You have to be in the game to understand the game, Menon believes, as she highlights the new role of CFOs in the startup ecosystem where speed is the mantra, scaling fast is as crucial as failing fast, and spotting problems alone is as good as a problem
Don't just apply the brakes, tell me the road where there are no speed breakers...that's the new role of CFOs: Aneesha Menon, Group CFO, CarTrade Tech; Image: Neha Mithbawkar for Forbes India
It was September 1986. In the dying moments of Turkish League, defending champions Besiktas found themselves in a weird situation. The referee inadvertently found himself in the way of a deflected shot, which got redirected via his face and jetted into the goal. Ankaragucu won the game 1-0. In an interview after the match, the referee explained his awkward act. “This is the first time in 17 years that I’ve scored a goal,” he reportedly remarked. The media termed it as a ‘bizarre’ goal.
Over 35 years later, in India, Aneesha Menon points out another interestingly not-so-bizarre situation. “CFOs are playing in the field along with other players,” says the group CFO at CarTrade Tech, an auto classified platform that got listed last August. “And it’s legit,” smiles the 36-year-old, explaining how the rules and roles have changed.
From being a referee—raising red flags whenever there is laxity in compliance, performance or auditing—the new-age CFOs are helping CEOs score goals. “You have to be in the game to understand the game,” she adds, underlining the new role that CFOs have donned in the tech startup ecosystem where speed is the mantra, scaling fast is as crucial as failing fast, and spotting problems alone is as good as a problem.
Menon, a chartered accountant who started her professional innings with EY in 2006, explains why the goalposts have moved for the CFOs. A linesman’s job, staying outside the ground, and closely monitoring the movement of the players and the ball, is to ensure players play by the book.