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I’m a Corp finance guy and agree with your comments more than most on this thread. Very little value in knowing double entry accounting. It’s actually a key difference between most finance and accounting. I don’t even deal with that stuff. I know all about how it works sure, I had to take accounting classes in college but it’s not a routine part of my job and certainly no other executives. Accrual is important. Mostl…
I downplayed the value of the P&L, but your right. If the person ultimately wants to get to a CTO role, I imagine the P&L becomes more important overtime. Knowing when to back a project may come down to knowing whether it impacts the right metric. The other thing probably worth studying earlier is HC costing. It’s really easy to understand, but often catches directors/vp in non-finance functions off guard. Basically,…
Re: Ask HN: What are some good resources to learn business administration/finance?
#51“can I afford this?” a question I get every day. It's a little naive at times. Because the question is really, what happens if you can't? You should be telling me and any approvers why you need it. Budget is a made up number and we move dollars and rebalance constantly. But the business impacts caused by you not being able to "afford" something, is what real good execs know how to handle. The CTO example is, look I know this wasn't in my budget, but I think we've actually been fairly favorable on travel expenses due to the 'rona, I don't think we can make this deadline without an additional Sr Dev. This usually spurs minimum 2 thought processes; 1) what is the real consequence of missing the deadline ($1M in sales? $10K to adjust marketing push? nothing?) and 2) if we hire a head, do we have work to keep them on after the project or do we plan to reduce the head at that point (basically, is this going to cost us money next year and the years after). Assuming the cash allows for it, these 2 questions will usually steer the decision. But, it's something you want to lead with the CEO/CFO as a CTO. Thinking the whole thing out past the immediate need is generally a sign of a good chief. Also, the CEO and CFO appreciate you lifting the minor burden of them having to think through it. You make your business case and they give some consideration, usually ranking it against every other department's requests for heads, and maybe you get what you need. If not, you've at least signaled the project will be delayed and given an option for getting it back on track.