These are demanding times for senior finance executives. Investors want higher returns. Regulators require more complete documentation of companies' compliance with stricter requirements. And in the face of stiffer market competition, business managers want more capital to invest in the business and more assistance in making investment and operating decisions for their increasingly complex businesses.

Companies and their stakeholders have always had high expectations for their finance teams. But this research program reveals that, most recently, these pressures- from regulators, from investors, and from competitors-are pushing companies to look for more from their finance teams in two main, but often conflicting, areas.