Hiring, Insight
Why great CFOs speak the language of the business
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CFOs aren’t just finance experts anymore.
They’re expected to be business partners, decision enablers, and commercial thinkers. But to do that, they must move beyond financial jargon and start talking in a way the rest of the company understands.
These insights are drawn from a conversation with Vineta Bajaj, Group CFO at Rohlik Group. In the episode, she shared how her view of finance changed after one direct question from her CEO. It was a challenge that caught her off guard, but it ended up reshaping how she operates as a CFO.
You can’t lead the business if you don’t speak its language
One conversation stuck with Vineta. It started with a simple question from her CEO: Why do I need to look at a P&L?
At first, she admits it was hard not to push back. She wanted to say, of course you need it. We’re a grown-up company. But as she thought about it, she began to understand where the question was coming from. It wasn’t about avoiding financial oversight. It was about whether the finance team was communicating in a way that matched how the business runs.
That moment was a reminder. High-performing CFOs don’t just deliver numbers. They deliver clarity. And to do that, they need to speak in a way that resonates across teams.
“It was really insightful,” she reflects. “It’s also very painful sometimes.”
Business context comes first, not the close process
Rohlik is a fast-moving business. The company operates on a daily and weekly rhythm. Metrics are tracked constantly. Conversations are grounded in what’s happening now, not what happened last quarter.
Vineta quickly adapted to that pace. She realised the business doesn’t think in terms of financial statements. It thinks in terms of customer activity, order behaviour, and unit margins.
She stopped talking about revenue. She focused instead on basket size, frequency, weekly users, and product margin. These are the signals the company already uses to steer performance. They’re specific, measurable, and easily understood across functions. When the numbers move, people act. There’s no need to wait for a monthly review.
“We look at our business metrics on a weekly basis all the time. We talk in business metrics all the time. I don’t talk about revenue. I talk about my basket size, my frequency, my monthly, my weekly users, my margin. I can basically, through these business metrics, work out my P&L.” – Vineta Bajaj, Group CFO at Rohlik Group
From reporting to enabling
Vineta still builds the P&L. She can estimate it quite accurately based on operating data. But she doesn’t lead with it. Her priority is to make finance useful to the business in the moment, not just after the fact.
The challenge from her CEO helped reframe how she delivers value. It wasn’t about cutting corners. It was about making finance relevant and practical.
“I don’t talk about revenue,” she says. “I talk about my basket size, my frequency, my monthly, my weekly users, my margin.”
Metrics like margin and frequency are easy for teams to connect with. They tie directly to user behaviour and product performance. That’s where commercial conversations begin. By focusing there, finance becomes a driver of decision-making rather than just a reporting function.
CFOs need to meet the business where it is
Vineta’s experience reflects how the CFO role is changing. There’s still a need for structure and control. But that alone isn’t enough.
Modern finance leaders need to meet the business on its terms. That means understanding the operating model and using language that reflects how people workday today. It means not assuming everyone thinks in the language of EBIT and gross margin. It means translating insights into practical actions that people across the business can relate to.
What started as a tough question turned into a powerful shift. Finance became more embedded. More connected. More useful.
Communication builds credibility
One of the most underrated skills in modern finance leadership is communication. CFOs operate across every function, but they can’t rely on financial fluency to build influence. The ability to engage commercial teams, product managers, operations lead, and even customer service staff requires flexibility.
Finance must be able to flex its language depending on the audience. That might mean framing profitability in terms of contribution margin for a marketing leader or explaining inventory efficiency through fulfilment speed for an ops manager.
When finance communicates in ways that feel familiar and actionable, it earns trust. Over time, that trust becomes credibility, and that credibility becomes influence. The best CFOs use this as a foundation for change, not just reporting.
A mindset shift, not reporting change
Vineta still sees value in traditional financial reporting. She calls the P&L one of those necessary evils. But she’s clear that its role is changing. For a high-growth, data-led business, it’s no longer the main lens. It’s a checkpoint, not a compass.
The bigger shift is in how CFOs think. Success today is less about technical precision and more about communication. The ability to connect the dots across teams. The confidence to adapt. The willingness to be challenged.
Vineta embraced that mindset. She took what could have been a frustrating comment from her CEO and turned it into a moment of alignment. That’s what sets apart a great finance leader. Not just knowing the numbers but knowing how to make them matter.
“My CEO hit me with a question that really stopped me in my tracks: ‘Why do I need to look at a P&L?’ My first instinct was to push back, of course you need it, we’re a grown-up company. But the more I thought about it, the more I realised how right he was.
We’re a business that runs on daily and weekly rhythms. We talk in terms of basket size, frequency, and user activity, not traditional finance reports. It was a genuinely insightful moment. Also a painful one. Because if I can’t translate those business metrics into something meaningful for the entire company, then what am I really bringing to the table as a CFO?” – Vineta Bajaj, Group CFO at Rohlik Group
Takeaways for finance leaders
Vineta Bajaj’s experience offers a clear lesson: the best finance leaders are the ones who step beyond the traditional finance toolkit and learn how to speak in operational terms.
Business fluency matters more than financial fluency: Knowing the numbers isn’t enough. You must communicate them in a way that resonates with your CEO, your product team, your operations lead, whoever needs to decide.
Lead with real-time metrics: In fast-paced businesses, traditional reporting cycles are too slow. Weekly operating metrics like frequency, margin, or basket size are far more powerful day-to-day.
Be prepared to translate: Even when the data’s solid, if no one else understands it, it won’t drive change. CFOs need to act as translators between finance and the rest of the business.
The P&L still matters, but it’s not the main focus: It’s a useful tool. But in fast-moving environments, it shouldn’t be the only lens you use to run the business.
Listen to the challenges: Sometimes the most important feedback sounds like a provocation. If your CEO is questioning the format, not the function, lean in. There’s probably something useful underneath.
Listen to the episode of the STOIX Podcast
To hear Vineta Bajaj’s full conversation, watch the complete podcast episode here:
To connect with Vineta or explore more of her experience and insights, head over to Vineta’s LinkedIn profile.