GrowCFO Show

#262 How Relationship-Focused CFOs Gain Real Influence, Catherine Clark, GrowCFO Mentor

02 Dec 2025

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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r6TdUunLask .entry-img img{ display:none !important; } .single .hentry .entry-img{ display:none !important; } Influence is earned long before numbers hit the board pack. In this episode, Catherine Clark, GrowCFO Mentor, reframes influence as the practical outcome of deliberate connection. She and host Kevin Appleby unpack how remote and hybrid work have thinned everyday rapport, making it harder for finance leaders to shape decisions, mobilize teams, and retain talent. Their premise is simple: influence compounds when CFOs intentionally build trust, recognition, and emotionally intelligent dialogue across stakeholders. Catherine offers a playbook for finance leaders to operationalize connection: stakeholder mapping early and often, creating unstructured time for human conversation, signaling appreciation consistently, and showing up with presence—even through a screen. The episode highlights how small, repeated behaviors (gratitude, active listening, regular check-ins) turn into strategic leverage: faster alignment, better decision inclusion, higher engagement, and materially improved performance environments for finance teams and their partners. Key topics covered: Why remote/hybrid erodes spontaneous trust, and how CFOs can rebuild it with intentional routines Stakeholder mapping and early relationship-building as core influence mechanics, not “nice to haves Recognition and gratitude as low-cost, high-impact leadership signals that boost engagement and retention Emotional connection and presence (active listening, curiosity) driving performance and decision quality Practical cadence: unstructured touchpoints, pre-alignment conversations, and regular reconnection rituals Cultivating a culture of connection—small, repeatable behaviors that scale influence across the organization Links Catherine Clark on LinkedIn Kevin Appleby on LinkedIn GrowCFO Mentoring Timestamps 04:14 Remote/hybrid realities: the connection gap and its impact on leadership/retention 12:00 Relationship strategy: stakeholder mapping and early outreach to accelerate trust 27:42 Recognition and gratitude as influence multipliers 35:31 Emotional connection, interference removal, and performance outcomes 44:48 Building an organizational culture of connection and shared values 46:37 Final actions: small, consistent behaviors that compound into influence Find out more about GrowCFO If you enjoyed this podcast, you can subscribe to the GrowCFO Show with your favorite podcast app. The GrowCFO show is listed in the Apple podcast directory, Spotify and many others. Why not subscribe there today? That way, you never miss an episode. GrowCFO is a great place to extend your professional network. Join GrowCFO as a free member today and participate in our regular networking events and webinars. Premium members can also access our extensive training center and CFO Digital Toolkit. You can enroll in our flagship Future CFO or Finance Leader programs here. You can find out more and join today at growcfo.net

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3ª PARTE | 17 DIC 2025 | EL PARTIDAZO DE COPE

01 Jan 1970

El Partidazo de COPE

13:00H | 21 DIC 2025 | Fin de Semana

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12:00H | 21 DIC 2025 | Fin de Semana

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10:00H | 21 DIC 2025 | Fin de Semana

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13:00H | 20 DIC 2025 | Fin de Semana

01 Jan 1970

Fin de Semana

12:00H | 20 DIC 2025 | Fin de Semana

01 Jan 1970

Fin de Semana

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GrowCFO Show

#262 How Relationship-Focused CFOs Gain Real Influence, Catherine Clark, GrowCFO Mentor

This episode hasn't been transcribed yet

Other recent transcribed episodes

3ª PARTE | 17 DIC 2025 | EL PARTIDAZO DE COPE

13:00H | 21 DIC 2025 | Fin de Semana

12:00H | 21 DIC 2025 | Fin de Semana

10:00H | 21 DIC 2025 | Fin de Semana

13:00H | 20 DIC 2025 | Fin de Semana

12:00H | 20 DIC 2025 | Fin de Semana

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