bcg -能源首席财务官必须推动绿色转型 Energy CFOs Must Power the Green Transition

BCG

FINANCEFUNCTIONEXCELLENCE

EnergyCFOsMustPowertheGreen

Transition

By

AlexanderRoos

,

TimoGrund

,and

HendrikSchnelle

ARTICLEMARCH27,202515MINREAD

The

energytransition

isreshapingtheglobalenergylandscapeatunprecedentedscaleandpace—anddespitesignsofdeceleratingeffortinsomegeographiesandcountries,theglobalimpactof

themovementonmarketparticipantsissignificant.

Energycompanies,includingoilandgasplayersandutilitiesthatexplore,develop,produceand

distributetheenergythatpowerseverydaylife,areattheforefrontofthisnewreality.Thesepivotalstakeholdersmusttransformtheirportfolios,

operations,

andadministrationinsupportofa

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sustainabletransitiontowardanetzerocarbonfuture.Tofundthejourney,mostplayersmustattractanddeploycapitalinvestmentsatanunprecedentedscale.

Severalexternalfactorsmaketheeffortevenmorechallenging,includingtightening

environmental,social,andgovernance(ESG)andenergy-relatedregulations,costinflation,dividedinvestorexpectations,andthevolatilegeopoliticalandregulatorylandscape.

Chieffinancialofficers(CFOs)andtheirfinanceteamsplayakeyroleinguidingtheircompaniesthrougha

financiallysustainable,

value-enhancingenergytransition.Theymustbringarigorous,long-termvalueperspectivetothecriticalstrategicandtacticaldecisionmakingthatwilldrive

performanceandensuretheresilienceneedediftheircompaniesaretonavigatethetransitionsuccessfully.

Inthisarticle,weexaminehowenergyCFOsandtheirteamscanbestsupporttheircompaniesinmeetingthechallengesoftheenergytransition.

ManyCFOsintheenergysectorhavealreadyembarkedonajourneytoevolvetheroleofthe

financefunction.Butchangeneedstohappenevenfaster.RecentdatacollectedfromBCG’s

CFO

ExcellencePanel

showsthatthefinancefunctionsinmanyenergycompanyaretrailingtheirpeersinotherindustriesinbothefficiencyandeffectiveness.Gapsareemergingincapabilitiesthatareessentialtoeffectivelymanagecapitalspendingandtooptimizeoperationalandregulatory

performance.(SeeExhibit1.)Inshort,manyenergyfinancefunctionsarenotyetreadytomeettheincreasingrequirementsoftheenergytransition.

Toaddressthisshortfall,energyCFOsandtheirteamsshouldpursuethreeimperativesthatwillhelpshapetheircompanies’effortsandfuture-proofthefinancesupporttheircompaniesneed:

.Shapethestrategictransformationwithavaluelens.

.Driveperformanceandbolsterresilience.

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.Aspiretotop-levelfinancefunctionperformance.

ShapetheStrategicTransitionwithaValueLens

CFOsandtheirfinanceteamsshouldplayakeyroleinsettingafinanciallybalancedand

sustainablecoursefortheircompanythroughtheenergytransition.Todoso,theymustexcelinthreedimensions.

DynamicCapitalAllocationandEfficiency

Asenergycompaniesfaceunprecedentedinvestmentneeds,theirabilitytoprioritize,finance,andextractvaluefromcapitalinvestmentswillbecomeacriticalfactorintheirsuccess,particularly

giventhepastfewyearsoftightenedmonetarypoliciesandincreasedcompetitionforfinancing.Inthecontextofnewbusinessmodels,divergenttimelines,costinflation,andatighteningregulatoryenvironment,CFOsandtheirteamsmustemphasizeflexibilityinadaptinghowtheymanage

spendinginconjunctionwiththebusiness.Severalwinningmoveshaveemerged:

·EnhancedPortfolioTransparency.Establishadata-drivenviewofcurrentandfuture

projects,supportedbynext-generationplanningsolutionsthatfacilitatedynamicperspectivesandaidconsistentdatacapture,tosupportoptimalprioritizationofcapitalallocation

decisions.

