Falling revenue, liquidity issues, cost-saving scenarios. As companies grapple with the many challenges of operating in the COVID-19 environment, they are leaning more heavily on their CAOs than ever before to help maintain a sound financial footing. As a key member of the crisis management team, CAOs are performing far more than their “day job” duties of closing the books and managing internal controls over financial reporting in a virtual setting.
In a new KPMG paper based on conversations with CAOs across the U.S., CAO agenda: How chief accounting officers are raising their game to respond to COVID-19, we report that they are focused broadly on three issues today: building a robust cash-flow forecast, optimizing internal controls over financial reporting, and testing for possible impairments. As challenging as these are, the expanding role of CAOs is also an opportunity to raise their own profiles among corporate leaders.
