Choosing the best among the best
AN INSIDER’S GUIDE TO THE 2015 ING FINEX CFO OF THE YEAR AWARD
M anila Water Company’s chief finance officer (CFO), Luis Juan B. Oreta, is no stranger to winning CFO awards. Since 2011, he has already tucked five Asia’s Best CFO titles under his belt.
However, Oreta has always set his eyes on bringing home the highly-coveted ING FINEX CFO of the Year award and the glass trophy made by National Artist for Sculpture Ramon Orlina. This year, he joins the winning circle of eight other distinguished CFO awardees: Delfin Gonzalez Jr., former CFO of Globe Telecom; Sherisa Nuesa, former CFO of Manila Water and now president of ALFM Mutual Funds; Jose Sio, CFO and EVP of SM Investments Corporation; Ysmael Baysa, CFO of Jollibee Foods Corporation; Jaime Ysmael, CFO of Ayala Land, Inc.; Jeffrey Lim, former CFO and now EVP of SM Prime Holdings, Inc.; Felipe Yalong, former CFO and now EVP of GMA Network, Inc.; and Jose Jerome Pascual III, finance director and country controller of Shell Philippines Exploration, B.V.
Going through the search and selection process, and the final judging of the ING FINEX CFO of the Year Award is like “going through the eye of the needle,” said Judith V. Lopez, who chaired the 2015 Search and Selection Committee. It is after all the thoroughness of the process that gives the search more prestige and sets the bar higher for aspiring CFOs, she added.
This is also the reason behind the longevity of the search, which is now on its ninth year. Dutch financial giant ING Bank N.V. and the Financial Executives Institute of the Philippines (FINEX), the premier organization of more than 800 financial executives in the country, have been running the search to pay tribute to the CFO’s role as “co-pilots” of their chief executive officers ( CFO) in driving and executing their company’s overall strategy needs, said Consuelo D. Garcia, managing director and country manager of ING Bank N.V., Manila Branch.
“This role is even more pronounced in a macroeconomic environment that has become more volatile, more global and more digital. The CFO now holds a significant leadership role in creating and ensuring a sustainable growth path for his organization,” she added.
The search is open to the CFO of any company, local or foreign-owned, privately held or publicly listed, operating in the Philippines and registered under the country’s laws.
No walk in the park
A lot of time and resources have been invested so the process could remain credible, fair and independent.
“The award is given to the most deserving individual on the basis of clearly defined qualitative and quantitative factors. It involves a very detailed and deliberate process that took
almost half a year to ensure that the award is given on the basis of merit as proven by track record, accomplishments, certain ethical standards, consistency and sustainability of performance,” explained Edmundo S. Soriano, overall chairman of the 2015 CFO of the Year Award Committee.
Chairing the Board of Judges for this year’s search is Hans B. Sicat, president and CEO of The Philippine Stock Exchange, with Securities and Exchange Commission Chairperson Teresita J. Herbosa; Emilio S. de Quiros Jr., president and CEO of the Social Security System; Jesse Ang, principal investment officer of the International Finance Corporation of the World Bank; Consuelo Garcia, managing director and country manager of ING Bank N.V., Manila Branch; Rodolfo Ang, dean of the Ateneo Graduate School of Business (AGSB); and Edmundo Soriano as members.
For the second year, the search made use of the AGSB-FINEX CFO study as the basis for setting the criteria for selecting the awardee. The study gave equal weight to the CFO’s performance of his various roles as the company’s strategist, catalyst, operator and steward. The study provided the framework that focused on the end-results of the company’s financial performance and financial initiatives, which are directly or indirectly contributed by the stewardship of the candidate. The criteria are accompanied by a proposed set of performance indicators to guide the judges in their evaluation. These performance indicators are gleaned from the latest audited financial statements. However, there are other important indicators which are qualitative in nature and that the judges will need to uncover during personal interviews with the nominated CFOs.
Rigorous process
Sifting through the nominations entails meticulous work that starts with the Search and Selection Committee (SSC) identifying potential candidates, securing endorsements from the CEO or direct boss of the CFO. The SSC interviews the nominees, conducts due diligence, and validates the results through interviews with the CFO’s superiors, peers and staff. The SSC likewise commissions a third party to look into the character and credit standing of the candidates.
After rigorous deliberations/wrap-ups/summary sessions, the committee shortlists the nominees, and assigns its members to “champion” the nomination of the short-listed CFOs — a responsibility that entails conducting even more thorough interviews with the shortlisted nominees’ CEO and colleagues.
The SSC then ranks the candidates according to the results of: (1) qualitative and quantitative information about the actual work performance of the candidates; (2) feedback from other fellow stakeholders in the organization; and (3) the panel interview. Starting last year, the SSC has been empowered to cast its vote.
The shortlisted CFOs then each face the Board of Judges (BOJ) in a closed-door panel interview. The identities of those who made it to the interview process are kept strictly confidential. To determine the awardee, the SSC ranking is combined with the results of the deliberation of the BOJ.
“The process itself is held in the highest level of professionalism and credibility. There is no room for any political lobbying by interested parties. The decision is independent of the decision of the Search and Selection Committee,” said Soriano.
The prestige
While there is no dearth of top-notch CFOs in the Philippines, the organizers admit that looking for the “best among the best” is becoming more challenging every year.
“The Filipino CFO is one of the best in the region. The CFO, however, has been playing rapidly expanding roles — from the traditional number cruncher to being the CEO’s wingman in steering the organization. So the bar gets higher every year though the number of CFOs who qualify is increasing, which is a positive thing. This is, after all, the objective of the search,” said Lopez.
Oreta, this year’s CFO of the Year, described the search as a “very exhaustive” process that looks at every aspect of a CFO’s career, which makes the award prestigious and unique. Winning the title is the “highest honor that one can aspire for” because “it comes from your own peers. It’s very humbling for me,” he added.