·RigorousPrioritizationLogic.Usingconsistentcriteria,introducea“singlecurrency”

scoringandprioritizationlogicthatgoesbeyondspendingandfinancialreturns.Toprovidea

strongfoundationfortradeoffdecisions,adifferentiatedscoringsystemshouldconsider

variousinternalandexternalfactorssuchastheriskprofile,ESG,andregulations.Leadersinthisareaemployalgorithmsthatiterativelyoptimizetheinvestmentplaninlinewithclear

financialandoperationalconstraints.

·DirectiveBudgetaryEnvelopes.Providethebusinesswithclearbudgetaryenvelopesthatpermitdynamicprioritizationofinvestmentsatafasterpace,bothannuallyandthroughouttheinvestmentcycle,whileensuringstrategicalignmentattheportfoliolevel.

·NewProcessesandWaysofWorking.Drivefundamentalbehavioralchangethat

embracesthenewapproachandpromotesthenewtransparencyinday-to-daydecision

making.Inmanyorganizations,takingthisactionmayentailadoptingamoredisciplined

approachtoarticulatingandupdatingplansandclearlyframingandtrackingtheoutcomes.

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Inpractice,wehavefoundthatthelastmovenotedaboveisparticularlychallengingfor

organizations.Itcanaccountforasmuchas70%ofthechangeeffortandcanbeacrucialfactorindeterminingthesuccessoftheotherimprovements.

TransformativeEquityStory

Expectationsfromtheinvestmentcommunityhaveincreasedsignificantlyinrecentyears.In

response,CFOsandtheirteamsneedtotaketheleadincraingarobustinvestmentthesisthatcaterstotheinterestsofbothtraditionalandsustainability-focusedinvestors,drivingshareholderreturnbyblendingacommitmenttotraditionalprofitpoolswithrealisticandinspiring

decarbonization

initiatives.

Theproperbalancepointbetweenthesetwoendsofthestrategiccontinuumwillvaryfrom

companytocompany.Inanycase,however,CFOsshouldstrengthentheirinvestmentthesisalongseveraldimensions:

.Defineananchoringvisionthatoutlinesthestrategicdirectionandframesahigh-levelinvestmentthesis.

.Activelycommunicateeffortstotransformthebusinessthroughfull-potentialplansthat

balanceshorter-termreturnexpectations,suchasreturnonaveragecapitalemployedandreturnoninvestment,withlonger-termdecarbonizationefforts.

.Expandthesetofperformancemetricsfortrackingandcommunicatingcommitmenttoand

progressininnovationandsustainability.Investorswantclearproofthatcompaniescanlive

uptotheirpromises,especiallyinhigh-uncertaintyemergingmarketssuchashydrogen.

.Emphasizetransparencyinidentifyinglong-termcapitalneeds,anticipatedbottlenecksinfundingandtheirimpactonfinancialleverage,andplansforinnovativenewsourcesof

funding.

.Affirmanddemonstratecommitmenttosafeguardingdividendpayoutsandsharebuybacks.

·Highlightprogressofflagshipprojectsin

renewableandlow-carbonenergysources,

suchascostcurveimprovementandproject-levelprofitability,todemonstratetheireconomicviabilityandlong-termpotential.

.Clearlyarticulatekeyrisksandmitigationplans,includingtechnologicalandregulatoryuncertainty.

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Companiesshouldbepreparedtoprovideobjectiveevidenceofprogress,includingdetailedplansfortransformingtheirtraditionalbusinesses,realistictimelinesforinvestmentsinlow-andno-

carbonassets,andcertaintyaround

M&A

effortsinstrategicgrowthfieldssuchasgreentechnologies.

AdvancedM&A,Integration,andPartneringCapabilities

TheenergytransitionisspurringM&Aactivityaroundtheworld.Keydriversincludeacquisitionofrenewables,newinfrastructure,greentech,upstreamanddownstreamoperations,and

carve-outs.

CFOsandtheirteamsshouldbeengagedinthisprocessfromendtoend,andshouldbuildvariouscapabilitiestoeffectivelysupportit:

·Sourcing,Assessing,andExecutingonDeals.Aspartoftheduediligenceprocess,financefunctionscanhelpdeterminethestrategicfitofeachpotentialdeal,providingfinancial

analysisofthepotentialsynergiesandensuringthatallresultingdealsarewellstructuredandwellfinanced.AdvancedmodelingcapabilitiescanensurealignmentofM&Aactivitieswith

thecompany’slong-termfinancialandsustainabilityobjectivesandplans.

