#262 How Relationship-Focused CFOs Gain Real Influence, Catherine Clark, GrowCFO Mentor

Episode notes

.entry-img img{ display:none !important; } .single .hentry .entry-img{ display:none !important; } Influence is earned long before numbers hit the board pack. In this episode, Catherine Clark , GrowCFO Mentor, reframes influence as the practical outcome of deliberate connection. She and host Kevin Appleby unpack how remote and hybrid work have thinned everyday rapport, making it harder for finance leaders to shape decisions, mobilize teams, and retain talent. Their premise is simple: influence compounds when CFOs intentionally build trust, recognition, and emotionally intelligent dialogue across stakeholders. Catherine offers a playbook for finance leaders to operationalize connection: stakeholder mapping early and often, creating unstructured time for human conversation, signaling appreciation consistently, and showing up with presence—even through a screen. The episode highlights how small, repeated behaviors (gratitude, active listening, regular check-ins) turn into strategic leverage: faster alignment, better decision inclusion, higher engagement, and materially improved performance environments for finance teams and their partners.