The Chief Financial Officer and Corporate Performance

Book excerpt: Financial management encompasses a set of complex activities that should be performed by a professional financial manager. Some financial decisions are riskier than others, and as such can result in higher or lower profitability. This risk-return trade-off is the key aspect of financial management. Furthermore, a financial director’s propensity to take risks can lead to less or more conservative financial decisions. This study firstly provides theoretical issues on financial management and the results of previous research, while the second part is empirical, showing the methodology and results of the authors’ research. Apart from CFO risk attitude, the book also examines CFO power. The book highlights the importance of the position of financial managers in companies and demonstrates that financial decisions are the reflection of decision-makers’ characteristics. Additionally, the book provides evidence of whether the COVID-19 crisis has increased or decreased the impact of CFO characteristics on financial decision-making and firm performance. The book will attract the attention of researchers and students of corporate finance and accounting and also contains many valuable tips and insights for practitioners.