The Finance Gem 💎 #111: How CEOs and CFOs Build or Destroy Enterprise Valuations

Hi there, 

If your finance team is still reporting history instead of shaping the future—you’re already behind.

Rolling forecasts, smarter cash visibility, tax efficiency, and data-driven insights are quickly becoming the new baseline for finance leadership.

The companies that master this aren’t just staying compliant. They’re deliberately building cash, capital strength, and shareholder wealth.

Here’s what I’m covering in today’s Issue:

1. Why you should sign up for Finance Connect at SAP Connect 2025

2. My Free Budgeting Masterclass on October 2

3. The launch of my LinkedIn Learning course - free for a limited time

4. How CEOs and CFOs Build (or Destroy) Enterprise Valuations

Upcoming Executive Masterclass: The 6 Budgeting Mistakes That Kill Growth

Most CEOs see budgeting as a numbers exercise. Meanwhile, their traditional budgets destroy growth, valuation, and credibility.

In this live session, I’ll break down:

• The six budget mistakes that quietly undermine your strategy

• Why boards lose confidence when CEOs miss these signals

• How to redesign budgeting as a capital allocation tool that drives growth

📅 Date: Thursday, October 2, 2025
🕚 Time: 9:00 PST / 12 PM EST / 5 PM GMT
📍 Save your seat here

Why Leaders need Financial Intelligence to Drive Enterprise Value

My LinkedIn Learning course, Strategic Financial Intelligence for Business Leaders, is now live. It’s built for CEOs, CFOs, and non-finance business executives who want to make sharper business decisions that grow revenue, protect profitability, and build long-term enterprise value.

After 15 years advising CEOs, boards, and high-growth companies, I’ve seen the same pattern repeat over and over: financial failure is leadership failure. When leaders can’t speak the language of finance, they lose control of outcomes—capital dries up, risk compounds, and valuation erodes.

This course is designed to change that. It equips business leaders—not just CFOs—with the tools to:

• Connect decisions directly to cash flow, profitability, and valuation

• Spot red flags before they hit liquidity or capital access

• Turn capital allocation into a leadership discipline, not a finance task

Finance isn’t about reporting history. It’s about engineering foresight. The leaders who master this don’t just react—they shape outcomes.

If that’s something you want to learn, check out the full 1.5 hr course on Linkedin Learning.

For a very limited time I was able to make it free for everyone even if you’re not a Linkedin Premium member - but Linkedin won’t tell me for how long that lasts, so don’t delay.

What You’ll Learn Inside

1. Why financial intelligence is a leadership skill—not a CFO-only skill
Every decision you make—pricing, hiring, expansion, M&A—shapes the financial structure of your business. You don’t need to be a finance expert. But you must understand how your choices ripple across income statements, balance sheets, and cash flows.

2. How to spot financial red flags before they hit
You’ll learn to catch early warning signs—margin compression, liquidity strain, creeping leverage—that most leaders miss until it’s too late.

3. How to turn capital allocation into a leadership advantage
Capital allocation isn’t a finance task. It is strategy in action. You’ll learn to evaluate investments, compare funding sources, and deploy capital where it drives long-term enterprise value.

4. How to connect strategy, execution, and financial outcomes
You’ll see how operational decisions—discounting, hiring, supply chain choices—show up in financial statements. And you’ll learn to interpret them not as reports, but as narratives that reveal strengths, risks, and opportunities.

How CEOs and CFOs Build (or Destroy) Enterprise Valuations

Enterprise value isn’t set by yesterday’s profits. It moves with the quality of today’s decisions.

Every expansion, price change, acquisition, or debt repayment is a capital decision.
When leadership treats these as isolated moves rather than parts of a financial system, the result is predictable: good EBITDA on paper, weak cash flow in reality—and a compressed valuation.

Here’s how CEOs and CFOs can change that:

Make cash flow the strategy
Profits don’t pay bills. Free cash flow funds growth and underpins valuation. Tie every initiative to its impact on cash generation and return on invested capital (ROIC). Only fund projects when risk-adjusted returns justify the move.

Use foresight, not hindsight
Rolling forecasts and integrated three-statement models show how today’s actions ripple through cash, leverage, and earnings. This lets you steer before a covenant breach or liquidity squeeze forces your hand.

Link execution to value drivers
Margins, working-capital turns, and debt service aren’t accounting trivia. They are valuation levers. Track and adjust them in real time so each quarter compounds the last.

The outcome is tangible: higher free cash flow, stronger multiples, and a business that remains attractive to investors, lenders, and acquirers.

Fail to build this financial intelligence, and enterprise value quietly erodes—even in years of strong reported profits.

The CEO Financial Intelligence Program

That’s exactly what this fall’s cohort of the CEO Financial Intelligence Program is built to deliver—capability, foresight, and the practical infrastructure to help you build your enterprise value, so the Board or the Market don’t end up forcing your hand.

Enrollment closes in 6 weeks and one third of the spots are already taken.

This is the final cohort of the year. If you want to lead with foresight—not reaction—this is your opportunity. Secure one of the limited spots today.

You’ll be primed for explosive growth in 2026, while everyone else will still be figuring out how to start.

Warm regards,
Oana

P.S. Don’t forget—the free masterclass is on Thursday, October 2. I’ll break down the six budgeting mistakes that quietly destroy growth and valuation—and show you how to fix them. Grab your spot here.