your CFO to participate in CFO Boardroom Elite, CFO Boardroom or The CFO Amplifier
Spaces are limited and awarded on an application-only basis to ensure the highest value and most intimate experience
Applications for our next cohort close August 2024
Meet your guide, expert in Finance Leadership,
Alena Bennett
Alena Bennett
Alena Bennett is an expert in CFO Leadership.
Obsessed with delivering results beyond the numbers, Alena helps leaders in finance unleash the power of their purpose, and brings that to life by teaching them the mindset, skills and behaviours they need to deliver results that inspire.
As a Chartered Accountant with international public practice and corporate experience and a trained educator and published author, Alena is the go-to for leaders in finance looking for next-level success.
Alena's life work is dedicated to elevating performance and creating possibilities through purpose, presence and people. She understands that purpose integration is the missing link when leaders in finance start to feel their career stagnate or when they feel frustrated that their effort is no longer delivering results, being valued or recognised.
Along with purpose integration, she believes executive presence and an active powerbase are the keys to elevating leadership and moving from authority to mastery.
Alena is a wife and proud mum of two daughters. The radiant energy she brings to her clients is the same as the sunshine and 'cheek' she brings to her family.
Never one to shy away from a conversation, however, she'll respectfully provide you with feedback if she feels it will serve you and in doing so will take your learning experience to levels that it may not otherwise have gone. One thing you'll be sure of is that Alena always has your back.
Alena has worked with...
What participants are saying about the CFO Boardroom Elite
What participants are saying about the CFO Boardroom Elite
Finance Business Partner
❝ Alena is giving back to the business community with her highly engaging and strategic style. I've not come across her approach anywhere else and I highly recommend that you step-up with Alena rather than plod along on your own. ❞
CFO,
Transport Industry
Transport Industry
❝ Alena is my special sauce for success. She creates possibilities for me to achieve next level success, even when I can't see the opportunity. ❞
❝ Alena is my special sauce for success. She creates possibilities for me to achieve next level success, even when I can't see the opportunity. ❞
CFO,
Transport Industry
Transport Industry
CFO,
Global technology in Optics
❝ Having reached a level in my career to where I wanted to be, I struggled with the question "what next"?
I also wanted to be a better leader managing and leading leaders and was looking for an executive coach/mentor. Alena's ability to ask the right questions to help you to think in the right direction is second to none. The concepts she introduces you to are very practical and easy to understand and apply. The best part is, if applied honestly you will see results straight away, which is very satisfying. Alena is the best coach/mentor I ever came across. She will certainly make a difference in your life. ❞
I also wanted to be a better leader managing and leading leaders and was looking for an executive coach/mentor. Alena's ability to ask the right questions to help you to think in the right direction is second to none. The concepts she introduces you to are very practical and easy to understand and apply. The best part is, if applied honestly you will see results straight away, which is very satisfying. Alena is the best coach/mentor I ever came across. She will certainly make a difference in your life. ❞
The CEO Perspective
The CEO Perspective
As a CEO, your impact is amplified when you have a strong strategic partner in your CFO. You need a financial leader who can not only manage the day-to-day financial operations but also drive transformative initiatives with big financial impact.
CFO Boardroom Elite is designed to empower your CFO to become that strategic partner and help you achieve your most ambitious goals.
By investing in your CFO's participation in this program, you can:
- Accelerate the execution of innovative financial strategies that drive significant revenue growth and provide the capital to invest in your vision
- Free up your time and energy to focus on other critical areas of the business, knowing that your CFO is well-equipped to lead the financial strategy
- Enhance the alignment and collaboration between finance and other key functions, creating a more cohesive and effective leadership team
- Strengthen your bench of potential successors, ensuring a smooth transition and continued success when the time comes for you to move on
CFO Boardroom Elite is an investment in you, in your legacy, in your CFO and in the future of your organisation. By empowering your CFO to become a strategic leader and change agent, you'll unlock new opportunities for real and lasting impact.
FAQs
FAQs
1. What is CFO Boardroom Elite?
CFO Boardroom Elite is an exclusive 12-month program designed to transform your CFO into a strategic partner and catalyst for growth. Through a combination of intensive workshops, personalised coaching, peer collaboration, and focused skill-building, your CFO will develop the leadership capabilities and strategic vision to drive transformative results for your organisation.
