by Laura Hennessey Martens
Newswise — CHARLOTTESVILLE, Virginia — 7 November 2014 — Chief financial officers from leading companies in the Washington, D.C., region expressed continued optimism about the United States economy at a recent Strategic CFO Roundtable led by the University of Virginia Darden School of Business. On a scale of zero to 100 percent, the CFOs rated their optimism at approximately 60 percent, which mirrors similar findings in a comparative national survey.
Convened by Darden’s Institute for Business in Society (IBiS) on 25 September 2014 at Sands Capital Management in Arlington, Virginia, the forum took place one week after Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen announced federal policies of continued low interest rates and the end of quantitative easing — the introduction of new money into the money supply by a central bank to promote increased lending and liquidity. The majority of CFO Roundtable members said they expect it will take two to three more years for U.S. unemployment to return to pre-recession levels.
Roundtable members are CFOs at publicly traded and private companies from the Washington, D.C., region, representing industries such as aerospace/defense, financial services, media, professional services, retail and technology.
In addition to evaluating the U.S. economy and the performance of their own businesses, the CFOs conduct in-depth discussions on top-of-mind topics such as retaining top talent during economically challenging times, the impact of regulatory and political trends on financial and corporate strategy, and balancing stakeholder interests in corporate decision-making. More information is available in the report “Views from the C-Suite”.
In 2009, Darden Professor Kenneth M. Eades and Jane-Scott Cantus, principal member of ILEX Leadership Associates LLC, established the Strategic CFO Roundtable. In 2013, the Strategic CFO Roundtable was adopted as an important initiative of IBiS.
The next quarterly Strategic CFO Roundtable will convene in January 2015.
About the Darden School of Business The University of Virginia Darden School of Business delivers the world’s best business education experience to prepare entrepreneurial, global and responsible leaders through its MBA, Ph.D. and Executive Education programs. Darden’s top-ranked faculty is renowned for teaching excellence and advances practical business knowledge through research. Darden was established in 1955 at the University of Virginia, a top public university founded by Thomas Jefferson in 1819 in Charlottesville, Virginia.
About the Darden Institute for Business in SocietyThe Institute for Business in Society (IBiS), established at the Darden School in 2011, prepares leaders to positively impact society through business. IBiS advances thought leadership and innovative practices through research, teaching and programs.
About the Darden Institute for Business in Society Strategic CFO Roundtable The Strategic CFO Roundtable is a quarterly convening of leading chief financial officers in the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area to discuss, debate, and share best practices for enhancing the strategic role of the CFO. With over 300 years of collective strategic financial and leadership experience, the roundtable members share their views on the challenges and opportunities facing their companies, the economy and society as a whole. The Strategic CFO Roundtable is organized by the Institute for Business in Society at the Darden School of Business of the University of Virginia.
Press ContactMatt CharlesDirector of Media RelationsDarden School of BusinessUniversity of Virginia[email protected] +1-434-924-7502 Sharing via social media? Please consider tagging us: @DardenMBA on Twitter, UVA Darden School of Business on Facebook.###
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