6 finance challenges CFOs are facing today

When asked by Gartner about the top challenges they faced in 2022, 56% of CFOs cited hiring and retaining talent, 36% forecasting, and 35% cutting the right costs. A more recent Gartner survey on the most pressing actions for 2026 shows that improving forecasting remains in second place, but that priorities have otherwise shifted.

It’s not surprising, given how exposed the finance function is today. Markets are moving faster and shifting overnight; technology is evolving quickly, making threats more sophisticated; regulation is expanding; and expectations from boards and investors are higher than ever.

Finance no longer operates in a stable environment, but rather sits at the intersection between cost control, digital adoption, compliance, security, and strategic planning. This concentration of responsibilities creates tension, increases pressure on finance teams, and raises different concerns than those from a couple of years ago.

Insights shared by finance leaders at Forge Connect Antwerp in November 2025 point to a clear conclusion — this is not a temporary cycle. It is a structural shift in how finance operates, and that poses new challenges for CFOs.

The new reality. Pressure is coming from every direction

Finance’s new reality is being shaped by pressure coming in from multiple directions.

Economic instability forces tighter cost discipline; investors expect faster and more transparent reporting; digital tools set new standards for efficiency and data access. There are multiple internal and external stakeholders demanding that finance teams deliver timely reports or adjust to new regulations within the deadlines.

But that’s not all. As Melle Eijckelhoff, Co-founder and Director at M&A Community Belgium, puts it, ‘there are many other chess boards that they have to play on.’ Sitting at the centre of different business operations means finance teams are increasingly dealing with cybersecurity threats, integrating new systems, and managing digitalisation initiatives.

The challenge here lies in balancing short-term targets and performance goals with long-term transformation to guarantee the organisation’s financial integrity. To do so successfully, finance professionals need to adapt to new ways of working in which technology takes centre stage.

Talent risk. Skills are shifting faster than teams can adapt

Even though talent is no longer mentioned as CFOs’ main challenge, concerns around it haven’t completely disappeared. Finance has always required analytical depth and technical accounting strength. Today, it also demands digital fluency, adaptability, and curiosity. The challenge lies in finding professionals with additional sets of skills and providing sufficient training for existing talent.

Soufyan Hamid, Founder @ The Finance Circle

Most of the skills that we need in the five coming years are not taught yet today.

Many finance teams still recruit primarily for traditional accounting capabilities, while the role is expanding to include data interpretation, cross-functional collaboration, and AI literacy. This makes hiring more difficult, and talent retention even more so, without structured guidelines in place.

Daphné Verdeyen, Head of Finance & Business Controlling at FCR Media Belgium, shares a familiar challenge: teams often continue working as they have in the past, even on tasks that AI could automate for them. Learning new skills and how to use AI tools takes time, and some professionals are not interested in doing so.

CFOs must therefore rethink training and career paths and encourage curiosity and experimentation, especially when it comes to AI.

AI pressure. Adoption without clarity creates exposure

AI adoption across finance is accelerating, promising efficient gains and deeper insights. The challenge has shifted from simply adopting AI to adopting it properly to avoid risks. However, as Niels de Kind, Digital Transformation & Strategy Expert at BMW Group, points out, many finance leaders don’t know where or how to begin.

This is usually where problems start. AI isn’t just another tool; it requires new habits, such as prompting, reviewing model decisions, and ensuring every AI output is reviewed by a human. In many organisations, teams begin experimenting with AI without clear guidance or ownership, creating exposure and putting security at risk.

Frederik Bakx, Co-Founder and COO/CFO @ EAGL

AI is gonna disrupt a lot of things, and you need to be fully in control of the pace at which it’s going.

Understanding how to use AI responsibly is key, and CFOs should be first in line to establish the principles that govern which tools are approved, what data can be used, and where accountability sits.

Cybersecurity is now a finance responsibility

Finance controls a company’s payment flows, vendor approvals, liquidity, and financial reporting systems, making it a prime target for cyberattacks. As such, cybersecurity has become a finance responsibility as much as an IT one.

As Dr. Christian Reinhardt, Director of Human Risk Management at SoSafe, explains, the more sophisticated cyberattacks are aimed mostly at finance because it’s where the monetary gain is concentrated. AI is making expense fraud more and more difficult to identify, from fake invoices to manipulated data sets and deepfakes of executives approving transfers, which is why CFOs must be actively involved in cybersecurity.

Finance leaders are accountable for financial integrity, segregation of duties, internal controls, and vendor oversight, making them also responsible for shaping policies that maintain business security and compliance.

Compliance overload. Innovation pressure. Governance strain

Compliance was a recurring topic at Forge Connect, particularly the tension between regulatory demands and innovation.

Hilde Rannem Rostad, Director of Strategy and Business Development and Innovation at OBOS, identifies this balancing act as one of finance’s biggest challenges. On the one hand, organisations that want to remain competitive need to keep up with digital transformation. On the other hand, compliance requirements are expanding, which can sometimes limit strategic initiatives.

Alessandra Guion, Strategic Partnerships Director @ Mifundo

We need to be taking more risks. If we try and do everything, we will do nothing.

Compliance depends on stability and repeatable controls, while innovation requires experimentation and flexibility. The solution is not to pick one over the other, but to design governance models that support responsible innovation. To do this, CFOs must have a deep understanding of current regulations so that they can ensure compliance at the same time that they’re giving teams the opportunity to explore new technologies.

From execution to value creation

Individual finance roles are shifting, but the broader change is moving from execution to value creation. However, even as they’re expected to become strategic partners shaping business decisions and driving transformation, finance professionals still need to deliver flawless core processes.

Melle Eijckelhoff, Co-founder and Director @ M&A Community Belgium

Finance teams need to understand when and how to onboard the technology that will make their lives easier and create more value.

This dual expectation may lead to internal tension among teams, forcing CFOs to rethink how work is structured. Strategic capability can’t simply be layered on top of finance’s operational workload. Instead, the right technology can automate transactional activities and reporting, leaving room for professionals to develop the skills they need to deliver more value.

Alignment between short-term decisions and long-term value becomes critical, and finance leaders must guide their teams through the necessary changes that help execution and strategy support and reinforce each other.

Conclusion. Leadership is the real use point

Talent gaps, AI acceleration, cybersecurity risks, expanding compliance, and rising strategic expectations are converging to reshape the finance function, posing new challenges for CFOs.

Adjusting as they go is no longer enough. Modern finance leaders must redesign how finance operates by building more adaptable teams, clarifying and defining principles for AI use, and fostering a culture of compliant experimentation.

As market uncertainty keeps rising and technology keeps evolving, it’s the leaders who treat today’s challenges as opportunities to evolve who will create more value and define the future of finance.