·PostmergerIntegration(PMI).Financeteamsshouldbuildthecapabilitiesneededtotakealeadingroleinplanningandexecutingvalue-accretivePMIefforts.ThesecapabilitiesincludehelpingmobilizediscretebutconsistentlymanagedPMItransformationprograms,ledbya

strongPMIoffice.Thefinanceteamshouldberesponsibleforidentifyingandprioritizingthevalueleversonwhichthedeal’ssuccesswilldependandshouldpushforactionsthatwill

createvaluequickly.Oenitisthefinanceteamthatneedstoensurethatvalueleversarerealizedinthelongrun,evenascompaniesmakeprogressinintegrationandreturnto

“businessasusual.”Atthesametime,thefinanceteamneedstopursueintegrationofthetargetcompany’sownfinancefunctionalongaclearroadmap,prioritizingoperatingmodel,process,andsystemsintegration.

·EffectivePostdivestitureCostManagement.Thefinancefunctionmustactivelymanageanypotentiallynegativefalloutfrom

divestitures.

Forexample,itmustidentifyanddisposeofstrandedcosts,suchasthecostofsowarelicensesorITinfrastructurethatarenolonger

needed.Thisisnotnecessarilyaone-offeffort.Transitionserviceagreementsmayextendthelifespanofunderlyingcostdriverssignificantlybeyondcompletionofthedivestiture.Financeleadersshouldpreventslippagebycontinuouslymonitoringcostsandbyensuringeffective

costtrackingandreporting.Theymustalsodevelopbudgetsthatanticipatesucheffectsanddriveaccountabilitytoavoidlong-termstrandedcosts,therebysafeguardingvaluedelivery.

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DrivePerformanceandBolsterResilience

TheenergytransitionrequiresCFOsandtheirteamstostepuptheirroleastrue“custodiansof

performanceandresilience.”However,timeshavemovedonfromaone-dimensionalviewofwhatthismeans.Financeleadersnowneedtointegrateacrossmanydimensionsofperformance,

includingfinancialandregulatory,sustainability,andsocietalimpact.Strengthsinthreeareasinparticulararecrucial:enhanceddecisionsupportandfullpartneringwiththebusiness;dynamicplanningandforecasting;andbalancesheetoptimization.

EnhancedDecisionSupportandFullPartneringwiththeBusiness

Financialsteeringrequirementsareincreasingrapidlyinthecontextoftheenergytransition,

drivenbyseveralfactors.Themarketandmacroeconomicenvironmentinwhichenergy

companiesoperateisbecomingmorevolatile,whichmakesplanning,budgeting,andforecastingfarmoredifficult.Moreover,companiesfacegreatercomplexity,owingtotheexpansionofmetricsthatneedtobeoptimized(suchasESG),increasinglycomplicatedregulatoryschemes,andmoreheterogeneousbusinessportfolios,valuedrivers,andtimehorizonsforinvestments.

Toaddresstheseproliferatingrequirements,energycompaniesmustuseabusiness-centriclenstofocustheirfinancedecisionsupport.Thismeans,first,understandingkeydecisionpointsand

valuedriversalongthevaluechain,and,second,criticallyassessingwherefinancecanandshoulddrivevalue.(SeeExhibit2.)

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Onthetacticallevel,CFOsandtheirteamsshouldexpandtheirperformanceframeworksandkeyperformanceindicators(KPIs)toreflectthenewpriorities,includingESG,andintroducedistinct

approachestomanagingtheperformanceofnewbusinessmodelssuchaslow-carbonenergy

sources.TheyshouldalsotiepersonalincentivesandaccountabilitytothenewKPIsandestablishnewroutinestocementnewwaysofworking.Oncetheproperfoundationisinplace,theyshouldselectivelybuildnewservicesinsupportofthebusiness,includingregulatorymodelingand

reportingandad-hocsimulationoftheimpactofexternalshocksonbudgetsandcarbonallowances.

CFOsalsoneedtofindwaystobringtheirfinanceteamsclosertoteamsinthefield.Onesimple

yeteffectivemeasurethatleadingcompanieshaveemployedisworkshadowing.Bypairingfinanceprofessionalswithcolleaguesfromthefieldforceandhavingthemworkside-by-sideforafewdays,thefinanceteamcangainabetterunderstandingofthedailydecisionsandvaluedriversthatareatstakeintheenergytransition.

