Marks and Spencer and Tesco demonstrate that the role of the modern CFO does not stop at finance but extends into every aspect of retail.

In the last few weeks, two well-known retail finance directors, or CFOs as they are often denoted, have had their remit widened. Alan Stewart at M&S, unfortunately rather shortly before the announcement of his move to Tesco, took on property. Lindsay Page (the man closest to the ‘closest man to Ted’) took on the additional role of chief operating officer at Ted Baker.

Now the role of the CFO in any business is pivotal – I would say that, wouldn’t I, because I used to be one.

However, it is especially true in retail where there are lots of numbers to look at. In fact, sometimes all we see are the numbers, and we forget about the retail proposition and consumer experience.

So the role of the CFO in retail is as important to the business as the other directors who buy the product, create the store environment and the look and feel of the website. Furthermore, where the retailer is a public company, the CFO is expected to be able to articulate the investment case with equal strength and passion.

But as we have seen with these recent announcements, the sphere of operation for many a CFO isn’t just finance. For example, in my first role as a CFO many, many years ago, the standard view was, as the finance person uses a computer and most of the rest of the business doesn’t, we will give him the responsibility for looking after IT.

In my time as a CFO in various businesses I had management responsibility for a multitude of non-financial functions including warehousing and distribution, customer repairs, sales desk, property, store design and even a door-to-door debt collection agency.

In the 1990s at Selfridges, as we transformed what was ‘Grace Brothers’ on Oxford Street into the glamorous store you see today, the finance role required someone not only to raise the money, but to present the vision of what it would be once the money had been spent to all stakeholders whether they were investors, suppliers or employees. We had a cynical audience at that time because department stores were viewed as the dinosaurs of the industry.

So the broad remit for CFOs is not a new trend, but perhaps underlines the importance of senior finance people having ambition beyond the numbers.

It’s easy to criticise a business just based on numbers but, when you too have been faced with the challenges of operational management, your credibility rises within the organisation. You learn a massive amount too – about people, dealing with operational problems, the reality of giving proper customer service and how, in a retail business, success is all about the entire package of proposition, product, environment and routes to market.

All of which helps, of course, if one day you want ultimately to become a CEO.

  • Peter Williams is chairman of Boohoo.com and a former chief executive of Selfridges