CFOs can become irreplaceable
Stop optimizing for survival when you can fund the future CFOTech Stack
Most CFOs are on a fast track to being replaced and they don’t even see it.
They’re buried in:
Excel hell
Month-end reconciliations
Shaving pennies off reports.
Meanwhile, they overlook the bigger threat.
A world where AI and automation will do their jobs:
a) Faster
b) Cheaper
c) Without complaint
In 2000, Blockbuster’s CFO squeezed every dollar from late-fee fines.
Across town, Netflix’s finance team quietly built a streaming empire before broadband was even widespread.
By the time Blockbuster woke up, it was too late.
Blockbuster CFOs optimized costs.
Netflix CFOs gambled on the unknown and won.
Stick to outdated processes, and you’ll be as replaceable as a late-fee notice.
In today’s letter I’ll show you how to think like the “Netflix CFO”: irreplaceable, future-proof, and AI-friendly. Read on.
Signs of BlockBuster and Netflix CFOs
When I tested ChatGPT with a fake board meeting (purely to see how it handled confidential text), I was flooded with comments like…
“I’d fire my CFO if they ever put our data in ChatGPT, too risky!”
Those are the Blockbuster CFOs talking. They see risk, so they hide.
Here’s how Netflix CFOs think:
(The clip above is from the podcast I did with Sasha Orloff, CEO of Puzzle on practical AI adoption for CFOs.) You can watch it here.
By contrast, Netflix CFOs experiment first, ask forgiveness later, and figure out the guardrails as they go. They know AI isn’t perfect, but it’s the fastest route to future-proofing finance.
Become Fluent in AI. You Don’t Need to Code; You Must Ask
Financial acumen alone won’t save you. The new superpower is AI literacy, knowing which tool to use, when, and how to validate its output.
“You don’t want to know everything. You need to know how to ask it.”
— Advice I share with my kids
Why Most CFOs Fall Short
Lack of strategy: <20% of finance teams have a formal AI roadmap, even though 42% plan major AI investments this year .
Fear of the unknown: Many CPAs treat social media and AI like snakes—too dangerous to touch .
Fewer than 20% of CFO teams have a clear AI strategy, even though 42% plan major AI investments this year. Without AI literacy, those budgets evaporate into silos and skepticism.
Build Hands-On Fluency
Experiment with real data: Upload your Q3 P&L into ChatGPT or an AI forecasting tool. Prompt: “Explain the key drivers behind our Q3 revenue variance.” Compare AI’s narrative to your own analysis.
Stop trying to be an expert and just explore: Treat AI as a junior partner. Ask follow-ups: “Show your work,” “Are there confounding factors?” _ Repeat until the AI’s logic feels bulletproof.
Understand limits & risks: AI hallucinations can cost millions. Always validate outputs against source data and institute review protocols. Build a one-page “AI Trust & Control” checklist:
Data provenance ✓
Bias detection steps ✓
Human sign-off workflow ✓
OpenAI’s CFO, Sarah Friar, trains her team on live coding in ChatGPT. Within weeks, finance staff bypass IT tickets, generating custom queries and scripts on demand, cutting report turnaround 50%.
Shift your mindset from “I know all” to “I know how to ask.”
It might sound cliché, but that’s the AI-driven CFO’s true superpower.
Future CFOTech Stack: Traditional vs Agentic
Before AI, your finance stack looked like this
Core systems: ERP, CRM, Billing, Payroll, Expenses, Banking, Procurement
Integration layer: ETL & Data warehousing, connectors
Outputs: Financial close, FP&A, dashboards, collaboration tools
Today’s ‘Agentic’ future flips the model
Single version of truth sits at the center (data warehouse)
Agent layer: Autonomous bots handle bookkeeping, AP/AR, payroll, procurement, revenue ops, treasury, lease accounting, subscription & expense management
Value-creation agents: Financial close, FP&A forecasting, storytelling, disclosure, business partnership, retention optimization, consolidation
Think about any data source in a company that can be fed to that data layer and then future FP&A or whatever system that helps you in decision-making has access to all.
That makes CFOs powerful.
Champion an AI-First Culture
The Mindset Shift
Finance pros often hide behind precision. Blockbuster CFOs: “We must manually reconcile every line.”
Netflix CFOs: “We’ll automate 90% and audit 10%.”
Practical Steps You can Take
Host a 48-hour hackathon: Gather finance, IT, and business partners to reimagine a stalled process, like board-deck compilation. Challenge: “Automate 80% of data prep by Monday 9 AM.” Track ideas and real prototypes.
Celebrate experiments: Create an “AI Innovator of the Quarter” award. Showcase wins in all-hands: “Here’s how our AP bot cleared 1,000 invoices overnight.”
OpenAI’s Finance Team shortened its close by 50% using ChatGPT to unify data sources and code AP invoices . Their custom IR bot retrieves investor Q&A in seconds, what used to take hours.
Master Story Selling
Story selling is the CFO’s core differentiator. Machines can draft analysis; you must build the narrative that moves boards, investors, and CEOs to action.
“Numbers are just the first step.It’s the story you tell with them that builds trust and drives growth.
AI-Augmented Narrative
Data + Context: Ask AI, “Why did churn spike 5% this quarter?” It may analyze CRM logs, ticket data, and billing trends. You weave that into a plan: “We’ll deploy targeted incentives in APAC where ‘downtime’ drove cancellations.”
Scenario Animation: Use an agent to run 50 cost-savings scenarios in minutes, then narrate one with visuals: “Automating 60% of AP yields a 12% cost cut and frees 3 days per close.”
LiquidX’s CFO reports that teams with >50% automated operations are eight times more likely to trust their forecasts .
Your Brand is a Financial Strategy
During my last trip with kids to Dubai, I met Ali Bilawal. He reminded me, If you’re invisible, you’re irrelevant. If you’re known, you shape perception and deals. Your personal brand can get you the most ROI.
Social selling beats traditional marketing. Being a numbers person isn’t enough.
I’m all in. The modern CFO must control strategy, speed, and reputation.
BlackLine & Workiva embed machine learning into reconciliations and reporting, slashing error rates and accelerating cycle times “autonomous finance” is here .
AI is ROI engine for finance.
The Bottom Line
AI will automate 80% of what you do.
The remaining 20%: strategy influence and growth hacking.
They're your domain.
Blockbuster CFOs fear losing control.
Netflix CFOs see AI as an opportunity.
The path is clear:
Achieve AI literacy.
Build and govern your bot fleet.
Build a culture of experimentation.
Hack growth with data-driven sprints.
Build your brand and strategic influence.
You can wait and be disrupted, or you can pilot, learn, and lead.
In 5 years, CFOs will be judged not by cost cuts but by how they used AI to drive growth.
And that’s all for today.
See you on Thursday!
P.S. Watch me and Sasha Orloff talking about practical AI adoption for CFOs. It’s here.
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I’m Wouter Born. A CFOTech investor, advisor, and entrepreneur.
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