DynamicPlanningandForecasting

Enhancedfinancialplanningandforecastinghasthepotentialtounlocknewlevelsofdecision

supportandrelieveenergycompaniesofresource-intensiveandoenslowprocesses.Here,too,abusiness-centricapproachtotheprocessandtoolsusediskeytotheeffort,asisarelentlessfocusonbusinesssupportandvaluegeneration.Businesscentricityrequiresteamstoinvestsignificantlyinunderstandingthebusiness’sneeds,includingthedecision-makingprocess,therelevantvalue

drivers,andtherequiredlevelofgranularity.

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Tothisend,companiesshouldconsiderredesigningtheplanningandforecastingprocessfromthegroundup—aninitiativewhere

BeyondBudgeting

toolscanhelp.Usingtoolssuchasvalue-drivertreestoidentifywhichelementsofthebusinessarecreatingvaluecanhelpcompaniescapturethespecificsofbothtraditionalbusinessesandnew,low-carbonbusinesses.Developingscenario-

planningandstress-testingcapabilitiescanhelpcompaniesplanforuncertaintyandvolatilityinthecourseoftheenergytransition,ascanshiingtodriver-oractivity-basedplanning.

Leadersinthisspacedeploypredictiveanalyticstoaugmenttheforecastingprocess,enhancing

theirabilitytospotmarkettrendssuchasretailcustomerchurnatanearlystage.Financeteamscanalsorolloutvariousself-serviceapplicationsforthecompany’sbusinessusers,withdrill-downcapabilitiesintoareassuchasopexdrivers.

Integratedtoolsuitesthatincorporateplanning,forecasting,andreportingwillbecrucialto

supportingtheplanningprocess,aswillcomplete,accuratedata.Companiesshouldbe

understand,mapout,andaddressdatasourcesandassociatedrisksearlyintheprocesstode-riskcostlysowareimplementations.

BalanceSheetOptimization

Respondingtotheenergytransitionandthecurrentvolatileeconomicclimatewilllikelyentailsignificantlyadjustingenergycompanies’portfolios—andthatinturnwillputpressureontheirbalancesheets.Toboost

balancesheetresilience,

CFOsandtheirteamsshouldconsiderthe

followinglevers:

·WorkingCapital.Enhancereceivables,payables,andinventorymanagementtopreserveheadroomforlow-andno-carboninvestments.Forexample,AI-enabledtools,canhelptopredictlikelyoverdueaccounts.

·CashandLiquidity.Improvecashplanningandforecastingtoavoidliquiditybottlenecksthatmightresultfrominvestmentswithinherentlychallengingcashflowprofiles.

·FixedAssets.Deployrigorouscapitalprioritizationattheprojectlevel,usinga

multidimensionallensthatincludesfinancialmetrics,strategicconsiderations,andlong-termvaluepotential.

·CapitalStructure.Safeguarddividendsandbuybacksbyoptimizingandsimplifyingthecompany’scapitalstructure—forexample,throughenhancedmanagementoftheweightedaveragecostofcapital.

·Financing.Deploytraditionalandnewmeansoffunding—suchashybridfinancingandgreenbonds—toappealtonewinvestorgroups,andoptimizethefinancingmixtobolstercreditratings.

·Partnerships.Considerco-developingandsharingbusinessesandprojectswithpartners,andinvestigatealternativebusinessandpartnershipmodelssuchasminorityshareholdingsanddevelop-to-flipbusinessmodelsforrenewablewindprojects.

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·RiskManagement.Developstrategiestomitigateanyfinancialrisksassociatedwiththetransitiontorenewablesbusinesses,suchashigherfinancingcosts.

Byemployingadifferentiatedapproachthatreflectsthedynamicsoftheenergytransitionandbypartneringcloselywiththebusinessalongthesedrivers,financeteamscanhaveasustained

impactonthecompany’sfinancialperformance,ultimatelyfreeingupcashtofundthetransition.

AspiretoTop-LevelFinanceFunctionPerformance

AnefficientandeffectivefinancefunctioncanbethebackboneoftheCFO’sroleintheenergy

transition,leadingtostrongerfinancialdecisionmaking,alowerfinancefunctionexpenses,and

betterregulatorycompliance.Toachievethis,leadingCFOsandtheirteamsareimprovingfinanceoperations,partneringbetweenfinanceandthebusiness,andadvancingcentersofexcellencefortax,treasury,audit,andinvestorrelationsinthreepriorityareas.

