What CFOs Actually Want in a Business Case: Insights from Three Billion-Dollar CFOs

Getting a deal approved at the CFO level requires more than a polished slide deck with impressive ROI numbers. In this session, three CFOs — from Gong, Drift, and Invoca — break down what they genuinely look for when a business case lands on their desk. You will learn why most business cases get dismissed as 'fluffy,' what questions CFOs ask to test whether numbers are real, and why coaching your internal champion is just as important as building the case itself. The CFOs share their consistent triggers, their skepticism toward long-horizon ROI claims, and why a committed champion who truly owns the numbers is the single biggest factor in getting a deal across the line.

Learning objectives

• Identify the core components CFOs expect in a credible business case, including cost, return, timeline, and risk
• Recognize the warning signs that cause CFOs to immediately dismiss a business case as unrealistic or fabricated
• Understand why phantom ROI — savings or productivity gains that are never committed to in the plan — destroys deal credibility
• Learn how to coach internal champions so they can defend the business case independently under CFO scrutiny
• Apply the practice of presenting a range of outcomes rather than a single precise number to signal analytical rigor

Key takeaways

• CFOs evaluate every business case through three lenses: how much it costs, what the return is, and how long it takes to realize that return — all three must be addressed
• Long-horizon ROI claims carry high risk in CFO eyes; faster, smaller returns are often more persuasive than large returns that take three or four years to materialize
• A business case built on productivity or efficiency gains is only credible if someone commits to a concrete consequence — reduced headcount targets, lower tool spend, or higher quota — otherwise it is a phantom ROI that increases costs on the P&L
• CFOs quickly identify when a champion is simply relaying numbers a seller handed them; if the champion cannot answer follow-up questions, the deal stalls immediately
• Presenting a realistic range of outcomes signals that the seller and champion have genuinely stress-tested the assumptions, which builds CFO trust
• Sellers who invest time understanding what a specific CFO values and what triggers their skepticism give their champion a significant advantage in the approval process