2. Who is eligible to join CFO Boardroom Elite?
CFO Boardroom Elite is designed for high-performing CFOs who have the potential to make a significant impact on their company's financial performance and strategic direction. Ideal candidates are forward-thinking, growth-oriented, and committed to developing their leadership skills to drive tangible change.
3. How much time will my CFO need to dedicate to the program?
Participants should expect to dedicate an average of 10-12 hours per month to the program, including in-person intensives, virtual workshops, coaching sessions, and peer mastermind meetings. While this may require some adjustments to their schedule, the program is designed to help your CFO work smarter, not harder, by providing them with the tools, frameworks, and support they need to drive transformative change efficiently and effectively.
4. How will my CFO's participation impact their day-to-day responsibilities?
While participating in CFO Boardroom Elite will require your CFO to dedicate time away from their daily tasks, the program is designed to minimise disruption and maximise impact. By focusing on high-leverage initiatives and strategies, your CFO will be able to drive significant results without getting bogged down in tactical details. Additionally, the skills and frameworks they gain through the program will help them lead their team more effectively and efficiently, ultimately creating more capacity for strategic work.
5. How can I be sure that the program will deliver measurable results for my organisation?
Alena Bennett has a proven track record of helping CFOs drive significant financial and strategic impact for their organisations. While individual results may vary, participants will be expected to strategise, select, plan and pitch a capstone project with outsized financial impact on your organisation within their 12 months in the program.
6. What happens after the program ends?
The impact of CFO Boardroom Elite extends far beyond the 12-month program itself. Your CFO will leave the program with a powerful set of skills, frameworks, and relationships that they can leverage throughout their career. They'll also gain access to an ongoing community of high-performing CFO peers who can provide continued support, collaboration, and accountability. Many alumni of the program go on to achieve even greater success in their roles, with some even transitioning into CEO or other executive positions, creating a strong bench of potential successors within your organisation.
7. Can international CFOs participate in the program?
Yes, the program is open to CFOs globally. However, participants must be able to commit to attending all sessions, which may involve travel depending on the location of boardroom sessions.
8. What makes CFO Boardroom Elite different from other executive training programs?
CFO Boardroom Elite is uniquely focused on current high-performing CFOs with the potential to become catalysts for growth within their organisations. The program is tailored to the specific challenges of senior finance executives making their next big career move. Alena Bennett has spent decades focussed solely on coaching and developing finance professionals and her programs are targeted and tailored accordingly.
9. How can I learn more about the program before applying?
Interested CEOs and candidates can book a free 45-minute Strategy Call via our website, where they can discuss their career objectives, learn more about the program's benefits, and ask any specific questions they might have.
What participants are saying about the CFO Boardroom Elite
What participants are saying about the CFO Boardroom Elite
CFO,
Membership recreation industry
❝ Alena's guiding principles delivered with her genuine empathy has allowed me to elevate my leadership and personal journey. ❞
CFO, Multinational tyre manufacturer
❝ Working with Alena in the CFO Boardroom has helped me realise that as CFOs we reach our greatest potential when we emerge from the day-to-day operations and surround ourselves with people that can challenge our 'status quo' and become trusted advisers to point out our blind spots. ❞
❝ Working with Alena in the CFO Boardroom has helped me realise that as CFOs we reach our greatest potential when we emerge from the day-to-day operations and surround ourselves with people that can challenge our 'status quo' and become trusted advisers to point out our blind spots. ❞
CFO, Multinational tyre manufacturer
CFO,
Recruitment company
❝ Alena's empathetic leadership and coaching style challenges you in a way that ensures you stay results focused, whilst developing and growing your ability to lead with purpose and impact in a way where people come first ❞
The journey to unlocking your CFO's full potential - and yours - starts now.
The journey to unlocking your CFO's full potential - and yours - starts now.
With limited spots available, it's crucial to act now to secure your CFO's place in this transformative program. Nominate your CFO today and take the first step towards building a legacy of innovation and performance.
Hurry, submissions for our next round of CFO Boardroom elite close August 2024.
ⓒ 2024
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Acknowledgement of Country
We acknowledge the Darkinjung people, the traditional custodians of the land on which we live and work and pay our respects to the Elders both past, present & emerging.