FP&A Stories - πͺ 4 things assertive FP&A leaders do differently
Hello Reader πI took the Eurostar to London this Monday. In the queue at the boarding platform, a man tried to sneak past the line. Just as if he had somewhere more important to be. Which is already a mystery to me, because we all have assigned seats on the train so nobody gains anything by pushing to the front except the mild irritation of everyone around them. A woman stopped him, politely, firmly, without raising her voice. The logic was so obvious, the tone so calm, that the man turned around and the whole queue simply nodded. I have to be frank with you. For a long time, I would have handled that differently. I thought authority came from making people feel they had no choice. It took me years to understand that what I was doing wasn't assertiveness. It was just aggression with a business suit. So this week, I want to talk about what assertiveness actually means for FP&A leaders and CFOs β and what changes when you finally get it right. So take a coffee, sit down and read FP&A Stories just like 18k other readers This week in FP&A Stories πͺ 4 things assertive FP&A leaders do differently πͺ 4 things assertive FP&A leaders do differentlyAssertiveness β AggressionThat woman in the queue didn't win an argument: there was no argument. She made a point so clear, so grounded, that resistance would have looked absurd. That's assertiveness. And it has almost nothing to do with what most people think it is. Aggression and assertiveness feel similar from the inside. Both involve holding a position or pushing back. But one is built on the need to dominate, and the other is built on the position itself. The person on the receiving end knows the difference immediately, even when you don't. When you're aggressive, people go quiet in the room and ignore you outside of it. They stop bringing you problems because the conversation costs too much energy. The short-term win produces a long-term silence that is far more expensive. When you're assertive, people may push back or disagree. But they take the point seriously, because it was made seriously. Why FP&A leaders need this more than mostFinance is the function that has to say things the rest of the organisation doesn't want to hear.
These messages have to the ears of people who have interests that point in the opposite direction. An FP&A leader who can't hold a position under that kind of pressure will eventually have no influence at all. Because when something strong and logical needs to be softened, reframed or so dilluted that it won't change anything, it will become something people can live with but that might doom the company's future. Assertiveness is what keeps the message intact, and as a consequence, keeps your job's essence. Moments where it mattersI'm pretty sure that you'll recognise these uncomfortable moments in which you're torn between being too accommodating or too harsh in your response:
And humanly, it's always easier to choose between the two options (accommodating or angry). Because the person in front of you is often senior, often confident, and often very good at making you feel like the problem. That is exactly where assertiveness lives: you have to hold your position without being a jerk. 4 ways to hold your positionThese four steps work in sequence. Follow them in order. 1οΈβ£ Know your ground before the conversation starts Assertiveness under pressure requires that you already know where you stand. If you're still forming your view while someone is pushing back, you'll move. Decide in advance what you can support and what you can't, and why. 2οΈβ£ Name what is actually happening Vague discomfort doesn't produce change. If a rule is being bent, say so. If a deadline was missed, name it. If the same request is coming back for the fourth time, acknowledge it out loud. Precision is what makes the position impossible to dismiss. 3οΈβ£ Keep it about the facts The moment it becomes personal, you lose the argument even if you're right. The cost is OPEX because of what it is, not because of who is asking. That distinction keeps the conversation professional and keeps you in control of it. 4οΈβ£ Don't fill the silence After you've held your position, stop talking. The instinct is to soften, to add context, to leave a door open. Resist it. Silence is not disagreement. It is the other person processing the fact that you are not moving. What changes when you get this rightFor you personally, something becomes simpler because you already decided what your position is, which means you spend less energy managing your own discomfort in the moment. For the people around you, it becomes a reference point. Teams that watch their leaders hold positions respectfully learn that it is possible to disagree without damaging the relationship. For the company, the impact is concrete. Finance that can hold a point of view tends to get included earlier in decisions. That is the transition most CFOs say they want. Assertiveness is a large part of how it actually happens. Final Thought The woman in that queue didn't win because she was louder or more intimidating. She won because she was right, she knew she was right, and she said so without flinching. The queue felt it. So did the man who had to walk to the back. Most FP&A leaders I work with already have the right position. They have the data, the analysis, the experience. What holds them back is the moment between knowing something and saying it clearly in a room that doesn't want to hear it. Assertiveness is what closes that gap. Hit reply and tell me about a moment when you held a position that the room didn't want to hear β and what happened after. I read every message and reply to all of them. That's a wrap for this week See you next week!β P.S. After 17 years in FP&A, Consulting and Leadership, Iβve coached and trained finance teams across industries, from consulting and manufacturing to tech, media, and global logistics. If you want to sharpen your own storytelling skills or bring this work into your team, here are a 3 ways can work together:
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