New findings from the first-of-its-kind survey of Chief Financial Officers (CFOs) from across New Zealand shows a shift towards more people working from the office than a year ago, as New Zealand businesses work to establish what the ‘new normal’ for hybrid working looks like.

“Full findings from the inaugural Hunter Campbell Mood of the CFO Survey shows that 1-in-5 businesses have adopted stricter return-to-work policies in the last year,” says Infometrics Chief Executive and Principal Economist Brad Olsen. “However, there’s still an important balance to be struck when it comes to hybrid working – although it is shifting back towards the office.

“Over the last year, 41% of businesses reported that employees were working from the office more compared to a year ago, 43% said employees were working about the same from office and home as a year ago, and 8% said employees were working from home than a year ago,” says Mr Olsen.

“It’s not surprising to see a shift back towards the office, especially for larger organisations,” says Hunter Campbell Managing Partner Lee Marshall. “But flexible working and working from home still has many advantages – for staff and businesses – so finding the right balance will be important to ensuring businesses can attract and retain the best talent.”

The inaugural Hunter Campbell Mood of the CFO Survey was research was undertaken by Insights Exchange, and was developed by Hunter Campbell, in partnership with Tax Traders and Infometrics. The Hunter Campbell Mood of the CFO was established to ensure the voice of CFOs were heard, with CFOs being pivotal figures in business strategy and performance, constantly considering economic factors and are often the co-pilot to the CEO of the business. The Hunter Campbell Mood of the CFO had 173 respondents, gained from senior finance professionals via an online survey that ran between 13 June and 26 July 2024, and captured 600 verbatim responses.

The Mood of the CFO also captures insights into the use of AI. “Around 44% of businesses in the Hunter Campbell Mood of the CFO reported that they currently use AI, and a further 31% of businesses are considering using AI or actively researching this area,” says Tax Traders Co-Founder Nicola Taylor. “Tasks that CFOs are using AI for vary, with the three most reported tasks being language and spelling at 53%, task automation at 48%, and meeting transcription at 37%. There’s obvious room for more innovative and more detailed AI uses as businesses get to grips with what new technology offers”

This analysis follows on from the initial findings from the Mood of the CFO Survey, released on 3 September 2024 at the CFO Summit, which can be found here.

The full Hunter Campbell Mood of the CFO Report can be accessed here: https://www.huntercampbell.co.nz/mood-of-the-cfo/

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