The CFO role is being rewritten — and faster than most realize. Our 2026 CFO survey with NYSE finds 72% of finance leaders say transformation is now the fastest-growing part of their role, and 54% point to competitive disruption as a top force reshaping it. The market is taking notice: CFO-to-CEO promotions hit a decade high in early 2026.
To fund growth, CFOs are pulling hard on efficiency — 64% cite a growth lever as their No. 1 priority and 60% rank cost management in their top three. And they're racing to set the pace for AI deployment across the enterprise: 80% call AI a top priority for transforming finance, 89% are increasing AI investment in at least one finance use case, and 8% are already at scale.
CFOs have moved from protecting value to shaping how it is created.
