In 2025, CFOs did not chase growth. They protected it.
Capital remained cautious. AI moved faster than most organizations could operationalize it. Hiring slowed, but expectations of finance leadership expanded. CFOs were asked to steady the business, modernize systems, manage risk, and support long-term strategy, often simultaneously.
The year was defined less by bold bets and more by disciplined tradeoffs:
- Alignment mattered more than acceleration
- Optionality mattered more than certainty
Many of the decisions CFOs made under those conditions are now shaping how companies are entering 2026.
The 2025 U.S. CFO Survey captures how finance leaders navigated that environment, and what those priorities reveal about the year ahead.
Inside the Modern CFO Role
The 2026 CFO Report reveals a profession in transition. CFOs are taking on broader mandates while navigating increased economic scrutiny.
Throughout 2025, CFOs largely operated in a holding pattern. Rather than reacting to short-term volatility, they focused on maintaining stability while preparing for multiple possible futures.
- Nearly 80% of CFOs described the economic environment as neutral or negative, making them cautious and highly selective about spending.
- Only 21.3% expressed confidence in the broader economy.
That uncertainty shaped how CFOs approached risk. Instead of pulling back entirely, they recalibrated where capital and attention were deployed, balancing near-term discipline with long-term flexibility.
The report also found that about 87% manage functions beyond finance, most commonly:
- HR/People
- Legal
- Strategy
Only 12.4% manage finance and accounting alone. However, Financial Operations consumes 43.8% of their weekly time.
This balance — maintaining discipline today without limiting strategic flexibility tomorrow — became the defining tension for CFO decision-making throughout 2025.
>> The takeaway: CFOs entered 2026 less reactive, more deliberate, and focused on preserving strategic options.
Equity Management: A Core Operation
For CFOs, equity management is a core part of the operational load. CFOs noted three top challenges:
- Employee education (value, vesting, tax implications)
- System complexity
- Compliance and legal issues
Most CFOs are updating their cap table at a regular cadence, with quarterly updates being most common (31.6%), followed by monthly (25.3%).
However, about 15% of CFOs noted only updating before funding rounds or major events. This could risk slowing down funding rounds. Learn how Fidelity Private Shares’ Cap Table and Equity Management Platform can help keep you fundraise-ready.
Due Diligence Gaps
Despite 72% of CFOs reporting they are fully or mostly prepared for due diligence, a deeper look reveals possible gaps.
One in four CFOs has never conducted an internal risk assessment, and among those who have, not all do so regularly. Assessment discipline varies widely by stage:
- Early‑stage companies show the highest gaps
- Even later‑stage teams—such as Series C and Series D—demonstrate surprising inconsistency, with up to 35.7% never having assessed risk.
For CFOs preparing for a transaction or funding event, maintaining a clean cap table and an organized data room remains one of the fastest ways to close this readiness gap.
AI Is Everywhere — But Still Early
By the end of 2025, AI adoption was nearly universal. 92.9% of companies reported using AI in some capacity. Still, most organizations remained early in the journey from experimentation to meaningful integration.
The majority of companies fell into two categories:
- Running pilots
- Using AI in limited areas
Only 14.2% reported that AI was widely integrated or core to operations, underscoring the gap between interest and execution.
Generative AI emerged as the most influential technology for finance leaders, cited by 34.3% of CFOs. Traditional AI technologies collectively accounted for 40.8%. At the same time, nearly one-quarter of CFOs reported that none of the listed technologies had yet meaningfully impacted their role.
For many teams, AI in finance remained more experimental than transformative by the end of 2025.
Adoption varied by sector, with FinTech and HealthTech showing more advanced usage than consumer-focused companies. These differences highlight how industry context continues to shape the pace and depth of AI adoption.
CFOs Expect AI to Change Their Role, Even if Investment Lags
Despite cautious implementation, belief in AI’s long-term impact was overwhelming. 91.6% of CFOs expect AI to bring moderate to fundamental changes to their role within three to five years.
Investment levels, however, remained restrained. 78.1% of companies allocated 10% or less of total budget to AI and technology infrastructure, and 13% reported having no dedicated AI budget. Financial automation followed the same pattern, with most teams automating less than 25% of core workflows.
>> The takeaway: CFOs believe AI will transform finance, but 2026 will still be about readiness, governance, and change management.
Growth Plans Favor Discipline Over Aggression
Revenue expectations throughout 2025 remained measured, reflecting a cautious but controlled outlook. 42% of companies expected growth between 0-25%, while nearly one-quarter anticipated flat or declining revenue. Only 14.4% projected growth above 50%, underscoring how rare aggressive expansion plans had become.
Rather than pursuing growth at all costs, CFOs spent 2025 emphasizing control and execution. Growth strategies centered on improving performance within existing businesses, tightening operations, and prioritizing initiatives that could deliver returns without introducing outsized risk.
Organic growth was the most common focus across revenue ranges, followed by go-to-market optimization. For most organizations, this CFO growth strategy emphasized execution over expansion.
Where CFOs focused growth efforts:
- Strengthening core performance through organic growth
- Optimizing go-to-market execution before pursuing external deals
Mergers and acquisitions remained a secondary lever, becoming more viable only at higher revenue levels where internal growth alone may no longer be sufficient.
>> The takeaway: CFOs are entering 2026 focused on execution and efficiency over aggressive expansion.
Most Common Exit Strategies
The CFO Report reveals a clear sense of direction among PE‑ and VC‑backed organizations. Many finance leaders are positioning their companies toward acquisition‑based exits, with strategic buyers representing the most common path forward. Private equity remains nearly as active, continuing to play a major role in the market for strong, operationally disciplined businesses.
At the same time, a meaningful portion of CFOs plan to remain private and profitable, especially those prioritizing sustainable growth over near‑term liquidity. Mergers also remain an option for organizations seeking scale or efficiency.
IPOs, however, continue to be the least likely route as market conditions remain challenging.
Explore the Full CFO Survey
The insights above reflect how CFOs navigated a challenging year — and how these lessons are shaping priorities for 2026.
Download the full 2025 U.S. CFO Survey to dig deeper into the data behind these trends, with detailed breakdowns by company size, growth stage, and industry, along with deeper analysis of compensation, equity structures, governance, and investment strategies.
For finance leaders and operators planning the year ahead, the data can offer a clearer view of where peers are leaning in — and where they are pulling back.
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