Watching the constant movement of CFOs in multinational organizations over three decades, it is a fact these executives are constantly tested with the decisions they make for companies. What I will share with you in this article are patterns that have occurred again and again as CFOs make decisions on building a strong inhouse tax organization or outsourcing the tax function. The purpose of this article is to share valuable insight learned from the many experienced CFOs and Tax Executives I have had private discussions with over the years. The goal is to educate corporate executives by learning from those who navigated challenging markets before them.

Foresight is a very valuable tool because it provides lessons learned from hindsight. The examples provided in this article are the lessons I learned from numerous experienced CFOs and Lead Tax Executives as they navigated challenging times. What qualifications do I have to share this knowledge with you? View our accomplishments along with our great team at this link: View Our Clients Here.

Historically, since the 1930s there have been 14 recessions but for the sake of this article my discussion involves what I learned working through the last four recessions with CFOs and Lead Tax Executives. Here are the four markets our team worked through over the years, and in all these times we had to adapt to succeed.

The Gulf War Recession (July 1990 – March 1991)This was a result of the Gulf War and its effect on oil prices and the savings and loan crisis. It also greatly impacted small local banks and put many of them out of business due to rising interest rates in response to growing inflation.

The Dot Com Recession (March 2001 – November 200) This recession occurred when tech IPOs and stock prices became grossly overvalued. The recession started when the stock prices of internet companies crashed as the Fed began raising interest rates in 2000.

The Great Recession 2008 (December 2007 – June 2009) This recession was triggered by the subprime mortgage crisis and the collapse of the U.S. housing bubble. In 2007, subprime lenders were filing bankruptcy due to bundled bad mortgages loaded with borrowers unable to repay. Major financial firms went bankrupt, the stock market fell which triggered a global recession.

The Covid – 19 Recession (February – April 2020) is when more than 24 million people lost their jobs in the U.S. The stay-at-home orders by the government had an impact on businesses that is greater than any previous one. Tax and financial teams ahead of the curve on the adoption of software and technology were able to adapt and rebound more easily.

What We Learned From Our Private Conversations With CFOs and Tax Executives
Read More