Kyriba’s CFO risk radar 2026 report found that despite 79% of CFOs experiencing some degree of financial impact from inadequate risk visibility over the past year, almost half (47%) believed they were highly prepared to manage financial risk.
Just under 40% expected a high level of impact from risks they were already aware of, suggesting that even informed CFOs are routinely underestimating their full exposure.
Thomas DeFabrizio, CFO Americas at workforce and talent solutions provider Impellam Group, observes that risk becomes much more expensive when finance identifies it after management’s options have already narrowed.
“For me, the practical question is how quickly can we put a number around the exposure once something changes,” he says. “That requires more than a risk report. Finance needs leading indicators, defined thresholds and clear ownership so changes in cash, working capital, customer behaviour, pricing or other exposures reach decision makers while there is still time to respond.”
His view is that a company can have extensive risk reporting and still have poor risk visibility if the information arrives too late to change the decision. The objective is not to predict every risk, but rather to see meaningful changes early enough that management still has choices.
Bringing financial risk into the operating conversation
Impellam Group has worked to bring financial risk into the regular operating conversation, rather than treating it as something finance reviews separately.
“A big part of that is looking beyond the financial statements,” explains DeFabrizio. “By the time something shows up clearly in revenue, margin or cash, the underlying issue may have been developing for months. So we pay attention to earlier signals such as pipeline quality, pricing pressure, segment performance, collections, working capital and forecast accuracy.”
Rather than relying on a single forecast, the company also uses scenario analysis to understand what will happen if an assumption turns out to be wrong.
“For me, good risk visibility comes down to timing,” DeFabrizio adds. “If you can see a problem six months before it hits the financials, you usually have choices. If you discover it at quarter-end, many of those choices are gone.”
Mistaking normalisation for safety
The authors of Kyriba’s report suggest that risks have become business as usual and that CFOs may be mistaking that normalisation for safety.
“A problem can sit on a report for three or four months and eventually stop feeling like a problem because everyone has gotten used to seeing it,” agrees DeFabrizio. “CFOs have to keep asking what has actually changed. If DSO has moved from 50 days to 55, then 60, then 65, the fact that everybody knows about it doesn’t make it less of a risk.”
He says that when something crosses a threshold, there should be a conversation about what has changed and what the company knows, versus what it is assuming. It’s also important to consider whether a decision needs to be made now, or whether the company can afford to wait for more information.
“The warning sign for me is when the same issue appears in the meeting month after month with a new explanation but no different action,” DeFabrizio concludes. “At that point, the risk has been normalised.”