DigitalandAIEnablement

Enterpriseresourceplanning(ERP)systemupgradesstilldominatethedigitalroadmapsofmanyenergycompanies,butthepotentialofpredictiveAIandgenerativeAI(GenAI)hasbeenfrontofmindforenergyCFOsoverthepasttwelvemonths.Althoughthesetechnologiesarenascentin

mostfinancefunctions,weexpecttoseeagradualshifromexperimentingwithindividualuse

casestowarda“stringofpearls”approachtodriveefficiencyandeffectivenesswithinthecomplexfinancesystemslandscape.

Improvingtheend-to-endperformanceofthefinancefunction’sprocesses,involvesviewingthe

function’stechnologymixthroughanintegratedlens,combiningERP,best-of-breedapplications,andpredictiveandGenAIsolutions.Thesetechnologyimprovementsmustbeaccompaniedby

changesintheoperatingmodel,includingprocesses,organizationalmodels,andwaysofworking.

Againstthisbackdrop,financeleadersacrosstheindustryaremodernizingtheirsystemslandscapebytakingactioninseveralkeyareas:

.Carryingoutlarge-scaleERPupgrades

.Deployingbest-of-breedapplicationstoaugmenttheexistingERPsuite

.Rollingoutplanning,forecasting,andreportingsuites,includingprocessoptimization

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.EvaluatingexistingERPandwidertechroadmapstoensureapipelineofwell-integratedAIcapabilities

.ImplementingpredictiveandGenAIpilots

.Buildingdatalakestoconsolidateperformancedataacrossdataassets

CommonpitfallsconfrontingITprojectsinfinanceincludetoonarrowafocusonbackward

compatibilityintryingtoreplicatelegacyprocesses;lackofbusinesscentricityandaclear

understandingofusers’requirements;inconsistentattentionduetodistractionsandoverburdenedteams;andunexpectedbottlenecksresultingfromissueswithdatacomplexity,availability,

accuracy,andreliability.

End-to-EndProcessExcellence

End-to-endprocessperformanceremainsanevergreentopicinthehandbookoffinancefunctionexcellence.Morethanever,however,companiesneedtotakeasystematicapproachtoboostingprocessperformance,employingamixoflevers.

First,leadingcompanieshavefullyinstitutionalizedtheprocessviewbyputtingglobalprocessownersinchargeofoverseeingend-to-endprocessperformanceandaligningtheorganizationaccordingly.

Second,theyactdecisivelytoreducecomplexityinmajorprocesses.Theseeffortsinclude

simplifyingunderlyingdatastructuresandoperatingprocedures—includingthefinancialchartofaccountsandapproachestoallocatingcosts—andpullingactivedemandmanagementlevers,

suchasreplacingbespokereportswithself-servicedashboardsandlimitingmanualcommentarybyintroducingvaluematerialitythresholds.

Third,well-establishedoptimizationlevers,suchastheuseofsharedservicecenters,continuetoplayacriticalroleinfinanceleaders'transformationagendas.Notably,thestrategicuseofsharedservicecentersforthefinanceteamisrapidlyshiingfromapure“costplay”toa“talentand

valueplay,”withkeyparticipantsexploringopportunitiestooptimizetheiroutsourcingandoffshoringstrategies.

NewTalentandNewCapabilities

Thefinanceteam’sskillrequirementsareshiingquickly,promptingchangesinhiringprofilesacrosstheenergyindustry.CFOsshouldbuildtheirteams’capabilitiesandindividualskills

systematicallyinadata-drivenfinancelandscape.Therangeofcapabilitiesneededwillcertainlywiden,demandingdifferentiatingexpertiseacrossthefinancefunction.Alreadytheyincludea

numberofcapabilities:

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.Adeepunderstandingofunderlyingbusinessprocesses.Regulatoryacumenandmodelingprowess

.End-to-endprocessengineeringandautomationknowledge

.Deepexpertiseinsourcing,manipulating,analyzing,andreportingfinancialdata

Specificcontentknow-howinareassuchasESG,taxissues,andInternationalFinancialReportingStandards

Tocloseemerginggapsintheircapabilitymix,financeteamsshouldlayoutneededcapabilitiesandconductga