VALUE & UPGRADING: From an executive hiring perspective, we have seen an increased focus on the importance of the tax function over the last two years. This correlates with the increase in the percentage of tax leaders feeling their function is valued. Many mandates have focused on elevating the “brand” of tax internally and ensuring tax leaders have strong stakeholder management skills to drive engagement both internally and externally where needed.
CHALLENGES: Regulatory scrutiny is at the top of the agenda for the year ahead, closely followed by cost. Interestingly cost was also a top-three challenge expected by respondents from our CFO leadership survey, highlighting the need to do more with less.
COMPENSATION: On a personal level, most tax leaders’ compensation either remained flat or had a moderate increase for 2020. 58% feel fairly compensated relative to market peers however, compared to peers internally, many feel under-compensated.
